Matthieu Cheminée

Originally from Paris, Matthieu Cheminée was first introduced to jewellery making in Taos, New Mexico, where he developed a passion for indigenous jewellery techniques. There, he studied Navajo, Zuni and Hopi techniques before moving to Mali, where he learned new techniques alongside Fulani, Bambara and Touareg jewellers. Living and working in Montreal since 1988, Matthieu studied more classical goldsmithing techniques at the École des métiers du Sud-Ouest de Montréal. For the past fifteen years, he has been teaching and leading many workshops, on top of his multiple research trips to West Africa. In 2014, he published the book Legacy: Jewellery Techniques of West Africa, followed by The Art of Stamping, published in 2019. With Tim McCreight, he created the Toolbox Initiative, an organisation that supports jewellers in West Africa.