EXPO ‘SOLSTICE’ – galerie Viceversa, Lausanne (CH) – 21 Juin-21 Juill. 2012

SOLSTICE – le 21 juin – une exposition collective, internationale et thématique de bijoux d’auteurs organisée par la galerie viceversa

 

galerie viceversa
place Saint-François 2, 2ème étage
(au-dessus du Café Romand)
case postale 7698
1002 Lausanne
+41 21 / 323 96 34

 [e-mail]

 

….. et plonger dans le grand BLEU !

THANKS to  Marta Miguel Martínez-Soria page/selection on Pinterest, about blue jewellery !!!! it was the departure for this ….. blue OCEAN !! or, to be more in the « intellectual » actuality, « 99 shades of … BLUE » !!

 

Giorgio Vigna – gorgoglio – vetro

Arthur Hash  Blue Wave (cast polyurethane)

Donald FRIEDLICH  (gal. Loupe) – brooch ‘Translucence’ series – glass, 18k & 14k gold, diamond
Gésine Hackenberg- Table Glass: Dutch/Finnish Still Life, Brooch

Gésine Hackenberg Double Glass Still life Brooch- Finnish table glass (vintage by Itala); cut and ground

Giampaolo Babetto – Brosche

Graziano Visintin – broche – or, argent, niellage – 2009 

  
Graziano Visintin – Brooch, 2006 – 18k gold, enamel, gold leaf  (The David Collection)

Lisa JUEN – ‘don’t dream it wear it’ – blue brooch or necklace- Lasercut Stainless Steel, CZ, LED, LED Screen, Plastic, Cable, Light Switch, Battery

Maria Rosa Franzin brooch

Pilar Garrigosa brooch

Julia deVille (AU) – ‘Mechanical Wing’ brooch, Kingfisher Wing, silver

Luis Acosta – paper bracelet

Märta Mattsson

Rallou Katsari - ‘whispering loud’ ring

Aline Berdichevsky – brooches “Reconstructio »

Benedikt Fischer – brooches

Christian Astuguevieille – Bracelet éponge bleue (La Piscine, Roubaix – don de l’artiste en 1995)

Stefano Poletti- Collier en éponge naturelle teintée et perle recouverte de feuille d’or monté sur fil d’or

Nel Linssen – blue bangle – paper

Ute Eitzenhöfer – brooch – Mixed media (labradorite)

Eleanor Bolton – blue(s) necklaces

Coco Dunmire  necklace

Tabea Reuleake – ring

Birgit Skolimowski (EE)

Estela Saez “Good by(e) nest.” serie  2008- ‘SEPIA’ – silver/wool/fabrics/paint

Carolina Gimeno- portable objects

Carolina Gimeno-‘Phacella Congesta’ from Portable Objects 2010 – brooch

Carolina Gimeno- ‘Zurciendo cuerpos sobre el mapa’ 2009 – Brooch – Copper, Vitreus Enamel, wood, silver , steel

Carolina Gimeno (Chili) – série “dibujando en el espacio”

Flora Vagi – curious wish – brooch

Susie Ganch – blue dust enamel brooch

Flora Vagi -azur reverse necklace – ebony, silk, cord enamel,18 ct gold – 2005

Stacey Bentley brooch – enamel

Blanche Tilden – “Compress” necklace - glass

Christophe Marguier – ‘esperance de vie de l’homme’ necklace- plastic, silver, steel

Gulnur OZDAGLAR – PET jewelry

Gulnur OZDAGLAR – PET jewelry necklace

Catherine Jacquet – collier cascade – plastiques

Barbara PAGANIN (IT) broche ‘fiore di luce’ – verre  (Galerie SLAVIK)

GIIA (IT) “blue wave” felt neckpiece

Camilla Teglio – « Mimesi n2″  Collana : legno, carta giapponese, argento, colore

 Lucia Massei - pendant ‘Comunque e sempre’ 18kt yellow gold, silver, iron, ruby, black spinels 2009

 Lucia Massei -  bague « la bella adormentata »

Mirla Fernandes- Herança necklace- latex,paint, porcelain – 2006

Peter  Hoogeboom – chainmail porcelain necklaces

Liana Pattihis  - Blue Circle Brooch 2007 – Silver, copper, enamel stainless steel – Inspired by Wassily Kandinsky’s Painting ‘Blue Circle’

