Saturday 10 March 2012

Reflections on Jemposium 2012



Reflections on Jemposium 2012, by Helen Punton
 
Jemposium was an amazing weekend of jewellery conversation and cogitation. Our journey began with a moving waiata from Neke Moa then Peter Deckers, engineer of the event, invited us to 'stand still for a moment and see what happens'.  Alan Preston and Moira Elliot provided a delightful balance of housekeeping and hilarity throughout the weekend, the latter of which was also the hallmark of Karl Fritsch’s keynote address.

Karl's observations of the world around him are evident in his early works like the cow udder pin which was both touching and amusing, as was his quest to find a nugget of gold to carve a ring out of. It is this unadulterated view of the world that is reflected in his work. His freedom of thinking and of challenging constraints was highlighted through many of his anecdotes, including making brooch backs first instead of the front as his professor had insisted.

Marcel van Kan's presentation of the video of a man looking for diamonds on the streets of New York's jewellery district continued the prospecting theme and was followed with a discussion of some of Atelier Ted Noten's revolutionary designs and initiatives. The highly innovative art of this design team and their embracing the process of 3D printing has put them at the top of the game. Equally innovative, Fabrizio Tridenti covered a variety of interesting processes from bronze melted in sand and bronze on the surface of stone to using aluminium, paper and resin. His inspiration ranges from architecture to photography (which allows him to realise ideas his hands can't) to creating music to go with jewels.

Manon van Kouswijk's work was more restrained and explored social elements using very domestic materials such as spoons and napkins, and focussed on repetition. Not knowing her work in detail I found her approach very controlled and intellectual. She raised interesting ideas but very subtly.  Our final speaker, Liesbeth den Besten took us on journey through her Wunderkamer, 'wonder room', based on the fashion of the 15-17th century wealthy aristocrats. The collections of oddities provided a visual smorgasbord. 

Wow! Day two ranged from an idea which led to the production of hundreds of little pink piggy plastic rings to found objects transformed into art to core samples inlaid in trees.

Marcel van Kan of Atelier Ted Noten highlighted the energy put into developing their brand to reach as many people as possible. Their use of billboards, posters, repetition of the name, videos and even 'post its' all contribute to the public's awareness of their brand, and reinforces their position in the world of contemporary jewellery.  Working as a team allows them to deal with the design problems and solutions, with the 3D story leading into ideas. About 50% of ideas also come from the challenges raised by museums and commissions.

Aware that a few people had questions about aspects of the ATN Red Light Design I asked Marcel why they chose a ring for this project. His response was that it was a choice based on the idea of 'beauty and value'. But, I asked, many people would read this as a comment on marriage and commitment and given it was a cheap ring...?  Also you are talking about women who have sex for money.  Apparently it was not at all intended to be offensive or to be seen as insensitive. In fact, Marcel had a much sympathy for the girl next door and they took a great deal of abuse from the people visiting the establishment. The decision to accept the project, done during the initial phone call, was not one they would make again in hindsight. However, the owners of the building were paid handsomely and craft 'prostitutes' reintroduced to the district while the real ones moved to another suburb.

It was only after pondering the concerns raised that I realized the different response I and others had was an anecdote for all art. Prostitution in NZ is a legitimate occupation and I have little understanding of the extent of the violent crime in Amsterdam. Obviously too, my association with the ring as a symbol is quite different from that of others. The project still sits uncomfortably with me but this is indeed an appropriate example of how ideas are interpreted differently. We cannot always expect our ideas to reach the audience as they were intended.

The students that ATN chose brought a fresh perspective to the presentation. At the start of their journey they echoed the different ways we work. The elusive Whitireia student Moniek Schrijer trusted her two classmates, Keri-Mei Zagroblena and Chloe Rose Taylor, to present her work to Jemposium.  Moniek's work is strongly ideas based, focussed on the relationship between interiors and exteriors.  Her intent capturing the unseen like 'There are no trees in Antarctica', while her 'Bluetooth' work reveals wit and humour.  Hungry Creek's Suzette Conradie dealt with the technical exploration in realizing ideas; the freedom repousse gave her. The lack of control over the result freeing the maker and building pleasure that no one piece would be the same. Her work also allowed the wearer the freedom to compose their own work by grouping different metal jewels.

A fascination with archeology and the relationship of the first man with his materials, essential for his survival, led Fabrizio Tridenti to explore the theme of the difficulties of early man. His comment 'the sea gives back materials that man abandons' highlighted the theme of recycling, of building on what has gone before, of restoring value to the abandoned, while the juxtaposition of finding materials, little treasures amongst the garbage which litters the shore, resonated loudly with me.

The collaboration of Karl Fritsch, Martino Gamper and Francis Upritchard is a fascinating view into the amazing result of a meeting of minds and talents. Their 'gesamtkunsthandwerk' certainly collapses any sense of hierarchy or pretensions of superiority. This egalitarian energy resulted in some fabulous pieces complimenting and merging as a body of work; the purity of 'just making things'. This discussion was honest and revealing. Again surfaced the idea of recycling, taking what's left, regardless of its previous value, and giving it a new narrative.

