Studio Visit - Seamus Gill, Silversmith and Jeweller

The 'Studio Visits' will be a monthly blog instalment. We're opening our doors to introduce you to the artists and designers in The Design Tower! Each interview will give you an insight into the individual designer or business.

This month we're chatting to Seamus Gill -  Silversmith and Jeweller

Can you tell us how long you have been here in the Design Tower and what you do?

I have had a studio in The Design Tower for nearly 20 years and I am a silversmith.

What does that entail?

As a silversmith, I normally buy silver from a bullion dealer that has been rolled out into flat sheets, similar to a flat sheet of paper, but with a thickness from 1 to 1.5mm. With a hand saw I can cut the shape I want out of the flat sheet , then I move the flat sheet of silver by hammering it into a three dimensional shape.

Is silver easy to shape?

Silver is extremely malleable and a great metal to work with. The sheet silver can be moved by stretching or compressing the metal.

Do you model it with your hands?

Oh no! It’s much too hard for that. All the stretching and compressing is done by using hammers to move the metal and a selection of anvils, which we call stakes, to support the metal.

Do you hammer the metal hot like a blacksmith?

No. Silver and non ferrous metals are generally worked cold. But you can only move the metal so far until it work hardens. I then heat it up with a gas torch until it is red hot to anneal the metal. That relives the stress in the metal and brings it back to a soft state so it can be worked further. In every piece I make it’s a continual process of working the metal then annealing and then further working.

What do you make?

I work at two scales, the small scale of jewellery and the larger scale of silversmithing work.

My jewellery is like a small version of my silversmithing work, it is all formed and shaped flat sheet. Most of my jewellery balances a highly polished section against a textured finish. In my latest collection “Flowing Curves” I have added 22 carat gold plating to the textured surface as you can see in the photograph of the bangle.

Do you like making bangles?

It’s a great scale to work in. It’s just that bit too big for someone trained in jewellery but it’s nice and small for someone trained in silversmithing.

What are you doing next in jewellery?

I’m working on developing a new collection of jewellery which I hope to have ready to launch in DesignYard this autumn.

And you work on a larger scale?

Yes, most of what I do would be on a larger scale. I make a lot of tabletop silversmithing work. That’s like candlesticks, vases, water pitchers and larger pieces like that.

Where would you show that work?

I normally make it for exhibition. I’ve just taken part in an exhibition in London where I showed a body of work in the exhibition “the Ten Masters” of British Silversmithing as the launch of British Silver Week. And I am represented by DesignYard on Nassau Street, just a few doors down from Grafton Street. I regularly have work exhibited there.

Is all your silversmithing work for galleries?

No, I do a lot of silversmithing work to commission. Throughout the history of silversmithing most work is made to commission.

What exactly is commissioning?

Basically it’s where I can design and make a piece that you can’t get anywhere else. I suppose it’s a bespoke service.

What kind of commissions are you working on now?

I am making the trophies for the Darley Irish Oaks races at the Curragh and the awards for the Rugby player and Club of the year which is presented by the Rugby writers of Ireland and on some private presentation piece.

Do you only work in silver?

Over the last number of years I have made sculptural pieces in sheet bronze. It has very similar working qualities to silver, but without the high cost of silver. I have also introduced colour to my work through patination on the bronze.

At the moment I have some pieces in the “Portfolio” exhibition in the Farmleigh Gallery in the Phoenix Park and I’m working on some pieces for the “Sculpture in Context” exhibition that will be on in the Botanic Gardens in September.

Séamus, thank you for sharing your work with us! Next month we will be featuring another designer from The Design Tower. You can also read the other interviews in the series.

Rangoli featured on the 'One Fab Day' blog

Rangoli headpieces have been featured on the Irish bridal blog One Fab Day. Aisling Nelson designs bespoke bridal jewellery and hair accessories. The article features designers that create alternative headpieces for weddings. The two designs above are bespoke commissions made from fine crochet and incorporating citrine and pearl detail.

You can read the full article on the One Fab Day blog. To see more of Aisling's designs, visit the Rangoli website and blog.

Launch of Designer Dublin

Designer Dublin is being launched tomorrow 1st June at 5pm in the Kilkenny Shop, on Nassau Street, Dublin 2.

