When consumers are looking to purchase gifts, they want products that are unique and on trend and jewellery can be created in a way that no two items are the same, making it the perfect Christmas present.
Jewellery can be easy to replicate, so when Melbourne contemporary jewellery store e.g.etal curated an exhibition of jewellers it wanted to ensure their works were indeed unique, due to the processes and techniques used in the making which guarantee that no two works are similar.
e.g.etal director, Emma Goodsir, says each of the artists uses processes and techniques that introduce an element of randomness and chance that ensures each piece is truly one of a kind.
“In each case, the artist is taking a chance,” she explains. “The skilled hand of a jeweller will steward the piece, but at a certain point, fate will take over. An element of intentional randomness will dictate how the piece turns out. The process is as important as the end result.
“In this era of everything being replicated at a global level, these artists are creating work that is deliberately unpredictable. Because even the artist doesn’t have complete control over the work, there is no way it can be mass produced or replicated. As a result, the purchaser of these exceptional pieces can be assured they own a work of art that can never be repeated.”
Inimitable is a curated collection by six artists including Carl Noonan, Julia Storey, Welfe Bowyer, Anita Crowther, Vikki Kassioras and Jill Hermans, all creating their own unique pieces.
“This is the kind of jewellery I am passionate about supporting. When considering artists to be represented at e.g.etal, I like to look beyond whether the work is simply beautiful―I seek that spark of the unpredictable.
“In fact, it’s that relinquishment of control brought about by a particular process or technique that can make the artists’ work truly inimitable.”
Inimitable will be on display from 13 November at e.g.etal in Melbourne.
By Marion Gerritsen
