Award-winning master jeweler, Claudio Pino, is world-renowned for his breathtaking sculptural and kinetic rings. His intricate designs appear in mainstream films such as The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and Stephen King’s The Dark Tower.
Photo credit: Arkan Zakharov
Award-winning master jeweler, Claudio Pino, is world-renowned for his breathtaking sculptural and kinetic rings. His intricate designs appear in mainstream films such as The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and Stephen King’s The Dark Tower. Since earning his Master Jewelers Diploma in 1995 from the EMSOM Jewelry School of Montreal, Pino is exclusively dedicated to creating one-of-a-kind, contemporary fine jewelry. From concept to design to piece-by-piece fabrication, along with stone cutting, faceting, and setting, he executes his creative process with passion and dedication born from an extensive study of jewelry design through varied cultures and societies.
Pino has studied the origin of jewelry with the First Nations of North America, deepening his artistic talent as he melds his own modern aesthetic with ancestral techniques he learned from artists of different First Nation communities. Furthermore, to gain a better understanding of the significance of engagement rings, Pino ventured to Egypt to examine the largest collection of ancient Egyptian jewelry in the world at the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities and at The Great Library of Alexandria. This collection includes one of the earliest engagement rings in history, owned by Queen Aah-Hotep, the mother of Ahmose I. The experience of personally viewing the jewelry of the Pharaohs, combined with illuminative meetings with well-known antiquities specialists, has inspired Pino’s worldview on ancestral customs and symbolism in relation to love, all of which he incorporates into his work. These studies were made possible thanks to The Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
Awarded The Steele Trophy for Best Jewelry Design in Canada in 2009 from the Metal Arts Guild of Canada, Pino has earned the distinction of being a master of all metal. Yet he finds his greatest joy in manipulating platinum, palladium, gold, Argentium, and silver to evoke their poetry. Whether exploring systems in motion, the metamorphosis of insects, or the pace of urban life, his passion awakens first in the transformation of the raw material.
In 2009, to deepen his knowledge of the history of engagement rings, Pino went to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, which contains the largest collection of Ancient Egyptian jewelry in the world. Seeing the Pharaohs’ jewelry and meeting with well-known specialists allowed him to better understand the ancestral techniques and to learn more about the symbolic importance and origin of the engagement ring. This project of research and creation was made possible thanks to the Conseil des arts et lettres du Québec.
Moreover, in 2011, Pino received a long-term grant from the Canada Council for the Arts to attend Holt Academy Jewelry in London England, where he pursued a master’s degree in the study of platinum under the guidance of Master Jurgen J. Maerz, former director of Technical Education for Platinum Guild International, USA. Later, in 2013, he completed professional training on stone faceting at the Ashton Gemstones Studio in California.
Pino’s collections have appeared in such museums as The Carnegie Art Museum; The Houston Jung Museum; the Museum of Vancouver; Santiago Decorative Arts Museum; and in prestigious galleries, including Aaron Faber Gallery and The Forbes Galleries, both in New York; Reinhold Jewellers, Puerto Rico; Mobilia, Cambridge; Velvet da Vinci, San Francisco; 18Karat Studio+ Gallery, Toronto; Bertin Toublanc, Paris; Elegance, Taipei; Noel Guyomarc’h, and Galerie de la Guilde Canadienne des métiers d’art, Montreal; L.A. Pai, Ottawa; and Für Schmuck Meister und Margarita, Frankfurt am Main. He’s participated in international fairs since 2000, including SOFA Chicago, SOFA New York; JOYA OFF, Barcelona; Cheongju International Craft Biennale; Hong Kong International HKIJMS; and at juried exhibitions during The SNAG Annual Conferences, namely the Ring Show in Savannah and Innovation Show in Denver, as well as Putting the Band Back Together: The Ring Show in Savannah.
His rings are featured in numerous publications, including the books Lark Jewellery Books: 1000 Rings: Inspiring Adornments for the Hand, 500 Wedding Rings: Celebrating a Classic Symbol of Commitment, 500 Gemstone Jewels; as well as in the book New Rings: 500+ Designs from Around the World by Nicolas Estrada; Steampunk Jewelry By Spurgeon Vaughn Ratcliffe; Such Capable Hands by Pat Robinson Schmidt; Masters of Jewellery Design in Canada by Cora Golden; The Art of Soldering for Jewellery Makers: Techniques and Projects by Wing Mun Devenney.
In 2013, he unveiled his first book, “The Power of the Rings”. This hardcover includes an introduction by Maegen Black, Administrative Director of the Canadian Crafts Federation.
