The dating of ancient jewellery is given by the archaeological context. Technology applied by the ancient goldsmith is traceable through archaeometallurgy. The aim of this research is to analyse historical jewellery and to construct copies based on the known technology of the era. Resultant laboratory constructions with their historical correctness and the new knowledge of jewellery structures will then be available for reworking to convey a contemporary visual relevance and a statement of history. The results of these analyses and reconstructions will form the basis of metalwork objects in which contemporary aesthetics are informed by historical practice. Jewellery offers a view into history, of cultural descriptions of stylistic, chemical and methodological correctness. For diagnostic purposes there is the expectation of an archaeological correctness within the fabric and manufacture of the jewellery object. From the vantage point of a contemporary goldsmith, t his has provided me with an arena for artistic interpretation-for 'play'. Historical jewellery becomes contemporary jewellery forms and the 'play' functions as a stumbling block and an upheaval within orthodox classification of authenticity. There is in this disturbance an intervention with coontemporary ephemeral materials into the jewellery artefact in which I manufacture a semblance of an identified 'correctness'. Jewellery remains in a better state of preservation when hidden or concealed-not exposed. The jewellery object once surfaced, discovered, excavated or plundered or even worn becomes part of our time for reworking. Knowledge and applications of technology become the vehicle for scrutinizing these objects. We live in an era where the ancient and the recent, the authentic and the bogus, have begun to mingle and interbreed in the corridors of hyperspace. Television stages Xena the Warrior Princess encountering the young Buddha in the entourage of King Arthur. Fakes with historical associations can s ometimes be considered authentic as a shroud of 'history' can encompass the object to the satisfaction of the naive connoisseur who wants to believe, wants to believe, wants to believe, wants to believe ... . Jewellery as document is available for interpretation-for'play'. There is potential to return to an imaginary history where ffictional detail has been confused with historic fact and this can be both intentional and unintentional. Jewellery of the past therefore exists in the present and the jewellery artefact becomes available for evaluation and for 'play'. In the analysing and categorizing of type, jewellery as vehicle conveying the past can become a mixture of one's own inventions and cultural inheritance. From the vantage point of a goldsmith, I am considering how formulated heritage is available for reference, questioning and modification. The option to copy, to replicate, or to modify the historic document jewellery is a possibility and new input can verify authenticity or engender falsehood throu gh the artistic reinterpretation.

RECODING JEWELLERY: identity, body, survival addresses a central problem facing contemporary jewellery practice: through the course of the Contemporary Jewellery Movement, the potential of the jewellery-object to mediate intricate social relationships has become constrained. This is in part due to a singular focus of ideas in the field, and in part due to the developmental trajectory of contemporary jewellery networks. Caught up in the art-craft debate, contemporary jewellery missed the potentials in theory for developing a critical voice. This was not helped by the fact that academic discourse (philosophical, social, sexual, political) has largely neglected the significances of jewellery. The aim in this thesis is to negotiate this mutual neglect - or 'double gap' - by finding connections between theory and jewellery in practice. Jewellery involves complex interactions between makers, objects, wearers and audiences within social networks. Possessing a distinct set of codes enlivened by its relationship to the body, jewellery is a way of thinking and connecting which is strongly embedded in the activities of managing identity that define cultures and epochs. In the process, the instinct for adornment becomes an integral means of survival. This thesis draws on modern and postmodern theory, as well as art and jewellery practices, to examine contemporary shifts in thinking about identity, the body and reproduction. Through the three main chapters of this thesis I endeavour to: (i) provide an informed interpretation of the internal and external pressures that have defined contemporary jewellery practice over time; (ii) introduce relevant examples of my own work, and seek ways to move beyond the limitations of my own practice; and (iii) advocate new ways of thinking about contemporary jewellery that might lead it to a different voice. Reflected in this approach are three fundamental influences to my practice: the Contemporary Jewellery Movement; non-jewellery practices such as art, architecture, street culture, technology and performance; and academic writing across a number of fields. The thesis concludes with a discussion of how these interests came together in a single show, Black Intentions. However, the span of work covered extends through my career in jewellery to provide a basis for future directions.

A close examination of spatial variability in the specified objects in an area between the Rhine/Danube and the Loire, stretching as far as Britannia in the west and Pannonia in the East. Initially a theoretical framework is set out in the context of the archaeological background. Each object type is then analysed in terms of form and decorative style and the occurrence of specific features is shown on distribution maps. Possible production areas can be suggested for different decorative styles. The distribution maps and studies of the range of variability in each category also provide information concerning the scale of manufacture and mechanisms of dispersal; in turn these relate to the level of demand and the changing function of the object. Patterns occurring are then compared to one another and interpreted in terms of their gender and status associations and their overall economic, social, political and cultural significance for the late Roman Western Empire. Links are established between different regions and it is possible to trace the movements of those travelling with the army. Many sites can be shown to have a significant foreign element, with clusters of associated objects which can be sourced to another area. Concentrations of finds along the frontier and in linear distributions in other areas give an indication of contemporary activity at adjacent sites, and shifts in the spatial patterning of objects during the fourth to fifth century transition period provides a fresh insight into the late Roman west and beyond.

