It’s impossible not to smile when you’re in the company of Olga Parra, as she continually surprises those around her. Just when you think you’re discussing physics and chemistry with her—a woman who recently embarked on a jewelry-making journey after enjoying a long and successful career as a dentist and orthodontist—she reveals that she’s an avid marathon runner, a cyclist, and starts her day with meditation. On top of that, she’s learning to cultivate and is struck by orchids. She knows that handcrafting is her thing. Her children never wore store-bought halloween customs because she would create them, just as she handcrafted everything for her home.

It’s essential to pause and quietly admire this remarkable woman, even if just for a moment, because she doesn’t stay still for long. Well, she does have her moments, but those are reserved for Thursday afternoons when she indulges in contemplative cinema screenings in Chinácota, the charming town she now calls home. Or when she pampers her beloved pets—Lucho, the rescued dog, and Lobito, the cat named by her granddaughter, Susana.

Olga explains that orthodontics is much closer to sculpting than one might think, and it’s her skilled hand that has made her an adept jewelry maker. However, her creations stand out because they don’t resemble any other. She challenged herself, thinking, “”If I’m going to delve into jewelry-making at this stage in life, I must create something unique.”” One day, she stumbled upon a magazine image that embodied the distinctiveness she was seeking—a metallic flower. She showed it to her son and expressed her desire to create something similar. He informed her that the technique was called “”Electroforming.””

That pivotal day in 2017 marked a turning point in her life. She recalls finding limited information about this technique, which was more akin to science than art. Undeterred, she made it her mission to master it. Starting from scratch, she enrolled in evening jewelry courses at Sena to acquire the foundational knowledge she needed for this somewhat alchemical process. Fueled by her innate curiosity and investigative spirit, she joined digital communities discussing electroplating and followed conversations between physicists from Argentina, Peru, and Europe. Eventually, she connected with her mentor, Harry, who had Indian roots, in Medellín. He initially supplied her with the necessary chemicals and, convinced by her persistence, agreed to mentor her. In just ten days, she learned how to perform electrolysis on the objects she intended to metalize.

Olga speaks of trials and errors. In the beginning, she encountered accidents with acids and learned to exercise caution. She’s acutely aware of the gasses and acids she works with. She selects leaves and flowers from her garden or her walks and transforms them into electrical conductors without causing any harm. She readies them to receive, almost magically, the layer of copper that will coat each unique form from nature. Like a scene from a mythological tale, that leaf or flower will petrify and become immortal.

She laughs as she reminisces about the time she spent weeks metallizing leaves, only to find that the resulting pieces were too heavy to wear and better suited as paperweights. Her memories serve as a reminder of just how much she has learned. Her efforts have undoubtedly been worthwhile, and all the hours spent in her laboratory were necessary for her to realize that her craft is a perfect fusion of science and art.