Residences: Meet Victoria Young-Jamieson
Meet our first artist in residence, whose latest work is a love letter to our very own stretch of coastline, as a way of re-focussing her connection to this ancient corner of Cornwall.
Written by Nat Louis
Our next artist to join us here at Bedruthan is Lucy Spink who will be with us from 21st - 27th November.
Lucy Spink is a jeweller whose work of eclectic pieces designed around her sympathy with nature and her understanding of its fragility.
“I have spent the majority of my life in big natural landscapes, moorland and parks, mountains and coastlines. The outdoors is my get away and my sanity. It is the place where I find clarity and calm. I have become more aware of the growing separation of society from the rhythms of nature and have chosen to express this through jewellery.”
Using her Granddad’s old workshop tools, each piece she makes shows the marks of process and the beauty of form, reflecting the patterns of nature – the outline shapes of rocky outcrops, the surface patterns made by hammers like the texture of stone, small spurs of silver and gold to replicate the growth patterns of lichens.
How did you get into creating jewellery?
I started making jewellery while running a shop I owned many years ago - I signed up for a night class after a years of wanting to make jewellery which started at art school. When I was living in Trinidad a few years later, I was lucky enough to meet a man called Bruce Moutett who had a large jewellery studio and I spent 2 years happily learning from him and his team before coming back to Cornwall and starting Lucy Spink Jewellery as you see it today.
What are your favourite stones, materials and jewels to work with?
My favourite stones have to be Peruvian Blue Opals for their wonderful colour - the colour of the Cornish sea on a sunny day - and the beautiful dendrites which form inside them like seaweed and lichen forms. I source them directly from a woman in Peru who works with the miners so I know they are carefully selected. I work exclusively in recycled and Fairtrade silver and gold as I love the quality of the metals and the way they respond to shaping and forming.
Who are your biggest inspirations in your industry?
Ute Decker is a big inspiration. Her work is simple and beautiful and she is a huge advocate for ethical responsibility within the jewellery industry.
What are you going to be working on during your residence?
During my residency, I hope to be able to spend time outdoors exploring in detail, the cliff tops and coastline in the immediate vicinity of the hotel. I will be bringing a selection of my found objects with me and will add to the collection over the week - a bit like the old nature tables we used to have in school!! I hope when people pop in to see me at the studio space, these objects will fire up conversations. I’ll be bringing my sketch book too so I can develop some new designs to work on over the winter and add into my collections in the new year.
Do you have a favourite creation?
I don’t really have one favourite piece. I get excited about every new design and it’s always interesting to see which ones sell best and remain as part of my collections. Commissions are always lovely to do too as these hold special significance and celebrate happy occasions and, as a jeweller, it is a privilege to be asked to make work which honours these moments in peoples lives.
