BIO

BIO

 Anneleen Swillen is a postdoctoral researcher and educator at PXL-MAD School of Arts and Hasselt University, Belgium. As an artist, curator, researcher, lecturer, and writer, she focuses on artistic practice in a post-digital culture. In particular, she explores the possibilities, impact, and challenges of self-learning technologies on how contemporary jewellery is created, presented, and experienced. 

With a background in Object & Jewellery Design and Curatorial Studies, she laid the foundation for her PhD in the arts on jewellery and presentation, which she successfully defended in 2019 at PXL-MAD and Hasselt University. During her PhD research, she experimented with performative installations and publications, film as exhibition, and (inter)active archives.

At the start of her postdoctoral research in 2020, she co-founded Artificial Intelligems with composer and artist Greg Scheirlinckx to explore more-than-human co-creation. Artificial Intelligems is an experimental, fluid and interdisciplinary collective operating at the intersection of jewellery, machine learning, graphic design, music, XR performance, dance, and data science. Through participatory projects, they research the possibilities, roles, impact, and risks of working with AI in contemporary jewellery. By speculating about futures adornment, they expand discussions on more-than-human-centred design, phygital embodiment, material intelligence, and co-authorship—positioning jewellery as sites for more-than-human encounters, (re-)imagination, entangled agency, and learning in a post-digital culture.

As a lecturer, Anneleen teaches various bachelor’s and master’s courses—studio-based as well as theory—at PXL-MAD School of Arts Hasselt, including contemporary jewellery, more-than-human co-creation in a post-digital culture, curation and presentation, digital adornment, AI, their/ourstories of jewellery, and methodologies of artistic research. Additionally, she supervises bachelor’s, master’s, and PhD students with their theses and supports aspiring doctoral researchers with their grant applications.

Anneleen has curated exhibitions, conferences and debates (inter)nationally, and is regularly invited as a speaker, writer, and jury member. Her work has been exhibited worldwide and included in various publications.

Swillen explores interactions between humans, artefacts and technologies such as A.I. in a (post-)digital culture through more-than-human collaboration and co-creation. She researches how artefacts are made, presented and experienced in our digital culture. One of her main interests concerns the roles and impact of A.I. within contemporary craft practices, and more specifically jewellery. She questions whether what it means to be human is shifting through A.I. and how that might influence interactions with tools and artefacts. Mostly, Swillen is interested in experimenting with machine learning (ML) to foster new insights for crafts and cultivate new discourses on A.I. Together with Greg Scheirlinckx, artist, composer and data scientist, Swillen founded Artificial Intelligems to explore ML as a mediating technology between humans and non-humans. By co-engineering jewellery with self-learning algorithms, she aims to create new types of jewellery within the phygital realm that challenge perspectives on human-centred design, materiality, value, or authorship. Thereby, she explores how to embody transformative technologies and, in particular, A.I., which, despite being ubiquitous, for many people seems to work in invisible and mysterious ways. Through collaborative projects, experimental presentations, and creative writing, Swillen speculates about hybrid jewellery and bodies, malleability through digital technologies, and the roles of artists in a technocentric society, to ultimately envision what posthuman crafts can be.

C.V.

 STUDIES AND INTERNSHIPS

RESEARCH

TEACHING

Educator Jewellery Design, Gold - and Silversmithing, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt (since 2015)
 Lecturer Object & Jewellery, Fine Arts, and Graphic Design, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt (since 2022)
  Lecturer and co-organiser Let's Get Phygital, in collaboration with the London College of Fashion (UK), Estonia Academy of the Arts (EE), Rhode Island School of Design (US), and PXL-MAD School of Arts (BE) (since 2022)
 Guest lecturer at Master of Research, Sint-Lucas Antwerp (5/04/2019); Product Design, Luca School of Arts, Genk (9/12/2024); and Jewelry - Linking Bodies, Gerrit Rietveld Academie Amsterdam (7/04 and 30/06/2025) 

2024
 Co-organising conference Artistic Artificial Intelligence, with Harry Lehman, Alex Verhaest, and Soyun Park, PXL-MAD School of Arts (BE)
 Co-curating exhibition 30 Years Object & Jewellery, PXL-MAD School of Arts (BE)
 Co-curating exhibition Let’s Get Phygital, London College of Fashion (UK)
 Co-organising Object & Jewellery fair booth during Brussels Jewellery Week (BE)
 Co-curating “schools”, Ar.Co – Centro de Arte e Comunicação Visual, Lisbon (PT)

