Exciting Summer!

Summer is here and people at the studio are very busy because they have lots of summer shows coming up, such as the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition at Nathan Philips Square, the Trunk Show at Avenue Road and Bloor on July 10, and the Matsu Jewellers Second Annual Artist Show. And that’s only a few of the ones I remember off the top of my head. It’s very exciting and very lively at the studio and all the energy makes for a very productive and stimulating atmosphere. I am thrilled to be able to share in the creativity at Jewel Envy.

Young Kyoung Ko

Gingko and Oragami

Recently, I found some old pieces I casted at school.  They were casted in bronze from organic material - dried ginkgo leaves. I am developing an idea that would combine my previous designs inspired by ginko seeds & fertilizaton with these ginkgo leaves.  I'm intrigued by the potential of combining my more abstract pieces with pieces from nature.
I want to share a documentary film I recently saw "Between the Folds" filmed by Vanessa Gould. I was amazed by all the wonderful possibilities of a simple form - hand folded paper! It can be transformed into very complicated 3D forms that I would never have imagined. The beautiful origami not only has delicate craftsmanship in art, but also greatly influences scientific research. It has enlightened a new world in art, science and philosophy and given me a new perspective on the creative process.  Be sure to check out the link!


ChiaChien Tsai

Pecha Kucha

After hearing a bit about the SNAG conference I think that next year I am going to try and finagle my way into Phoenix to prepare myself for it's year in Toronto.  The anticipation is already building up and I for one am looking forward to exposing our Metal scene to a larger audience.  Although I missed out on the it I feel like I got a tiny snippet of what it might be like at the Pecha Kucha held at Harbourfront.  It was a very relaxed atmosphere with some interesting talks from a group of very talented individuals.  Be sure to check out the Harbourfont link to see who was there and take a gander at their work!


-Alexis

Jewellery as an Academic Topic

Last week I had the pleasure of attending a SNAG conference (Society of North American Goldsmiths) in Seattle, Washington. This annual traveling event for jewellers centers around lectures and exhibitions of contemporary jewellery. There was also a vendor room with tools and technical demonstrations as well as a trunk show of members work for sale.

Jewellery as an academic topic may be a little surprising to some but I was loving it! So you might wonder how jewellery can be about anything other than a decorative ornament. If that is the case you should think of jewellery like you would painting on sculpture. Metals, gemstones, and alternative materials are the medium for this artistic expression and the body is the natural place to display the message.

My favorite lecture was by Damian Skinner a writer and curator from New Zealand. He spoke about artists creating what he called "ambitious jewellery" as a means to convey important ideas with both a local and international focus. What I liked about his talk was that he acknowledged that so much of what we think of as contemporary jewellery has really only been informed by a few countries in Europe and now the United States.

This view of contemporary jewellery is quite narrow and excludes so much of what the rest of the world has done and is currently doing. As a Canadian attending this conference for the first time I felt that most of the work on display reflected American contemporary jewellery. It was for this reason that Damians lecture resonated with me and made me think about Canadas contemporary jewellery scene and how it differs from the states.

In 2013 SNAG will be coming to Toronto where we will get our chance to show the jewellery community what it is we do here in Canada! I will keep you updated on the plans for this exciting event as they unfold. If you would like to get involved check out the facebook group for SNAG Meta-Mosaic.

-Gillian