About my work

My work has changed a great deal over the years but the theme that continues is my exploration of colour and shape. I am now using enamel as the way to include colour in my work and I fire the layers onto recycled silver Enamelling is an ancient and complex art form but I have simplified the techniques to suit my practice. I look to natural forms and manmade environments for inspiration and through photography and sketching I ‘stylize’ the shapes I find, transferring them to the metal. I then cut each one by hand so whilst designs are often repeated, they are never identical due to tiny variants in the process. The rich palette and characterful shapes create vibrant, contemporary pieces that catch the light and add a pop of colour.

About Me

I studied the one-year Foundation Course in Art and Design at Colchester School of Art and this exciting and experimental course prepared me well for the celebrated B.A. (Hons) Jewellery Design at, what was Middlesex Polytechnic. Taught by leading contemporary jewellers from the ‘New Jewellery ‘ movement they introduced an approach to design that was innovative with materials and techniques well outside the traditions and norms of jewellery making. I developed work made from aluminium and nylon and after graduating in 1991, these became my signature materials as I continued to work with them for over a decade.

From my first full-time studio at Cuckoo Farm Studios, Colchester, I promoted my early commercial collections at regular Trade Shows such as Top Draw, NEC and Harrogate, stocking contemporary Design and Craft Galleries around the UK and as far as Hong Kong and America. I was increasingly asked to be involved with other projects such as making the Corporate gifts for Essex County Council (silver pendants, cufflinks, boxes etc. with the SEAX logo) and running workshops at Firstsite Gallery Colchester where my interest in education started. I was contacted to teach at Colchester School of Art and this quickly became formal employment. I still lead Materials and 3D Processes on the Foundation and Level 3 courses – relishing the energy and drive of the students each year.

I am a member of the selective Designer-Maker groups Made in Colchester and The Suffolk Craft Society - both excellent supporters and promoters of contemporary crafts.