Charlotte Tollyfield

Silversmith Charlotte Tollyfield is based in Sheffield in a vibrant community of contemporary and traditional artisans, in the heart of the city’s cultural quarter. She graduated from Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College in 2007 to take up a one year residency at the Bishopsland workshop, near Reading. Charlotte then returned to her home town of Sheffield to take a place on Yorkshire Artspace’s Starter Studio Programme for Designer Silversmiths.

Charlotte is passionate about silver. She believes the excitement of starting a new project, the challenges that you encounter during the making process and the delight of holding and looking at the finished object delivers a job satisfaction like no other.

During her year at the Bishopsland workshop, she began to focus on the process of forming, destroying and re-creating three-dimensional vessels. This particular process allowed her to discover a new twist to recognisable geometric structures and create a distinctive style that conveys the strength and beauty of these apparently simple forms,    enhanced by silver’s ability to create soft curves and acute angles.

Her current work is designed for the interactive environment of the dining table where the silver is not just on display but also something to be actively used. The work has both a visual and tactile     appeal, causing the viewer to look with their hands as well as their eyes.

 

Kathryn Hinton

As a silversmith I have spent time learning the traditional skills involved in working with silver and other materials to create work that explores and celebrates the ideas of traditional craft.  While studying at the Royal College of Art I was able to develop my design ideas and learn about new technologies which I combine to design and make silverware. 

My work focuses on merging traditional silversmithing techniques with digital technology. While studying at the Royal College of Art I developed a user interface in the form of a hammer that works alongside computer aided design (CAD) software to mimic the physical actions of silversmithing, in particular the hammering process used in forming sheet metal.  The faceted silverware and jewellery is designed using CAD and realised using processes such as Computer Numerical Control (CNC) milling and press forming and rapid prototyping and casting.

The exhausted silverware collection is made using traditional hand techniques such as raising and forging. The pieces are designed based on the idea of function with a playful element as they take the form of the tableware they exhausted onto.

 

Rebecca Joselyn

‘Packaging’ Collection

Drawing her inspiration from our hectic lifestyles of convenience and throwaway, she looks at the materials we take for granted and discard from day to day. Her Tableware questions how using different Materials can change our views on objects and there acceptance within society.

 

‘People’ Collection

In this collection, Rebecca plays around with obvious everyday objects, such as the simple shape of a plate or bowl; she then  incorporates castings of small-scale people to these, producing  miniature everyday scenes on life size scale everyday objects.

 

‘Balance’ Collection

Each piece in this collection can be moved around to allow the viewer to display the work in different ways, the interchangeable candelabra is designed to be viewed in many ways, each display changing the   entire look of the piece. Getting the balance of this right plays an   important part when designing to ensure all the candles stand straight once applied.

 

Victoria Coleman

I design and make Jewellery, Timeless pieces of elegance, with a strong ethos of craftsmanship and a desire to create the things you love and treasure forever.

Since graduating from my degree and post graduate training four years ago, I have been developing my Design Collections and my business.

When you love what you do, every day is brilliant, you believe in you, you live and breathe your passion.

My passion is designing unique Fine Jewellery with an unmistakable style, Inspired by modern industrial design and the magic of nature, the design language I strives to create is both deliberately architectural and gently organic.

Padgham & Putland

Carl Padgham and Andrew Putland (Directors of Padgham & Putland Ltd)
design, develop & create items, from jewellery to models and hollow ware in precious metals,
specialising in Silversmithing.

The History

‘Padgham and Putland Ltd’ was established in 1984 by Carl Padgham and Andrew Putland, both graduates from Medway college of design, working from their own premises based in Pluckley in the heart of the Kent countryside.

‘Padgham and Putland’ in the early years worked mainly as outworkers to the established silver trade. During this time they were able to illustrate new pieces which were of extremely high standards. Through the many years of trade, they have built up a loyal relationship with a few trade companies, private societies and individuals. They have been invited on to some exciting design and restoration projects which were through the worshipful company of Goldsmiths.

One of the most prestigous projects that Padgham and Putland have been involved with was the Church 2000, which was commissioned by Bvlgari, the Italian jewellers. The project was to design and make fourty pieces of church plate for the Vatican, for a new church in celebration of the Millenium, the Dio Padro Misericordioso in Rome, designed by Richard Meier. On completion of the project Padgham and Putland alongside Nicola Bvlgari were lucky enough to present the work to the Pope John Paul II in the Vatican.

