Maria Kooistra @ VFNO Amsterdam

During Vogue Fashion's Night Out in Amsterdam at De Bijenkorf, Maria Kooistra presented for the first time her full range of bracelets from the Zodiac series, based on the twelve animals of Chinese astrology.

Her pop up shop in De Bijenkorf got a lot of attention also because of the possibilty to get photographed as your own animal...and Maria was willing to get photographed with you too.

Maria Kooistra with one of her admirers

The sign of the dragon - photo by Maria Kooistra

I am the unquenchable fire,

the center of all energy,

the stout heroic heart.

I am truth and light,

I hold power and glory in my sway.

my presence

disperses dark clouds.

I have been chosen

to tame the Fates.

I AM THE DRAGON.

(words by Theodora and Laura Lau)

From October 1st and on her jewelry will be available on www.mariakooistra.com


About Maria Kooistra
Maria Kooistra grew up in countryside Holland. As a little girl, her father, a poet, took her on long hikes through the Dutch landscapes. There, the little dreamer got acquainted with satyrs and sang with trees. Maria dissected toads like no other and assembled her weaponry with found bones and flexible twigs - thus laying a solid foundation for her artistic career.

After studying art history and acting, she became a successful film and TV actress. An avid collector of vintage clothing since her teens, she relished red carpet appearances as an opportunity to break out her wares. Her bold choices and keen editorial eye made her a fixture on many of Europe’s best-dressed lists. Maria soon realized this passion for unique design was a calling, not a hobby, and opened Trois, a high-end vintage clothing store in Amsterdam. Numbered couture pieces from Chanel and Lanvin, 1960’s Ossie Clark and an occasional Grès and Fortuny found space beside unusual curated baubles and trinkets.

As an artist, Maria found the need to not merely curate and collect beauty, but to create it. Upon mastering metalsmithing in New York and apprenticing with various artisans, she launched her eponymous jewelry collection in 2013. Inspired by those very landscapes, her pieces evoke a hyper real vision of nature’s cycle – life and death- the beauty in both. While connecting her collection to her roots, she also works to celebrate the European artistry of times past. Choosing to collaborate with masters of endangered but delicate techniques, Maria aims to do her part to bolster the unique and meticulous craftsmanship that made her fall in love with vintage jewelry in the first place.
(source: FB page)