By Jacquie De Almeida
What comes to mind when you think of the word, ‘absolute’?
That’s the question jewellers and metalsmiths from across Canada set out to answer at Zilberschmuck’s annual National Juried Exhibition of Canadian Fine Jewellery and Metalwork.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the show, which invited both professional and student artists to explore the formal and conceptual ideas behind the meaning the word ‘absolute’ through metal, diamonds, and gemstones.
Best of Show went to Pam Tymensen, a newly graduated George Brown College student, who has been accepted into the Zilberschmuck exhibition for the past three years. According to contest organizer Cheryl Fraser, no student has applied as many times before and been accepted to the show during their studies.
Featuring 999 and 925 silver and set with a tourmaline, Tymensen’s ‘-273ºC’ brooch/pendant was created using the techniques of granulation and foldforming. She says her take on ‘absolute’ is based on the scientific principle of absolute zero.
“Figuring out how to best represent it took some time,” Tymensen tells Jewellery Business. “I have a habit of picking up unusual gemstones when I see them, and I had in my collection the perfect icy blue tourmaline to fit the theme. To represent the molecules, I wanted to use granulation. I was able to teach myself this technique with the assistance of teachers in my independent studies class, and from there worked out the form and shape. In a piece with just a handful of elements, it is important to use every line and texture to say exactly what you want, so everything must be carefully considered.”
The award marked Tymensen’s first win at Zilberschmuck. “I was not expecting to receive a prize at all,” she says. “The show is always full of amazing ideas, talent, and skill. For me, just being accepted to the exhibition is wonderful. I find seeing the level of jewellery accepted in previous shows is both intimidating and inspiring, which pushes me to continue to improve my work every year.”
As with past exhibitions, each artist’s definition of the theme is always interesting to note, Fraser says.
“‘On The Rocks’ by Petra Luz was made of squares of pyrite and various sizes of constructed solid silver closed and open cubes to represent the ice in vodka on the rocks. The design interspersed pyrite with the silver cubes and because of the difference between the two materials and their sizes, it created tension and made an interesting design. The catch was wonderful, too, taking a linear open cube and making a solid box part of the connection for the clasp.”
This year, 44 artists from across the country submitted 52 entries for the juried exhibition, which was on display at Toronto’s 18Karat in May. The blind jury selected 22 interpretations from 18 artisans. Half the entries were from students currently enrolled in a Canadian art and design college or university.