Liana Pattihis - Brooch: Blue Istos 02 2010 -silver Light Trace Chain, Copper, Enamel, St. Steel

Viktoria Münzker- Kollektion PARADISO

Mirjam Hiller - Catopsia – brooch – stainless steel powdercoating, titanium

Sari Liimatta « The Costume I », necklace, 2006 glass beads, fresh water pearls, metal, plastic toy

Mia Maljojoki - 2010 (Photo: Mirei Takeuchi)

Sara Borgegård  2009 necklace, wood, paint, iron, cotton

Sara Borgegård necklace

Yuri Bylkov - ring- metal, paper, acrylic – 2009

Alexis Kostuk – “high gear” brooch- copper, which I used a patina on to darken, pearls & gem beads, sterling silver ball chain, resin, and flocking.

Denise Julia Reytan

Denise Julia Reytan- “Snapshots”

Dora Haralambaki - ceramic ring

Edith Bellod - collier en porcelaine de limoges : “kaléidoscope”

Annamaria Zanella – brooch

Andi Gut - ring

Tanel Veenre – “Orden for the one who is arriving”

Helfried Kodré - brooch

Helfried Kodré - ring, silver, lapislazuli – ring, gold, silver, turquoise, bronze, 2007

Aldo Mondino, BIC – cristallo di rocca, lapislazzuli e tappo in oro smaltato blu, esemplare unico – 2008

Aldo Mondino, BIC necklace

Paweł Kaczyński

Paweł Kaczyński – Silver and Steel Water Bracelet

Hannah Fewtrell-Bolton - restriction 3 – conceptual textile

Jean-Pierre Dussaillant- Bague “Cactus”

Anya Kivarkis – copper, silver, enamel brooch

Emiko Oye – duchess2_ Necklace from My First Royal Jewels Jewellery Collection. Repurposed LEGO necklace inspired by Cartier’s diamond, emerald and platinum necklace, and Harry Winston’s pendant, 1960. emiko-o 2008.

Enrica Prazzoli – Ives Klein (Alchimia – 2011)

Enrica Prazzoli – (from Alchimia) blue Klein collection rings 

Floor Mommersteeg – Pebble-necklace, nylon

Floor Mommersteeg – broche

Hana Karim  Ceramic Jewelry

Helen Britton – brooch 

Hanna Liljenberg -  Quinault 3, halssmycke järn, oljefärg, lintråd, silver

Babette Egerland- ring “Ballonschmuck” 925 Ag rhodiniert

Farah Bandookwala (UK) – blue hair brooch

Mikiko Minewaki- ‘toy-camera’ necklace

Katie Schutte – Cluster necklace – crocheted, electroformed, and powdercoated found wire, cubic zirconia

Shannon Carney ring

Kath Inglis  “Blue Pollinator” Brooch

Akiko Ban- collar – 2010  (from Alchimia)

Jillian Moore -  brooch-pendant ‘Cucurbits’ 2008 Fiberglass, resin, copper, paint, felt

Joanna Gollberg - prong series blue brooch

Sayumi Yokouchi - ‘Layered’ Brooch in plastic, silk thread, and stainless steel.

Karin Kato – ‘QU4DRO’ Brooch in sand, resin, and silver

Silvia Walz – “Under water” brooch-  Series: Burbujas   – silver, copper, resine, enamel, glas – 2010

Silvia Walz La visionaria (Geometria Series) Brooch

Tobias Alm - Summer series 2009 Necklace. Cotton, wood, paint

Jessica Calderwood - ‘Portrait of an Eye’ Brooch/Pendant – Enamel on copper, sterling, stainless steel

Gésine Hackenberg  – ‘blue white ruins’ ring

Carola Bauer necklace – Silver, enamel

Jacqueline Ryan 18kt gold and vitreous enamel brooch

Jean-François PEREÑA -  bracelet -cuir, lapis-lazuli, nacre, plexiglas (bleu), argent

Patricia Lemaire – Aspara la Bleue 1- 1999 défilé Lapidus

Anne Goldfarb – OUT OF AFRICA – Collier Soie, Argent, Fil d’aluminium – Afedap 2011

