CAMEO IS AN ONGOING SERIES FEATURING CANADIAN JEWELLERY ARTISTS. HERE, THEY SHARE THEIR LATEST THOUGHTS AND INSIGHTS, AND GIVE US A PEEK INTO THEIR PRACTICE.
Describe your current work/practice in one sentence.
Curious. Disorganized. Chaotic. I’m still finding my place and voice in this mess that you could call my ‘art practice’. That being said, the most prominent developing theme found in my current body of work focuses on the not-so-dichotomous relationship shared between sentimentality and human refuse.
What are three things/ideas that inspire you?
Trash (garbage)
I definitely have an unhealthy obsession with other people’s rubbish. City trash is great (think: alleyway piles, overflowing street bins, and the glorious thawing of the snowbanks in late March).
The Ephemeral
I am very much aware that the things I make will not last forever. Ideas and emotions are fleeting, as are the things we as makers, create. I think this sort of contradicts a lot of what jewellery is typically considered: as everlasting, as heirloom, or as something to be treasured. The majority of my work, in contrast, is purposefully non-archival and meant to evolve and erode over time. I’m fascinated with the idea of impermanence, and the lifecycle (however long or short) of a piece of art.
Pepto-Bismol
Pink.
What other things do you do besides your jewellery practice?
I am a bit of a hoarder of things. I can get obsessed with objects I find that become an ever-evolving collection of inspiration. I guess I am building a nest. I build nests with things that evoke even the most fleeting feelings of experiential significance.
This is a very difficult question. I can’t say that I have a favourite. I’m never fully satisfied with the pieces I make. I’m always looking for that next great idea that catches my interest long enough to force me to birth it into existence. I get bored easily, and I am constantly doubting things… so I’m never really sure if an idea is good enough (or not). I am currently very interested in myself and my own body as a material source. I have a few fresh pieces that use my skin as the primary material. In these pieces I try to ‘repair‘ and make use of, well.. myself, where I exist as the material, the subject, and as the maker.
What is a favourite piece that you’ve made and why?
Saydee Chandler
Hide (2020)
Sterling silver, steel, cotton thread, pigment, handmade material
Photo by the artist
Saydee Chandler
Growth (2018)
Brass, steel, acrylic, epoxy, charcoal, carborundum, fuel line
Photo by the artist
Pupating (pulsing, ready to burst)
What word pops into your mind when you think of Canadian art jewellery?
I have been involved in multiple group shows this year (both online and in-person exhibitions) but the most exciting work I have done as of late has been collaborative, and with creatives whose disciplines are different from my own. I feel that the struggle to understand and communicate with each other brings to light new and exciting approaches to design challenges, and ways of seeing. I’m hoping to do a lot more of that with designers/artists/makers/dreamers and whoever else may happen to wander along the same path I’m headed down.
What is coming up next for you?
Published: 2021/12/14
