« From Chaos to Comprehension » curated by Nanna Grønborg 7 contemporary Jewellery artists, all graduated from the MA ‘Jewellery, Silversmithing and Related Products’ at
Birmingham City University, UK between 2010 and 2013
Participating Artists: Panjapol Kulpapangkorn (Thailand) – Nanna Grønborg (Denmark/Germany) — Fliss Quick (England) — Hannah Fewtrell- Bolton (England) — Natalie Smith (England) — Farrah Al-Dujaili (England) — Xiao Liu (China)
Farrah Al- Dujaili (England)
Farrah Al- Dujaili’s design methodology is equal measures of intuitive play and measured control. Often tempted by the suggestion of new forms held within a piece, she imposed restraint to stay with the form of the Venus flytrap but plays with its endless compositional possibilities. Each component is individually soldered ensuring no one piece is the same to uphold the idiosyncratic aesthetic of her work. By using one single form multiple times she attempts to reveal the machinations of her mind at work as pieces germinate into different compositions.
Natalie Smith (England)
My work explores the ideas of growth, transformation and disintegration. I create pieces by combining permanent and temporary materials such as paint, metal and sugar.
I find inspiration in surrealist science fiction, which is rich in atmosphere and imagery. Many of the books describe apocalyptic landscapes and alternate worlds that are on the brink of geographical catastrophes. In these dramatic dreamscapes there are no utopias, emphasis is placed on mental explorations and evocative journeys of the isolated humans.
This collection focuses on the term ‘Wear and Tear’, which can be used to describe damage, depreciation or loss.
Nanna Grønborg (Denmark/Germany)
My jewellery is a body related tool used to comment on problems arising from the collision of the man-made and the conditions of nature. This collision, in combination with the ongoing fusion of cultures fascinates me and it affects my work as my own life is a cultural combination. I use theoretical tools like semiotics and the science of perception to reflect on these topics with a touch of irony. The contradictions between the rational and the intuitive, between what we see and what we make of it feed my jewellery universe. My investigation into the interrelationships between objects and the imagination is an ongoing process. My way of working is to draw on diverse methods, which help me to be aware of every decision including those which deliberately allow for chance. I strive to reach a subtle, sometimes minimalist aesthetic in my work, leaving it to the beholder to decode its message. It should irritate as much as it stimulates reflection. A few words on the new pieces from the 2014 series called Midas’ Musa: In ancient Greek mythology King Midas got his wish fulfilled that all he touched may turn into gold. Musa is the Latin botanical name for banana. I imposed the restriction on myself to stay with one form and fuse it with one intellectual idea to make my point and raise some questions about habit and routine. This series is literally Food for thought.
Xiao Liu (China) The Rice Stone is intended to represent this original spiritual force, which is rough and dynamic; the work is researched through and visually related to ritualistic forms of the prehistoric age. Rice and dust are used as the main materials in my work, which are common and usually unattractive. The working process transforms the ephemeral substance into precious and durable rough stone and I use laborious stone-cutting techniques to shape and polish the stones to bring out their crystalline structures ordered in repetitive formations. The concept is presented through a series of speculative practice which including jewellery, installation, photography, text and performance
Fliss Quick (England) Fliss Quick’s jewellery can be viewed as anecdotal evidence; pieces which allude to an earlier event. She works as a narrator conjuring protagonists and their consequent environments or scenarios to build a vocabulary of making to evoke stories. This process allows her to present social comment in a removed and playful manner. Where she presents pieces as pseudo-factual objects, blurring the distinction between fact and fiction, she looks to raise questions about and essentially subvert, social norms and assumptions. « Office Folk » explores what happens when the spirit of ‘folk’ interrupts the usual expectations of an office environment. A bored office worker, who lingers in the stock cupboard, finds alternative uses for the tools and stationery he discovers: Employing makeshift methods he mis-appropriates and adapts common place objects to create escritoires (desk companions) to tickle, cheer and now with the departmental shuffle, flirt with his new colleague.
Hannah Fewtrell-Bolton (England)
Fascinated by the fashion world Hannah Fewtrell-Bolton draws on its design terminology to create her Jewellery. Strongly influenced by street fashion and it’s capability to create an individual appearance, her collections are defined by the urge to make a statement and cause a reaction. Hannah’s new work explores the ideas of individuality and fashion through contemporary textiles and illustration. The fast life of a fashion style is contradicted by the direct use of a traditional tool – the stitching frame – which again highlights the contemporary aspects of the graphics chosen.
The essence of her work can be explored by the simple pleasure of seeing.
Panjapol Kulpapangkorn « Pai » (Thailand)
“Everybody has their own jewellery, But not everyone realises that they have already worn it.”
Panjapol Kulpapangkorn recorded and collected memories from places visited by using film, sound, diary, photographs and found objects. All these things have a strong emotional and physical relationship in his work. The precious memory is very personal and individual. He defines it as a piece of jewellery that is still a part of him and with him all the time and as such it is worn, not on the body but in the mind:
“7 days a week with assoc. Prof. Wipha” is a part of the “Jewellery is at my feet, the show is yours” project. The project focuses on Wipha Kulpapangkorn’s memories (my lovely mom) who suffer from a Frontotemporal Dementia (this form of FTD affects social skills, emotions, personal conduct and self-awareness). After returning to Bangkok In 2013 I started this project by spending a month doing a documentary film on my mom (Suspended in Green exhibition). This project is still continuously developed for my own research on ways to find directions of communication.”
Atta Gallery
OP Garden, Unit 1109, Charoenkrung 36, Bangrak,
Bangkok, Thailand 10500
tel +66 2 238 6422
info@attagallery.com
http://attagallery.com
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Nelly van Oost - « Incipit » wall
Nelly van Oost – incipit – brooch 2016
Nelly Van Oost (MA 2013 idar Oberstein) • Brooch « Incipit » • New silver, paint and steel • 2016 • ©photo by artist
