EXPO ‘Out of the Fire’ – The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh (UK) – 4-28 Juin 2014

Out of the Fire

with  Ann Little, Grace Girvan, Stacey Bentley

 Stacey Bentley Yellow Stripey Brooch 2014 oxidised silver, iron, enamel, stainless steel pin W:5.3cm H:5.3cm

 Out of the Fire brings together the work of three established Edinburgh College of Art trained contemporary jewellers specialising in enamel.

Ann Little graduated in 1996, Grace Girvan graduated in 2003 and Stacey Bentley graduated in 2008.

 

 Stacey Bentley Blue Enamel Brooch 2014 oxidised silver, iron, enamel, stainless steel pin W:6cm H:4.2cm

 

The Scottish Gallery
16 Dundas Street
Edinburgh
EH3 6HZ
T (+ 44) 0131 558 1200
E [e-mail]

EXPO ‘TREASURE’ – London (UK) – 14-17 Juin 2012

TREASURE - London’s visionary jewellery show 14–17 June 2012

« Treasure 2012, London’s visionary jewellery show, is the best place to purchase the most beautiful, exciting and vibrant contemporary jewellery anywhere in the UK »

 

Some of the jewellers exhibited :

Jeehyun Chung

Jeehyun Chung, a recent graduate from Edinburgh College of Art, makes oriental and contemporary style jewellery inspired by blending moments from travels across Europe with traditional Korean art and crafts

Michael Berger – kinetic rings

Christiane Wichert

« By extending the body with jewellery you can design your identity and express your personality. This fundamental relation between body and jewellery was source of inspiration for my « BodyJewellery – JewelleryBody » collection . In some designs I focused on the appearance of the material, in others I gave priority to how the jewellery is made or how to wear it. »

Christiane Wichert

Eily O’ Connell

« Referencing the disruption of nature’s order through my work, I create new life forms that appear as direct replications of recognizable organic matter yet they are not quite as they seem.
Having accumulated an assortment of natural forms and materials based on their intrinsic characters, the process of casting helps me to amalgamate these ever evolving hybrids, deceptively leading to mistaken identity. By acting as the divine creator, I am mimicking the power we have to alter nature’s path, which ultimately leads to chaos and the sinister presence lurking throughout the work.« 

Eily O’ Connell - ring

Grainne Morton

« Since I can remember I have been a bit of a magpie, hoarding incessantly anything miniature or eclectic that has caught my eye. Born and brought up in Northern Ireland, with parents involved in the Antique business it was moving to Edinburgh in the late eighties to attend Edinburgh College of Art that I became an avid collector of ephemera. As my time at Art College progressed it became clear that the things I was collecting were becoming the inspiration for my work and this is when I started to use these actual found objects in my work. Straight after graduation I set up my business and have exhibited internationally ever since. My work has been featured widely in press and publications, is represented in many public and private collections and in 2007 I was shortlisted for the prestigious ‘Jerwood Applied Arts Prize – Jewellery’.« 

Jenny Llewellyn

« …Colour has always been a significant feature of her jewellery. By introducing the translucent qualities of silicone with bright pigments, alongside the shifting reflective surfaces of precious metal and plastics, she conveys the qualities of underwater life forms. »

Lili Design (Lili Giacobino) detail of a necklace

« No chemicals are used in the creation of Bioplastic jewellery, which means it will not last forever »

Lili Design (Lili Giacobino)  necklace

Manuganda

Renush -Contempory hand made, moulded leather jewellery

« Renush is the creation of designer and maker Renáta Koch, a graduate in Footwear and Accessories from Cordwainers College at the London College of Fashion. Taking her inspiration from the contours of the human body and the characteristics of materials used, Renáta uses traditional techniques to create thoroughly modern and highly original pieces »

Stacey Bentley

« I was first inspired by a tutor to pursue a career in jewellery design. I loved to make small sculptures and turn them into playful wearable objects. From the moment I was introduced to enamelling at Edinburgh College of Art I immediately loved its instantaneous effects. I find the enamelling process fascinating from applying the enamel to metal to firing it in a kiln. The most satisfying part for me is when the layers of rich colour are rubbed back to reveal patterns and textures underneath. My love for the city is the inspiration behind my work. I initially paint my ideas onto enamel panels and then translate these drawings into tactile, sculptural forms that play with line,texture and colour. My recent collection consists of earrings, pendants and brooches made from oxidised silver, iron and enamel. I oxidise the silver to create an industrial feel which compliments the bold colours that feature throughout my jewellery designs.« 

Stefania Lucchetta bracelet

Yoko Izawa

« Veiled jewellery reflects my assumption that although certainty is often required in modern society, ambiguous expression has been the most distinctive characteristic found in Japanese values and religious beliefs« 

 

 

Somerset House – Ethical Pavillion
Strand
London WC2R 1LA
UK
http://www.treasureuk.com/

 

