Multidisciplinary Artist

About

My practice is concerned with deep looking and the dynamic between the viewer and the artwork as a site of paradigmatic shift. Rather than focussing on the medium as a means to create a commentary, the medium is inherently a part of the engagement and interrogation.

All modes of re-presentation are steeped in political and social meaning. Engaging in a critical appraisal of this meaning opens the door to radical conversations around the structures that frame our society, our views, and ways of seeing.

As an artist, rather than a jeweler, I have pushed the bounds of metals beyond what tradition dictates is possible. The result is utterly unique in style and each piece is one of a kind. Stunning patinas on deep steel and flashes of fused 22 karat gold which is almost indestructible.

The value of gold, in particular as a medium for jewelry, has always perplexed me. Using saltwater relief etching, materials such as handmade lace, emu feathers, and other organic materials form the basis of my deeply textured metalwork. In life, the people who are most fragile often have the most strength in response to the traumatic experiences that have been inflicted on them. Re-presenting these materials with those associated with strength (iron and steel) and those associated with value (gold) allows the viewer or wearer to engage with them from a different perspective and challenge preconceived notions of value, strength, tenacity, and beauty.

The process is involved, organic, and far less controlled than traditional jewelry making. Each piece is unique: forged from steel, saltwater, fire and shaped by my own hands.