‘Exuberance personified.’ Meet Robyn Lees ceramic artist. The insatiable energy, curiosity and sheer exuberance in her making, shines through in this short Q&A with ceramic artist Robyn Lees. Equally, Robyn’s rambunctious ‘women’ reflect her gutsy approach to life – a delight to behold. Robyn is based in Denmark in the south-west of Western Australia, where […]
We are delighted to announce the Selection Panel + a Prize for the 2021 Makers’ Film Festival: Mary Ellen Cliff and Carola Akindele-Obe, the ‘dynamic duo’ who produce Maker&Smith including the new Makers’ Film Festival, will be joined by two fellas who bring a breadth of knowledge (and connections) in visual story-telling to the table […]
‘Good Mourning. Hair today, gone tomorrow.’ There’s a resurgence of interest in fibre and textile practice and it’s timely for businesses and large corporations to invest in this form of material culture to create unique collections while ensuring examples are collected, displayed and preserved for future generations. The quote above is from Katrina Virgona. She […]
A Stitching Storyteller. Susie Vickery is a time traveller and globetrotter, armed with needle and thread, on a mission to tell important and intriguing stories. Although now mainly based in Fremantle, Western Australia, she works across three continents, with benches also in London and Mumbai. Since we met Susie a couple of years ago, she […]
Hammering away, delightfully. Immersed in the family business of metalsmithing practically from birth, Bethamy Linton started formally working with her father making silver flatware and restoring antiques from the age of 16. Later she trained formally and also in apprenticeships and mentorships in fine jewellery, art and object design. In this short (and sweet) Q&A, […]
Elaborate Costumes Send a Message of Breaking Free from Slavery and Racism with Optimism and Hope. It all began in the summer of 1958 in West London when racial tensions grew in the Afro-Caribbean community. Riots went on for three days with over 100 people getting arrested over the bank holiday weekend. In 1959, the […]
Extremely loud and incredibly motivated. Megan Stewart describes herself as ‘extremely loud’, and she’s entitled to be, as one of a few young makers in Australia, indeed internationally, who specialises in the unique genre of custom eye ware. A metalsmith by training, Megan makes bespoke frames for your glasses, mainly hand made out of aluminium […]
Ode to the wheel, knife and drill. Acclaimed ceramic artist Sandra Black lives and works in Fremantle. She is recognised as a leading ceramicist internationally, and perhaps lesser known in her home state of Western Australia. With a strong exhibiting catalogue you can find Sandra Black’s works in a number of Australian and New Zealand […]
Turner by name, turner by nature. An ‘atronym’ is the word for when a person’s name ‘is regarded as amusingly appropriate to their occupation’. Neil Turner introduced us to this term. He could have been called ‘farmer’, based on his previous work, however his destiny, it seems, was to become a wood turner. Neil Turner […]
Maker&Smith acknowledges the traditional custodians of the land where we operate, the Nyoongar people, in particular the Whadjuk and Mineng peoples. We respect their culture and the continuing contribution they make to the life of this region.