Dubravka Šeparović Mušović, the national opera champion of the Zagreb Croatian National Theatre (HNK), is the face of the new mini jewelry edition from the Dubrovnik brand RDcode. Since its creation in 2010, the brand has been known for its unusual bags and backpacks, and this spring, for the first time, it introduced a mini jewelry edition inspired by the Japanese wabi-sabi concept.
This is not the first collaboration between Dubravka Šeparović Mušović and the Dubrovnik slow fashion brand RDcode, whose owner and designer is journalist Renata Debeljak. The two women share a connection to their beautiful city, Dubrovnik, and they have already collaborated on the fashion-art project 'Doors & Bags.'
Renata Debeljak - Photo RDcode
The inspiration behind RDcode's story this time is completely different. The main motif for this mini jewelry edition is the perfect imperfection of life, represented through the Japanese wabi-sabi concept.
Not only does this perfect imperfection exist in everything around us, but it also exists within us, and through wabi-sabi, it reaches the true art of living. What is the art of living? Minimalism, simplicity, and a connection with nature through wabi-sabi encourage us to constantly seek beauty in imperfection, accept who we are, stay in the present moment, and appreciate the simple, transient phases of life. The pursuit of perfection is futile, as everything around us is in an imperfect state. We should strive for excellence, not perfection, says Renata Debeljak, owner of RDcode.
RDcode’s ‘At the Crossroads of Hypocrisy’ Jewelry Edition: A Bold Stand Against Mass Consumption and Greenwashing
The jewelry edition is part of the concept 'At the Crossroads of Hypocrisy,' created at the beginning of this year. The story deals with a concept that arises outside the realms of so-called trends and time periods, focused on timeless art/fashion details with a vegan philosophy, minimalist design, and an individual approach in limited editions.
Photo - RDcode
In the vastness of hypocrisy, in a time filled with mass consumption, uniformity, copycats, the déjà vu effect, and oversaturation in all aspects of life, when trivialities become new values, to persist in completely individual concepts in any context of fashion and artistic expression seems absurd. That path is not easy, but it makes more sense. In the realm of hypocrisy, banalities and trivialities become dominant. These realities are obsessed with consumer impulses, colored by hypocrisy, meaninglessness, subversive metamorphoses, and interwoven with various forms of greenwashing. Through them, senseless consumerism infiltrates all pores of life, sneakily hiding behind labels like green, sustainability, recycle, cruelty-free, and ethical... The list is too long. RDcode focuses on a slow fashion concept that aims to be as unaffected by hypocrisy as possible, says Renata Debeljak.
The jewelry is mainly in black and gray, RDcode's favorite colors. Materials used include wood, rubber, and wire, with the collection primarily featuring rings and bracelets. Dubravka is joined by her dog Vigo in the photographs.
The conceptual stories 'Doors & Bags' and 'At the Crossroads of Hypocrisy' are the current cornerstones of the RDcode brand, and original backpacks and bags continue to be created in its creative studio.
You can learn more about the RDcode brand on their Facebook page or via their Instagram profile @rdcodestudio.
Collaboration on the 'Doors & Bags' project
The conceptual story 'Doors & Bags' by the RDcode brand was created in 2016 as a symbolic link between bags and doors. As part of this story, editions of bags and backpacks inspired by interesting doors from various cities and countries, such as Dubrovnik, Oslo, Rome, London, and Hamburg, were created. One of the Dubrovnik historical doors that inspired RDcode for this bag edition was the door of the Rector’s Palace. The model for the bag with motifs of one of the most famous historical doors of Dubrovnik, once the entrance to the impressive seat of the powerful Dubrovnik Republic, was Dubravka. The fashion story for this collaboration was created in 2016 and photographed in front of the doors of Dubrovnik’s Rector’s Palace.