Maria Tash (born Maria Tashjian in

West Islip, New York West Islip is a hamlet and CDP founded roughly in 1683, located in the Town of Islip in Suffolk County, New York, United States. Situated on the South Shore of Long Island, the population of the CDP was 27,048 at the time of the 2020 census. ...

) is a jewelry designer and retailer. Tash founded the eponymous Maria Tash, a New York-based luxury piercing and fine jewelry brand. The brand specializes in body piercing, ear curation, and fine jewelry design. Originally founded in New York City in 1993, Maria Tash has since expanded globally. Tash's work, under her eponymous brand, has combined elements of mainstream piercing culture with fine jewelry, coining the term “Curated Ear” to refer to an ear pierced with fashionable intention and under the direction of piercing experts.

Early years and education

Originally from

and raised in New York City, Maria Tash (birth name Maria Tashjian) attended

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Angrilli, Linda; Matthew Nadelhaft (2004). "Piercing Analysis". ''FIT Network Magazine'' and the

Fashion Institute of Technology The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) is a public college in New York City. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) and focuses on art, business, design, mass communication, and technology connected to the fashion industry. ...

. She also attended King's College in

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

Career

Tash opened her first studio, Venus Modern Body Art, in 1993 in Manhattan's East Village, specializing in navel piercings and jewelry. Venus Body Arts later became Venus by Maria Tash until eventually Tash decided to use her own name for the shop. While first specializing in navel jewelry, the shop later become known for a variety of ear piercing styles. Tash launched a line of international stores with its flagship location opening in New York City in 2004. In 2016, the brand began expanding globally with the opening of a shop at Liberty London. Maria Tash has since opened permanent locations in Rome, Dublin, Harrods London, and Dubai. In November 2018 she opened her second freestanding location outside New York City with a 2,000 sq. ft luxury boutique in

The Dubai Mall The Dubai Mall ( ar, دبي مول "Dubai Mall") is a shopping mall in Dubai. It is the second largest mall in the world after the Iran Mall by total land area, and the 26th-largest shopping mall in the world by gross leasable area, tying with ...

. In 2020 during the Corona-Pandemic, Maria Tash began to offer complimentary virtual appointments through FaceTime and

Google Hangouts Google Hangouts is a discontinued cross-platform instant messaging service developed by Google. It originally was a feature of Google+, becoming a standalone product in 2013, when Google also began integrating features from Google+ Messenger a ...

in English, Spanish, French, Italian and Arabic.

Design and cultural impact

Tash modified several industry standard methods of assembling jewelry to create pieces that better fit the wearer. These include a “ threaded” style earring backing and "invisible set" diamonds, which are notched and set below the crown. Tash's designs are often smaller and more subtle than the traditional punk-style heavy piercings that were popular in the early 1990s, when Tash began piercing. Her designs have been worn by

Hailey Bieber Hailey Rhode Bieber (; born November 22, 1996) is an American model, media personality, and socialite. She has been featured in major ads for Guess, Ralph Lauren, and Tommy Hilfiger. Early life and family Hailey Rhode Baldwin was born in Tu ...

, Rihanna, Ashley Graham, Queen Rania and Maritta Hallani.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tash, Maria Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American people of Armenian descent Columbia University alumni American jewelry designers Body piercers People from West Islip, New York Fashion accessory brands Luxury brands Women jewellers