Andrea Janosik- Blue Brooch - sIlver and suede - 2007

Sue GREGOR – cuff

Gijs Bakker- Bracelet « Porsche bracelet » stéréolithographie, polyuréthane -, 2000

David Bielander – Enzian Brooch – titanium

Sam Tho Duong

Hanneke Paumen (NL) – Tulle blauw Collar (detail)- felt

Kate Bauman  - barnacle no.9 (ring) – enamel, copper, sterling silver

Anthony Tammaro – « neck object » – Gypsum/Epoxy/Silicone

Farah Bandookwala (UK) http://www.farahb.com- Parasite series: magnetic brooches – Rapid prototyped nylon, stainless steel, dye, rare earth magnets. Collection of brooches with interchangable magnetic backs

Melissa TOLAR  - Enamel, hand-cast gems, and pearl jewelry

Mirla Fernandes

Mirla Fernandes ring

Ralph Bakker “the Fly” – earrings

Yoko Shimizu – necklace – resin, pigment, silver

Yoko Shimizu  (from Alchimia school), necklace from the « transformation » series – 2010

Celio Braga, Brazil (Think Twice: New Latin American Jewellery exhibition)

Marta Mattsson- The Human Touch – Cricket brooch

Susanne Elstner, brosche

Farrah Al-Dujaili – Necklace – Copper, enamel paint, watercolour pencil, thread – 2010

Carolina Gimeno (Chile) resinas – bracelet

Shannon Carney – medium collar resin necklace

Helena Lehtinen- Gardens Collection, Blue brooch, 2011 Wood, thread, beads

MARIJKE DE GOEY – 1999 – Pièce unique. BAGUE « Curly » en or or et titane à patine bleue

Mirjam Hiller  brooch

Gemma Draper, Barcelona- brooch

Nora Fok  ring

Paolo Scura - ring 

COUP de COEUR : Carola BAUER – enamel & color

Carola Bauer :
« While studying on the Rietveld Academy, I was occupied with redefining the term “jewelry”. I tried to get to the roots of what makes something a “jewel” as such. Through this process, my jewels became more of an object. In fact, they were statements about terms such as: preciousness, wearability, and decoration.
Nowadays, the quest for the meaning of “jewelry” still occupies me, though I embrace consciously the basic forms of jewelry.
The organic, tree-like forms in my work and the connection between the elements, express my fascination for the basic, and sometimes so banal facts, that everything is in continuous movement, continuous change. What seems defined continues in something else and lives on and on. «  (Carola Bauer, Amsterdam September 6 2004)(Charon Kransen Arts)

Training / Education:
Israel, Technical School, Jewelry Dept. 1988-1989
Holland, Rietveld Academy Amsterdam, Jewelry Dept.

 

Carola Bauer  makes use of traditional materials and techniques, such as enamelling. Her neckpieces are constructed with an architectural approach. The forms are simple but intricate at the same time and pay attention to detail. It is clear that wearability is of the utmost importance to the artist, as even the larger pieces seem to maintain a close relationship to the body.

Carola Bauer was born in Germany in 1953. She undertook sinological and theatre studies at the University of Munich and later followed a three year apprenticeship course at the school of crafts in Basel. She also obtained a craft certificate in Pforzheim. She has taken part in numerous exhibitions on an international level, including SOFA New York, Chicago and Palm Beach and in private galleries in Japan, USA, Germany, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Scotland.  (Alternatives Gallery)

Carola Bauer  Silver, enamel, gold- 2009

 

EXPO ‘Surface and Substance’ – Electrum Gallery, London (UK) – 7 Oct.-5 Nov. 2011

 Surface and Substance

International contemporary enamel jewellery  – Curated by Jessica Turrell

 

Part I: 7th October to 5th November 2011 at Electrum

Over the last few years there has been a significant revival of interest in enamel with a number of contemporary jewellers developing new ways of working with enamel that enable them to create exciting and innovative work.

This exhibition showcases the work of thirty jewellers of international standing who, through a varied set of practices, take enamel well beyond its traditional boundaries.

The title, Surface and Substance, has been chosen to emphasize that while this is clearly an exhibition that focuses on the use of vitreous enamel – the surface – of equal importance is the ‘substance’ that underpins the work on display; the thinking and the research, which along with the obvious material knowledge and skill, is evident in the striking and individual pieces on show.

