EXPO ‘Not Too Precious’ – National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny (Ireland) – 22 Janv.–30 Mars 2016

Not Too Precious : Exhibition Talk & Launch

Organisé par National Craft Gallery, Ireland

(Attai Chen on left – Carina Chitsaz-Shoshtary on right)

Not Too Precious explores inspirational work by 25 international jewellers using materials for their expressive potential rather than for their intrinsic value. Radical artist jewellers of the late 1960s and 70s vigorously rejected the idea that jewellery should be considered ‘precious’ simply because of the materials of which it was made. Today, the use of a huge variety of materials in jewellery is far more accepted, but economic pressures are putting that freedom of artistic expression at potential risk as people revert to traditionally ‘valuable’ materials for ‘safety’. Not Too Precious challenges preconceptions about ‘non-precious’ materials by encouraging us to consider ‘accrued value’: what talented makers bring to their work through their ideas and skill.
The selected artists, who currently work in the UK, Europe, Japan, Australia and New Zealand, create innovative, skilfully-made jewellery that is insightful and culturally resonant. Sometimes poignant, sometimes witty, their work communicates at many levels. It is above all honest and – for want of a better term – not too precious.

Jewellery by 25 international makers :  Attai Chen — Carina Chitsaz-Shoshtary – Eunmi Chun — Warwick Freeman — Emmeline Hastings — Christel van der Laan — Felieke van der Leest – Sari Liimatta — Märta Mattsson — Jasmin Matzakow — Kazumi Nagano — Shinji Nakaba — Lina Peterson — Zoe Robertson — Michihiro Sato — Mariko Sumioka — Emiko Suo — Tore Svensson — Janna Syvänoja — Mirei Takeuchi — Timothy Information Limited — Terhi Tolvanen — Catherine Truman — Flóra Vági — Heather Woof.

Kazumi Nagano

Marta Mattson

Shinji Nakaba

Catherine Truman

 Warwick Freeman

Sari Liimatta

Michihiro Sato

Heather Woof

Carina Chitsaz-Shoshtary

Eun Mi Chun

 

 

National Craft Gallery, Ireland

 Castle Yard, Kilkenny, Ireland

T [phone]
[e-mail]

DECOUVERTE : Daniela CARDILLO ….. « so exquisite… »

« ….this is beautiful stuff. It’s shockingly well crafted ….. Secondly, there’s the concept : this is jewellery formed out of electroformed components of dead animals. Skulls, bones, claws – who’d have thought this stuff could be so exquisite? » Says Ails McGee of Daniela Cardillo (store.accordingtomcgee)

 Daniela Cardillo has been shortlisted for this year’s European Prize for Applied Arts – Young Talent, and her work will go on display from 14 July to 9 September in Belgium. She will find out next week if she has won an award.
« Speaking to TheJournal.ie, Daniella explained that her work isn’t about shock value; instead, it is about creating something beautiful.
“It’s great – I’ve been really busy lately,” said Cardillo of her nomination. She has recently returned from London, where she met with retailers to discuss the possibility of selling her work in stores.
Since graduating last year, she has met with an enterprise board and taken a ‘start your own business’ course, while working on getting funding together to set up her own studio.
She hopes to have her online store up and running next week and is working on creating pieces that are less labour-intensive and more affordable than her previous work. » (thejournal.ie)

Untimely – Electro-formed and gold plated mice jaw bone, and woven horsehair neckpiece. (detail & sketches)

« I am concerned with finding beauty in and making use of death and discard.I’m intrigued by the components that make up a creature. When an animal dies, these parts loose their sense of function, and can then be studied and appreciated for their true aesthetics.
Taxidermy, hunting trophies and the concept of the animal as a status and power symbol, is also at the root of my work. If bones, skulls, claws, and hair are considered memento-mori, the pieces are not a simple reminder of death, but an alteration of it, vitalizing past life fragments.
Each piece is individually hand crafted, using traditional Victorian hair weaving techniques. The bones are electroformed and then goldplated, encasing individual relics of past lives. » Daniela Cardillo (National College of Art and Design Craft Design (Ceramics, Glass & Metals) BDes (artsthread)

Untimely – Electro-formed and gold plated mice jaw bone, and woven horsehair neckpiece.

Entwined, Implanted – Electro-formed and gold plated rat tail bone and woven horsehair ring, with freshwater pearl.

Generations Explored – Woven Horsehair neckpiece, with electro-formed and gold plated rat bones and freshwater pearl closing.

« When was the last time a necklace provoked a debate? » Says Daniela Cardillo , « I am concerned with finding beauty in and making use of death and discard. I’m intrigued by the components that make up a creature. When an animal dies, these parts loose their sense of function, and can then be studied and appreciated for their true aesthetics. Taxidermy, hunting trophies and the concept of the animal as a status and power symbol, is also at the root of my work. If bones, skulls, claws, and hair are considered memento-mori, the pieces are not a simple reminder of death, but an alteration of it, vitalizing past life fragments. Each piece of jewellery is individually hand crafted, using traditional Victorian hair weaving techniques. The bones are electroformed and then goldplated, encasing individual relics of past lives. The collection is entirely made from rodent bones and horsehair, creating beauty and revitalizing death tokens that often hold an unappealing stigma.« 

and if you want/need to SHOP ….