The experience of Martino working with Nick Brandwyn, local New Plymouth potter, reminded us all to look around for the passion and knowledge that is hidden from our everyday gaze, beyond our normal ports of call.  In the end, the message I came away with was that we all need 'something to respond to': a challenge, a push beyond our comfort zone, a walk along the curving path of collaboration. It 'takes a while to adjust to' but, as we witnessed, has incredibly powerful results.

Interestingly, a question about the commercial success of work made with others revealed that there are issues that lie with the customer wanting 'a Fritz ring'. It is their perception of the work that sometimes makes it difficult to sell. However, the collaboration opens up a new audience for the participants, not to mention the sharing of techniques, use of tools and ideas.

Both Jacqui Chan and Sharon Fitness's PechaKuchas were inspiring. The first for having a very intellectual approach to her making: studying the social impact of jewellery and how the wearers are the transformers and that jewellery helps us engage with our world. The other, Sharon Fitness, focussed more on the relationship of the jewellery with the body. Her personality seeps into her work with bright silicone jiggling brooches bringing smiles to the viewers' faces. She does indeed seem to be saving the world's sense of humour one brooch at a time.

The Te Papa collection and the historical focus of collecting followed; the ethnocentric approach of the past and the how the collections act as a mirror of contemporary issues such as bicultural concerns. Alan Preston took us through the history of Fingers and the contribution it has and continues to make to the world of contemporary jewellery. You couldn't help be impressed and somewhat nostalgic for that groundbreaking period of incredible energy, vision and passion. This sense of nostalgia remained with Liesbeth talking of Francoise van den Bosch, another pioneer unrecognised by her family for the talent she was. 

Ilse-Maries Erl's discussion of her project I found very interesting and honest. Building an unheroic monument to the destruction of 150 homes for a highway, she took core samples from the condemned houses and plugged trees along the route. She has created a video to be published on the day the first house is demolished. 'But is this jewellery?' she was asked. Well  if jewellery is adornment does adorning a tree make it so?  Can trees wear jewellery or only people? So if it's hanging on a wall or sitting in a drawer is it still jewellery as it's not on the body. Is a spoon jewellery?  By now I knew I was not going to have all revealed to me and that I may need a lie down soon.

Day Three
Well this was the day of all days. Stella Chrysostomou put the cat amongst the pigeons questioning the need for more objects. Why make another ring? Does the world really need another ring? A very good question. As Stella was saying this I was thinking of 500 pink plastic pig rings. Others in the audience will possibly have been taking a short, sharp intake of air, and others gritting their teeth to stop shouting 'Heresy!' A variety of reactions to one statement. In my little bubble of reality there is room for more jewellery. But should it be new? Shouldn't they be recycled; found objects that exist already, reinvented like Fabrizio Tridenti's asphalt brooch, allowing an object with history another story? 

Talking about stories, the idea of the narrative of a work and who gives it to it was another vital discussion. Does the material contain an idea or is it dumb, as Warrick Freemen said? Does the idea the maker has really matter or is the narrative the wearer takes from it more important? Stella  Chrysostomou made the point that a successful work should keep resonating for the worker as well as the viewer/s. It is interesting to ponder that the 'idea' the maker has may never actually transcend to the viewer. That based on their individual nature and all their influences they will never quite understand what the maker's intention was and in many cases will not fly within cooey of it.  And indeed, does it have to have a story for the viewer or can it just be an interesting looking brooch that dresses up any black top in their wardrobe?

Both Stella Chrysostomou and Manon van Kouswijk raised the issue of involving the viewer, one of getting the viewer to join the dots and come to the cerebral result themselves, the other calling for subtlety, with Warrick Freeman wishing the 'students' brooches would shut up'. The ability to let a work speak for itself is a real struggle for some.

Two threads wound their way through these three days for me: First, that of history, of those that have gone before and woven the fabric: of early Maori body adornment, the connection that materials have for Maori, that they have a life force (mauri), that pounamu is not dumb for some. I was also drawn to the early use of materials that man relied on for survival and the craft of the early pioneers. These people bravely followed their passion, broke down barriers  and that means that there is a responsibility to do something with, and for, contemporary jewellery, not just for ourselves and to make a buck but as recognition of those who helped us to reach this place where we all stood still for a moment.

The second thread was that of materials and social responsibility.  References to open cast mining, mass production in China, Apple's dismissal of exploitative working conditions, motorways ripping through homes… To me, all these reinforce how important the choices of materials and processes are to the integrity of contemporary jewellery. The question is not just what is being said but literally what is being done?

The humour and spontaneity of the weekend was refreshing and not at all as I had imagined it would be.  This was a wonderful opportunity to see the makers as real people not just names besides wonderful work; to listen to provocative and intelligent discussion and to realize that the path of a maker is littered with questions, some that will morph into another, some that will appear resolved only to raise their heads later, some that matter and some that don't.

(Jemposium likes to thank Jane Bowden, from Zu design, Adelaide for sponsoring Helen to write this article)