Senator David Norris and broadcaster and stylist Sonya Lennon will be launching Designer Dublin and there will be live craft demonstrations from a number of designer-makers.

For more information on this invite-only event, contact Eibhlin Curley at Dublin City Enterprise Board.

The Design Tower Summer School 2011

Housed in an old sugar refinery in Dublin’s' Grand Canal Basin, The Design Tower is home to a variety of award-winning designers, artists and craftspeople.

This June you will be able  to learn skills directly from the professionals, in their studios in small intimate classes. These classes are aimed at artists and those with creative backgrounds. We welcome the chance to challenge and widen students creativity- in a range of disciplines.

Classes are small so please book now to avoid disappointment. Contact details are specific to each class. Free parking is available.

Here are the details of the seven courses on offer - 

PORTRAIT SCULPTURE  WITH LIVE MODEL with sculptor Liz O’Kane.

Liz was awarded the RHA Conor/Moran Sculpture Medal in 2007 and the Oireachtas/CAST Sculpture Prize in 2000.

Collectors of her work include the International Rugby Board, the Irish Rugby Football Union, The National Concert Hall, Belfast City Hall and New York New York Hotel Casino in Las Vegas.

Public pieces include life size bronze sculpture of world famous Irish tenor, Count John McCormack, in Dublin's Iveagh Gardens, and champion Irish greyhound Mick the Miller, in Killeigh, County Offaly.

Sculptor Liz O'Kane is running a weekend course in portrait sculpture with live model in her studio. Running over two weekends, 11/12th and 18/19 June, the course will consist of 8 x three hour sessions. The course will be intensive, suitable for all levels from beginners, to those with experience. Students will have finished portrait head by end of course.

Dates - 11/12th and 18/19 June
Price - €390
Deposit 50%.
Times - 10 am to 5 pm daily
Places - Four places available
Contact - 0879174947, email: info@elizabethokane.com,

For more information, visit Liz's website.

Clay is included in course cost.  Armatures and modelling stands are provided and can be purchased at end of class at cost price of €20.

LEATHER WORKSHOP  1 - MAKE A LAP-TOP BAG  or WORKSHOP 2 - MAKE A HANDBAG  with Roisin Gartland.

Roisin Gartland is an award winning designer and conceptual artist. She works to commission, and fashions unique pieces for individuals and costume pieces for stage and film. She has just completed an MFA at the NCAD, and her work is in several collection nationally and internationally.

The aim of this initiative is to open the studio to another type of experience. Workshop participants have the opportunity to design their own unique piece and proceed to realise their creations under Róisín’s guidance. It will be a challenging 2 days so be prepared!

Choice of beautiful leathers. All equipment supplied

Dates:  25/26th June /  02/03rd July
Times: 10am to 6 pm
Price: €300 including materials per two day workshop
Deposit 50%
Places: 5 per workshop   
Contact: 087 2490984 / email - workshop@roisingartland.com
For more information visit Roisin's website.

INTRODUCTION TO JEWELLERY DESIGN AND HANDSKILLS with Da Capo Goldsmiths.

Lee Harding and Sé O'Donoghue are two goldsmiths who set up their studio in 2000 after extensive experience working in studios in Ireland and abroad. They regularly organize exhibits for the annual Design Week Festival showcasing the
best of Irish design and jewellery makers, and have been published among the best collections of international designer jewellery.

Each workshop will begin with a first day of wax carving and exploring shape and form, and preparing a wax for casting.

The second weekend, the group will have their rough-cast form in precious metal and will clean and finish the object to a finished piece of jewellery. The aim of the workshop is that each person will be guided through creating a piece of jewellery from start to finish, and will have their own piece of jewellery at the end to take with them, either a ring, a pendant or a brooch.

Dates -The workshop will be comprised of one day each weekend, ie;
Workshop 1:  Saturday 18th & Saturday 25th June
Workshop 2:  Sunday 19th & Sunday 26th June
Times - 10 to 5.
Price - €335 and covers 2 days tuition, casting, & silver material
Deposit – 50%
Places -  3 in each workshop.
Contact - letmeknow@dacapo.ie
For more information, visit the Da Capo website.

