artist in focus - Simryn Gill

Born 1959 in Singapore, and residing between Sydney and Malaysia, Simryn Gill is considered one of Australia and Asia Pacific's treasure in the world of contemporary art.

Simryn Gill

Collector, photographer, drawer, object maker, there is so much to love about her work.  Simryn has been invited to exhibit as the sole Australian participant of the Venice Biennale in June 2013.

Pearls, rolled paper beads

Forking Tongues, cutlery, dried chillies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Roadkill, found objects, mixed media

Paper Boats

form for thought

A favourite and incredibly important book in my collection is 'Form Emphasis for Metalsmiths' by the late silversmith Heikki Seppa.

Seppa was integral in the development of the technique of anticlastic raising during the 1970s, and instigated the emancipation of form for silversmiths from the classic aesthetic.  It was through his work that silversmiths were invited to think literally outside the cube, the cylinder, the dome.  And it was through his mastering of the techniques that he was able to create totally, albeit a bit 70s looking, new form.

I can only dream of one day being (when I'm really old probably) as technically competent as he was, and in the meantime have experimented with my own take on his tutorial of techniques.

The most frequently looked at pages in his book are right at the back in his pictorial glossary.  Here, Seppa has detailed (with lovely little hand drawn doodles) some worldly forms and their nomenclature.

Here are some of them:

I find his connection between the forms and the derivatives of language fascinating.  It's just a lovely complete circle of visual form, historical symbolism and language development. 

Thanks Heikki, and you should all have this book on your shelf.  

Glass behind glass

Here's a peek of my current window display at Small Space Jewellery.  The lovely Robyn of this gallery so kindly gave me free run of her feature window!  So I filled it with some of my new beach glass pieces.  

 

Amongst the jewellery lies some old bottles and random tile remnants collected from here, there and everywhere.  These are not for sale of course because I just can't bear to part with some junk objects.

one more for the collection

A lovely new addition to my  hammer collection - an antique French style cobbler's hammer. 
It has a customised short handle, which is perfect for me, no alterations necessary!  A properly sized handle will allow maximum control when striking.  The weight is lovely, heavy enough for easy hallmarking and stamping blows, but not so heavy as to distract your aim.  The lovely thin peen section should be great for rivets too.  Love love.