….. 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 

EXPO ‘On Repeat’ – Flow Gallery, London (UK) – 8 Sept.-5 Nov. 2011

  »On Repeat »

This exhibition at flow features the work of eighteen international makers. The exhibition explores the creative process which at times becomes meditative; moving from the mind of the maker to an intuitive action. The process of repetition can create or even determine a form. It allows exploration of volume, decoration and pattern. Repetition creates a rhythm and a flow; it highlights difference, irregularity and the history behind surfaces. It is through repetition that you discover difference, through order and an attempt for the constant, variation is emphasized and the unexpected is found in the familiar. Using different materials and patterns; from lines, dots or looping, all the work has the process of repetition in common. The process of making can be a valuable trigger of inspiration. This is echoed in this exhibition, which aims to encourage people to see and enjoy the subtle variations created from a single repeated act.

 

Artists:
Astrid Keller, Birgit Hagmann, Charlotte Sale, Ella Robinson, Evert Nijland, Flora Vagi, Ike Junger, Iris Tsante, Momoko Kumai, Nikolay Sardamov, Noriko Takamiya, Nuala O’Donovan, Renata Francescon, Ritsuko Jinnouchi, Sidsel Hanum, Stacey Bentley, Stine Jespersen, Tsuruko Tanikawa.

Iris Tsante

Iris Tsante considers jewellery as a process of exploring ways to define the sense of « beauty » and « value » in reference to memories of significant objects and the subsequent human/social connections related to them. Tsante’s pieces provide connotations of optimism, simplicity, joy and innocence, revealing at the same time qualities such as fragility and vulnerability.

Flora Vagi - waves & flames brooch

Flora Vagi creates jewelry which not only adorns the body but explores the visual language of an object. » I search discover, transform…. surprise. The materials get a ‘return ticket’ from me, and with their ‘newly dressed souls’ I send them back to the world, where they came from ».

Nikolay Sardamov- Being the basic motif, the circle serves as a starting point: “Intersections” necklace, 2010. Blackened silver.

Nikolay Sardamov-  Sense of snow
Nikolay Sardamov has focused on the circle. Through repetitions and overlapping a pattern emerges. He uses the multiplied pattern to arrange figures with different types of symmetry and uses them to construct double-layered forms. The layers cast shadows that overlap and create a notion of movement, like snowflakes falling from the sky.

Momoko Kumai
Momoko Kumai describes her work as « accessing my inner child playing with paper. It is abstract in form – the result of a free-flowing sub-conscious process of folding, twisting and rolling up any kind of paper material ».

Stacey Bentley
Stacey Bentley is inspired by urban scenery, taking inspiration from its patterns and structures. Being attentive to the unexpected and unnoticed components of this industrial environment allows Bentley to discover an elegant and mysterious aesthetic. Her observations are translated into tactile, sculptural forms that play with line, gritty textures and matt finishes.

Ike Junger
Ike Jünger uses a variety of materials and techniques from colourful enamel to gold casting and often incorporating found objects. Her work is organic and enigmatic.

Evert Nijland
Evert Nijland is fascinated by the way nature is visualized by artists throughout art history. His collection titled ‘Naturae’ is inspired by the many floral motives that are used in classical ornaments.

Renata Francescon (céramique, mais si beau ……)

Birgit Hagmann necklace 2011

Birgit Hagmann. This work is based on drawing. Using the wire, the drawing is
transformed into a three-dimensional space. The line creates shapes and explores volume, sometimes delicately, playfully and searchingly and other times confidently, in a straight, clear and powerful way. Thus crystalline-organic structures come to life and become jewellery.

 

Flow Gallery
1-5 Needham Road, W11 2RP London, United Kingdom
[phone]
http://www.flowgallery.co.uk

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)

 

 

‘ORIGIN’ London Craft Fair – 23-29 sept. 2010

Origin : The London Craft Fair

Origin is an annual showcase of original contemporary craft, bringing together 220 of the most innovative UK and international makers for 1 week. It offers a rare chance to buy directly from the makers and meet them face to face.

Origin will now take place in September during the annual London Design Festival (LDF).
Origin 2010 will relocate from Somerset House to the newly refurbished Old Spitalfields Market from the 23rd-29th September 2010. This exciting new venue in the heart of creative London and the new timing of Origin as a major presence during the London Design Festival will inject new life and a renewed sense of excitement into this highly respected, established event.

EXHIBITORS list

une TRES TRES belle liste d’exposants !