2023
 Co-organising conference One Day About AI and Craft Practices, Konstfack – University of Arts, Craft and Design, Stockholm (SE)
 Co-curating exhibition Let's Get Phygital, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt (BE)
 Moderating panel Let's Get Phygital, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt (BE)

2022
 Co-curating exhibition Super Tactility Soft Technology, Museum Texture, Kortrijk (BE)
 Organising and moderating panel Touching a Phygital World. In conversation with Benjamin Mengistu Navet, Thomas Renwart and Michaela Armani on artistic practice, crafts and tactility in a digital age, Museum Texture, Kortrijk (BE)
 
 2021
 Curating and moderating Artificial Intelligems Dreams + Talks with Tobias Rees, Marcus Du Sautoy, Alexandra Darby, Darja Popolitova, Dovile Bernadišiute, Lee Allen Kuczewski and the Ornamutations participating artists and designers. Online conference and screenings for Munich Jewellery Week 2021.
 Collaboration De Collectieve Collectie, Kristof van Gestel, Kunsthal Extra City, Antwerp (BE)
 
 2020
 Collaboration De Collectieve Collectie, Kristof van Gestel, Taxandriamuseum, Turnhout (BE) 
 
 2019
 Curating and moderating Passe-Partout on presenting contemporary crafts, VAKlab Bokrijk and PXL-MAD, School of Arts, Hasselt (BE)

2018
 Curating and moderating “Talk Show with Ruudt Peters & Anneleen Swillen. An interactive, multi camera, online live-stream table exhibition conversation event featuring jewellery, objects, books, prints, materials and other things." VAKlab Bokrijk and PXL-MAD, Hasselt (BE)
 Curating and moderating Round Table #4: Performing Jewellery, galerie beyond, Antwerp (BE)
 Curating and moderating Social “media” Club, in collab with Current Obsession Magazine, Munich Jewellery Week 2018, The Lovelace – A Hotel Happening (DE)
 
 2017
 Curating and moderating Round Table #3: Jewellery Interactions, in collab with galerie beyond, Antwerp, for Obsessed! Jewellery in the Netherlands, San Serriffe, Amsterdam (NL)
 Curating and moderating Round Table #2: Platforms for Jewellery, in collab with galerie beyond, Antwerp (BE)
 Co-curating exhibition Exposé, Musée du Bijou Contemporain-Espace Solidor, Cagnes-Sur-Mer (FR)
 Curating and moderating Round Table #1: Screens for Jewellery, galerie beyond, Antwerp (BE)
 
 2016
 Curating “A-Z night #3: Show me – The Art of presenting”. Cultuurplatform Design, Z33 House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture, Architectuurwijzer, PXL-MAD School of Arts, LUCA School of Arts, University of Hasselt, Villa Basta, Hasselt (BE)
 Co-curating, “Audio Guide”, No Performance Please, The Image Generator, Extra City Kunsthal, Antwerp (BE)

2015
 Co-curating “Experience Ooga Booga”, in collaboration with Current Obsession, Studio 47, Amsterdam (NL)
 Co-curating “No Performance Please. Concerning the impossibility of excluding performances”. Tebeac curatorial collective, These Things Take Time, Gent, BUDA, Kortrijk (BE)

EXHIBITIONS

2024
 Madrugada. Jewellery and the Politics of Hope, Lisbon Jewellery Biennial, Palace of the Counts of Calheta, Lisbon (PT)
 Visions, Ventures & Valuables, Munich Jewellery Week 2024 (DE)
 Kunst.Vormen, PXL-MAD School of Arts Hasselt (BE)
 30 Years Object & Jewellery, PXL-MAD School of Arts Hasselt (BE)
 ReFLEXion, Brousse, Hasselt (BE)
 KIOSK, Ostend (BE)

2023
 Wie Wat Vindt Heeft Slecht Gezocht, David Gotlib, Antwerp (BE)
 Schau mir in mein fenster, St. Johanniskirche, Brandenburg an der Havel (DE)
 Polyphonous 2023: J is for Jewellery. Munich Jewellery Week (DE)

2021
Fe Steel Prize 2020, Hochschule Wismar, Saimaa University of Applied Sciences and PXL-MAD School of Arts. Kulturhistorisches Museum Rostock, Deutsches Goldschmiedehaus Hanau, Schmuckmuseum Pforzheim im Reuchlinhaus, and Stadtgeschichtliches Museum der Hansestadt Wismar (DE)
 Auralogie, Regina Mundi klooster, Genk (BE)
 Let’s Change, Don’t Change, Begijnhofsite, Hasselt (BE)