Artists on show at Electrum:
Ralph Bakker — Carola Bauer — Patrizia Bonati — Stephen Bottomley — Kathleen Browne — Lydia Feast — Karin Johansson — Jutta Klingebiel — Ann Little — Nazan Pak — Jacqueline Ryan — Marjorie Simon — Silke Trekel — Jessica Turrell

 

Carola Bauer necklace – Silver, enamel, gold- 2009

Carola Bauer necklace – Silver, enamel

Patrizia BONATI - earring/brooch – 2003 – gold, white enamel

Patrizia BONATI - Brooch – Gold 18 Kt, white enamel

Stephen Bottomley – neckpiece ‘Yellow Drape’, Drape series 2007 – Steel, enamel 480 x 384 mm – photo. John K McGregor

Lydia Feast- ‘Chaos’ series – Vitreous enamel and white metal brooch

Marjorie Simon  (Gallery Loupe)

Nazan Pak - Foam brooches

Silke Trekel -  ‘Branching Out’  Brooch,  2010 -  chased iron, enamelled  (from ‘Spatial Structures’ exhibition)

Jacqueline Ryan 18kt gold and vitreous enamel brooch

Kathleen Browne- Double Trouble, brooch, 2002 -  fine and Sterling silver, vitreous enamel, plexiglas

Jessica Turrell – Brooch (THE ENAMEL SHOW -Velvet da Vinci Gallery)

 

 

Part II: 14th October to 12th November at Contemporary Applied Arts
Artists on show at CAA, 14 October – 12 November 2011:
Jamie Bennett, Stacey Bentley, Jessica Calderwood, Adrean Bloomard, Helen Carnac, Bettina Dittlmann, Susie Ganch, Christine Graf, Carolina Gimeno, Ike Junger, Kaori Juzu, Esther Knoble, Liana Pattihis, Isabell Schaupp, Vera Siemund, Elizabeth Turrell, Jessica Turrell, Annamaria Zanella

 

 

Electrum Gallery
21 South Molton Street
London
W1K 5QZ
Tel: [phone]

 

EXPO ‘Fused -contemporary enamel’ – Flow Gallery, London (UK) – 9 Mars-28 Mai 2011

 Fused -contemporary enamel

This show, curated by Melissa Rigby, the Chairman of the British Society of Enamellers, aims to challenge the pre-conceived ideas attached to enamel by questioning technique, process and aesthetic and to explore contemporary artist’s voices within this ancient medium.  

Enamelling, the art of fusing glass onto metal with heat, is one of the most ancient and durable means of adding colour to metal. Fused brings together artists who use the traditional enamelling technique in new and exciting ways, creating a fresh visual language for this process. Their application of enamel gives an arresting beauty and unique patina to a diverse group of objects, panels and jewellery.

 

Artists (for jewelry):
Carola Bauer, Stacey Bentley , Bettina Dittlmann, Lydia Feast, Kirsten Haydon, Hiroki Iwata, Karin Johansson, Kye-Yeon Son

Bettina Dittlmann

Bettina Dittlmann is inspired by historical jewellery, ranging from mourning Victorian jewellery to American Indian pieces. Dittlmann studies the historic forms and content, which later influence her own work. Drawing is an important part of Bettina Dittlmann’s life, often a starting point for a piece of jewellery.

 Carola Bauer

Carola Bauer captures incidental gestures in her jewellery; the cinema ticket in a coat pocket, twisted to a paper roll or the accordion-folded slip of paper. Bauer hopes to remind the observer of gestures. The surprises that she experiences in the search of forms also happen during the handling and use of enamel colours.

Stacey Bentley

Stacey Bentley is inspired by urban scenery. Becoming increasingly attentive to the unexpected and unnoticed components of this industrial environment allows Bentley to discover an elegant and mysterious aesthetic. The jewellery explores the new possibilities and ideas that industrial liquid enamel can bring to contemporary jewellery.

Karin Johansson

Karin Johansson’s work is a treasure hunt among things and stray thoughts that arise and are discarded and then meet again. Out of this process grows something enduring. “I collect, small things that fit in my matchboxes: actual pieces or abstract images caught in flight.”

