Summer Exhibition 2026
Summer Exhibition 2026
It's all about colour and this summer we welcome designers old and new to the gallery to showcase their bold, colourful and structural designs.
This popular Summer exhibition runs from the 11th July and throughout the summer!
Ruth Laird
Ruth Laird is a contemporary jewellery designer based in Glasgow.
Ruth creates her designs in precious metal by utilising traditional jewellery techniques such as scoring, fold forming and riveting the metal together. Her angular work takes inspiration from geometry and architectural structures.
She combines precious metal such as gold and silver, playing with texture and finishes and utilises mediums such as spray paint to add a touch of colour to her work, resulting in precise unique pieces.
John Moore
John Moore’s multidisciplinary practice is at the intersection of art, jewellery and performance. From distinctive designs for everyday wear to large scale wearable sculpture and film collaborations. Moore’s work is inspired by natural architecture and characterised by colour, form and movement. John has twice won the Goldsmith’s Company Award, the prestigious ‘Jewellery Oscar’, and his work is held in several public collections.
John’s Dash Collection began with a pin he made for his father, inspired by childhood memories of them fishing together. He loved the shininess and bright colours of the spinners in the tackle box and the beautiful flies they made for trout fishing. Sometimes they would be lucky enough to see the iridescent dragon flies and other jewel-like insects, or a Kingfisher fly past. His father wears his pin every day, prompting John to develop the collection, which also has hints of Art Deco and 1950’s streamlining.
Kathie Murphy
Kathie Murphy started jewellery evening classes at the age of 14 and went on to gain a degree from Middlesex Polytechnic and then a post graduate diploma from Glasgow School of Art.
In the 35 years of being a studio jeweller, she has written two books as well as had her work bought for various collections and taught at many colleges mainly in London.
Kathie has specialised in using resin for most of her career, exploring its many possibilities. The masters or shapes for the moulds are made by Kathie allowing her control in all aspects of the making from the beginning to the end. A process which means each piece is quite individual.
A QEST scholarship in 2024 enabled Kathie to revisit precious metal techniques and hard stone carving. New work will slowly emerge and less of the resin will feature so enjoy the current colour combinations.
Rosie & Flo
Rosie & Flo are a Cornwall based sustainable brand featuring handmade, recycled sterling silver and 9ct gold jewellery.
Rosie & Flo were previously students of Victoria completing one of our jewellery courses held here in the gallery and have gone on to create their own unique brand. They make beautiful classic pieces with a nod to the sea, using sea glass or casting in sand sourced from local southwest beaches.
Polished Grey
Polished Grey's Hannah Ratnett uses recycled sterling silver and traditional techniques to design and create contemporary jewellery. Her work combines clean lines alongside organic textures and forms, such as sea worn pebbles and her love of Barbara Hepworth sculptures.
Hannah's Tiddlywink collection – "Tiddlywinks originated as a Victoria parlor game, revived as a competitive game in the 1950’s by students at Cambridge University. The cores of these mid-century Bakelite discs when cut have a satisfying contrasting tone that makes them more pebble like and adds an element of colourful fun to each unique piece!"
Hannah really enjoys the nostalgia of childhood games and using these found ‘winks’ in her jewellery adds a touch of whimsy and a hidden backstory of simpler times.
Kathleen Ashcroft
Kathleen designs and creates jewellery from her workshop in Plymouth and graduated from Arts University Plymouth in 2022.
Her work draws inspiration from shapes and forms within architecture as well as the history that lies beyond what we see. The process of exploration is important to Kathleen and her work is grounded in research connected to a particular theme, which provides constant ideas for her designs.
Kathleen prefers to work by handling material, creating shapes and forming them, enjoying the play surrounding this hands-on approach to design. This way of working is leading to new ideas, and she is now incorporating stones with wonderful surface patterns as well as utilising enamel paint to provide vibrant colours to her designs.
Jillian Moore
Jillian Moore is a jewellery maker and sculptor trained in both traditional metalsmithing and non-traditional materials.
Her work consists of layering resin, pigment and many other unlikely materials to create baubles of dubious origin.
Jillian recognises that the freedom of fantasy can be the most precious thing when creating these jewels that are more than meets the eye.