Discover the people, materials, making & values behind JAKHU
JAKHU creates sculptural jewellery, bringing contemporary design into dialogue with Peruvian craftsmanship. Founded in 2017, the studio works closely with silversmiths and local artisans in Peru, creating small-batch pieces using traditional jewellery-making techniques. Crafted primarily from sheets of silver, the pieces explore sculptural volume and presence while remaining remarkably lightweight. More than adornment, they exist in relation to the body, shaped by movement and light.
Materials
Silver is central to JAKHU’s practice. Long associated with the feminine, the moon and water, it resonates deeply with the studio’s relationship to nature, material and the body. Its fluidity and transformative qualities allow us to explore sculptural form, texture and movement.
Our jewellery is crafted primarily from sterling silver sourced in Peru. A significant portion of the silver we use is recycled, and we are continuing to increase its use across future Artisanal Collections.
Moon Drops — Collection 000 is crafted entirely from 100% recycled silver.
Making
JAKHU jewellery is made through close collaboration with skilled artisans and family-run workshops in Peru.
The Artisanal Collection is handcrafted in San Jerónimo de Tunán, in the Central Andes, in collaboration with a family of silversmiths whose jewellery-making knowledge and techniques have been passed down through generations.
For Moon Drops — Collection 000, we collaborate with different artisans and family-run workshops in Lima throughout the process, from the development of the moulds to the final piece.
Something of the maker remains in each piece. Shaped by the knowledge and care of the artisans, it also carries something of the place where it is made — Peru, the Central Andes and their powerful natural surroundings.
About the Designer
Born in rural Andalusia, southern Spain, Maria Bernal grew up surrounded by handmade objects and traditional ways of making. This early connection shaped her lasting appreciation for natural materials and a deep admiration for craftsmanship and the people behind it.
Her love of art, metal and sculptural objects, together with a search for jewellery that reflected her own aesthetic, eventually led her to begin designing her own pieces.
In 2012, during her first journey to Peru, Maria encountered Pre-Columbian art and developed a deep fascination with the country’s culture and heritage. As her connection with Peru grew, she was introduced to silversmiths in the Central Andes. Through these encounters and the relationships she developed with local artisans and communities, JAKHU gradually began to take shape, eventually leading to its founding in 2017.
Maria lives and works between Peru, Spain and the UK. JAKHU continues to evolve through an ongoing exchange between cultures, people and ideas, while remaining rooted in a passion for things made by hand.
