Iren Nikard

Iren Nikard is a Ukrainian creative whose practice has travelled through jewellery, fashion, events and, more recently, a re-emerging body of painting. Marcus first encountered her in London's art and fashion world, knowing her primarily through jewellery before discovering another creative language waiting behind it.

Before arriving in Britain, Iren had spent years building the IREN NIKARD jewellery brand in Ukraine. Her handmade work uses materials including Swarovski crystals, natural pearls and 925 silver, and developed through collaborations with bridal salons, boutiques, fashion designers, make-up artists and photographers. Jewellery began as an artistic interest and grew into a business centred on individual style and bespoke creation.

In 2022 Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine transformed Iren's life. Her own account describes leaving the country with her two sons and coming to Britain while her husband remained in Ukraine. She brought what she could of her creative work and began rebuilding part of that life here. It is important not to romanticise displacement, but there is significance in recognising that creativity was one of the things she chose and was able to carry forward.

Painting is now becoming more visible. The works Iren has shared with Marcus are bold and highly textured, often centred on the human figure and female form. Intense reds, pinks, blues and gold appear through layered surfaces, scraped paint and decorative elements. In some works, gold forms seem to sit above the canvas, adding a sculptural or ornamental quality that connects naturally with somebody who has spent years working with jewellery.

Rather than presenting painting as a completely separate career, her story suggests continuity: colour, adornment, personality and visual identity already existed within Iren's jewellery practice. Painting may be another way of expressing those same instincts.

This profile remains open to revision as Iren provides more direct information about when she began painting, why it has returned now, what the figures mean to her and where she wants to take the work next.