Also in 2013, Pino’s rings were chosen to be worn by characters played by Stanley Tucci and Lenny Kravitz in the blockbuster Hunger Games: Catching Fire. He worked with the Lilian Raji Agency and collaborate with the world stylist Trish Summerville. And in 2017, his rings again were chosen to appear on the big screen with the movie, The Dark Tower.
Claudio Pino’s work is always recognized for the Pino-esque way of transforming raw materials into kaleidoscopic works of fluid art.
— Lilian Raji
2016, Professional Palladium Bench Diploma Montreal, Canada. Professor: Chris Ploof
2013, Gemstone Faceting Training Certificate,
Ashton Gemstones Studio, Petaluma, CA, USA. Professor: Larry Mattos
2011, Platinum Jewellery Master Certificate,
Holt Academy of Jewellery, London, UK.
2011, Professional Platinum Bench Technician Diploma,
Platinum Expert Consulting and Educational Service,
Professor: Jurgen J. Maerz, USA.
2003, Advanced course lapidary faceting
CMAQ, Conseil des métiers d’arts du Québec, Montreal, Canada.
2001-2002, Research internship in Mineralogy & Gemology,
Museum of Natural History, Albuquerque, USA.
2000-2001, Certificat, Lapidary
École de Joaillerie de Montréal, Montreal, Canada.
1993-1995, DEP, Professional diploma in jewelry
École des métiers du Sud-Ouest de Montréal, Montreal, Canada.
2022 – Bourse de recherche et création (1 an), métiers d’art Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. Thème : email sur métaux.
2019 – Prix d’excellence Jean-Marie-Gauvreau Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec. 2019
2019 – Subvention de recherche et création Conseil des arts du Canada
2016-2017 – Bourse de recherche et création (1 an), métiers d’art Claudio Pino. Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. Thème : Métamorphoses de papillons et etudes du palladium
2015 – NICHE Awards Finalist. Prix international pour le meilleur design Joaillerie : La bague Floraison Mystique Jury : NICHE, Rosen Group, États-Unis
2014 – Conceal/Reveal Contest – 3ième place Prix national pour le meilleur design Joaillerie : La bague Caméléon
2014-2015 – Bourse de recherche et création (1 an), métiers d’art Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. Thème : L’hiver au Québec, un jardin de cristaux de glace 2014-2015
2014 – Bourse de déplacement en Allemagne, métiers d’art Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec Participation à l’exposition solo “Power of Rings” Galerie Für Schmuck Meister und Margarita Frankfurt, Allemagne.
2014 – EIP Best Design. Jewelry: Chameleon Ring.
Metal Arts Guild of Canada. National Contest, Canada.
2014 – 2015 NICHE Awards Finalist. Jewelry: Ring Mystical Flowering
Floraison Mystique. NICHE, Rosen Group. International Contest, USA.
2014-2015 – Grant Research and creation (1 year). Crafts. Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. A research project on the contemporary lapidary and the creation of an exclusive collection of rings with gems that I cut sculpturally exploring the theme: Winter in Quebec – an ice crystal garden.
2013 – Israel Pearl Design Contest, Océanne Ring. Best design.
Unity Group. International Contest, Tel Aviv, Israel.
2013 – Travel Grant in Chile. Craft. Conseil des arts du Canada.
Participation in the international exhibition at the Museum of Decorative Arts in Santiago.
2013 – Travel Grant in Chile. Craft. Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
Participation in the international exhibition at the Centro Cultural Scuola Italiana.
2012 – Travel Award in the United States. Crafts. Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
Participation in the Québec exhibition at Galerie Aaron Faber Gallery, New York, United States.
2011-2013 – Fellowship, Research, and creation – long-term development (2 years) Contemporary Crafts. Canada Council for the Arts. Through this fellowship, I obtained a Master’s in Platinum Jewellery from the Holt Academy in London, England, and received intensive training from expert master M.Jurgen J. Maerz, director of education techniques of international Guild platinum and Jewelry Industry Consulting LLC in the United States. Also, I realized my first exclusive collection of sculptural rings in platinum.
2011 – EIP Best design, Bague Tactus.
National Contest. Larger than Life: Metal Arts Guild of Canada Exhibition in Print 2011.
2011 – Special Prize “Jewelry Design Special Award”, Golden
Shadow Ring. International Contest. Cheongju International Craft Biennale, Korea.
2009 – The Steele Trophy Award. 1st place – Best jewelry design.