2020
 21 grams, Hangzhou Contemporary International Jewelry and Metalwork Triennial, Crafts Museum CAA, Hangzhou City (CN); Galerie Handwerk, München (DE); Legnica International Jewellery Festival Silver; Gallery of Art, Legnica (PL); BeCraft - World Crafts Council (WCC-BF), Mons (BE); CODA museum, Apeldoorn (NL)

2019
 THIS PLAY an artistic research on the interactions BETWEEN JEWELLERY AND PRESENTATION, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt and University of Hasselt (PhD, BE)

2018
 In Touch, Verein für Originalradierung, München (DE) and Society of North American Goldsmith’s 47th Annual Conference MADE: Makers Across Disciplines Engage, Portland Marriott Downtown Waterfront, Oregon (US)
 From Walter to Diva, DIVA museum, Antwerp (BE)
 From Walter to Valerie, Valerie Traan Gallery, Antwerp (BE)

2017
 Without a Jewel, Radiant Pavilion 2017, Melbourne City Library (AUS)
 
 2016
 Swedes and Belgian Blues, Gallery Four, Gothenburg (SE)
 Best of 10 years Object & Jewellery PXL-MAD School of Arts, Fashion Museum Hasselt (BE)
 Fifteen years of Jewelry, galerie beyond, Antwerp (BE)
 Looking for the in-between, Toegepast 20, Z33 House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture, Hasselt (BE)
 Transmission, Studio 411 Galerie, Montpellier (FR)
 David Huycke & students: best of 10 years MAD-Faculty, Deutsches Goldschmiedehaus, Hanau (DE)
 
 2015
 Pheromone, Ah-won gallery, Seoul (KR)
 Talente 2015, International Trade Fair for the Skilled Trades Munich (DE)
 CONTAINERS in context, galerie beyond, Antwerp (BE) (solo)
 We are the next generation, Week van het Ontwerpen, BUDAfabriek, Kortrijk (BE)

2014
Marzee Graduate Show, Galerie Marzee, Nijmegen (NL)
Et Luxuria Sancta? Hospitaalkerk, Ninove (BE)

WRITING

 
 Anneleen Swillen and Guus Vandeweerd. “Mirrored Dwellers: Reflections on Plural Perspectives through XR Performance.” Collateral Journal, 2025, https://www.collateral-journal.com/index.php?cluster=40 (A1).

 Anneleen Swillen, Guus Vandeweerd & Ine Vanoeveren (16 May 2024): Breaking the fifth wall: on creating a sense of wonder with(in) mixed realities through XR performance, creative AI, and embodying virtual identities. An encounter in VRChat: Anneleen Swillen and Guus Vandeweerd in conversation with Ine Vanoeveren, International Journal of Performance Arts and Digital Media, DOI: 10.1080/14794713.2024.2348985. 

Swillen, Anneleen. “Munich insights: floating pedestals, malleable frames, and a cardboard island. A Glimpse into Ways of Exhibiting during Munich Jewellery Week 2024.” Art Jewelry Forum, 
 https://artjewelryforum.org/reviews/munich-insights-six-different-scenographies_auth-anneleen-swillen-natl-belgium_3-26-2024/

Jacobs, A., et al. (2024). Co-Designing Multispecies Speculations Through Biofuturing. Qualitative Inquiry, 0(0), DOI:  0.1177/10778004241231919 (co-author)

Anneleen Swillen. “Artificial Intelligems: op zoek naar nieuwe benaderingen van sieraden met machine learning. Anneleen Swillen in gesprek met ChatGPT.” Modemuze, 2023, https://www.modemuze.nl/blog 

Swillen, A. “Re-collecthings. Reflective explorations on social values of carrying personal objects.” ŠperkStret conference platform (online, 2022).

Swillen, Anneleen. THIS PLAY an artistic research on the interactions BETWEEN JEWELLERY AND PRESENTATION. 2019. University of Hasselt and PXL-MAD, School of Arts, Hasselt (BE), PhD dissertation. 

Swillen Anneleen. “#ifyoulikeit. Online presentation within contemporary jewellery practices.” Current Obsession magazine, 2019, pp. 11 – 19.

