About Jessica Laureano

Jessica Laureano is a designer and maker working at the intersection of material culture, memory, and contemporary design. Her practice centres on the formal language of objects—how their shapes, functions, and histories carry meaning far beyond their material selves.

Influenced by her Portuguese heritage, Laureano draws from the quiet power of folklore, devotional artefacts, and domestic traditions. These references form an undercurrent in her work as a way of thinking about threshold moments, and the seen and unseen forces that shape a life.

Her practice is grounded in beeswax as a primary material. Shaped by time, warmth, and human touch, wax is approached as a living material—one that bears trace, change, and use. It functions as a vessel for memory, care, and protection.

Across her work, objects operate as markers rather than monuments: candles that measure time, jewellery that accompanies the body, sculptural forms that hold personal significance. The everyday is treated as worthy of ceremony, and the intimate is understood as part of a longer cultural lineage.

While informed by the past, Laureano’s studio is firmly contemporary. It prioritises clarity of form, thoughtful use of materials, and environmentally conscious production in a world where resources are increasingly finite.