TRANSFORMATION Katey Brunini I launched my jewelry design company in 1997 whilst living in the foothills of Mt. Etna, Sicily and Palau, Sardinia. As an islander, my days were filled with paragliding, swimming, and poems of the lava formations of the active volcano. A multi-sensory existence was mine and I spent my days with the songs of Sirens. Then life happened, as it does, and I was forced to return to California. So, like a snake shedding skin, I transformed. My signature collections are influenced by nature’s beauty featuring gold and sterling silver paired with diamonds, pearls, gems, and unique organic elements such as wood, bone, and even nuts. These TRANSFORMATION earrings are a physical representation of the dance between alternative materials like moose antler, platinum, and the concept of Odysseus returning home from a long journey at sea. I am inspired by the bridge created between prehistoric and contemporary man via design, and would rather live in a cave than a house filled with modern trappings. 46