In 2005, couple Nina and Cesar Cueva saw a gap in Australia’s art and design scene. Where were the businesses connecting customers and design enthusiasts with Australia’s emerging craftspeople and design talents? Nina, a gem curator, and Cesar, a multidisciplinary creative, decided that between them, they possessed the knowledge of the industry and business acumen to fill that void. “With our passion for art and design, it felt like a natural extension of who we were to help create a platform for our community of creatives,” Nina explains. It was then that Courtesy of the Artist (or Metalab, as it was known at the time) was born.

Fast forward 20 years, and Courtesy of the Artist has not only evolved into a hub for boundary-pushing artists, object and jewellery designers from both Australia and around the globe, but the business has become a fixture of the Strand Arcade’s bespoke offering. “We love the Strand Arcade not only because it is located in the busiest precinct in Sydney, but its timeless and nostalgic beauty from the Victorian era takes you back to a time of simple treasures,” Nina says. “We also have the privilege of working alongside bespoke tailors, cobblers, jewellers and couture wedding designers, which is quite a rarity in today’s shopping environments.”

The store is a treasure trove of one-of-a-kind pieces: jewellery informed by urban architecture; objects that take their cues from the natural world; pieces studded with precious gems, designed to become heirlooms. The curation is a result of Nina and Cesar’s creative backgrounds — Cesar’s fine jewellery and object design practice is informed by an interest in industrial design and experience in gold and silversmithing, while Nina’s specialty lies in gems, working with local fossickers to curate a selection of rare and hard-to-find gems that find their way into Courtesy of the Artist’s pieces, and those of their stable of talent.

20 years is an admirable amount of time to run a business, but for Nina and Cesar, they’re hardly wearied by their two decades of work. “In another 20 years’ time, we hope to still be supporting great artists who are at the forefront of innovation and contemporary design, with an expanded audience internationally,” Nina says. If their first 20 years are anything to go by, Courtesy of the Artist seems to only just be getting started.