TREND-WATCH
Melissa Rigby
in Residence at Glasgow School
of Art. Caitlin’s work explores
and researches the colour blue.
“Rather than traditional stone
settings to bring colour into the
work, the lapis lazuli is crushed
into a powder, referencing the
origins of ultramarine pigment.
Wood, jet and jesmonite are hand
carved and forging my own tools
makes chasing my equivalent of
drawing but in metal. I enjoy the
unpredictability and imperfections
that these processes produce,
referencing the nuances and
inclusions of the Lapis Lazuli
stone. I am passionate about
finding alternative methods to
progress and rejuvenate ancient
techniques and materials.”
(www.caitlinhegney.co.uk)
This is a year of highly talented
graduates in MA Jewellery
Design at Central St. Martin’s,
and Katharina Kraus is one of
them. Her collection combines
translucent agate and transparent
quartz with many clear coloured
stones and gold plated sterling
silver. Using traditional techniques
and tools to explore the natural
light reflection in gemstones by
placing different colours and light
reflection styles in juxtaposition,
Katharina creates visual effects
that move and change when worn,
each gemstone angled with or
away from the body. The hand-
carved stones contrast with the
precise visual effects of regularly
cut gems, and echo the angled
architectural lines of cityscapes.
Katharina has been selected as a
22 JEWELLERY FOCUS
Pippa Small
Bright Young Gem for 2018 at IJL.
(www.kathykraus.com)
Jacqueline
Payne
is
an
Australian-born,
London-based
jewellery designer, a CSM MA
graduate, who is passionate about
sourcing unique and rare stones,
many of which originate in her
native western Australia. Her first
collection, Chroma, is a modern
and luxurious take on statement
jewellery. The stones are sourced
from artisanal miners - Peanut
Wood, from the Cretaceous Age,
is approximately 120 million
Caitlin Hegney
years old and Mookaite is a multi-
coloured stone, found in Mooka
Creek, 600 miles north of Perth.
They are carved in London by
an artisanal lapidarist working
alongside Jacqueline to accentuate
the natural beauty of the stones
from multiple angles and curves.
(www.jacquelinepayne.com)
Neung Wi Kim is a contemporary
jewellery designer from South
Korea, and after training, working
and winning awards there has
graduated with an MA from
CSM. Her collection, Samrimryok,
means the immersing of self with
nature, and especially seashores, as
the beach is a place for relaxation
and rejuvenation. Neung Wi has
collected a huge variety of pebbles
from different beaches – Mongdol
in South Korea, Chesil in Dorset,
and Brighton. Collecting pebbles
from beaches as mementos of
happy times is something we all do,
and Neung Wi has perfected a way
of cutting and polishing the loved
pebbles to incorporate them into
jewellery, like rings, to wear and
treasure forever. Neung Wi Kim
is the winner of the Tiffany & Co.
Outset Studiomakers Prize 2018,
gifting a year’s rent free studio
space in London, and participation
in an exhibition in the Covent
Garden store, from 26 September
- 14 October.
(www.neungwikimjewellery.co.uk)
The fascination with gemstones
was evident too in the degree show
at the Royal College of Art. Chris
Massey, a Californian interior
designer moved to Melbourne to
study jewellery design, developing
his interest in shaping stones
at a lapidary club there. Unlike
conventional gemstone cutting
techniques, his faceting “works
intuitively with the stone’s rough
exterior to predict how light will
refract internally and back to
the viewer”. He says: “I titled
my work The Character of Stone
because I am working individually
with each gem, as well as working
to help it reveal itself to us. We
should call such character the
Fifth C (in addition to clarity, cut,
carat weight and colour) because
it is truly the intrinsic nature of
these stones.”
(www.conceivedmade.com)
‘‘
Collecting
pebbles from
beaches as
mementos of
happy times
is something
we all do, and
Neung Wi has
perfected a
way of cutting
and polishing
the loved
pebbles to
incorporate
them into
jewellery, like
rings, to wear
and treasure
forever
‘‘
JANET FITCH
August 2018 | jewelleryfocus.co.uk