Statement

“My degree showpieces heighten the presence of nature in the wider landscape and its relationship to the human body through texture, form, repetition, transformation and movement. The Caddisfly Larvae use materials found around them to make intricate adorning cocoons in order to blend with their surroundings and in some respects personifies the idea of a sustainable existence. I selected milk bottle plastic for its beautiful, ethereal and translucent qualities. It gives a new purpose to the continued existence of this material, transforming it from an everyday product to a desirable object.

The intention of my work is to create sculptures, animated once positioned on the body; to become an extension of the body. As nature changes it gifts us with fleeting phenomena and these moments are captured in these activated body adornments, the life cycle of the dandelion head changing first from yellow to translucent, and then as motion, like that of a bird in flight as one example.

Since graduating in 2021, I have worked for Malcolm Appleby making a wide range of jewellery using a variety of metals and cast metals whilst developing my engraving skills under Malcolm’s watchful eye.

In June of 2022 I started working at AnOrdain a watchmaking company in Glasgow made up of multidisciplinary designer makers; I am being trained to enamel watch dials.  We are currently working on a new project involving hand engraved and enamelled watches allowing me to continue using my engraving skills. Part of my remit is research and development giving me the opportunity to learn new techniques, experiment with roll printing and make watch hands for a bespoke commission.

I continue to engrave in my own time with the aim to create a collection of jewellery. I have been inspired by the process of enamelling and would like to incorporate it into my own work where possible. Presently I am working on an haute couture inspired collection, the starting point of which is based on sycamore seeds as a representation of new beginnings. Each piece will be inspired by the repetition in nature, each seed like a wing, each piece will tell a story, the body the storyteller. I would like to be creative and push the boundaries of jewellery by entering the domains of fashion and sculpture.”