Per Hillo

 Artist

Per Hillo was reborn an Artist. His renaissance took an indirect route. In his first life, he had a profitable design company where he designed home accessories. He had all the trappings of a successful life and then one day, it all evaporated. Stress, depression and so many other factors brought him to the cross-roads of his life. Mr Hillo ultimately hospitalized himself and realized that he needed a distraction to quiet his mind. One day he began to paint..He taught himself color, technique, and how to transfer his internal images onto the canvas. He used his time at the Hospital to fashion a new life, a genuine one that embraced his regained hopefulness. The love of living became central to every theme. Instead of painting dark shadows of what his mind had seen, he expressed himself in bright, glorious colors.

Most of his creations emanate from his studio in Slagelse, Denmark. Per Hillo works within several genres: Paintings, sculptures, fabrics and installations. Per has created many bespoke commissions varying from painting a gallery floor to one of a kind installations at many Corporate head-quarters, including Pandora Jewel Company in Denmark.

Mr Hillo has also had the honor of presenting one of his sculptures to Her Majesty Queen Margrethe of Denmark ll and donating to a multitude of charities, including the AIDS foundation, Children’s Cancer and the Neel Resling Halpern foundation. Mr. Hillo has had numerous exhibitions around the world – and recently he was in New York as both an artist and a Lecturer on Art transcending depression.

 His artistry represents the romantic modern expressionists..”My art is about communication and about the way we interact”, Hillo explains. Per Hillo realizes the power of positivity, inclusion and above all, love.

Per Hillo’s works all embody an enthusiasm for life, very much like the Artist himself. When you meet him, you will feel his genuine passion for life and the celebration of love that is the at the epicenter of each of his works.

Per Hillo has an aura about him, his infectious joy draws you in and encourages to recapture that essence. His body of work therefore is inseparable from the man himself, it is exactly his spirit you see in each piece.His colors lift you up, moving into the realm we so often forget to cherish- genuine happiness. 

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Burtacin Balkan

Jewlery Designer and Product Development

A highly organized, and hands-on International Jewelry Designer. Vast experience in implementing new business. Concentration on development, project-management, sales and marketing.

Employment History:

August 2015 – Present:
Designer and  CEO, Burtacin Designs, Istanbul,Turkey

 July 2004 – August 2015:
Develop and designer of exclusive bespoke jewelry line. Supervision of the entire quality control systems, staff, trouble shooting, factories, manufacture control, marketing strategyand client communication.

Business Owner and Lead Designer at Burtacin Jewelry, Istanbul,Kyoto and New York

July 2007 – July 2012:
Specialized in 24 karat and unique hand-made and mold oriented mass production.Stores located in Grand Bazaar,Istanbul-Mott Street,New York and Sanetskaya Museum,Kyoto.Extensive knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, drawings, and models.Involved in all facets of strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources , leadership , production methods, and sales results. Attended major industry fairs in Munich, Basel,Bahrain, Arizona,New York, Tokyo,Osaka,Las Vegas,Istanbul,Thailand,Hong Kong, etc.

Executive  Consultant at Net Japan, Tokyo,Japan

September 1989 – July 2004: 
Appraisal of jewelry,meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.Mapping out trends of design from current jewelry marketplace.Expertise in diamond quality evaluation. Buyers Representative from Europe to Japanese wholesalers.

Co-owner and General Manager at Adler Jewelry Istanbul, Istanbul Hilton and Istanbul Ciragan Kempinski

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Ellen Wiggin

Designer

LexyLondon creates flattering, feminine clothes for grown-up women. 

Founded by Dutch-born stylist Ellen Wiggin, based in London, each carefully-crafted design is effortlessly stylish, wearable and fantastically flattering.

The brand ethos is simple: to create ageless, timeless, well-made clothes that don’t cost the earth. 

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Michala Brincker

Artist

Michala produce images and employs special effects to create her artwork. The final product looks very much like photographs and yet conveys a sense of surrealism.