SILVERSMITHING - MAKING A BOWL with silversmith Seamus Gill.

Séamus Gill is one of Ireland’s leading silversmiths. He has been commissioned by many of Ireland's companies and has exhibited widely nationally and internationally. Most recently he exhibited as one of the “Ten Masters” of British silver.

Séamus Gill will give a weekend workshop on Silversmithing, the art of moving a flat sheet of metal into an elegant three dimensional form. On this course students will be shown how to use traditional skills to hammer a flat disc of metal into the shape of a bowl.

Techniques covered will include sinking, raising, annealing and some soldering.
Because of the high cost of silver, gilding metal will be used on this course but students are welcome to buy their own silver if they wish to make a piece in silver.

This course is suitable for those with a basic understanding of metalworking who wish to expand into the area of forming metal by using silversmithing techniques, or for those who wish to improve on their silversmithing skills.

Dates - 18 and 19 June
Time - 10am to 5pm
Price  - € 230 incl materials
Deposit 50%
Places  - 4
Contact  - 01 677 5701
For more information visit Seamus Gill's website.

MODEL AND CAST IN CIMENT FONDU with sculptor Ayelet Lalor.

Ayelet Lalor (MA in ceramics)  has built a career in ceramic sculpture over the past 13 years. She specialises in figurative sculpture and works in a range of materials including clay, bronze and concrete. She has been responsible for numerous commissions, both private and corporate, including Percent for Art. She has work in many collections including the OPW and Limerick City Gallery.

Over the two day workshop students will be brought through the process from clay model to creating a mould and finishing with a cast version of the model in ciment fondu and/or plaster.

The student will learn to create and finish a clay relief model up to an aprox size of 10 x 16”. This is the basis for the cast, and the process will continue with the creation of  a silicone rubber   and plaster mould, to finally casting their original design in ciment fondu. Once the mould has been completed it can be used for numerous castings in various materials, wax, plaster, etc. This course is most suitable for those with an artistic and /or sculptural backround.

Ayelet will also be teaching a 2 part silicon mould making course using the students existing work on the 02/03 July. Contact her for further details.

Dates:  18/19th June  / 25/26th June
Price: €230 incl materials per 2 day workshop
Deposit 50%.                                                                                                               Places: 5 per workshop
Times: 10am to 5 pm 
Contact: 087 6485856 / email   - studio@ayeletlalor.com
For more information visit Ayelet's website.                                                    

DESIGN AND JEWELLERY SKILLS with Jeweller and Designer Breda Haugh.

Breda Haugh is an award winning Jewellery designer and maker. Her work is retailed through leading retail outlets and the National Museum of Ireland. She also undertakes commissions, corporate work and undertakes exhibition work.

This workshop will show the student how to develop an idea and make a piece of Jewellery. Students will be brought through stages of research and planning involved in designing a piece of jewellery such as a ring or pendant. The resulting idea will be made into a piece of jewellery over the period of the two day workshop using basic handskills.

Drawing equipment, Tools and silver and some other materials will be provided. Each student’s particular needs and abilities will be catered to. This course is suitable for all levels, but an interest in Jewellery and some knowledge of working in metals would be an advantage.

Dates - 18 and 19 June and 25 and 26 June
Time - 10am to 5pm
Price - € 280.00 including materials- silver and drawing equipment ,
Deposit 50%
Places – 3
Contact - 01 6705738
For more information visit Breda's website.

PAPERMAKING with paper conservationist Pat McBride

Pat McBride has been working with paper for over twenty five years. Having established the Paper Conservation Studio in 1985, he has been responsible for the conservation and preservation of a huge range of paper based art from watercolours prints and drawings to a range of ephemera materials. Since its conception, the Studio has been involved with a vast range of paper making projects. Core to paper conservation is a fundamental understanding of the hand papermaking process and it is this knowledge that will be imparted to participants who undertake this course.

This two day workshop will introduce participants to the history and theory of hand papermaking and will have them make a variety of different types of handmade paper.

This would include traditional rag based writing paper; paper made from recycled paper and handmade paper with floral and plant additions. The hand made paper would then be finished so that it can be used for specific purposes such as drawing, writing or collage use.

