Aleksandar Kovacevic is a fashion designer from Serbia who discovered 3D printing and created AKK (the other K is short for Kiki) and his Poly collection, which looks like jewelry from the future. Here Aleksandar talks about the futuristic forms that inspire him and the moment his held the first 3D print of his gold-plated ring design in his hands.
Aleksandar Kovacevic Kiki
Tell us a bit about yourself.
I was born and raised in Belgrade, Serbia. I studied fashion design at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium. I am currently living back in Belgrade and working as a knitwear designer. And I am a keen 3D printing enthusiast.
And the name Kiki — where did that come from?
When I was a toddler, I couldn’t talk properly yet. And when people asked me for my name, I had to say something, and since both of my names are too long, I started using Kiki. And it stuck.
What inspired the Poly collection?
Polygons are at the core of any designed piece ready for 3D printing. So I wanted to start from one single polygon and see where it will take me. “In the beginning was the Polygon…”
The whole collection should represent the big bang of one polygon and the birth of AKK Jewelry.
Bangles Poly Seven, Poly Eight and Poly Nine
Where else do you find design inspiration?
It is an ever-changing process, but I draw a lot from the sci-fi movies that I grew up with: Blade Runner, Logan’s Run, Dune, Star Wars, Ghost in the Shell, Conan the Barbarian… Movies about lost worlds, future worlds, fantasies. They’ve all become part of my DNA.
Also architects from Gaudí to Frank Gehry, Santiago Calatrava, and the one and only Zaha Hadid. Speaking of artwork, there are sculptors, too: Umberto Boccioni, Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, Anish Kapoor, Jeff Koons.
How did you get started with 3D design?
By chance. I had felt the need to express myself creatively beyond my job. When I realized the possibilities of 3D printing technology, I had to try it. 3D printing technology is fascinating, game changing, revolutionary.
Jewelry was a natural choice, considering my background in fashion — and the fact that we still can’t really 3D print clothes.
Necklace Poly Twelve and Ring Poly Six
What is your design process?
I don’t make sketches. Instead, I model the pieces directly in 3ds Max. This way, I find that I am not restrained by any initial drawings. Along the way, better ideas may pop up, and it would be a pity to ignore them. I let the idea evolve in real time.
When I am done with a particular design, I first order the piece to be printed in White Polished Strong & Flexible Plastic, as a trial run. Once I receive it, I make additional adjustments if needed, then order the piece in the material I plan to sell it in.
Have you designed for other 3D printable materials?
No, because from the start I imagined the pieces for the Poly collection as perfectly reflective, with a mirror-like effect. I will never forget the moment the first piece in 18k gold-plated brass arrived, and when I took it out from the black packaging bag, and it shined. My precious…
It was Ring Poly Two.
Ring Poly Two on the index finger
How did you learn to use 3ds Max?
I did a short course and I have watched lots of tutorials online. I still do, actually, because it turns out to be very complex software.
What is the future of AKK? Are you at work on future collections?
Throughout the history of mankind, people would wear a certain piece of jewelry their whole life. It was something that encapsulated them, who they were, where they came from, which tribe they belonged to…
Nowadays it’s all about Spring/Summer ’17, Autumn/Winter ’18, only to start all over again, and designers don’t have the time to dedicate themselves to the pieces as much as they should.
I’d like to bring back that feeling from those old times, if only a little, with my future collections.
You can follow AKK on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Aleksandar sells his jewelry through the AKK Jewelry website and his Shapeways shop.