 

 

COUP de COEUR ! Sabrina Meyns -merveilles de botanique

Chez Sabrina Meyns, Irlandaise, la délicatesse, la transparence, la poésie, et, surtout, le papier faits bijoux ! un délice à savourer en ces temps difficiles …….

« I am a jewellery designer and papermaker based in the Workhouse Studios, Ireland. I combine hand-made paper with fine silver and seeds to create delicate, highy detailed sculptural jewellery and decorative pieces.
Drawing my inspiration from the garden, I focus particularly on the late summer and autumn period. I am especially fascinated by the delicate qualities of seedpods and the miniature elements that are seeds. When plants and flowers come towards the end of their life cycle their petals and leaves become fragile and translucent. Leaf veins and plant skeletons appear and the plants become beautiful, ghost-like creations of their former selves. Yet these frail beings hold within themselves the precious seeds for next year’s growth.
I have chosen my materials to reflect the fragile and precious nature of these plants. They best translate my fascination with the translucency, intricate engineerings and ephemeral beauty that exist in nature.
I graduated from NCAD, Dublin in 2008 with a degree (1.1) in Craft Design-metals. Later that year I co-established the Workhouse Studios, a new craft collective based in Kilmacthomas, Co. Waterford. Workhouse Studios is built on the philosophy of design-led, innovative products, including glass, ceramics, jewellery and textiles.  »

Sabrina Meyns – paper brooch – Handmade paper, dandelion seeds, fine silver, stainless steel – 2010

Sabrina Meyns – paper brooch – Handmade paper, seeds, fine silver, stainless steel – 2010

Sabrina Meyns – pin – Handmad paper, fine silver- 2009

Sabrina Meyns – Large brooch -  Handmade paper, cast sycamore seeds, silver & steel – 2008

Sabrina Meyns – paper brooch – Handmade paper, seeds, fine silver, oxidized silver stainless steel – 2009

Sabrina Meyns -  paper brooch – Handmade paper, seeds, fine silver, stainless steel (on kit & Caboodle)

 

Sabrina Meyns – Paper and fine silver specimen pin

Sabrina Meyns – Paper ring - Handmade paper, dandelion seeds, 18kt gold – 2010

Sabrina Meyns – Paper ring -Handmade paper, seeds, oxidized silver - 2010

COUP de … ROUGE avec Niamh Spain

Niamh Spain (Ireland)

« The jewellery and wall pieces I have designed are an interpretative response to contemporary architecture. I am interested in identifying a particular viewpoint of a building and subsequently produce graphic drawings illustrating its inner and outer structural lines.
These 2-dimensional diagrams provide templates from which I produce 3-dimensional forms.  I am interested in testing the spatial boundary between the 2D and 3D, manipulating sheet into planar objects whilst never becoming fully volumetric.
Each piece relies on another for its outer silhouette as one sheet of metal produces at least three structures.  Positive space informs negative and vice versa. »

Niamh Spain – ‘negative space’ – Brooch, sterling silver with powder coating

Niamh Spain – ‘red window’ – Ring, sterling silver with powder coating (on kit&caboodle)

Niamh Spain – ‘pleated window’ – bracelet, sterling silver with powder coating

 

SHOP it !

COUP de COEUR ! Vivienne Martin

Vivienne Martin, from Ireland, is a textile designer.

« Vivienne Martin’s unique approach to material manipulation and embroidery has produced high end, statement fashion accessories that are highly intricate, delicate and striking in design.
Her current collection ranges from neckpieces to braclets, rings and brooches, which are produced with non-precious fine wire, nylon, and polyester fibre. Vivienne will also be extending her collection to hair accessories in the near future. »

 ’Haptic 1′ necklace – wire, nylon and horsehair

‘haptic 2′ – Non-precious fine wire, polyester

‘haptic 4′ – Non-precious fine wire,  monofilament

neckpiece

 

ring

 

discovered at « kit&caboodle »

COUP de …. BLUES ! Sharon Lindsay Ferguson (IRL)

« My approach to working with textiles is eclectic in that I am essentially a collector and my work is a consequence of this infatuation. I collect memories, thoughts, images, snatches of conversation, colours and objects. These fragments combine to form the ideas that in turn shape my work.
During the past year I have worked in varying media to develop my applied art ranging from digital and screen printing to hand and computerised embroidery and 3D constructed textiles.
The pieces shown here are part of a series of work related to childhood stories and dreams, and how they relate to our lives and shape our imagination by influencing our subconscious with their illogical nature and meaning. »

Sharon Lindsay Ferguson ‘The Butterfly Wing Portrait’, 2007 – Neckpiece: Plastic/rubber mix base, carved, sewn together, dyed, lined and embellished with stitch and found objects. (Photo David Pauley)

 

