Contemporary Jewellery

The word Contemporary is defined as the "present times or belonging to the same time"(Lexico Dictionary). I have looked at den Besten's(2011: 9) paper where he states that "contemporary jewellery indicates that it is made now and that it is 'of our time' whereas it covers a period that spans at least forty-five years". Yes contemporary jewellery is made now but they are different categories you need to look at before applying the word contemporary in your work

Categories of Contemporary Jewellery

In the list below den Besten identifies the various categories that jewellery can fit into:

1. Contemporary - Jewellery that is made now and here

2. Studio Jewellery - Jewellery that is produced by individuals in their studios

3. Art Jewellery - Jewellery that indicates that either art and jewellery are similar or that jewellery as an art form.

4. Research Jewellery - Jewellery that can be explained as a way to describe the artistic process.

5. Jewellery Design - Jewellery that is designed by the designer who doesn't manufacture it.

6. Author Jewellery - Jewellery made by an individual and bears the stamp of his or her artistry and vision.

The most relevant categories I will be looking at are studio and author jewellery
The aim for studio jewellers is to "control every aspect of producing a piece of jewellery from original idea to finished work"(den Besten 2011: 10). I think that studio jewellery is a big part of the contemporary jewellery I create.
According to de Besten (2011: 10-11), author jewellery is made by a single jeweller and bears the stamp of their artists and his/her vision. The idea is that there is an ongoing artistic 'standard or reference' that can progress from one collection to the next (ibid). Finding an ongoing theme and developing relevant techniques in my work is another contemporary jewellery quality I will be considering.