How crime lead to the creation of sublime jewellery

11 May 2017 - 02:00 By Christa Dee
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One of the statement pieces in the Lorne range.
One of the statement pieces in the Lorne range.
Image: Supplied

Gillian Lawrence describes the unfortunate event of all her jewellery being stolen as the moment at which her design spirit was ignited and she started to look at her work differently.

Her lost jewellery had held sentimental value , but after the robbery her relationship with jewellery was no longer nostalgic.

''It wasn't about what my mom or my grandparents gave me anymore. It just became jewellery without symbolism."

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By the time she reached her final year of jewellery design she'd dealt with the many questions that were floating around in her head about her craft like ''is it art?" and ''why do people like it?".

Lorne, her jewellery brand, was the result of this.

In the beginning, Lawrence was preoccupied with trying to create pieces she thought would appeal to people, ignoring her own creative urges. Then she decided to take a leap and give into her instinct, which was to create more adventurous pieces.

The reaction has been positive, giving her the freedom to play and find her own design language.

Having dabbled with materials such as plastic, resin and glass, Lawrence explains that metals are her happy place. She works with brass, copper and silver; she's also designed a range of pieces with pearls.

Describing her designs as whimsical and playful, Lawrence prefers to let her work happen organically. Some of her designs are quite conservative, while others are spur-of-the-moment, abstract pieces. As a result, she feels her designs appeal to everyone.

"I think everyone has a level of self-expression. Even my mother is walking around with bob earrings," says Lawrence.

A post shared by LORNE (@for_lorne) on

A post shared by LORNE (@for_lorne) on

 

Her pieces are currently available at Stocking Fabricate, Creative Revolt, Purr, and Mungo & Jemima in Cape Town, or through contacting her directly. bubblegumclub.co.za

This article was originally published in The Times.

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