WINDHOEK– Fine Ounce Goldsmiths ‘Between the lines’ exhibition at Omba Gallery has travelled South Africa to great acclaim and is promoting uniquely handmade jewellery as an alternative to mass-produced.
The exhibiton that open last Monday, closes on July 9 and the eight goldsmith’s ladies from South Africa form the core of the collective, including Namibia’s very own Frieda Lühl. The other goldsmiths are Adeline Joubert, a red-haired goldsmith with a sense of humour, specialising in small- scale sculptures using a variety of metals; Adeleen Cloete, an adventurous goldsmith revelling in sophisticated patterns and details; Angela Tölken, a Namibian by birth with a tell-tale aestheticism of pure, clean lines, muted and natural colours, overlaid by textures of varying depth. Giselle Petty is an admirer of the nomadic tribes of northern Africa, such as the Touareg, her range of products includes mirrors and cutlery. Jane McIlleron is a goldsmith inspired by the ocean, marine life and plants, in particular. Maike Valcarel left Germany to live permanently in Africa, and specialises in African jewellery and pursues little-known techniques in jewellery making. And Megan Meredith, is a cultural sensualist who loves wax and uses the ‘lost wax’ method to cast into metal, objects carved.
The Fine Ounce Goldsmiths’ Collective was established in Cape Town, South Africa in 2011 originating from the ambition to build an ornate bridge between the shimmering, ethereal realms of art and the sobering, cold gleam of noble metals and precious stones essential to the process of jewellery making.