Kirsten Haydon

Jewellery is a personal and sentimental medium. Historically, objects were created in the form of miniature representations of landscapes and icons that reminded people of their journeys and experiences. Kirsten Haydon travelled to Antarctica as an Arts Fellow. Since that time she has been exploring the depiction of this landscape, its remoteness and simplicity of landscape. “The sparseness of the landscape allowed me to focus on the man-made objects within it.”

Lydia Feast

Lydia Feast explores the concept of contrasting elements. Echoing references to time and nature whilst combining a modern clean aesthetic, this collection ‘Chaos &Calm’ brings together contrasting elements illustrating a harmony between chaos and calm, new and old and silence and noise. Inspired by her research into chaos theory: “the underlining order in some of nature’s most random processes”. Each piece is unique as a result of the carefully controlled but ultimately random outcome.

Kye-Yeon Son

Kye-Yeon Son explores positive and negative spaces through her branch structures. Her work symbolizes the human cycle of growth, death, and renewal. They seem to capture intangible emotions, spirits or memories.

Hiroki Iwata

Hiroki Iwata takes inspiration from nature around him describing it as « an irreplaceable treasure ». His brooches made of silver, enamel and aluminium foil reflect his aim to produce feelings of empathy with the motifs of the natural world in the viewer.

 

 

Flow Gallery
Yvonna Demczynska
1-5 Needham Road    London   W11 2RP   UK
Tel: [phone]
[e-mail]

 

Innovation in ENAMEL jewelry – Research project by Jessica Turrell

The Innovation in Enamel Jewellery database is one of the outcomes of the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)  funded three-year fellowship Innovation in Vitreous Enamel Surfaces for Jewellery.

As part of the research project extensive research was undertaken to identify a group of internationally prominent contemporary jewellers whose practice demonstrates an open and innovative approach to the use of enamel. When complete the database will feature images and supporting information on the work of approximately 30 artists. The aim of the database is to highlight the potential of enamel as an expressive and contemporary medium as well as serving as an important research tool.

The database, which is fully searchable, focuses exclusively on enamel jewellery and complements the existing archive ICVEA (International Contemporary Vitreous Enamel Archive) that is also hosted by the University of the West of England and which includes a broad range of contemporary enamel work.

Currently the database features the work of the following artists:
Carola Bauer – Germany
Jamie Bennett – USA
Stacey Bentley – UK
Patrizia Bonati – Italy
Stephen Bottomley – UK
Jessica Calderwood – USA
Lydia Feast – UK
Mirjam Hiller – Germany
Ike Junger – Germany
Kaori Juzu – Denmark
Ann Little – UK
Lianna Pattihis – UK
Jacqueline Ryan – Italy
Isabell Schaupp – Germany
Vera Siemund – The Netherlands
Marjorie Simon – USA
Elizabeth Turrell – UK
Jessica Turrell – UK
Annamaria Zanella – Italy
The following artist will be added in early autumn 2010:
Jennaca Davies – USA
Carolina Gimeno – Spain
Christine Graf – Germany
Sangeun Kim – UK
Natalia Pinchuck – USA
Barbara Seidenath – USA

 Jessica Turrell

 

 

 Innovation in Vitreous Enamel Surfaces in Jewellery

(UWE – University of the West England – Bristol – AHRC (Arts and Humanities Research Council) Vitreous Enamel Research Project)

Awarding body: Arts and Humanities Research Council
Awarded to: Jessica Turrell
Project duration: 1.09.2007 – 31.08.2010

introduction:
The research project is based on the premise that there is huge and largely unexplored potential for innovation within the field of enamelled jewellery. By taking both a practice-led and theoretical approach the aim of the project has been to identify factors that might hinder innovation and present a series of alternative approaches that encourage a more experimental and open-minded approach to enamel.

Research Context
The practical aspects of the research project were underpinned by theoretical and contextual research into the place of enamel in contemporary jewellery practice. This included a wide-ranging visual and literature survey. Web-based research combined with a series of visits to individual practitioners in the USA and Europe as well as to significant exhibitions and collections in Europe, the UK and USA, provided a broad overview of current enamel jewellery practice. This contextual research led to the identification of a number of contemporary jewellers for whom enamel forms a significant part of their practice. A methodology was developed by which the output of these jewellers was analyzed and then allocated to one of three distinct categories. These were as follows:

Skilled (fine) – broadly work that concentrates on traditional enamelling techniques to create work for a mainstream or commercial market.