De Buysere, K. and Swillen, A. “Round Table group conversations: how to present contemporary art jewellery to engage and broaden audiences.” Findings, magazine of the Association for Contemporary Jewellery, issue 66, Spring 2018, pp. 13 – 14.

Lambeets, M. "Machteld Lambeets in conversation with Anneleen Swillen." Craft! Konstfack degree exhibition 2016, pp. 34 – 35.

Swillen, A. “On experience Ooga Booga.” Current Obsession magazine (online), 2015.

LECTURES, TALKS, PANELS

 LECTURES, TALKS, PANELS  

2024
 Panel Let's Get Phygital, Darja Popolitiva, Mala Siamptani, and Mouhannad Al-Sayegh, London College of Fashion (UK)
 Lecture Artificial Intelligems: exploring more-than-human co-creations in a digital culture. AR@K24 symposium: The Artist, The Ghost, and The Machine, Høyskolen Kristiania | Kristiania University College (NO)
 Lecture Artificial Intelligems: co-creating more-than-human adornment with machine learning. Sint Lucas Antwerp (BE)

2023
 Panel AI - Dood van de kunstenaar?! (AI - Death of the Artist?!), rekto:verso, Arnout De Cleene and Hannelore Roth in conversation with Mathijs Tratsaert, Anneleen Swillen, Marlies De Munck, and Thomas Crombez (BE)
 Panel and lecture: Let's Get Phygital, with Darja Popolitiva and Mala Siamptani, Estonia Academy of the Arts, Tallinn (EE)
 Lecture Artificial Intelligems: Co-creating More-Than-Human Adornment with Machine Learning. One Day About AI and Craft Practices, Konstfack, Stockholm (SE)
 Interview Athens Metal Arts guild - AI and the Arts,  Athens (Georgia, US) and on Zoom.
 Interview Artificial Intelligems, BAJ Podcast, British Academy of Jewellery.
 Lecture Artificial Intelligems: co-creating posthuman adornment with machine learning. PXL-MAD School of Arts and Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Antwerp (BE)
 Lecture The Artificial Intelligems research project. Parsons School of Design, Paris (FR)
 Panel Jeroen Peeters in conversation with Kristof van Gestel and Anneleen Swillen within the context of the publication “And then it got legs. Notes on dance dramaturgy”, MAD-research@lunch, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt (BE)
 Panel Wat is een goed juweel? Is er slechts één waarheid? (“What is a good jewelry piece? Is there only one truth?”), Esther Doornbusch in conversation with Rene Van Tol, Steven Van der Veken, Anneleen Swillen and Nico Taeymans, Diamond Bourse, Antwerp (BE)
 Lecture Swillen Cha(lle)nging adornment through artificial intelligence. A critical exploration of machine learning as co-creator in jewellery practice. A lecture by Anneleen Swillen & Greg Scheirlinckx.Inhorgenta 2023, Munich (DE)

2022
 Lecture and panel Crafting Digital Fashion. Research presentation and panel discussion with Marina Elenskaya, Sarah Mayer and Ted Noten, Design Museum Den Bosch (NL)
 Lecture "Things that (don't) fit and other fringes. On Artificial Intelligent Jewellery, More-Than-Human Care-iers and other verschijnselen. A response inspired by Annemarie Mol's essay: Not Quite Clean. Trailing schoon and its resonances." DESIS PHILOSOPHY TALK #7.6 The Politics of Nature - A Conversation with Annemarie Mol, Z33, Hasselt (BE)
 Lecture Embodying Artificial Intelligems, Ornamutations, and Ornamisms - A Glossary of emerging Jewellery Phenomena in the Phygital Age. Schmucksymposium Haxthäuser Hof, Ingelheim Am Rein (DE)

2021
 Lecture “Ways of researching jewellery between the soup and the potatoes. Or, how to perform a (post)doctoral research in the arts in 3600 seconds. Research@Lunch, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt (BE)
 Lecture Artificial Intelligems. 12th SAR International Conference on Artistic Research hosted by mdw – University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna in cooperation with the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna and the University of Applied Arts Vienna (online)

2020
 Interview Virtual Presenting. British Academy of Jewelry Podcast.

2017
 Lecture A-Z night #3: Show me - The Art of presenting. Cultuurplatform Design, Z33 House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture, Architectuurwijzer, PXL-MAD School of Arts, LUCA School of Arts, University of Hasselt, Villa Basta, Hasselt (BE)
 Lecture Reflective Scepticism-Critical presentation of research. PhD seminar, The Cass University, London (UK)
 
