July 26 – September 3 Curated by Melanie Katsalidis Director, Pieces of Eight Gallery Imagine shifting scales, moving from designing interiors to making small, intimate wearable objects. In Melbourne, there has been a recent movement of practicing interior designers who change careers to become gold and silversmiths. Downsizing showcases the recent work of seven diverse jewellers. Each maker has established a jewellery practice that reflects their personal interests and individual aesthetics. Many still carry with them past inspirations and influences which informed their previous work, but now expressed in new forms and different scales. The works presented in Downsizing illustrate a sensitive engagement with our surroundings, architecture, the natural world and its mechanisms, literary narratives, history and religion. With the dramatic shift in career, a decision driven by a passion to directly create with their hands, each artist has found a new language for making. There is an evident joy expressed in the work of these artists which is achieved via their ability to directly control and determine the design outcome and manifest more immediate results. Participating Artists Tessa Blazey, Djurdjica Kesic, Suzi Zutic, Katrina Tyler, Karen Hamilton, Kim Victoria Wearne and Belinda Esperson. Poster Essay By Viviane Stappmann Editor/Publisher, Alphabet Press Read Viviane's essay