AUSTRALIAN
IMAGE ORIGINALS |
The
Australian landscape is a recurring theme in my jewellery. Silver is my
main jewellery material, although you will see from the photographs that
a wide range of materials and techniques are brought together in its
fabrication. All the jewellery is designed to be worn. |
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There
were no workshops, no known practitioners, no glossy journals and hardly
a book on contemporary crafts/applied arts. It was the early 60's and I
was a young art teacher whose training had been almost entirely in 2D
areas such as drawing, painting, technical drawing and lettering;
certainly no jewellery.
But the early 60's was a time of
exploration and experimentation. Where information was not available we
experimented and learnt through trial and error. In many facets of craft
we were a generation who were self-taught and we banded together for
mutual support. Out of that environment the Craft Associations (now
Craft Councils) were born, as were groups for potters, jewellers,
weavers and others. |
It was in those times of experimentation that I first tried out jewellery and enamelling. It was fun! At the time I was also exploring clay, various textile media and glass, and for a while jewellery was sidelined as I concentrated on clay and textiles. |
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During the
mid 70's after studying in the USA with Robert von Neumann my interest
in jewellery was revived (and along with it enamelling). Other
digressions and explorations have occurred along the way, especially
electroforming on clay, computer generated images and papermaking, but
jewellery is now my focus.
I see myself as an artist/designer
with specialisations in teaching and jewellery - a veritable jill-of-all-trades. |
Thematically through
all these media I have tended to deal with two main areas: an
examination of the minutiae of nature and paradoxically the broader
landscape. Although I live in suburbia like many Australians I seem to
be drawn to the land. I also have an interest in ethnographical cultures
and their jewellery.
In all cases I like to interpret in a semi-abstract way. For example the designs in the first 5 slide-shows are drawn from the natural and worked land both from Australian derivation ( eg Golden Sands, Silver Skies, Urban Landscape and Estuary Series) and from overseas experiences (eg Volcano and Nazca Lines Series). In the case of works derived from
ethnographical sources I endeavour to evoke the 'primitive' without
copying a particular society (slide-show 6, the Artefact and Colours of
the Land Series). |
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Sterling silver is my main material. It is used in a range of processes including cuttlebone casting, fabrication and patination. A wide range of other traditional and non-traditional materials are also used such as gold plating, gold leaf, cattle bone, buffalo horn, paua shell, copper (often in an electroforming process) and enamels. | |
Sometimes the diversity of materials require complex technical solutions which hopefully do not overpower the aesthetics of the works. All pieces are designed to be worn. |
Apart from the
"gifts and souvenirs" mentioned below, individually designed
pieces are: rings from $60, brooches from $150, neckpieces and pendants
from $210. |
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