2016
 Lecture MAD-talks. Munich Jewellery Week 2016, Galerie Handwerk, Munich (DE)

PERFORMANCE 

2025
 Performance Lecture “?” within the context of “Alles is interessant”, Late Lunch Lectures, PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt (BE)
 
 2023
 “Mirrored Dwellers, or: Performing Ornamutations. Exploring spectatorship and user experience through acts of adornment, embodiment, personification and intra-active phygital impressions within mixed realities”. In collab with Esther Verstreken, Guus Vandeweerd, Ine Vanoeveren, and Senneke Van de Wygaert. De Singel, Antwerp, 19th of April 2023; RITCS, Brussels, Thursday, 23rd of March, 2023 and PXL University of Applied Sciences and Arts, 11th of December, 2023 (BE)

2019
 “THIS PLAY an artistic research on the interactions BETWEEN JEWELLERY AND PRESENTATION.” PXL-MAD School of Arts, Hasselt and University of Hasselt (PhD defence as artistic performance) (BE) 

ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE

PUBLICATIONS ABOUT MY WORK

Derakhshifar, Katrin and Prechtl, Konstanze. "Interview with Anneleen Swillen of Artificial Intelligems." Not Only Decoration, 2024. 

Lippens, Dennis (2024) Dit is AI marketing. Ghent, Borgerhoff & Lamberigts, https://www.borgerhoff-lamberigts.be/owl-press/shop/boeken/dit-is-ai-marketing-2. 

Yan, Isabella. "AI Is Revolutionizing the Jewelry Industry." Rapaport Magazine, 2024, https://rapaport.com/magazine-article/ai-is-revolutionizing-the-jewelry-industry/. 

Visual and textual contribution for Ponton Magazine (OO), Oct. 22 

Let’s Change, Don’t Change. Z33 House for Contemporary Art, Design & Architecture, 2021.

Wu, Zhou; Zhenghong Wang and Peters, Ruudt. “21 grams.” China Academy of Arts Press, 2018, p. 11.

University of Applied Sciences, Technology, Business and Design. “Steel Prize 2020.” Wismar: Hochschule Wismar and Kolloquium Nordrhein-Westfalen, pp 38 – 39.

Fabrice, Jonas. “Anneleen Swillen, le bijou aux frontières du concept.” Modelab Paris, issue 6, Spring - Summer 2018, pp. 32 – 33.

Malev, Daniela. “To the point. Pin mechanisms and brooch back design.” Leipzig: Edition Winterwork, 2017, pp. 134 – 135, 138.

King, Kylie. “The Revolutionary Object.” Art Jewelry Forum, 2017, https://artjewelryforum.org/the-revolutionary-object.

Lignel, Benjamin. “EXPOSÉ.” Musée du Bijou Contemporain – Espace Solidor, Cagnes – Sur – Mer (FR), 2016.

Carré, Sebastien and Cassier, Marianne. Transmission. Montpellier: Studio 411, 2015.

Estrada, Nicolas. “New Necklaces: 400 designs in contemporary jewellery.” Barcelona: Promopress, 2016, p. 64.

Atkins, Lizzie. “Parades - Jewelry Takes to the Streets.” Shows and Tales. On Jewelry exhibition-making. Edited by Benjamin Lignel, Art Jewelry Forum, 2015, pp. 78 – 83.

Atkins, Lizzie. “International Graduate Show 2014.” Marzee Magazine 94, August– October 2014, p. 8.

KWINTESSENS. “Makers.” Kwintessens, 23 (3), 2014, p. 111.

De Schauvre, Christoph. “MAD about SCHMUCK.” Kwintessens, 23 (2), 2014, p.88.

Hermsen, Herman and Maas, Barbara. “Connecting Identities.” Düsseldorf: Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences, 2012.

Zilvermuseum. Zilvertalenten 2014.  Antwerp: Zilvermuseum (= now DIVA museum), 2014. 

BOARD MEMBERSHIPS AND ADVISORY ROLES

2024 - 2028
 Working Group “Collective Intelligence”, COST Action CA23158 “Artistic Intelligence - Responsiveness, accessibility, responsibility, equity”
 
 since 2024
 Educational innovation pilot research project by Filip Vandeputte “Imagination and ingenuity: the interplay between artistic and artificial intelligence in image creation”, PXL University of Applied Sciences and Arts

CONTACT

swillenanneleen(at)gmail(dot)com