It’s a sunny summer day, and we’ve arranged to meet at Ward’s new location in the Haarlemmermeerse Bos. He walks toward the gate — casual, smiling. We know each other from our Dutch podcast Passie als Kompas, where he spoke about the project with the natural confidence of someone who knows exactly what he’s doing. Today, I get to see it in real life — a place where dream and reality meet.
The building looks like something out of a science fiction film — angular, modern, made of sleek materials. And yet, it blends into the surrounding nature. It catches the eye of every passerby. I’m drawn in too — not just by the setting, but by the objects scattered throughout. It’s hard to imagine this place was once completely overgrown. Ward tells me how he brought the terrain back to life. He’s 27. His approach? Simple: try and do. “I just started. I’d never sculpted before. I bought some stone, a sculpting kit, an angle grinder — and began creating.
Ward grew up in a family of jewelers. His mother is a jeweler, his grandfather was a diamond cutter, and his great-grandfather owned a diamond factory. After studying Business Administration, he went on to the Gemological Institute of America in London. As part of a new generation, he wants to rethink how we work with materials. “Why do we polish stones when nature already makes them beautiful?” That question sparked a shift. He started integrating raw stones into jewelry. “Those crystals are artworks in themselves.” Eventually, that instinct expanded — from jewelry to architecture. “I thought, why not make a jewel for a house? I started embedding crystals in walls, floors, facades. The house wears the jewel.”
Among all his creations, one project stands out — a garden object on Lake Maggiore titled ‘Exposed out of Travertine’. The house for which it was made was built from the same material Ward works with: travertine. “You could call it ‘meant to be.’” The crystal in the piece, Muscovite, was once used as a glass alternative. In this context, it mirrors the use of glass throughout the house. The sculpture’s two halves symbolize the lives of the homeowners coming together. “Muscovite represents love and connection — the sparkle they bring into each other’s lives.” Normally his work is more aesthetic than symbolic, but this piece was different. “It became a truly significant object.”
“It starts with the material. When I see a stone, I immediately know what I want to highlight or hide. The stone feeds the idea.” That intuitive response — that trust in form and imperfection — seems to echo through everything he makes.
When asked to describe himself, Ward chooses three words: passionate, ambitious, respectful. All three show up in the way he talks about nature. He grew up just outside Amsterdam, in Badhoevedorp, always close to the outdoors. “Nature gives me peace — but also inspiration.” His first studio was in the Vecht region. Now, this new space in the woods feels like a natural continuation. “My work simply couldn’t exist without nature.”
Sharing new work with the outside world isn’t something that scares him easily. But there’s a kind of tension, he admits — not around the process, but the reception. “It’s more about how something will be received. Like when I posted ‘Exposed out of Travertine’ on Instagram. Or when I eventually share this new location. I know how much went into it — blood, sweat, and tears.”
We pause at a striking object — a crystal embedded in a block of stone. Ward explains how the form wasn’t intentional at first. “Before it stood on the plinth, it was hanging in a hoist. I was working on something else, and the hoist tipped over. That’s how the corner broke off. The crystal stayed intact.” What was once a perfect square became something more complex — and, ultimately, more interesting. “I added to the form, and it became something new. Everything that happens in the studio becomes part of the process. This is one of my favorite outcomes.”
We walk up the concrete stairs to a mezzanine with a view of the Haarlemmermeer. The sunlight reflects off the water and dances across the ceiling. Ward still has big dreams for his brand, and this space — THE GEM — is just the beginning. The name refers to the crystals he works with, but also to the place itself. A rough jewel, full of promise. Ready to evolve.