Making a statement

Renee Bevanhand with some of her hand made rose brooches. Photo / NZ Herald

Fashion loves a good accessory, from statement shoes to that terrible and best-forgotten It-bag trend. Now it's the turn of the statement necklace, with huge costume-style pieces appearing everywhere from Gucci to Lanvin to Dries Van Noten to Louis Vuitton. In fact, now it's about all types of unique pieces and statement jewels, like large cocktail rings, chunky bracelets and stand-out brooches - Steph Lusted's sweet butterfly brooches, shown on the cover of this week's Viva, feature the delicate wings of locally found butterflies or those recycled from secondhand butterfly collections. "To be able to encase and preserve the fragile wing in a piece of jewellery that can be worn and treasured for generations is inspiring to me," explains Lusted who, with her contemporaries, creates designs that demand to be looked at; jewellery that is like little pieces of art.

The idea of jewellery as art will be examined at The New Zealand Jewellery Show this weekend, with a showcase of work from over 100 New Zealand jewellers. Think of it like the Fashion Week for our local burgeoning and wide-ranging jewellery scene. The forum will feature all types of jewellery design, from fine to contemporary pieces to "objets d'art", with three special exhibitions within the show itself. The HandStand exhibition, curated by Peter Deckers, will showcase "unfamiliar and innovative contemporary jewellery" from recently graduated and emerging jewellery artists, giving these designers the chance to showcase their most challenging work. On display as part of the Designers' Choice exhibition will be high-value fine jewellery selected by designers as their favourite or most memorable pieces. The final exhibition will display the work of the finalists in the Regal Castings Jewellery Design Awards, the national awards for jewellery design. And the best thing? All on display will be for sale; think of it as a mecca for jewellery aficionados.

Viva talks to three jewellers who will be displaying their wares at the show (they're also all finalists in the awards), each with a distinct design aesthetic, to find out more about their work and inspirations.

RENEE BEVAN

Flowers can make even the most cynical girl squeal with delight, which is exactly what I imagine they'll do when they see Renee Bevan's charming golden rose brooch. Or any of her other flower brooches actually. The three-dimensional piece as part of the Design Awards features a motif of a yellow rose adorned with a dewdrop, and is made of walnut, gold leaf, oxidised silver, stainless steel wire and a found image source from Bevan's ever-increasing collection of old gardening books. Her work references craft traditions like paper-tole, playing on the idea of the corsage and inspired by the old-fashioned. You'll often find the Aucklander at garage sales, second-hand stores and antique shops, sifting through her finds that are "rich in history and meaning" to use in her work. "I'm really drawn to the history within antique and second-hand objects, as well as the manufactured sentiment within kitsch. I like to reference these interests within my work while at times adding humour and exaggeration as well," says Bevan, who also works with Fingers Gallery and as a jewellery technician at Manukau School of Visual Arts. She has long had a fascination with flowers, something that's "centred around their unwavering abundance of signification. Flowers are loaded with manufactured symbolism and meanings. The rose, with its long-standing history in jewellery, adornment, gift giving and commemoration, has a unique ability to speak of love, live and death simultaneously."

As well as a long fascination with flowers, Bevan's attraction to jewellery began early. "In my early teens I started collecting rings; I had a tall wooden case I displayed them in when they were not worn." Her first 'real' experience making jewellery was at art school at the Manukau School of Visual Arts, where she remembers being drawn to jewellery "because of its strong connection with human relationships and the body". But Bevan perhaps best sums up her appreciation to the art of jewellery when she explains simply, "jewellery speaks to all".

SHARON FITNESS

Blobby, wobbly and fun aren't necessarily words usually associated with jewellery design, but that's exactly how Sharon Fitness describes her own work. The Auckland-based jeweller, who also works part-time as a gallery assistant at Masterworks Gallery in Ponsonby, is one of four finalists in the contemporary jewellery section of the Regal Castings Jewellery Design Awards, with her distinctive colourful silicone 'purple starfish' necklace. Her work can be worn on the body as jewellery or hung in a room as a display - Fitness will explore both ideas at the Jewellery Show, with her work as part of the awards and as part of the HandStand exhibition. "My work in the HandStand exhibition stems from a desire to adorn an exhibition space with blobby lines and wobbly objects, some of which are wearable." Fitness often uses the words blobby and wobbly when talking about her designs, as well as phrases like goo, playful and silliness. "My best work comes when I am dabbling with random moments of adornment, when I'm not thinking too much about making a proper piece of jewellery or just experimenting with new surfaces or combinations."

Fitness first began using the medium of silicone as part of her jewellery design course at Manukau School of Visual Arts, and appreciates its non-traditional attributes - as well as the fact that it encourages others to reach out and touch, "breaking down traditional social boundaries between strangers". Initially attracted to the jewellery world after seeing an exhibition by Shelley Norton in 2002 that featured Dr Seuss-like objects hanging in space, Fitness is inspired by the "desire to create temporal art events for random audiences". She wants her creations to "shout and command the owner to do its bidding". Or more simply, "I want it to make someone smile".

MICHAEL ROBINSONA

passion for jewellery is clearly in the blood for 31-year-old jewellery designer Michael Robinson: his identical twin brother David also designs, as does their father Ken. The trio works together at Robinson Designer Goldsmith, creating handcrafted fine jewellery from their Takapuna studio. Robinson's intricate piece that earned him a place as a finalist in the fine jewellery awards section reflects his take on traditional jewellery design with a quirky twist. Called Skull Duggery, the multi-jewelled tattoo style pendant combines rose and yellow gold with coloured stones including garnets, sapphires, black diamonds and blue topaz. Think tough rock 'n' roll skulls combined with something more delicate and classic.

Robinson's interest in jewellery design began early on, influenced by his father who had worked as a jeweller in Europe and for Chaumet in London. "I can remember being in his jewellery workshop before and after going to kindergarten - most kids were playing with toy hammers but I was using the real thing," says Robinson, who, along with his brother, won two of the four fine jewellery awards in 2007 (both are finalists in the fine jewellery award section this year). Every one of Robinson's designs, which evolve from pages of loose pencil sketches to watercolour designs on vellum to the actual finished product, are lovingly made with the thought that "in a hundred year's time some expert from Antiques Roadshow or museum might be viewing it, so I make sure the back of a pendant or the inside of a ring looks just as good as the front, with lots of detail and interesting things to look at".

This is the first year Robinson will be showcasing his creations at the New Zealand Jewellery Show, alongside those of his brother and father. Expect the rest of their designs to also be little pieces of art. "My thoughts are always on how I can make something more beautiful, more unique, and to make jewellery so that it will last for generations."

• The New Zealand Jewellery Show, Friday July 17 to Sunday July 19, Sky City Convention Centre, Auckland. One-day tickets, $18.