Skip to product information
1 of 3

Vivienne Varay

The Only

The Only

Regular price $3,600.00 USD
Regular price Sale price $3,600.00 USD
Sale Sold out
Shipping calculated at checkout.

The Only reflects on the layers of love and identity that adornment can reveal. Inspired by Count Leo Tolstoy’s love letter to his first fiancée, Valeria Arsenev, this piece reflects on the impermanence of physical beauty and the enduring nature of love. Tolstoy emphasizes that true understanding and love require effort, patience, and self-awareness.

This necklace embodies those ideas, with its intricate, textured surface symbolizing the layers of identity and emotion revealed through time and care. Constructed from thermoplastic polyurethane, polylactic acid, Czech glass beads, sequins, and steel pins, the necklace merges contemporary materials with traditional handcraft, reflecting the tension between external attraction and inner depth.

The Only invites viewers and wearers to consider love and identity as processes of continual discovery, where beauty and connection deepen through reflection and labor, encouraging them to look beyond the surface to explore themes of vulnerability, strength, and the enduring nature of the soul.

Materials

TPU, PLA, czech glass beads, sequins, steel pins

Dimensions

26.5” x 6.5” x 3”

Artist Bio

Vivienne Varay is a contemporary art jeweler who creates work exploring the emotional impact of objects and materials. Her practice is both research-driven and conceptually focused, examining how jewelry is used for identity creation and the communication of power.

Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally at galleries including Hectare Galerie in Belgium, the Armory Art Center in West Palm Beach, Hera Gallery in Rhode Island, TAG Gallery in Los Angeles, Tincal Lab in Portugal, and Gallery2052 in Chicago.

Currently based in Pullman, Washington, she is a Lecturer in the Digital Technology and Culture program at Washington State University and serves as Board Secretary for Artist Trust. She earned her Master of Fine Arts from the University of Georgia in 2016 and her Bachelor of Fine Arts from Arizona State University in 2012.

View full details