Made versus manufactured; which is better in today’s throwaway society?

This year Origin is part of the London Design Festival which includes fairs and shows incorporating product design, fashion, jewellery, furniture and much more all within the capital. There were 200+ makers in one showcase at the Old Spitalfields Market for Origin.

On the other end of the scale from Origin is Goldsmiths’ Fair which showcases fine jewellery and silver and goldsmiths’ from across the world all portraying their own version of Contemporary metal crafts.

Within the programme for Origin 2010 is the statement “Consumers are moving away from global luxury brands to more personal, individual and ethical choices, and to ownership of objects that have a more direct connection with the person who made them. Contemporary craft embodies all these values, and they are made manifest at fairs such as Origin, where meeting the maker face-to-face adds an extra dimension.”

So does the revival in craft come hand in hand with the recession or is hand-craft rather than mass-market manufacture finally being seen as the way forward in today’s throw-away society? Opulent Ethics visited Origin 2010 and the Goldsmiths’ Fair ’10 to find out.

It has been noted by many that there has been a resurgence in recent years of objects which portray hand skills being more attractive to consumers than mass-production items. At Origin 2010 it was refreshing to see so many hand-crafted items from numerous genres on sale all in one place.

The word craft can bring to mind a thought of less luxurious products which cannot match up to high end retailers. So which is worth more; workmanship or high-end materials?

Opulent Ethics visited Goldsmiths’ Fair first and were pleasantly surprised by the amount of hand-crafted pieces.

As one of the first people to use laser welding in jewellery within the UK Tom Rucker creates pieces of jewellery which stand apart from other contemporary jewellery. The “Godfather” of laser welded jewellery finds his inspiration in architecture, aeronautics and nature and has developed his own laser welding technique to convey this beauty and design.

 Tom Rucker Laser-Welded Earrings

Both Jenny Deans and Gerlinde Huth use movement or the suggestion of it within their jewellery. Huth repeats and combines units to create jewellery which appears complex and conveys natural shapes through intricately constructed pieces. Jenny Deans uses similar characteristics in her work whilst encouraging wearer interaction and movement of the pieces.  

Mark Nuell draws his inspiration from growing up around gemstones but his actual pieces speak more about nature. Stones used within the jewellery are beautiful and draw the eye but it is the asymmetrical shapes and flow of the pieces that really draw the viewer in.

Sadly Opulent Ethics was unable to visit the second week of Goldsmiths’ Fair but makers who caught our eye in the brochure included Kevin Grey whose silversmithing pieces express simplicity and calm whilst also conveying technical accuracy and decorative flair. 

Hannah Louise Lamb, who Opulent Ethics has seen on show at numerous galleries throughout London and is amazed by each time due to her dedication to hand skills including intricate saw-piercing. We here at Opulent Ethics also love her inclusion of alternative materials such as fabric and semi-precious stones.

Finally, Jacqueline Cullen is a master of working with Whitby Jet (one of our favourite alternatives to usual gemstones). Opulent Ethics saw her at Origin and in galleries in London and were impressed by her development of techniques to incorporate Jet, a fairly delicate and rare material, into beautiful jewellery. Cullen uses gold within her designs whilst allowing the natural breaks and cleaves of the material to speak for itself.

 Jacqueline Cullen Whitby Jet Earrings

At Origin Opulent Ethics loved Claire Brewster who managed to transform her stand into an area of peace and tranquillity amongst a bustling, crazy space. Brewster creates birds cut from colourful atlases and transforms them into a calming display. Opulent Ethics was also attracted by the shadow play of the cut outs on the wall behind. All in all, a beautiful, serene environment.

Having seen Jane Moore in numerous outlets we were pleased to see previously unseen patterns and shapes on Jane Moore’s fabulous button-like jewellery.

Maya Selway is a silversmith who uses fusing to create one-off shapes and patterns within her pieces. The effect which is created is awe-inspiring and so different to everything else that we saw at Origin. Not knowing how a piece will turn out is a scary but fascinating way of working.

Shan Annabelle Valla creates glass and ceramic objects for the home but we fell in love with the goldfinches. They are totally superfluous but such fun!

So, overall, Opulent Ethics found that hand-craft is important to the market at both ends. It is simply the marketing which sets the two shows apart; Goldsmiths’ sell hand techniques as luxury whereas Origin market hand techniques as the back-bone of their market and without which they would not exist.

Either way, Opulent Ethics believe that hand made jewellery (and other crafts) have their place in the market. We also believe that this is not a comeback but that hand skills have been there all along; it is simply a change in “fashion” which is allowing these types of products to come back to the fore. So, whether you have the wallet for the craft market or the top end market please keep buying!

Bye for now….