Colour, Texture and Form
- Cindy Watson
- 3 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Silver, copper, polished stones and enamel are just some of the ingredients which make up Ren Masetti’s beautiful jewellery.
I visited Ren last week and was warmly welcomed into a well-organised studio full of shiny metals, benches and tools, where she also runs workshops for others to explore the art of silversmithing. We chatted about Ren’s creative journey, how she became a jewellery maker, what inspires her and many other things along the way.
The creative urge can take many forms before an artist settles on the one (or ones) that feel(s) right to them. In Ren’s case she enrolled in a fashion design course and explored a deep love of colour, form and texture, before moving on to work at Aherns in the textile department. Ren spent many happy years amongst glorious fabrics, exploring life and having fun, before joining a TAFE course in silversmithing in 2009. This ignited her passion for jewellery making and she hasn’t looked back since. Ren took a further leap of faith several years ago taking on her current premises in Mt Lawley, where she not only creates her own intricate work, but also runs workshops for small groups in which participants make their own bespoke rings, bracelets and earrings.
Ren’s love of colour, texture and shape remain a constant in her work and she pulls her inspiration from many different sources- nature, people, places and art movements.
Ren walked me through the process of enamelling which uses coloured glass powder on copper (sometimes silver) and is layered or scratched into, creating texture and movement. It’s a fascinating process requiring careful precision and acceptance of serendipitous results. Ren offers a beginner’s course in enamelling which is very tempting!
Ren will be a guest artist at Kore Earth ceramics https://www.koreearth.com.au/
this year, but for more information, or to check out Ren’s, work follow the links:
I had a great visit with Neil Elliot who joined Mundaring Hills Open Studios in 2011, when there were just 10 exhibiting artists. He has built a reputation for hard work, not just with his own art, but as a mentor to others in organisations such as DADAA and the prison system. As a full time artist with tremendous focus, Neil has produced an enviable body of work, harnessing a variety of media to create instantly recognisable “cartoon-y” figures in painting, sculpture and wood-carving. Representational and abstract art as well as print-making are also part of Neil’s extensive repertoire.
Having declared at age 4 that he wished to be a famous artist, and learning to paint by watching his grandfather whilst mimicking his process (background to foreground, large brushes to small brushes) Neil went on to become an illustrator, until he realised that his path lay elsewhere, and pursued his dormant ambition to become a famous artist.
To say that Neil is a prolific artist is an understatement, with ideas for another 60 years of art-making brewing in his active mind, as he draws inspiration from a deep well of history, imagination, life, social media, childhood and the Industrial Revolution. Some of his current work centres on bats and vampires- more childlike and friendly than Nosferatu- and feature childhood toys such as yoyos, scooters and billycarts. The nod to handmade toys from his childhood is also a central tenet of Neil’s work as his sculptures re-use found objects such as machinery parts and musical instruments. He is determined to retain the integrity of the original piece and adds to it in a way that helps observers look again, and appreciate its history.
Neil’s workshop/studio is a something of an Aladdin’s Cave of found and cherished objects which offer inspiration and endless possibilities. I’m looking forward to a return visit in October.
Check out Neil’s work here:
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