Andrea Zagaris
Born in the Central Valley of California, to two artistically gifted parents, Andrea developed a love of art in all its forms at a very early age. Throughout all her academic pursuits Andrea always found a way to continue taking art courses in a variety of mediums. After graduating from the University of California Berkeley with a Bachelor of Arts degree, she began a career in Real Estate finance in Oakland, California. While this was a great opportunity, she found herself frustrated at the end of each day, not having an outlet for her creativity.
She began beading, and making jewelry at home in her spare time. The obsession with jewelry grew from beading and wire wrapping, to making lamp work beads with a torch and a kiln, to taking a few local jewelry-making classes. Ultimately this growing passion for all things jewelry would lead her to make a life changing decision. She moved abroad to Florence, Italy where she enrolled in an intensive five-year course of study specializing in Jewelry Fabrication and Design.
In Italy, she became infatuated with the art of hand engraving and took the position as assistant to a Florentine Master of the Craft. It was during this time in Florence when she developed "Florentine Fusion", her own unique design style.
Andrea describes “Florentine Fusion” as, “the utilization of the old world craft of Florentine engraving fused with contrasting design elements. Whether that contrast is between East and West, traditional and modern, symmetry and asymmetry or simply light and dark each piece is unique and painstakingly handcrafted with a distinctive Florentine flair.”
If you are interested in distinguishing, limited production and one of a kind jewelry, ANZ Jewelry Design is the right place for you. Custom work is always welcome.