Glasgow School of Design Silversmithing & Jewellery

Joanna Graham (She/Her)

Why do ruins hold such significance for us?

Contact
j.is.for.jewellery.enquiries@gmail.com
J.Graham2@student.gsa.ac.uk
Instagram: @j.is.for.jewellery
Facebook: J is for Jewellery
Works
Artist Statement
Research and Development
Ruins Collection

Artist Statement

In Scotland, large, derelict estate houses retain glimmers of previous ages of grandeur in their architectural details, fireplaces, plaster, tiles, and other decorative elements that remain. With doors and ceilings missing, exposed lath, brickwork, and crumbling plaster, these ruins evoke the kinds of material longing described by Susan Stewart as the translation between past and present, the signifiers of what will endure or dissipate. (Stewart, 2020).

The dramatic imagery and materiality of ruins feature in this series of jewellery objects as markers of the conflicted experiencing of encountering such sites: melancholy, sentimentality, nostalgia and longing, all of which feature as elements of subjective experiences of ruins. Architectural qualities are paralleled in the collection presented, in the use of copper and silver together as these contrast not only in colour but also in value and traditional use, bringing together utility and ornament.

The techniques developed here involve soldering strands of copper and silver together, creating panels of metal that can then be manipulated into 3D forms using many techniques normally applicable to sheet metal. This was an attempt to represent the wooden lath strips found on many ruined walls, and is subsequently applied throughout the collection to create a distinctive overall aesthetic, producing works as individual as the ruins themselves.

Research and Development

A selection of images recording my journey, from the experience, to the final design.

Milkbank House, Kettleholm

Photographic research.

Cambusnethan Priory

Photographic research.

30 Objects

Sampling Project.

Strips of lath

Photographic research.

Sketchbook Pages

Development through architectural shapes.

Sampling textures in metal

Sample in copper and silver

Milkbank House, Kettleholm

Photographic research.

Milkbank House, Kettleholm

Photographic research.

Cross-section of wire sheet

Ring in Progress

Close-up of sample

Sketchbook Page

Image manipulation to create new forms.

Sketchbook pages

Development of final designs.

Samples

Ruins Collection

Open-Wire Brooch

Copper and silver.

Circle Brooch

Copper and silver.

Curved Diamond Brooch

Copper and silver.

Diagonal Ring

Copper and silver.

Shoulder Plates

Copper and silver.

Two-Finger Ring

Copper and silver.

Array Necklace

Copper and silver.

Array Necklace

Copper and silver.

Fragments Necklace

Copper and silver.

Marquetry Brooch

Copper and silver.

Open-Wire Ring

Copper and silver.

Draping Diamonds

Copper and silver.

Diamond Frame Necklace

Copper and silver.

Diamond Frame Necklace

Copper and silver.

Sprig Brooch

Copper and silver.

Circle Earrings

Copper and silver.

Marquetry Arm Band

Copper and silver.

Hip Diamond

Copper and silver.

Geometric Neck Piece

Copper and silver.

Square Circle Brooch

Copper and silver.

Long Hanging Diamond

Copper and silver.

Long Hanging Fragments

Copper and silver.

Large Ornate Necklace

Copper and silver.