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This third-generation design maestro is also a gem of a human being
Kingswood resident Michél Nunes is at the helm of the world-renowned Raffaele D’Amato Jewellers in Garden Route Mall. When perusing the website of Raffaele D’Amato Jewellers, one is blown away by the superior bling displayed in full colour: breathtaking examples of this design emporium’s handcrafted art light up the screen. But nothing quite compares to seeing these jewels and gems with the naked eye.
The BUZZard visited Raffaele D’Amato Jewellers in the heart of Garden Route Mall to catch up with proprietor and master designer Michél Nunes. Armed with the reams of info at www.damato.co.za as background, it’s hard not to gush when in the presence of Michél, and surrounded by handcrafted masterpieces to die for.
Part of Cape craftsman history
A truncated version of the family’s beginnings in South Africa starts when Italian POW Raffaele D’Amato came to the continent’s southernmost outpost in search of a better life. Here, the master watchmaker wed wife Monica and shared this talent with their son, Deryck Nunes, who opened the first Raffaele D’Amato Jewellers in Paarl in 1957.
Fast-forward to George some decades later, where the talented father-and-son team opened an outlet in the CBD to repair, sell and manufacture watches and jewellery. This is where Michél – Deryck and Marlene’s son – came into the picture, joining the business in 1989.
It was a veritable full-circle event, as Michél first started working in the family jewellery store when he was eight years old, following in the footsteps of his master watchmaker father and grandfather.
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Saying ‘no’ to the Big C, ‘yes’ to life
But 1989 was also the year when Michél was diagnosed with bone cancer and described by doctors as ‘terminally ill’ with a relapse three years later. Having won that battle with the help of chemo and an iron will, he was put to the test once more when diagnosed with advanced colon cancer in 2012.
Again he conquered this illness, and his achievements today are a testament to his determination to live life to the fullest. Michél believes in pushing the limits – a fact demonstrated not only by his pioneering work in jewellery design, but also in hobbies not necessarily associated with the arts.
After doing his compulsory military service in the SA Air Force, he obtained his private pilot’s licence and traversed the skies for many years. Now retired from flying, he remains an enthusiast and has attended events such as the Red Bull Air Show in Portugal. He also loves motorcar racing and has done many advanced driver courses.
Combo of talent and training
Learning from the best helped Michél to become one of the country’s leading designers, but that first-hand instruction was augmented by a slew of qualifications personally attained as soon as he was released by the old South Africa’s armed forces.
A BA degree in Creative Arts: Jewellery and Industrial Metal Design from Stellenbosch University was followed by an FGA in coloured gems and diamonds from the Gemmological Association of Great Britain. Then, in 2016 in Canada, Michél proceeded to become a Graduate Jeweller with the Canadian Jewellers Association.
‘I wanted to be a watchmaker but doing the seven- year course in Switzerland was not an option, so off I went to Stellenbosch. At school I was more of a science guy and art was never really my thing, but I realised that gemmology combined science, trigonometry and subjects I enjoyed as a youngster.’
Michél’s lecturers at the Stellenbosch Jewellery Department, Herbert Pienaar and Dave Glenister, later became his promoters and colleagues in gemmology. ‘I was the only student to score full marks in my gemmology practical exam, still holding the record to this day,’ he smiles, but adds that he had to work really hard to master the art side of things.
‘In the same way one can acquire a taste for, say, olives, I acquired a knack for the course’s artistic requirements.’ This paid off to the point where Michél went on to lecture in jewellery design at Stellenbosch University before returning to the family business.
Awards and awesome staff
In 1990, Michél won the Elegant Man of the Year design award for his ‘Elegant Time’ brooch, and was one of five designers selected by De Beers to contribute to the ‘Just for You’ Woman with Style competition.
Three decades on, Michél maintains an active interest in design trends and gemmology developments, keeping close ties with Britain’s Gemmological Association. He has served on the Jewellery Council of SA as panellist for many years and is a member of the Diamond Dealers Club of South Africa.
These ties with the national and international industry have put him in a perfect position to ensure that Raffaele D’Amato Jewellers remains at the top of its game. After Dad Deryck passed on in 2008, Michél has taken the business to the next level, ably supported by mom Marlene and their multi-talented team.
‘We are one of the only jewellery businesses in SA that has been in the same family for 68 years. I learnt early life lessons in the line of duty – when I got mad at my dad, I would walk around the block and then come back just to realise that I have nowhere else to go, so just carried on working in the store!’
Today, he puts in his hours from 8am to 4pm daily at the gorgeous Garden Route Mall store, with Mom Marlene still very much part of its daily running. Marlene and Michél are supported by an ever-loyal team, including an expert watchmaker who has been in their employ for the past 11 years, with two of the store’s staff having been ‘part of the family’ for 27 and 21 years respectively.
His continued studies in CAD (computer-aided design) have proved to be a winning recipe in business, as it allows Michél to digitally create 2D drawings and 3D models of jewellery before the manufacturing process starts. ‘With 3D CAD, you can share, review, simulate, and modify designs, so clients can be part of the process when seeing their desired piece come to life on a computer screen in ray-traced images.’
Hot cocktails and crazy border crossings
Michél holds an EU passport as well as Canadian residency, and used to share his time twixt South Africa and the land of Mounties and maples. ‘But at the moment I’m needed here for business reasons and I’m putting all my energy into the jewellery store, as George is now truly a boomtown.’
He says that the lifestyle in the Southern Cape capital is on par with a first-world city such as Vancouver, citing as example the abundance of George restaurants serving excellent food, complemented by the town’s beautiful natural surrounds.
But he can write a book about standout experiences and memorable travels during the past three decades. Among these count a close call with the wildfires that devastated British Columbia, shortly after the Knysna fire of June 2017. ‘We evacuated with only our cats and most important papers. Then, just 5km from our house, the wind turned and we came off unscathed.’
In 2012, while still on chemo pills and strongly discouraged from any travels, Michél and a friend set off on an MSC cruise from Marseilles that included stops in Tunisia, the Amalfi Coast, Mallorca, and Ibiza. ‘I did everything I wasn’t supposed to do, like having cocktails that had to be heated up so as not to interfere with my medication!’ Another excellent trek, in 2014, traversed the Western Pacific seaboard from Florida to Portland, Oregon. And then there was the time when Michél and his partner in crime crossed a border between the States and Canada on foot – but that adventure may be best covered if ever he pens his tome of tantalising travel tales.
The crispness of Kingswood
‘A crisp estate’ is how Michél aptly describes Kingswood, where he bought his first house back in 2008. ‘I sold that home when planning to leave the country for good, but then returned … and rented my own townhouse!’
Now in his second Kingswood abode, he says it’s the perfect place to come home to after long hours at the grindstone. ‘Sometimes all I want to do is sleep, and it’s unbelievable that one can live on a busy estate street but never be bugged by the noise of passing traffic.’
When ‘noise’ is called for, however, Michél puts on his favourite EDM tunes and loses himself in the music. A fan of all things electronic, he loves gadgets, computers and the latest software. He is also an accomplished photographer and when looking at his Insta-page, his favourite subject may well be beloved cuddle cat, Princess Leia.
‘When sporadically pining for that vast Canadian landscape with its redwoods and bears, I look at the mountain views and cuddle Leia, and then there is nowhere else in the world I’d rather be.’