New – where the work itself engages with contemporary ideas but where enamel is used simply to add a paint-like layer of colour to the surface of the piece using only basic techniques.

Innovative – where the two practices overlap and the artist is able to demonstrate both a k

A selected group of individuals, identified through this process as falling into the Innovative category, were then invited to submit images and supporting written material to the new Innovation in Vitreous Enamel Surfaces in Jewellery database that operates alongside (and is complimentary to) the existing International Contemporary Vitreous Enamel Archive (ICVEA) currently held by the Enamel Research Unit at the University of the West of England, Bristol.

Link to Innovation in Enamel Jewellery database

The contextual and theoretical aspects of the project are examined in depth in an article for Craft Research entitled Surface and Substance – a call for the fusion of skill and ideas in contemporary enamel jewellery.
The article is available online at the following site: craft research journal online

Discussion Forum
A variety of approaches have been taken in order to stimulate debate and comment regarding the place of enamel in contemporary jewellery practice. The first of these was a discussion forum entitled ‘Innovation in Enamel’ which has involved a number of internationally prominent enamel artists all of whom demonstrate a non-traditional approach to their enamel practice. The central aim of this forum has been to highlight the potential of enamel as an innovative medium and to stimulate debate about the aesthetic, conceptual and practical considerations that govern the use of enamel in contemporary jewellery practice. The forum has operated as a members’ only project, meaning that the site can only be accessed by registered members and they alone are able to view the content and submit comment. The rational for this was to encourage those involved to freely discuss their ideas without the constraints of operating within a public arena.

Selected extracts and a summary of the discussions threads can be accessed here.

In addition to the forum site, Jessica has initiated a discussion strand -‘Surface and substance: the place of enamel in contemporary jewellery practice’, which appears on the International Art Jewellery Online Community, Klimt02 – www.klimt02.net/blogs

These two discussion strands have informed the written and theoretical aspects of the research and the production of a number of case studies.
Case Studies
The case studies feature artists who were chosen as representative of a broad and diverse range of approaches to enamel :

Stephen Bottomley, Yellow Drape Neckpiece, Laser-cut steel and enamel -(Photo: John K. McGregor)

Liana Pattihis, Coral Red Snake Chain Brooch 2009

Isabell Schaupp, Brooch, Enamel, copper, silver, 2009

Christine Graf, 2010

In order to 

promote innovative enamel jewellery to the widest possible audience Jessica is currently curating a significant international exhibition that will feature a group of jewellers identified for their innovative use of enamel. The show will begin its tour at Contemporary Applied Arts in London in late 2011, and will then travel to a number of venues across the UK including to the Ruthin Craft Centre in Wales.

Practical and Technical Research

The focus of the practical element of the research has been an investigation into the use of innovative and experimental enamelling techniques in the production of contemporary jewellery. Methods and approaches more usually associated with large-scale and panel enamelling and industrial processes have been adapted for use in wearable pieces. This investigation is supported by the development of a range of techniques that allow for the creation of three-dimensional forms that can be successfully enamelled.
The practical and technical aspects of the research fall into two main categories, these are the production of three-dimensional forms capable of being enamelled in the round and the development of enamelling techniques suitable for application to these three-dimensional forms.

Three-dimensional form trials

Initial research involved investigations into the use of three-dimensional forms created using traditional forming, construction and joining methods. The most commonly used joining technique is the use of high melting-point (or hard) silver solders. The received wisdom is that it is not possible to enamel directly over a soldered joint as the solder will discolour the overlying enamel and can in some cases cause it to come away from the soldered joint. In order to test this theory, extensive investigations were undertaken into the use of a group of silver alloy solders, which were tested for their stability and the effect that they had on the subsequent layer of fired enamel.

Although some solders gave better results than others they all visibly interfered with the enamel they were directly in contact with in some way.