Participants who undertake this course will at the end of the workshop have a variety of papers made and finished and will have the skills necessary to continue making paper on their own.

All materials supplied and it is suitable for all levels

Dates - 25th and 26th June
Price - €250, deposit 50%.
Deposit – 50%
Times -10am till 4pm
Places - 5
Contact - 086 2451318

* Spaces are limited on these courses so we advise you to book quickly!

Alltissimo Quintet Lunchtime Concert

This is the poster for the upcoming 'Altissimo' viola quintet lunchtime concert that will be happening in the foyer of The Design Tower on 2nd June at 1pm. The concert duration is approximately fifty minutes. All are welcome, so please spread the word!

You can read more about the concert as well as the instruments in the previous post.

The poster was designed by instrument maker - Michael De Hoog who made all of the instruments that will be played in the recital.

Adornment

Photographer Agata Stoinska and producer/art director Eddie Shanahan have collaborated on a project to celebrate and promote Irish jewellery design. The photographic collection is called Adornment and marks 2011 as being the Year of Craft. The exhibition and travelling exhibition will promote and raise awareness of Irish jewellery design.

Agata approached Eddie to come up with a new idea for an art photo collaboration. Originally it was intended to photograph the work of just six jewellery designers but the interest in the project was so immense that eventually three submissions days were held at D–Light Studios in Dublin with jewellers from all over Ireland submitting work for consideration.

Both Agata and Eddie were astonished at the treasure trove of innovation, imagination and design talent uncovered, so much so that the original single day’s shoot became three days – each with its own theme. Below is a quote from Eddie -

"I have worked with jewellery designers over the years and felt it was time to shine some light on them. When you see the ideas these artists have: the skills, the imagination. When you look at, say, Tuula harrington, who works with reindeer antlers embedded with diamonds. It has become a very exciting venture. I can now understand why people collect it; it can be an inspiration. It makes you so very proud to be Irish and I feel so grateful to all those who created"

Details of the two photographs shown -

Top image - Agate, onyx and mother-of-pearl necklaces by MoMuse. Model: Amber Jean Rowan from Morgan The Agency.
Bottom image - Silver necklace and bangle by Seamus Gill. Model: Jayne Wilde from Morgan The Agency.

The Adornment exhibition is open to the public from 1-14th June at the European Union House, 18 Dawson Street, Dublin 2. Time:  Weekdays 9am – 5pm. It will feature a selection of images from the Adornment project.

For more information, visit the Designer Dublin website.

Credits -
Photography by Agata Stoinska
Concept and art direction by Eddie Shanahan

Images and quote from Eddie Shanahan taken from the Sunday Independant Life magazine 15th May 2011.

'Art in the Garden' Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition

Gormleys Fine Art in association with Hastings Hotels is proud to announce the sculpture event of the year “Art in the Garden” taking place this spring in the Culloden Estate and Spa.

This is one of the largest and most unique outdoor sculpture events to be held in Ireland. The grounds at the Culloden Estate and Spa will showcase 120 pieces of sculpture. Up to sixty leading Irish and International artists will be taking part, including two sculptors from The Design Tower - Ayelet Lalor and Elizabeth O'Kane.

Set against the twelve acres of beautiful secluded gardens and woodland, visitors will be presented with a diverse collection of sculptures, with combined life size works, large installations and smaller more intimate pieces, housed in specially constructed marquee located by the Cultra Inn.

The exhibitions runs from 7th until 22nd May 2011.

The two images above show Ayelet Lalor's piece entitled "I am the daughter of earth and water." Below is Liz O'Kane's two bronze figures, "Ricardo and Janice."

Liz O'Kane will also be showing work in the following exhibitions this summer:

• Solomon Fine Art, Celebrating 25 years of CAST Foundry, 27 May - 2 June,  number 15 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin (bronze bull).
• Ormeau Baths Gallery, Belfast, War on Want charity exhibition and auction, 24 - 28 May (bronze female head).
• Royal Hibernian Academy of Art Annual Exhibition, Ely Place, Dublin 2, from 24 May to 30 July (two watercolour cityscapes of New York's Lower East Side).