Memories are how we record our past, but they are also our grounding for the future. Each time we remember we make tiny alterations to the recollections. So how do we mark important events or people in our lives? How can we do this in a meaningful, personal way? Jewellery provides a platform for conversation. It is wearable art that allows us to take our memories for a walk, but equally can be used as small freestanding sculpture. There is a long history of commemorative jewellery from love tokens, including the symbolism of different gem stones to mourning jewellery, as well as jewellery that celebrates events, from the sporting to the political.
The pieces are looking at memories that are shared. I am a twin and most of my early memories are shared with my brother. When we remember or recall these memories, but they are remembered differently. The pieces for the exhibition are exploring this idea of 2 pieces, represented by 2 brooches, each one representing an individual memory of a particular person or experience. The oval form of the pieces and the gesso support reference lockets and portraits, sitting next to each other to connect the memories to create a whole.
These pieces in the series took inspiration from spoons, domestic items that hold memories of family. We eat and share food with the ones we love. The mother of pearl, like horn, is a traditional material used to make spoon. The 2 brooches contrast a solid deep set panel of mother of pearl and a fractured linear surface. These 2 surfaces of the same material represent 2 shared memories, the same but different

15 makers have made work to celebrate personal or generic memories in the exhibition - Memories are Made of This

Participating artists:
ZOE ARNOLD, ALICE BIOLO, JONATHAN BOYD, CAROLINE BROADHEAD, LIN CHEUNG, ELAHEH NAGHI GANJI, ANNA GORDON, MARIA HANSON, MARIA MILITSI, KATHIE MURPHY, MARK NUELL, MILES ROBINSON, ROMILLY SAUMAREZ SMITH, JESSICA TURRELL, SILVIA WEIDENBACH