HK+NP Studio

Background

hk+np studio is a Vancouver based jewelry design studio established in 2010 that utilizes techniques and forms derived from the architectural backgrounds of its partners. The partners met in 2005 while apprenticing at the office of Nick Milkovich Architects Inc. with Arthur Erickson.

Hiroko Kobayashi was born in Sapporo, Japan and is a graduate of the architectural program at Nihon University in Tokyo, which she followed with an internship in the office of Kengo Kuma Architects.

Neil Prakash is from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and is a registered architect with the Architectural Institute of British Columbia and a graduate of the architectural program at the University of Manitoba.

We utilize a mixture of contemporary and traditional techniques to develop our designs including sketches, origami, modeling, 3D rendering, and rapid prototyping. All of our products are designed in Vancouver, Canada, and produced with exemplary craftsmanship and surface finish in Niigata, Japan.

Philosophy

Our jewelry design intent stems from our experiences in the practice of architecture. Our education and work in architecture to date has been aimed at establishing a formal language that is clear, concise, and non self referential. In this regard we strive to design our jewelry with clear forms, emphasizing distinct lines, and refined details. It is important for us that these three elements be in balance, so that none of is discernable as a distinct element.

Our aim is to achieve a level of relative simplicity with our jewelry in the hopes to express the more understated, or subtler side of ornamentation. In this way we hope to achieve designs that have a certain timeless quality and defy changing trends in fashion. For us this is an important aspect of quality design and integral to creating inherent value.