Photography and Styling by me, Alain Simic

Jewelry by Erica Courtney

Model is Jayne Moore

Hair by Leslie Wisdom

Makeup by Evyta Soendoro

Photo Assistant is Natasha Digius

Consider it one of the pandemic’s few (sterling) silver linings: New York City Jewelry Week, which runs through Nov. 22, is now open to all jewelry lovers, regardless of location.

As with so many things in 2020, the event has been recast as a virtual gathering with programming accessible through its website.

“We have about 120 events and exhibitions in seven days, and the schedule runs all day,” said J. B. Jones, a co-founder of the week, now in its third year. “People always say, ‘It’s too much, we can’t go to them all,’ but that’s not the intention. When people tune in during New York City Jewelry Week, I want them to be forced to confront something about jewelry: how it’s made and why it’s important to the community, to the economy and to humanity.”

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For 2020, NYCJW's Director of Cultural Diversity and Inclusion, Elliot Carlyle, partnered with photographer Alain Simić to create a series of editorial images celebrating several New York-based Black creatives.

Among the jewelers represented in this project are Lorraine West Jewelry, Aziza Handcrafted (whose jewelry is pictured in the photo above), Johnny Nelson, L’Enchanteur and AUR Jewelry.

“I was extremely happy when NYC Jewelry Week agreed to collaborate with me to produce this spread of images highlighting the work of several talented Black jewelry designers, each of whom celebrate their identity and heritage through designs that are strikingly beautiful,” Simić said.

“It is a shame that more attention has not been paid to these designers in the past—and there are many more who still do not have the recognition they deserve—but I am hopeful that these images and the support of NYC Jewelry Week will help give each designer broader reach and a new set of customers who would have otherwise not known about them or their beautiful work.”

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The global spread of the coronavirus pandemic caught many officials of tradeshows, fairs and festivals by surprise and they found themselves scrambling to host their events on virtual platforms. However, the two founders of New York City Jewelry Week (NYCJW) were more prepared than most to go digital.

“We decided back to go virtual back in March even though at that point we still didn’t know what was happening,” said Bella Neyman, co-founder of the annual jewelry festival. “We started engaging with our audience on Instagram and planning for a new type of jewelry week early on.”

The third annual NYCJW will be held November 16 – 22 and will include live and recorded conversations, panels, exhibitions and workshops. These individual events will be broadcast across a number of virtual platforms, including Zoom, YouTube, InstagramLive and on the NYCJW website.

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Join NYC Jewelry Week’s Director of Diversity & Inclusion Elliot Carlyle for a special edition of his weekly IG LIVE series HERE WE ARE: Conversations with photographer Alain Simic. Elliot and Alain will talk , life, jewelry and their recent photoshoot collaboration in support of HERE WE ARE.

HERE WE ARE: Conversations are un-rehearsed, raw and real conversations with makers, innovators, influencers and thinkers from within and outside of the jewelry industry speaking about the intersections of life and business. With a focus on NYCJW’s platform HERE WE ARE, the series often features supporters who have played a role in the platform’s expansion or jewelers who the platform seeks to provide visibility for.

Prior to starting his career as a commercial photographer, Alain spent years as a freelance photojournalist with a focus on human rights concerns before he worked as a producer for photographers like Steve McCurry. After some time, he started working for a studio that had many jewelry clients, and when he left to start his own business about two years ago, several of those clients decided continue working with him. He saw a need for high-quality jewelry photography and decided to step fully into that niche.

In this episode, we discuss topics like:

• What is unique about photographing jewelry, and why should a jewelry brand work with a photographer who specializes in it?

• What are the different types of jewelry photography, and why does each one matter?

• What are the characteristics of good jewelry photography?

• What role does photography play in a jewelry brand’s marketing strategy? Why is it so important?

• When they’re searching for a photographer, what should jewelry brands look for?