A Greek Odyssey (NK by Nikos Koulis}

Nikos Koulis is daringly innovative. His latest collection ‘Oui’ where he has unapologetically used white and yellow diamonds with a smattering of enamels and emeralds is nothing short of edgy. “My jewellery is for women who are confident and want to express themselves with the jewellery they wear,” he says. Not a wonder why this first integrated bridal collection garnered the Couture Design Award in 2015 and 2016. Though I like my jewellery to be one of a kind, I like to play it safe and when I was browsing through his collections, his jewellery appealed to both my adventurous and traditionalist sides. I suppose that is the beauty of his jewellery.

Koulis comes from a family of jewellers, so jewellery designing is inherent to him. “I spent my childhood summers at my father’s workshop, playing with metals and gemstones. Creating things with my hands fascinated me.” An alumnus of GIA, he specialized in Gemology and Glyptography and created this eponymous brand in 2006. Though geometric, there is a semblance of playfulness in his creations – the tapered diamonds, emeralds and black enamel set in white gold earrings from the Oui collection particularly caught my attention.

In less than 10 years since the brand’s inception, Nikos Koulis opened his first conceptual boutique in Mykonos and his flagship boutique in Athens in 2014. The brand struck a chord with connoisseurs world over and today, his collections are retailed in 26 cities at the likes of Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Dover Street Market, and Colette to name a few. The spirit of NK can be seen through its ethos in craftsmanship; its aesthetics are classic and the colours are those that are found during the summers of Greek. “There is austerity in its form and shape and passion in finishing details and touches. The jewellery is highly influenced by Art Deco and I seek to create an everlasting bond between a piece of jewellery and its wearer.”

From its geometric form to the minimalist expression of austerity through natural gemstones such as emeralds, diamonds and rubies, Greek eloquence is etched all over his collections. “Stimulation from travels, people, art is intriguing, but I am always defined by my family, my home,my faith, my Greek multitasking way of thinking.” Though Nikos looks for inspiration from a variety of sources like architecture, nature, an exhibition, scenery, an artist etc, Greek summer is in his DNA, “It is omnipresent and its influence is apparent in my choice of colours and materials.”

The creative thought process of a jewellery designer has always fascinated me. How does an inspiration find its place in a sketch book? How does one decide what gemstones best convey the central theme of a collection? How are the stones going to seamlessly complement each other and how are they going to come together as a single piece of beautiful jewellery in production? “In every piece I create, I leave a part of myself, so there is a personal element and a lot of thought encapsulated in the resulting soul of the piece. It’s not only about the design; what excites me more is the production process. This is when I feel the most creative, when we experiment with materials, we ‘push’ our craftsmanship boundaries, and we give to each piece a sentimental value.”

Being abreast with trends in the realm of fashion, décor and even architecture is something fundamental in this line of business. Not for Koulis. “I have a heretic viewpoint. I disregard fashion! In my opinion, fine jewellery exceeds the boundaries of fashion. So I don’t have to follow the trends: I am inspired by all original creative spirits.” As is evident from his collections; they don’t succumb to the rules. If you look at one of his earliest pieces (the Necklace) from the “Universal Line” collection that debuted in Baselworld 2015, the marriage between emeralds, diamonds and moonstones is ethereal and free flowing in line with the Mediterranean spirit but he has kept his signature geometric style at the heart of his design.

This mélange of angles and curves, a little flirtation of diamonds with other natural gemstones and a brazen use of enamel are all what make NK truly unique. The jewellery is not for everybody and Koulis likes it that way. “There are so many brands and designers around the world, and some of them may have a common idea, but I’d rather have my specific audience and not a massive one.”

He doesn’t let out too much about his plans for the future, “A new boutique and more unique pieces that express my signature style.” Well, that is cryptic and full of mystery, just like his jewellery. Someone who brings so much passion and creativity to his art, I ask him what he thinks are some of the traits a jewellery designer must have and he says, “To seek for quality in his materials, craftsmanship in the details of his pieces, and timelessness in his designs.”

Among other things, he finds true inspiration from travelling. “I’m sure that India will blow my mind! A trip there is a priority in my 2018 calendar,” he signs off.