I have chosen to use the forum of jewellery, particularly lockets, to investigate the notion of a public and a private self as a main theme. In this text I will bring up different aspects of the locket to show which tools I have to work with, and then I will research the actual theme from a sociopsychological point of view. Jewellery can be used as a manifestation of a public self and it can be a connection to a private self. The jewellery holds the possibility to tell its story when worn and the person wearing it might fill it with his/her own emotional value that might and might not be in correlation with the artists’ intent. The way lockets are and have been used is influencing the way we look at them; it charges them with symbolical meaning. The locket becomes a representation of a private, intimate part of the person wearing it. The locket has an outside and an inside, a public and a private part. When worn, it communicates to both the wearer and his/her surroundings. The action of opening a locket and of wearing a locket are deliberate acts that revolve around both the transgression between public and private and the secrecy of its content. These different aspects of the locket are tools that I can use in my work. The creation of an outer, public-, self works as a tool to help us interact with each other. It simplifies communication, places us in an understandable setting (society) and might also help us improve our influence on our social status. In some situations this public self can give rise to a feeling of alienation and discomfort. The risk is that we identify ourselves with a one-dimensional image of ourselves. Or that we experience a too big gap between our public and private self. The representational self can also become an integrated part of our identity. In that sense we create ourselves. As the borders between our private and public sphere become more blurry, it might be hard to keep the balance between the public and the private self. The increased availability for social interaction sometimes restrains the private self and this stresses the need for determining and keeping a private sphere for oneself.  I believe that the feeling of an outer and an inner self often is based in an ambivalence towards a social situation. That I pay attention to a framework that both attracts and repulses me. It is in those situations that our split self becomes apparent, and can be felt, but also questioned. I create my own public self. But there has to be a balance between our public and private self, and that stresses the need of setting up personal borders, not only for a bigger social benefit, but also to be able to cope with, to interpret and process everyday-life.  I believe that the urge of addressing the personal, and bringing up different aspects of identity within jewellery art, springs from the preconception of jewellery as no more than an embellishment. That is also why it becomes interesting. From my part I see an excitement in the contradiction of using what might be considered a fashion attribute to problematize, make aware of an awkward attitude towards the presentation of the self.  To use the physical aspects of the locket to talk about a mental state, and an emotional reaction to a social situation. Because that is what the imbalance of a public and a private self does with me: it evokes an emotional reaction to the social situation I find myself in.

This project takes the portrayal of memory in wearable jewellery and jewellery object making in two directions. The relationship between memory and the experiences it represents is revealed within the singular jewellery object through structural, iconographical, or material relationships among elements of the object. Reinterpretations of the original primary jewellery object result in series of jewellery objects and wearable jewellery that express ideas about the altering of memory. Jewellery objects with removable wearable jewellery components act as memory models, revealing ideas about memory processes through the relationships among their elements. The juxtaposition of soft and hard materials is used as a metaphor of memory. The result of the project is a body of work consisting of wearable jewellery and jewellery objects1 which manifest ideas about memory; specifically, the relationship between memory and the experiences it represents. The work draws on traditions in the gold- and silversmithing field of creating objects to be used as signifiers of memories3 and mnemonic devices. The primary aim of the project is not to create direct representations of personal memories or collections of found objects that represent cultural histories. Instead, the work engages in a visual and tactile exploration of memory itself: the processes of remembering experiences and the alteration of memory over time. Series of jewellery objects and wearable jewellery reveal ideas about the relationship between memory and experience both within singular objects and among altered objects in series.

This project examines the historical use of text on emblematic objects and through a studio-based practice investigates the signifying properties of object, text and material in the communication of symbolic message. It involves the manufacture of contemporary jewellery and tableware in traditional and non-traditional materials and references cultural and political themes. The symbolism of these themes has been explored through the visual and material applications of selected text, the collection and manipulation of found material (found with or without text), and how meaning can be symbolised through the transcendent manipulation of form. In my research I examined the established history of emblematic objects, which through their incorporation of text, their function and scale in relation to the body, organise, distinguish, categorise, unite or isolate groups of people. In my research I established that text has been employed by gold and silversmiths through out history and in a variety of ways - to narrate messages, as an abstract decoration, or as a means of identifying the maker but the graphic potential of text as a visible sign was rarely demonstrated. With this studio based project I was interested in investigating the signifying properties of text and the creation of a dynamic relationship between text, form and material as a means to communicate symbolic meaning. My research establishes the potential of the metaphoric and material language of jewellery and tableware to make reference to and communicate within contemporary cultural and political dialogues.

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Thesis (MTech (Design))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2005 / This thesis investigates how serial production has influenced the design of artefacts, jewellery and/or domestic products since 1990, with a focus on Italy and South Africa. The study also looks at the roles played by design, technology and serial production in the perceived value ofartefacts. There are fundamental differences in consumer attitudes to serial production in industrial and jewellery design. Handmade jewellery is perceived as more valuable than its mass produced equivalent, whilst mass produced domestic products do not have the same negative association. The motivation of this study is to identify the role played by serial production processes in the perceptions of quality of mass-produced products with the aim of improving the perceived quality of South African jewellery and thus expanding the market. In order to illustrate how serial production has influenced the design of artefacts, three key areas were researched: the influence of the concept of serial production on the physical forms of artefacts; physical aspects of the serial production processes that have influenced forms of artefacts; and abstract ideas of quality communicated through the process of serial production. It was found that quality did not appear to be communicated directly through the physical process of serial production. The Italian industrial designers, in particular, seemed to have a well-developed sense of personal design philosophy, which could be developed among South African jewellery designers while they are studying or while they are working in industry. Expectations of the function ofjewellery mean that the role of jewellery design is different to that of the product designer. A branding initiative to raise the profile of South African jewellery is recommended. The South African jewellery industry also needs to invest in new production technologies. The establishment of training in the new production technologies, especially rapid prototyping, for jewellery students is seen as imperative.