I met Eliana Negroni, who is the founder of Gioielli in Fermento, because of Paulo Ribeiro, the founder of JOYA Barcelona, in 2017. We organized an exhibition together during the JOYA 2017 edition, and later on, Eliana invited me to travel to Piacenza, Milano, and to attend Gioielli in Fermento 2018 preview: The Dinner, an interpretation of original jewelry pieces by Michelin-starred chef Isa Mazzochi. The jewelry pieces were international creations by Adrienn Pesti, Iro Kaskani, Rachael Colley, Marianne Schliwinski, Cristina Celis, and Maura Biamonti, paired with wines from Women of Wine from Emilia Romagna, all curated by Eliana Negroni.

Appreciating and understanding contemporary jewelry concepts through high cuisine and unique connections brought a new perspective to acquiring deeper knowledge on the topic. The event immediately sparked curiosity, and we invited Iza Mazzochi and her team to Ocaña Barcelona. This is how she became the first chef in our art residency.

The idea was to prepare an original Barcelona interpretation of exquisite jewelry pieces from the winners from Giorelly in Fermento at “four hands” with Ocaña´s chef Hannes Eberhard, who owns a long-term experience in Michelin-starred restaurant Alkimia in Barcelona.