Ai Kawauchi (JP) - organic pieces of jewellery – stand P02
« Handmade silk accessories created by using a unique technique to produce organic pieces of jewellery. It is made from traditional silk from the town of Kiryu, Japan and natural red and black beans that are used to give the shape, form and colour to these botanical inspired feminine pieces.« 

Alison Macleod (UK) -  Re-Found Brooch #2 , 2010 - stand P13

 Anna Wales - blooming boa necklace - stand F27
« My jewellery is designed to create a powerful visual impact along with an enticing tactility. It focuses on the combination of felt and silver, or of oxidized silver with polished precious metals arranged to form stark contrasts or subtle transformations throughout a singular piece.« 

Bea Jareño (ES) – neckpiece- oxidised silver, sponge red dyed coral - stand A11

 Claire McAlister- 12 diamonds brooch-  stand K31
« In my distinctive design language I make jewellery using a unique combination of silver and dramatically coloured wood veneers. I make individual rectangular links which are assembled into complex structures of intricate geometry. The pieces, although bold and complex, are light weight and easy to wear.« 

Danielle Gori-Montanelli (IT) – « licorice » felt necklace -  stand P41

Jacqueline Cullen (UK) – Whitby JET jewelry  (brooch) -  stand P09

 

Jeehyun Chung (Korea) Repetition Flower bracelet, oxidised silver wire –  stand P03
« My interest in contemporary art jewellery led me to explore the aesthetic value of using non-traditional materials and resources from as varied fields as fashion, textiles when making my work. I mainly use precious metals (gold and silver) with flexible materials such as Korean silk and self-dyed elastic threads.« 

 

Jenny Llewellyn (UK) silicone jewelry -  stand C03
« I take inspiration from the luminous colours, shapes and movement of creatures from the deep sea to create vibrant, playful pieces that move with the wearer and glow in the dark. Colour is a significant visual feature in my jewellery. By introducing the translucent qualities of silicone with bright pigments, I combine these with the shifting reflective surfaces of precious metals to convey the qualities of underwater life forms« 

 

Anke Hennig (DE) - ’Hybrid’ necklace  Cotton, rayon, monofilament and silver-  stand G19
« The underlying idea of my work is restricted to clear forms and the principle of sequences. Simple, flat braids are wound around and over themselves, to form a spiral and provide an unusual aesthetic in the third dimension. These pieces of jewellery have both appearance and a surface, making it hard to imagine their origin – a new interpretation of an ancient technique.« 

Karen Bartlett (UK)-  stand K09
« Bespoke sculptural jewellery concerned with how the dynamics and perceptions of materials alter when used in an unfamiliar context, or as a visual metaphor for an underlying thought or theme through the use and juxtaposition of ‘precious’ and ‘non precious’ material including metals, gemstones & silicon rubber.« 

Kathryn Partington -  stand K09
« One-off pieces of wearable decorative jewellery. Surface pattern and ornamentation is explored by utilising a diverse range of materials, including silks, bone china, silver and metals creating pieces that are extremely unique within the arena of contemporary jewellery, craft and fashion.« 

Kiwon WANG (Korea) Newspaper ‘Statement’ Necklace in NY Times newspaper, sterling silver, pearl, and steel cable. –  stand B35
« My work is based on ‘East meets West‘. Everyday material meets precious by using traditional and contemporary techniques.« 

Laura Bennett (UK) Nature of Fragility – Thistle Ring No.1 –  stand P05

« Hand made jewellery, composed from natural found objects/materials – combined with precious metals. The collections are inspired by natural organic forms and constructed elegantly and sympathetically. The designs emulate the fragility of human emotions, inviting the individual to embark on a journey of self-discovery through memories and keepsakes« 

Lee Myungjoo (Korea) -  stand K07

« ‘Roll’ and ‘Bend’ are themes and techniques that I use on my simple formed jewellery pieces. To give vitality I use painting effect on silver with Keumboo (Korean overlay technique) and gold leaf. I want my jewellery to be a small sculpture on your body. »

Nuntaka Nopkhun-  stand F43
« Jewellery defined by its sensorial, tactile and visual qualities that aims to be sensually pleasing to the touch, but at the same time gently disturbing in context and form.« 

Stacey Bentley (UK)- textured enamel serie  –  stand K15
« I aim to explore the new possibilities and ideas that industrial liquid enamel can bring to contemporary jewellery. Urban scenery inspires my designs. By exploring unusual line and structure, texture and muted colour, I aim to generate an idea of spontaneity that reflects alternative notions of the unappreciated urban landscape« 

Tania Clarke Hall  (UK) – ‘ Red Slash Gold’ leather necklace-  stand F25
« Award winning jeweller, Tania Clarke Hall works in leather, her ‘perfect creative playmate’. Having studied chemistry and jewellery, Tania designs innovative pieces inspired by the elegant solutions offered by simple geometry and a love of experimentation. Her versatile jewellery is bold and graphic, yet tactile and very wearable. »

 

Yoko Izawa (JP) - stand L01
« ‘Veiled’ jewellery combines skilful and unique creative compositions, compelling colour palettes and original techniques using elastic fine knitting combined with other materials. The designs are characterized by tactile, organic and harmonious qualities« 

Michael Berger (DE) Kinetic rings - stand A17

 

Old Spitalfields Market
Brushfield Street
London E1 6EW  (UK)
For all enquiries relating to Origin, please contact Tent London :
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