Kembali in Indonesian means return. Anna Orska returned to the island of Bali, where eight years ago she created her second collection based on the crafts of the world. Since her first visit, many things have remained the same, and yet everything is somehow different. The designer has not stopped drawing inspiration from the crafts of other cultures, but with each trip she has gained experience and a better understanding of people and traditions from different corners of the world. Wanting to remember where her adventure with ethnic art began, she returned to Indonesia, not doubting that the world cradle of crafts would bring inspiration again.

During the first trip to Indonesia, valuable relationships were established that have survived to this day. Anna came to the island for a month's visit, at the invitation of Doblet, who runs the workshop where the first Balinese ORSKA collection was created. It is located in a small village near Ubud, which a few years ago was full of craftsmen carving by hand in traditional Balinese materials. The small town was full of small, family-run workshops and individual craftsmen who carved in homes, in yards and even on the streets. Although Doblet's workshop survived and even developed, many other nearby workshops disappeared. The island of Bali was hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, as it was closed to tourism for 18 months. During this time, many artists turned to other activities. The sight of a small craft center transforming into an agricultural village fills one with nostalgia. The Balinese, however, find serenity, stability and peace in their unchanging rituals that connect them with nature and spirituality.  

Upon arrival at the workshop, Anna was greeted by familiar faces. The same people still work there – her brothers, supported by other family members. All of them are warm and smiling, disarming with their naturalness. Although they live in a place considered by many to be paradise on Earth, for them it is simply home. Instead of expeditions to the spectacular coast, they fish in the local lake. Instead of traveling to the surrounding islands, they perform daily thanksgiving rituals in the home temple and spend time with their multi-generational families. The highest priority is the ceremonies, which are celebrated surprisingly often. During them, everything else ceases, and the preparations for the ceremonies themselves are a ritual for entire communities.

Small sculptures made of arang wood and deer antlers (cyclically shed by them) were created in two workshops – one well-known and the other with which the designer began cooperation for the first time. The quality of the objects produced in this place is impressive, they are small works of art in themselves. The white and black sculptures are extremely intricate and full of detail. Obtaining such quality is only possible thanks to the long tradition of this technique among their masters. For centuries, they have been working in traditional materials, passing on their skills from generation to generation, which they have been perfecting for years. Each of the small sculptures was made for a few to a dozen or so hours, in order to then gain rich frames of silver and gilded brass, based on Indonesian decorations, in the ORSKA studio.

Although the island has evolved, it has remained the same in its identity. This is reflected in the jewelry from the Kembali collection in the form of a snake, called ode in Indonesian . This positive symbol in Balinese culture, represents endless transformation, during which we discard what no longer fits, to make room for the new. The snake appears in every design, encircling fingers and wrists in the form of silver and gold-plated rings and bracelets. Carved from wood, it flows down the neckline as a necklace and winds around the chest as a brooch. In many jewelry designs, the snake has become a setting for equally important, carved, Balinese symbols, such as hibiscus, chrysanthemum, rose or lotus flowers. They accompany the islanders in their daily rituals, defining the rhythm of the day, the year and even life, and reminding that the most important ritual is returning to nature.

Balinese jewellery in ORSKA's interpretation has evolved from geometric animal and totemic motifs to delicate floral lines. Minimalist brass frames have been replaced with ornate, winding snake shapes and scale textures, gold-plated or made of silver. The result is sensual and feminine jewellery. The Kembali collection, while maintaining its Indonesian identity, has blossomed even more fully. Familiar, yet different.