Michala was born in Denmark in 1967’. She grew up in a wonderful, creative and adventurous family and throughout her childhood she sailed in the Swedish archipelago where the Northern light is breath taking and inspiring. She spent every summer holiday with her family in their beautiful summerhouse where drawing, playing and building rafts and tree houses were part of her daily life. During the winter she went skiing in the French Alps where she started experimenting with her camera.

As a contrast to the liberal and creative environment she enjoyed at home, she attended an international school in Copenhagen run by Catholic nuns.

Her mother was a graphic designer, her father an entrepreneur and her grandfather founded a publishing company, focusing on comics and children’s illustrated books published all around the world so story telling and looking at images have had a great impact on Michala’s life.

Michala has lived in many countries and has been inspired by many different cultures; she speaks Danish, Swedish, English, German and French.

Even though is was written in the stars that Michala should go the creative way she insisted on taking a BBA in International Business & Marketing and as she was very fascinated by the digital opportunities she also took a Multimedia Computing Art & Business education.

Within art Michala is self-taught she combines her drawing techniques with her digital computer skills. She creates the artwork in layers (sometimes up to 500 layers), which takes a lot of time – but it also gives the viewer a 3D type of effect making the images pop out of the painting and making the art look alive.

Michala tries through her art to touch peoples heart, every art piece tells a story of it’s own. She uses animals in her artwork and gives them a soul. She uses love and humanity, as a political statement. She makes art about environmental issues and much more. 

At the age of 21 Michala survived a severe accident, which took years of training to recover from. It was a very hard time for Michala but also a gift, as it made her look at life in a very different way. Still today Michala faces challenges in her daily life due to her accident. Michala’s job is her hobby and life is her greatest inspiration.

Artist statement:

It has taken years to arrive at where I am now and it’s still a lot of fun! I absolutely love what I do – I’m so grateful that the universe has been so kind to me. Life is a learning process and I develop new skill every day. I’m so thankful that I’m able to do what I love.

Visit Michalas website for further information and viewing of her art pieces:

BOHCHA

Bags

BOHCHA BAGS – AN INSPIRATION OF LEATHER AND IKAD
The brand focuses on a combination of leather and Ikad fabrics in different styles giving various options for use. Ikad has been part of middle eastern culture since the 15th century and the silk and velvet textures, once a symbol of power and prestige, have inspired the designer, Tuba Evrengil, to transport it into our modern lives.

Tuba Evrengil, the designer of Bohcha bags , was born in Istanbul in 1967.
She is graduated from French high school Notre Dame de Sion and Bosphorous University in Istanbul.

She worked as Import Manager of Kelvinator American brand electrical appliances in Istanbul. She worked in e commerce business for 11 years and gave consultancy to Limango German e commerce company in Istanbul office.
After the closure of Limango’s office, she decided to quit the professional life.
She started to design Bohcha bags in 2015. Inspiring from her grand father’s leather business, she designed bags with precious fabrics and Turkish leather.

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Mama Vodka

MAMA VODKA was established in 2005 in Copenhagen, Denmark by a Danish business developer, traveller and vodka connoisseur.

MAMA VODKA was more than four years in the making.Quality is the code word during the whole process of creation – best raw ingredients, traditional production methods, high class Danish design.

MAMA VODKA is made on 100% rye, clear spring water extra filtred and has gone through the destillation process five times for a clean, smooth experience. The taste isconsequently more pure and mild, but also distinct.

MAMA VODKA, Super Premium Quality, 40%. The beautiful crystal bottle is custommade Danish design by MAMA VODKA.

Every bottle is secured by hand to ensure optimal expirence of the high quality of MAMA VODKA.

Machaby Gin
Classic, Italian organic Gin made on carefully selected botanicals ? A rich, yet amazingly smooth and round experience ? Distilled in the beautiful area of Machaby mountain ? MACHABY GIN is an Italian lovestory in a glass. 

