Stella Ajao

Erupt was birthed from rupture. A silent tearing within Stella’s body, the breakdown of friendships, even cracks in her home. She designed what she felt, holding inside what she could not say. A later scan confirmed what her hands had already revealed: internal scarring. She later went on to develop external scarring from open surgery due to the health conditions she was battling. Created as a one-off, it remained incomplete until this exhibition encouraged her to finish and share it. Erupt is shown publicly for the first time, offered as both jewellery and testimony. Stella is open to future commissions, believing some pieces are not just adornment, but armour for those carrying scars of survival.