When we last spoke to Tania Candela, the visionary jeweller who creates unique pieces under the name Famaraspirit, we met up with her in her small home on one of the sandy back streets of Famara. A year later, she greets us at her brand-new premises in Teguise old town, a lovely little shop named CIAN that she runs with her partner Elena, a talented painter.
CIAN is a breath of fresh Famara air in the heart of the island’s artistic capital. It’s the perfect place for Tania to display her engaging and inspiring creations, which are created in Sterling silver and gold vermeil, and after just three weeks in the shop, she’s already created displays that show how an exquisite piece of jewellery is born, from initial inspiration to finishing touches.
CIAN is the Spanish word for cyan, the vivid blue-green colour that is a reference for all artists and designers. But it also stands for Coworking for Integration of Art and Nature, and this philosophy – so essential to Lanzarote – can be seen everywhere in the shop, where Elena’s paintings complement Tania’s jewels amid volcanic rocks, draped fishing nets and seashells.
A pair of elegantly abstract earrings are cast from orchilla, the lichen that grows wild on Famara’s cliffs and was once one of the most prized commodities in the world, sea urchins, shells and leaves also lend their shapes to ornate jewels, and Tania explains that another fascinatingly-shaped piece is cast from the dried skeleton of cactus leaf.
The shop also gives Tania the opportunity to display more sophisticated pieces and offer personalised service, something that was not possible at her market stall. She still attends the markets at Playa Blanca and Costa Teguise, but the Teguise shop “gives me the opportunity to really grow artistically.”
That’s not all that’s changed, either. Tania is studying once more at Arrecife’s Art school Pancho Lasso, where she first learnt her trade, and has nothing but praise for her teacher, who fights for jewellery to be recognised as an art form.
Not that anyone could doubt that after having seen Tania’s works, which are created using the lost wax casting techniques that ancient Inca jewellers employed.
They are intricate, beautiful and ornate, and you’re bound to find something you’ll instantly fall in love with. The internet is also a fundamental element of Tania’s business. You can see her work at www.famaraspirit.com
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