The third annual Gauge, Manukau Polytechnic Contemporary Jewellery School Exhibition, will be held at the Fisher Gallery in Pakuranga. The exhibition opens on Friday 9 December at the Fisher Gallery, Reeves Road, Pakuranga.
Manukau Polytechnic’s contemporary jewellery course is now in it’s very successful fourth year, and will be exhibiting the very best and most exciting work from the graduate and undergraduate of the 1994 classes.
‘I see that the students are developing towards the sculptural in their work - we are now bringing in tutors who trained and work as sculptors,’ says Mary Curtis, the head of the jewellery department at the polytechnic.
This year Gauge will be co-selected by professional Auckland artists Carole Shepheard and Richard Bell.
Carole is a multimedia artist who also lectures at Elam. Late last year, her installation Enraptured Love was on display in our Studio gallery. Richard is of Ngati Maniapoto, and exhibited his contemporary jewellery in the touring exhibition Open Heart that was displayed at the Fisher Gallery earlier this year.
Carole Shepheard says of the students work that ‘there is a ritualistic, secretive or private nature to quite a lot of the work, pieces would be bought for the wearer, not for other people to see - in the way of the old personal fob watch’ and Richard goes on to say that ‘an interest in the whole field of sculptural objects rather than just traditional jewellery and a truth to materials are both very apparent.’