Infinité Ring. The Metal Arts Guild of Canada.
2009-2010 – Fellowship, research, and creation (1 year). Crafts.
Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. A research project to deepen my knowledge of the history of engagement rings in the Cairo Egyptian Museum and the creation of a collection of contemporary engagement rings.
2008, Honorable Mention. Metamorphosis Ring.
Zilberschmuck, Toronto, Canada.
2007, Prize of Excellence. Ocean Bloom Ring,
Metal Arts Guild Exhibition. Canada
2007, Best Design. Special Award. Cheongju International Craft
Biennale, Korea
2007-2008 – Fellowship and creation (1 year). Crafts. Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec. A project whose main objective was to study the origin of Men jewelry among First Nations of North America and create a collection combining traditional craftsmanship with contemporary techniques.
2005, Honorable Mention in Jewellery Design. Extravagenza 4 fingers Ring. International Award, Cheongju International Craft Biennale, South Korea.
2014 -Today, Member of the Board of Directors,
Conseil des métiers d’arts du Québec, CMAQ, Montreal
2014 -Today, Member of the Commission for Cultural Diversity,
Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.
2013 -Today, Professional Member, Klimt
Klimt – Barcelone, Spain.
2012 -Today, Member of the Board of Directors,
Collectif 14 Joailliers, Montreal.
2012 -2018, Member of the Board of Directors,
Galerie CRÉA, Montreal.
2010 – Today, Platinum Member – Metal Art Guild of Canada.
http://www.metalartsguild.ca/profile/ClaudioPino
2009 – Today, Professional Member, Crafthaus, USA
http://crafthaus.ning.com/profile/ClaudioPino
2005 à 2010, Professional Member, Metal Art Guild of Canada.
2001-Today, Professional Member, SNAG,
Society of Northern American Goldsmiths. http://www.snagmetalsmith.org/
2000 -Today, Professional Member, CMAQ,
Conseil des Métiers d’art du Québec.
1999 -Today, Director, Claudio Pino Design, Montreal, Canada.
Membre du jury, Prix Fabrique 1840 La Maison Simons, 2022
Membre du jury pour la remise du Prix Saul Bell, Rio Grande, Etats-Unis. 2019
Membre du jury pour la remise du prix François-Houdé, CMAQ 2018
Membre du jury, Métiers d’art, CALQ 2018
Membre du jury – le Prix Steele, 70e anniversaire of The Metal Arts Guild of Canada 2016
Président d’honneur, Musée des maîtres et artisans du Québec 2015
Membre du Conseil d’administration, Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, Montréal 2014 à aujourd’hui
Membre de la Commission de la diversité culturelle Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec
Juin 2014 à aujourd’hui
Membre de la Commission pour le virage numérique Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec
2014
Membre du Comité de validation du rapport des vérifications de produits Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, Montréal, Août 2014
Membre du jury, projet de recherche et création, métiers d’art Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, 2014
Membre du jury, concours de joaillerie à la Olissima Gallery Wytwórnia Antidotum, Pologne
Juin 2014
Consultant pour l’étude macro-sectorielle pour le milieu des métiers d’art, Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, 2014
Membre du Comité des normes et standards de la production métiers d’art, Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, Montréal Novembre 2013
Membre du Comité de vérification de la production au SMAQ 2013, Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec
Salon des métiers d’art du Québec à Montréal Décembre 2013
Membre du jury d’évaluation de la production, Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, Juin 2013
Membre du Comité de vérification de la production Plein Art Salon des métiers d’art de Québec, Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, Juillet 2013
Membre du de la production Novembre 2012, Membre du jury d’évaluation de la production
Membre du jury d’évaluation MAGC Platinum Jury Metal Arts Guild of Canada, Septembre 2012
Membre du Conseil d’administration Collectif 14 joailliers, Montréal, 2012 à aujourd’hui
Membre du Conseil d’administration Galerie Créa, Montréal, 2012 à 2016
Membre du jury, projet de recherche et création, métiers d’art Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec, 2012
Membre du jury d’évaluation de dossier, Société de développement des entreprises culturelles du Québec, Montréal 2010 à 2011
Jury d’évaluation, Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, Septembre 2012
Membre du jury d’évaluation de la production Salon des métiers d’art du Québec à Montréal Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, 2010 – 2011
Membre du jury d’évaluation de la production Plein Art, Salon des métiers d’art de Québec Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, 2010 – 2011
Membre du jury pour le Prix Jean-Marie-Gauvreau Salon des métiers d’art du Québec à Montréal Conseil des métiers d’art du Québec, 2011