Stepping Out Brooch © Catherine Marche
To celebrate their 25th anniversary this year, the ACJ - Association for Contemporary Jewellery - is organising a major show of excellence, touring several venues throughout the UK in 2022. The exhibition is titled Meanings & Messages.
The exhibition will showcase an exciting and varied collection of up to 50 unique brooches portraying a range of meanings and messages.
My Stepping out brooch, pictured above, is handcrafted with recycled sterling silver, polymer clay, nylon, one cultured pearl, and rabbit fur I brought back from a native Indian shop in Santa Barbara.
Meanings and Messages - ACJ is 25
The focus of this exhibition is on brooches, as they form the ideal jewellery archetype for conveying meanings and messages.
Brooches can be subversive and are often used by people in the public eye, by political figures or sovereignty to convey important messages. These messages may be hidden, subtle or occasionally more of an overt protest!
The Opening Day is Saturday 30th April at St Georges Arts Centre – Gravesham Borough Council. The exhibition will tour the following venues:
- St Georges Arts Centre – Gravesham Borough Council – in partnership with LV21 – 30 April – 29 May 2022
- Exeter University – Conference Pop Up exhibition – 1 – 3 July 2022
- Vittoria Street Gallery – Birmingham School of Jewellery – 19 September – 28 October 2022
- Mission Gallery in partnership with Swansea College of Art UWTSD – 16 November – 21 December 2022
- The Goldsmiths’ Centre – London – 9 January – 24 February 2023
- New Brewery Arts – Cirencester – 4 April – 18 June 2023
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Artistar Jewels - Palazzo Bovara Milano - 19th 22nd October 2023
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Milano Jewellery Weekd - Milan- 17th to 22nd October 2023
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London Craft Week 2024
Click for more info on this amazing exhibition of brooches.
Thank you for the ACJ selection panel, who chose the work this year were -
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Melanie Eddy – Designer, Educator and ACJ Director
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Dairu Han - BA student at Birmingham School of Jewellery
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John Moore – Artist
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Debika Ray – Contributing editor to Crafts magazine
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Rebecca Van Rooijen – Co-Founder and Editor at Benchpeg Ltd.
Congratulations to all the ACJ members who were selected; The show would not be the success it is without their beautiful and thought-provoking artworks.
Allison Macleod / Anna Borcsok / Anne Earls Boylan / Anne Morgan / Anne Walker / Anthony Wong / Asimi - Anna Butcher / Caiyang Yin / Caroline Finlay / Catherine Hartley / Catherine Marche / Chien Yu Liu / Christine Johnson / Claire Finlay / Claire Underwood / Dauvit Alexander / Deborah Beck / Drew Markou / Elird / Elizabeth Shaw / Emily Kidson / Emma McGilchrist / Hendrike Barz-Meltzer / Islay Spalding / Jane Moore / Jane Sedgwick / Janine Partington / Jessica Briggs / Jo McAllister / Joanne Haywood / Joel Matthew Smyth / Kate Bajic / Kim Nogueira / Kristy Lewis / Liana Pattihis / Linda Connelly / Lorraine Hitt - Elsiem Jewellery / Lynne Speake / Mandy Nash / Mark Mcleish / Michelle Fernandez / Nina Mannerkoski / Paul Wells / Penelope Burnett / Rachael Colley / Rachel Hearne / Rebecca Ilett / Rebecca Wilson / Sarah Jane Wilmott / Sishi Wang / Sophie Lowe / Sophie Martin-Glinel / Stephanie Johnson / Terry Hunt / Tina MacLeod / Tina Sanderson / Toby Cotterill / Vanessa Sharp / Viktoria Münzker / Yuka Jourdain
We are also delighted to have The Crafts Council as our education sponsor for this exhibition, joining us for our season of participatory events in our 25th anniversary year! Their support will enable us to offer an enriched education offer, sharing a digital toolkit of craft resources with our partnering venues across the UK.
