RMIT Object Based Practice Graduate Exhibition

This year's graduate exhibitions are quickly approaching...

RMIT's new department of Object Based Practice (combining the former departments of Gold and Silversmithing and Ceramics) will hold its first graduate exhibition As Above, So Below, opening Friday 9 November from 6-8pm at the Victorian Artist Society Galleries, 430 Albert Street, East Melbourne. The exhibition will run from 9-19 November.

  

Congratulations to the graduates of 2012! 

 

Kokedama and Madeleine

I posted some pictures recently about my experiments making kokedama (Japanese moss balls). It wasn't until after I finished this little project that I realised I'd already been making another kind of kokedama!

 

Two kokedama: Fern and Madeleine locket/object

The Madeleine series are an exploration of the malleability of memory, through the juxtaposition of hard and soft materials. In the well-known Madeleine episode of Proust's Rememberance of Things Past, eating a petit madeleine causes the novel's protagonist to be overcome by long ago memories he thought were lost. My madeleines are lockets and containers, looking at the way memory enriches the present by embellishing the past.

良い友達：コケ球と「マデライン」というペンダント

One of my Petit Madeleine lockets was featured in the Precious Pendants exhibition at Object Gallery in Sydney a few years ago. A post about that exhibition coming soon...

Work in Progress: Making Frameworks

In the studio today: Working on some new pieces for Deck the Walls at Studio 20/17 this December. Making frames for my bouncy balls... The forms of these works are inspired by the overpass on Westgarth Street.

Exhibition Photos: Paducah School of Art Jewelry & Metals Invitational

hotos of the Paducah School of Art Jewelry and Metals Invitational opening night are here!

 

Vessel by Sarah Perkins, one of my favourite enamelling artists (above).

 

  

There are my two landscape brooches in the cases above.

The exhibition is being held in celebration of a new Jewelry and Metals program at the school, launching in January 2013.  Registration begins October 15th!

More photos from the opening can be seen on the Paducah School of Art's Facebook page.

The exhibition runs until Thursday 12 October, so if you're in Kentucky, get in quick!

Deck the Walls

This year's annual Christmas Showcase at Studio 20/17 is called Deck the Walls, and will feature 20 local and international jewellery artists showcasing their newest work for the Christmas season. This 'takeaway' exhibition is a little different from usual shows - if a piece is sold, the buyer is able to take it away on the day, so if you want to see all of these fabulous works, come early!

The exhibition runs from 4 December until Christmas Eve, so it's a great opportunity to snap up some last minute gifts right up until the holidays. Celebration drinks will be held Saturday 8 December from 4-6pm.

Here's a sneak peek of some of my new work for the exhibition:

These earrings are made of hand-carved bouncy balls and blackened sterling silver. The back of the setting is open, and they really catch the light when worn.

Kokedama Part II: More Moss Balls!

 

I've been really excited about creating a kokedama (Japanese moss-ball plant) recently, and since it seems to be doing well, I've made a few more! The top two are bamboo, and the next one is a bit of an experiment, with a pitcher plant.

I absolutely love the look of the pitcher plant kokedama, but the pitcher plant has very specific requirements. Some of these are very similar conditions to those that moss grows well in, like a humid environment, and filtered rather than direct light, which is why I thought it would make a good choice for kokedama. It also needs to be repotted only in peat soil or spagnum moss, which are two of the main ingredients in the kokedama soil ball.

I found out later that it does have some additional special needs: the pitcher plant is carnivorous, and it turns out it actually does need to eat insects for nutrition. If it doesn't get enough insects, it needs to be fertilised, but fertilising a carnivorous plant with plant fertiliser can easily kill it. Also, carnivorous plants can be killed by tap water! So this little guy needs distilled water only. It sounds a little high maintenance, but I do love those pitchers.

I pulled out this enameled copper bowl that I had made as part of a series a few years ago, with elephant legs transplanted from a stuffed toy. (You can see a smaller one from the same series above and to the right.) It was the perfect size to hold one of my kokedama, so now this bamboo character has legs!

Now, of course, the next exciting part is to make trays or bowls for the rest of them to sit on. The experiments continue!