Craft Northern Ireland (CraftNI)

Claire McAllister, Irlande, ou la géométrie reine

« Claire McAlister graduated from the National College of Art and Design, Dublin in 2008. She has developed a very distinctive design language in silver and dramatically-coloured wood veneers. Working with the shapes that the veneers inform, McAlister makes geometric units which are assembled in repeat patterns into contemporary jewellery pieces. The combination of these geometric elements and dramatic colours are what make McAlister’s work so original and inspiring.
“My starting point came from a response to these specific materials. The inherent qualities of wood veneer produce inspiring and dynamic forms when manipulated form their flat state.”
Claire produces both commercial and gallery-orientated works. Her unique and inspired collections have featured in exhibitions across Ireland, the UK and America. » (CraftNI)

Claire McAlister  – Chain with Hidden Diamonds, 2008

12 Diamonds Brooch, 2009 – Padouk African crown veneer and precious white metal. Dia 5cm (Photos David Pauley )

Claire McAlister – Red Squares necklace – padouk african crown wood veneer and silver – 2010

Claire McAlister – Propeller Ring – silver with moveable links 2009

 

(Craft Northern Ireland)

and on « MetalsRepublic » (SNAG 2008)

EXPO Emerging craft designers – Workhouse Studios, Wicklow Courthouse (IRL) – 30 mai-25 juin 2010

Eily O Connell jewelry exhibited

 

Workhouse Studios
Kilmacthomas
Co. Waterford, Ireland
http://www.workhousestudios.com/
[e-mail]

 

COUP de COEUR ! Eily O’ Connell (Irlande) – organic forms

Eily O’ Connell … ce n’est pas parce qu’on vient d’Irlande que tout est couleur trèfle ! faisons un ‘Bloodshot’ tour, comme nous le suggère une de ses broches, entre rocailles et baies des bois …

« Ireland’s Eily O’Connell, a 2008 graduate of the National College of Art and Design, crafts brooches and rings using cast silver, semi precious stones, wisdom teeth, found objects, cut glass and enamel. The jewelry has a rough, organic look – almost like it has been excavated from a dark, cave-like space and as the artist describes, they are “not quite as they appear.« 

Eily O’ Connell - ‘opium’ ring – Ring, Cast silver, oxidised with cold enamel.

Piece ‘Lypsum Teller’ Oxidized brass, glass from Sculpture in Context series 2009

(moi, quand on me dit « piece », ça me trouble …. piece … mais encore ? une broche ? un pendentif ? un bijou ?????? )

Brooch ‘Forbidden fruit‘ – Cast, oxidised silver with cold enamel -2008
Ring ‘Hilde n seek’ – Cast, oxidised silver with cold enamel – 2008

Brooch ‘Bloodshot‘ 2008 – Silver, cast and oxidised with cold resin
Ring ‘Jailhouse Rock’ 2008 Cast Silver with cold enamel and glass

et, quand même, d’une part parce qu’il ne faut pas être sectaire en couleur, mais surtout parce que c’est le bijou qui m’a fait la découvrir, et mon coup de coeur majeur/premier !

Eily O’ Connell – Ring ‘Blue eyed’ Silver, cast with aquamarine and glass 2008

« As with many I have recently become very familiar with environmental issues affecting global societies. Human intervention is complicit in this process. I have specifically referenced genetic modification, regarding it as one of the most insidious methods employed to disrupt nature’s order.
Having accumulated an assortment of natural forms and materials based on their intrinsic characteristics I have created assemblages, mainly brooches which appear as replications of these organic forms yet are not quite as they appear.
The process of casting has enabled me to cultivate new species or hybrid types by means of clever amalgamation. Selections of indigenous woods have been modified to incorporate insect claws, which often grasp a piece of coloured stone or glass.
Counterfeit and deceptive, any recognition is but mistaken identity. «  (Eily O’ Connell)

Brooch  ‘purple haze’ Silver, cast and oxidised with amethyst

« My thesis was about climate change and how art can illuminate ecological ruin. Due to my constant thinking and writing on this subject, my work evolved into highlighting genetic modification. It was a natural progression as I was marrying different species of plants and creatures to cast and it was a subject I was interested in emphasizing. The fact that it is a threat to our agriculture, our biodiversity and a possible risk to our health was important for me to voice. Henceforth, the thematic body of my work reflects on this matter.
I started collecting and exploring the organic qualities in the natural matter I foraged from my environment, wherein, I observed the decorative qualities of each subject and combined them to form new ‘Hybrids’. The found materials dictate these forms and through juxtaposition, I artfully connect disparate elements. However natural the assemblages look, things are not quite what they seem and I enjoy reactions when I tell people what some have been cast from (like my crab claws) or what is set in some pieces (like teeth). To me, all the interesting materials I collect are the real diamonds of the land and it is time that people realized how precious and magnificent nature is and that messing with it will never be a battle won by us. » (Eily O’ Connell)

 

Upcoming exhibition at Wicklow Courthouse 30 mai-25 juin

(un petit coup de « vert Irlandais » quand même ! )