BEAUTY . CREATIVITY . COMMUNITY
Shibumi Gallery is located at 1816 Fourth Street in Berkeley, California. The gallery showcases contemporary studio jewelry and art created by accomplished local and international artists as well as new and emerging talent.
The gallery exhibits uniquely crafted and exquisite works while also striving to be a space that enriches the local community and culture. Shibumi offers a uniquely personal and custom experience to buying artful jewelry by working collaboratively with our clients in a beautiful space that is a refuge for those seeking creativity and individuality.
shi-'bu-me\ n. a subtle, unobtrusive and deeply moving beauty cherished by artists and connoisseurs.
April Higashi
Shibumi Gallery is curated by April Higashi, who has been working as a contemporary art jeweler, curator and gallery owner in the San Francisco Bay Area for over 20 years. Founded in 2005, April conceived the gallery to be a dynamic space where she could not only create and exhibit her own work, but also showcase the inspiring work of fellow artists. Her ability to spot emerging talent, coupled with a discerning eye and welcoming presence, has made the exhibits and special events at the gallery a favorite destination for collectors, jewelers and the creative community at large.
Work / Life / Balance
Shibumi Gallery originally opened in 2005 in a space only a few blocks from its current location. The former gallery space is now a beautiful studio filled with light, creative energy and an abundance of plants. The space encompasses the workshop of April Higashi Jewelry which enables Shibumi Gallery to create its one-of-a-kind custom work. By invitation only, clients can visit the studio for custom work or one of our bi-annual exhibitions and parties.
April has lived in the neighborhood with her son Ando since 2004.
Our staff
The Shibumi Gallery staff are mostly artists, designers and makers. We feel like we offer our clients a deeper connection to the work because of this experience and relationship to the work. As most of the people in the gallery are metalsmiths, we can specialize in custom work and can help you interpret your style or work with our artists to create a special piece. We value a work life balance and encourage our staff at Shibumi to explore their passions and interests to continue to grow and bring new ideas and life to the studio and their own work.
When you shop with Shibumi you are supporting a group of creative makers and over forty small artists/jewelers. We believe that putting creative energy into the world makes it a better and more beautiful place.
An ethical and creative business is our priority.
At Shibumi, we use all recycled metals and select our diamonds from Kimberley Process certified brokers. We also ask our artists to follow these guidelines.
Shibumi loves to partner with non-profits or institutions for special shows and events, which we donate a portion of our sales back to these organizations.
We are a group of artists who love making things and feel strongly about aesthetics and the environment. We have over 20 years of knowledge and experience in creating jewelry and have a strong community around us who also support and appreciate these values.
Our jewelers are curated into the gallery based on a unique vision and artistic background. Content of inspiration is important and our preference is that our jewelers approach their work as artists and have background in making art from a personal connection. While aesthetics are of high importance, we also value exploration in the work and experimentation. We do not represent jewelers who only design and do not have a background in making. Our jewelers are artists and often inspired by the natural world.
Shows and representation. We have around six shows a year featuring both solo artists and groups. Please sign up for our mailing list if you would like to know more about our upcoming shows.
If you are a jeweler and would like to submit work please email us with a submission. Please note that we get many inquiries and cannot respond to every submission. If we feel like you might be a good fit for our gallery we will contact you by email.
Collaboration makes life more interesting. We use our shows to bring in new work, clients and mix in new artists. At the gallery we have worked with a few select photographers to capture our life here at Shibumi, including: Aya Brackett, Cynthia E. Wood and Maren Caruso. We also have an ongoing documentation photo and story project with our clients: Shibumi Project. Shibumi Gallery does special events that benefit non-profit organizations and help our community. Past events have included: NO ON PROP 8, Girls Inc, Lamda Legal, Earth Justice and the Lindsay Foundation. We want the world to be a better place and hope that we can help in small ways. April sees Shibumi as an incubator for creative growth and she hopes the people she hires go on to do bigger things.
