This ear cuff appeared in the Outside our Boxes exhibition which took place from 12 to 29 September 2024 and was presented at Brunswick Street Gallery in Fitzroy, Melbourne as part of the biannual jewellery festival, Radiant Pavilion. It is made from sterling silver, and measures 10.5 x 4.5 x 1.6cm.
Below is a description of the exhibition:
Outside our Boxes is a collaborative exhibition between former classmates Nicola Knackstredt and Saskia den Brinker.
The artists’ creative relationship began at the Australian National University’s Gold & Silversmithing workshop in 2018. After art school, they participated in an exhibition with two former classmates and found great value in revisiting the creative and collaborative approach to making that they had missed since leaving.
The artists decided to work together again for Radiant Pavilion—this time, the collaborative process takes the form of an art school ‘crit’.
With the knowledge and insight that comes from years of bearing witness to the development of each other’s practice, the artists decided to create a series of experimental works, starting with a pendant and then progressing through other forms of body adornment in the following order: stud earrings, a brooch, a ring, long earrings, a necklace, armwear, ear cuff and headwear.
The process began with each artist providing a ‘prompt’ to the other to direct the concept behind three pieces, with a total of three prompts given for the series of nine works. Throughout the making process, the artists had regular conversations, providing feedback, advice and encouragement that guided the creation of new and dynamic work, taking the artists on a journey into the unknown.