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Setenay Özbek

Artist

Art – A Bridge Towards Peace and Love.

Turkish artist Setenay Özbek’s words are the best confirmation that the International Art Studio “Radovan Trnavac Mica” is an integral part of the optimistic vision of multiculturalism, which clears the way towards the unification various ethnic and cultural groups through accepting and respecting different cultural models. For Setenay, art is “a contribution to peace and core values.” She says that “art is a capable of establishing and maintaining relations between different cultures and help the preservations of peace and love in the world.” It is, therefore, quite obvious why one of her paintings has been entitled love.

Setenay Özbek is a multi-talented artist whose interests range from painting on one side, all the way over to literature and cinematography on the other. Ofcourse, painting has always been her main interest and most important tool of communication.

The initial impression of Setenay’s work, even before attempting to scrape under the surface of her artistic tale, lies in her uniquely Turkish, Oriental colours compacted through her artistic handwriting temperimental. No modern art devotee is immune to the powerful impressions of her canvases. Art critics quite righteously noticed thet her paintings are “a reflection of an expressionistic purgatory, with canvases drenched in energy.” The energyin question is potent, almost masculine. The occasional triangular shapes that the artist paints are symbol of such energy, although Setenay also applies the techniques of calligraphic abstraction in her work.

Turkish artist canvases have turned into a harmonic outcry of colours and are nothing more than a reflex. One gets the impressions that the colours in her art seem to gush out of the very spring of her soul. The backgrounds, mostly white, black or gray, have a soothing effect on he viewer and at the same time bring out the main motifs through an emphasized contrast of colours and light.

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Ece Sirin

BeeGoddess jewlry

Bee Goddess’s Founder and Creator Ece Sirin’s journey began when she
discovered the power of symbols, and since then she has been on a
mission to share that power with the world through her exquisite fine
jewellery collections.

Today, Bee Goddess encompasses 16 collections with 92 (and growing)
sacred symbols. The pieces have a confident, contemporary aesthetic,
beautifully crafted in Europe from 14k and 18K gold and set with VS1-
H diamonds. Other precious stones used: emeralds, rubies and sapphires.
These are classic, cool pieces that are effortlessly wearable for any
occasion. Both Sirin and the brand have won multiple international
awards, including being nominated as a Visionary by the Telegraph
Luxury in 2015. And Elle Style award in 2012 when the brand was
recently launched.

With four stores in Turkey, and global distribution in the finest
boutiques including Harrods in London, Bee Goddess is adored and
worn by some of today’s most powerful and stylish women – including
Donna Karan, Cate Blanchet, Madonna, Kate Moss, and Rhianna.

Ece’s vision for Bee Goddess is to redefine why and how we wear
jewellery. Ancient, timeless symbols are woven throughout her
collections, taking the wearer on a spiritual and mythological journey
towards their inner divinity. The archetypal symbols act as keys to
connect to our inner nature, unlocking the power of our subconscious
and reflecting the true wisdom of the soul.

Bee Goddess derives its name from the mother of all Goddesess from
Catalhoyuk, known to be the first settlement in the world in 7500BC.
This Great Mother is the embodiment of love and compassion,
creativity, wisdom, beauty, power and grace.

Ece believes that as modern women: mothers, sisters, daughters, friends,
wives, partners, lovers, creators… we have many roles, many faces, but
our greatest face has yet to be revealed to the world. Insıde us a pure
force exists, our inner goddess, that needs to be released so we can walk
on a path that others will worship.

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Çiğdemler Yapanar

Artist

 Çiğdem Yapanar was born in Istanbul. She has started working sclupture in 1992 at Irfan Korkmazlar Studio. She attended Sakine Cil’s Atelier at Bogazici University and worked ceramies. Later at Marmara Universit she worked carving with educator Ziyatin Nuriev. Since 2000 she has been working at her own atelier.

Yapanar works with various materials including bronze, glass, brass sheet and wood and they are mostly in from of human figures.

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