As an alternative to the use of solders, fusion and laser welding were investigated. Both these methods use high levels of accurately directed heat to achieve a fused joint that does not require any additional solder. Although, to differing degrees, both of these techniques created a satisfactory join over which enamel could successfully be applied without too many problems the equipment required was not easily accessible, required outside assistance and was expensive to trial. For these reasons this avenue of research was not pursued.
It seemed that a seam free object should prove the ideal form over which to apply the enamel. There are a number of small-scale silver and copper-smithing techniques that can be employed to raise a seam-free hollow form from a flat sheet of meta,l but such methods are technically demanding and particularly difficult on a small scale. Thus this avenue of research was also rejected. Instead, the technique of electroforming seemed to offer a versatile and accessible method for the creation of 3D forms, and it became clear that a detailed investigation of the technique would prove to be the most productive strand of research.

To this end bespoke electroforming equipment was researched, designed, and built, and a series of tests undertaken. Research and trials were carried out to establish the most suitable materials and methods of production of base forms upon which metal might be deposited during the electroforming process.

Discussions took place with colleagues from the 3D Research Laboratory within the CFPR into the possibilities of creating mandrels using rapid prototyping techniques, and the indicative trials that were carried out to ascertain the suitability of the RP process to create electroforming mandrels and the potential for the medium with which the object is printed both to withstand the process and be easily removed as a core prior to enamelling. As a direction for further research these initial trials hold a lot of promise.
This collaborative strand of research was documented in a poster presentation given during the IMPACT 7 conference in 2009.

In order for the electroforming process to occur it is necessary that the surface of the object to be electroformed is able to conduct an electrical current. As a number of non-conductive materials had been identified as appropriate to this research it was therefore necessary to undertake a further series of trails to establish the most suitable electro-conductive coatings for the purposes of the project.

The final experiments in the production of the underlying electroforms was to trial all the variable of the electroforming process itself to establish the best method for the creation of a smooth and stable form of an appropriate surface and structure that would withstand the application of enamel.

Enamelling trials
In order to develop methods for the application of enamel to the three-dimensional forms resulting from the first strand of investigation, a comprehensive series of tests for the application and adhesion of jewellery and industrial enamel to two and 3D surfaces was undertaken. Stilting and firing methods for 3D objects enamelled in the round were also investigated. Methodology for the recording of technical tests has been developed and trialed and a standardized format has been developed, informed by these trials, which has been used to record the results of all tests undertaken.

Practical Outcomes
On completion of the practical trials a group of jewellery pieces were created using the methods established as most appropriate in the realization of a defined personal aesthetic. These pieces were exhibited at Contemporary Applied Art in London during June and July 2010.

Jessica Turrell- Electroformed and enamelled pendants

Jessica Turrell- Electroformed and enamelled pendants

 

Dissemination
The practical and theoretical outcomes of the project were disseminated by a number of methods throughout the period of the research.

symposium:
A symposium was held at the Bower Ashton Campus, University of the West of England in July 2010:
Read a review of the symposium here – http://www.iom3.org/news/enamoured-enamel

SUMMARY:
Addressing an audience composed of professional makers, academics, researchers and students the symposium examined the place of enamel within contemporary jewellery practice, celebrating its potential as an exciting and innovative material. At a time when increasing numbers of contemporary jewellers are rediscovering enamel this event offered a timely opportunity for the sharing of information and ideas plus a chance to network and take part in debate.

 

Conclusion
The ultimate aim of the project has been to demonstrate the potential of enamel as an exciting and innovative material and to thus affect a change in the commonly held perception that enamel is a medium not readily associated with contemporary jewellery practice. It is anticipated that the dissemination of the outcomes of the research project Innovation in Vitreous Enamel Surface for Jewellery will go some way towards the creation of an environment where the innovative potential of the material is more widely recognized, both by the jewellery community and within art education, thus allowing a more ambitious and rigorous enamel practice to flourish.

 

Visit the CAA exhibition page at http://www.caa.org.uk/exhibitions/archive

Jessica Turrell

« The intimate scale of jewellery is a central factor in my practice. I strive to create work that has a tactile delicacy and that rewards the wearers close attention with an intricate and detailed surface. Over recent years I have developed an experimental approach to enamel by which I seek to create work that moves away from traditional jewellery enamel practice in order to achieve a more ambiguous and expressive surface quality. » (Jessica Turrell)

Exhibitions 2010 – Showcasing a New Collection of Enamel Jewellery :  18 June – 17 July 2010, London

 

Elizabeth Turrell – cross Badges (exhibition « The Enamel Experience », Velvet da Vinci Gallery, 2008)