Padgham & Putland also created this magnificent trophy for this year’s Grand National Winner.

Rachel Elizabeth Wood

The horse as a symbol of strength, beauty, status, freedom and power forms the basis of an underlying narrative and is central to Rachel Elizabeth Wood’s work.

Rachel combines wood and silver with intricate detail and abstract shapes to create a diverse collection of pieces that range from sculptural to more commercial wares. Since Launching Rachel Elizabeth Wood as a brand, she has become one of the leading young contemporary British Jeweller/silversmiths. Her work has attracted interest from a variety of prestigious institutions, including The Goldsmiths Company and the V&A. The British Museum selected one piece, a trophy, to include in their celebration of the horse exhibition as part of Queen Elizabeth 11 Diamond Jubilee Celebrations. In 2013 Rachel went on to win The Hope creative Business Award for her innovative designs and business acumen.

Rachel see’s jewellery and silversmithing as a chance to be free and express herself as a designer. She wants to push the boundaries of what has been before and have usable objects that are sculptures in their own rights.

Rachel’s work is all handmade in her Lancashire based studio overlooking the west Pennine moors. She specialises in wax carving with most of her models being done from memory with a selection of tiny steel knives. It is extremely important to Rachel that her models take on a presence and character. She spent hours as a young child drawing her own ponies and studying her mother’s veterinary books. She was fascinated with the muscular structure of animals and believes in order to understand an animal’s form you need to understand what’s underneath the surface and how things work.

She now expresses her 3D skills and talent in a process called lost wax carving which is fast becoming a rare and old craft.

Hannah Felicity Dunne

 I studied a HND in ‘Jewellery and Applied Arts’ in Manchester and then went on to complete a degree in ‘Metalwork and Jewellery’ at Sheffield Hallam University.  I graduated in 2009 and set up my workshop in North Somerset shortly after.

 My work is a range of sculptural and bold silverware and jewellery.  Most pieces are hammered from flat silver sheet using the techniques of hollowing, hand raising and planishing to create a three dimensional form.  Chasing punches or textured hammers are used to apply different surface finishes to the object.  I use many of the same tools and textured hammers to create both the large silverware pieces and the jewellery.

I use a sketchbook to initially plan my pieces but truly they come to life through the making process, I am very hand’s on experimental with my material.  Rather than trying to control the outcome I allow my material and tools to guide me through the making, my subconscious takes over the design.

I am very visual my work is about form and texture as well as function.  It is important to me to get out and see new places to refresh my head.  Much of my visual diary has come from the highlands of Scotland where I visit regularly.  With the Bulbous and Boulders collection, I had looked a lot at the idea of a foreign object attaching itself to another or taking over it completely, in this case barnacles on rocks, sometimes there are just a few and other times they smother the rock face.  My first Bulbous pieces had areas of smooth planished silver contrasted with the bobbly forms.  Later I started making pieces where the bobbly forms consumed the whole surface of the object.  The Boulders pieces really followed on from this but for me they show more of the strength of character of the highlands.

There is still much to come from the influence of the highlands in my work but it is certainly not the only place I look to for inspiration.  I also love old buildings and ruins, crumbling walls and castles.  My interests lie with the ancient and old, things with a visual history.  I like the idea of the rugged and earthy, something simply dug up from the ground.

Ana Meneses

Ana Meneses

Ana was born in Germany. In her early childhood her family moved back to Spain where she grew up and since 1996, Ana lives in London.

In 1999, she discovered a passion for jewellery making, which she  followed by taking on a ND & HND in Jewellery & Silversmithing at Sir John Cass Department of Arts, Design and Media. In addition, during her years at Sir John Cass, Ana attended various evening classes and short courses to enhance skills and further her understanding of specialist techniques use in working with precious metals.

In 2007, she set up her workshop with other silversmiths in East-London. Throughout this time, Ana has gained confidence and experience in her work. These have allowed her to master key techniques and create more complex and distinctive pieces which will have an appeal to a larger audience. Ana has won various awards and has exhibited widely across the UK. Furthermore, she works on commission for well established artist & designer silversmiths.

Her designs are characterised by the use of clean lines that flow aesthetically with the creation of asymmetrical angles. In her work, she likes to capture a balance in which the object itself and its decoration create an unusual and minimalist design.