The National Craft Gallery's current exhibition Not Too Precious brings together work by exceptional jewellery makers, who each select their materials for their expressive potential rather than for their intrinsic value. Since the late 1960s and 70s radical artist jewellers rejected the idea that jewellery should be considered ‘precious’ simply because of the materials of which it was made. Today, the use of a huge variety of materials in jewellery is far more accepted, but economic pressures are putting that freedom of artistic expression at potential risk as people revert to traditionally ‘valuable’ materials for ‘safety’. The exhibition challenges preconceptions about ‘nonprecious’ materials, encouraging us to consider ‘accrued value’: what talented makers bring to their work through their ideas and skill.

This seminar is a forum to explore the practices of some of these makers, identifying the thinking behind their work and open up discussion around themes raised in the exhibition including: fresh approaches to jewellery; materials used for expressive potential; imaginative approaches to interaction and wearing; innovation and lateral thinking in design process.

International guest speakers: Felieke van der Leest (The Netherlands / Norway), Zoe Robertson (UK) and Carina Shoshtary (Germany), Kindly suported by the Goethe Institut, Dublin.
Irish based speakers: Jaki Coffey, Julie Connellan, Eimear Conyard, Eoin M Lyons, Sonja Landweer and Angela O’Kelly

Please see our webpage for further details over the coming weeks.