Jerwood Makers

The Jerwood Makers Open exhibition is currently on show at the Dovecot, the final destination of its tour. To encourage and support crafts and the applied arts, the Jerwood Charitable Foundation organised the Jerwood Makers Open. Allowing open submissions, this offers four artists a £7,500 commission each. The resultant exhibition of finished works is absolutely lovely.

The four winning artists Farah Bandookwala, Emmanuel Boos, Heike Brachlow and Keith Harrison all have a selection of pieces on show. These include the works created as a result of the commission, as well as earlier creations, thus allowing the viewer to see their starting point and subsequent development. They all use different materials and explore and expand their qualities in radically different ways. The works range from an exploration of the relationship between clay and sound, specifically how the latter can manipulate the former, to interactive and brightly coloured parasitic creatures, which take the form of jewellery and larger sculptural works.

The Jerwood Makers exhibition allows the visitor to see how each artist has been allowed to develop their work. It is wonderful to enjoy the benefits of this kind of support for artists who clearly love and respect their materials, artists who are constantly exploring and pushing at the boundaries of its qualities and capabilities.