Clare Hillerby Jewellery is 20 years old! What! I graduated from Edinburgh College of Art in 1997, followed by a year as Artist in Residence at ECA. I was then granted a Start Up Award from the Scottish Arts Council to set up my business in Edinburgh, where I lived and worked for about 18 years. These are pieces made for my Degree Show, based on handwriting from the start, using papers, etching, roll printing and enamelling.
I have just posted off my collection for the next Dazzle, this time at Dovecot Studios in Edinburgh running from 2nd to 26th August during the festival.
A couple of quick shots while packing up the work …
I’m really enjoying my new life at the Craft Centre and have been very productive as a result. I’ve made a few new pieces to go to The Scottish Gallery, in Edinburgh. Here are a couple of the brooches that will arrive later this week. I’ve also been working on additions to my collections at the Craft Centre and on Made by Hand Online, more to follow on those later. Discovered today that Made by Hand have just added my work to their banner on the homepage, very lovely!
These are two new pieces I’ve just posted to The Scottish Gallery in Edinburgh; they combine old red stamps, garnets and vintage rulers . . .
Looking over some old Edinburgh postcards I’ve collected along the way, and in view of leaving next week. My move is finally coming together and at last can get a little excited! If only to stem the daunted-ness! I’ve been comfortable Edinburgh for such a long time with everything in easy walking distance and now very familiar, sometimes I’m not sure what I’m doing to myself by uprooting and starting afresh . . . but it sounds like the best idea too! Have started my goodbyes, and my packing, and stocking up on postcards while I know where to get them. I will try and post again before I go, but there may be a wee gap while I wait for my belongings/life to get back to me! Very excited about my new studio too …
I will shortly be saying goodbye to Edinburgh! I came here for college (Edinburgh College of Art) and remained here for 14 years-ish. Its a beautiful city but its time to find a new home. I’ve been inspired by Edinburgh massively, its given me a love of cities, and the colour grey! I have a couple of weeks left so have found myself looking over photos from the last few years that have been an inspiration. The textures, walls with disappearing old ads painted on them many years ago and the architecture . . .
Two collections were delivered this week for upcoming exhibitions opening in my favourite month of November. The first is for ‘Reflection’ at the City Art Centre, Edinburgh. This is a special exhibition highlighting the work of 22 makers and artists from Edinburgh who have received an award from Edinburgh City Council over the last 10 years. It features work produced with the award for special individual projects, in my case 3 pieces of jewellery produced for Collect 09. I’m so pleased to be invited to be part of this show as to me it marks my career to date as a maker based in Edinburgh – significant to me anyway, especially as there are a few changes to come my way next year…! It opens on 19 November and more details can be found here …
The next exhibition is Dazzle at the beautiful Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester (I mentioned the venue after a trip to Manchester posted details here). Dazzle is always exciting as its the best way to see a great selection of jewellery by great jewellers currently working in the UK. Hope some of you can make it if you’re local!
Last weekend was our first Doors Open Days weekend – a massive “Thank You” to all who visited! If you missed it (or want to come back!) we open again this weekend for our annual Wasps Artists’ Open Studios Weekend. Around half or so of the studios will be open with a cafe and exhibition of participating artists in the downstairs gallery space, details below. All Welcome!
‘Doors Open Days’ is next weekend from 12noon to 5pm each day. There will be a free guided tour of Patriothall and a few studios open to look in including The Edinburgh Laser Cutting Studio on the first floor, where Jenny Smith will be demonstrating the laser cutter for 10 minutes on the hour, then up to my studio on the 2nd floor where I will have both jewellery and collages to have a look at. Everyone is welcome!
I’m off to make this lot into bunting!
More information on Patriothall and Doors Open Days around Edinburgh over the weekend.
I’m taking part in an exhibition in Novemeber to highlight the artists who have received funding over the last ten years from the City of Edinburgh Council to develop work for specific projects. More information on that to follow but I wanted to share my appearance in the current issue of the City Art Centre brochure as they have very kindly used my image, very pleased about that! Here it is…
Dazzle opened last night in Edinburgh, as did the Festival. It’s getting pretty busy on my street, I moved here a year ago and vaguely remember the busyness, think I am going to know about it pretty soon, there are a group of drummers passing by as I write this, I should do a ‘festival from my flat’ series! Am off to see Dazzle myself today, can’t wait, but here are a few of my pieces at the exhibition for you to see below. Opening times and location details are in the invite in my previous post here.
Busy making new jewellery for the upcoming Dazzle exhibition, in Edinburgh during the festival. I look forward to this show every year, one of the very best things during the festival. It’s at a new venue, conveniently near my flat, thanks! Please see the invite for location details… Hope you can visit between 5 and 29 August 2011.
Had a bit of a studio sort this week after completing a few unexpected special orders and before starting a new collection for Brass Monkeys in Hove…
I’ve been sidetracked from my blog by exhibition submissions and updating the website and catalogue recently but have managed to wander inbetween. So an update of snaps of things that have clicked with me over the last few weeks…
This week has been a re-thinking week as I have an upcoming group exhibition to prepare one piece for. It’s Unit 12’s First Anniversary: Paper exhibition with some really exciting makers involved. So Tuesday I took off to the Dean Gallery – I rarely get chance to spend a whole day exploring and getting inspired, so this was a treat. They have a brilliant exhibition of August Sanders photography on at the moment, I love late 1800’s to mid 1900’s photography, especially of people, their work, their lives. This first image wasn’t actually in the exhibition but I came home and looked up more, extended the exhibition a little.
Wandering from the Modern Art Gallery alongside the lovely water of Leith I managed to spot two of the Antony Gormley sculptures – still intend to find them all and blog them together (as long as no more are nicked!). I loved this perfect oval cut into the tree, and the striped railings and pavement…
Then the last couple of days I have been working through some ideas, selecting postcards to be used, getting them all scanned (I alway record them before I use them). Then time in the studio playing with ideas, give me a drill, some scraps of paper and new pencils, and I’m very happy… The deadline is the middle of next week so I will add details of the piece I made (will make!) and the details of the exhibition soon. Now off to book my train ticket, it’s a rare occasion of being able to attend the private view
I took these a few days ago at St Giles’ Cathedral round the corner-ish from me. Really lovely details in perfect grey tones. You can read about the history of the cathedral here. The interior is really beautiful with gorgeous old, some disintergrating flags, but didnt have time, or enough camera energy left so will return another day for that.
