Storytelling through jewellery
- Sian grew up in the Dorset countryside
- She opened her first studio in 1986 in East London
- She has exhibited at Goldsmiths Fair, London Craft Week, and Sotheby’s Jewels
Sian Evans fell in love with the craft when visiting museums filled with archeological jewellery as a child. She went on to become a student of the master stone carver Charlotte De Syllas, who taught her lapidary techniques. Sian is a tireless innovator and perpetual researcher, resulting in contemporary pieces that are truly unique and mesmerising. While she draws on ancient techniques to create her jewellery, Sian also brings her own creative magic to the process. Her inspirations lie in a variety of places: European and British Archaeology, the geology of Britain, botanical structures of plants from 18th-century drawings and medieval goldsmith carvings. Sian carefully studies the past and marries it with the modern-day capabilities of technology.
Interview
- Why did you choose jewellery making?
- For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated by what we wear, both clothes and jewellery. For me, jewellery is portable art. As human technology developed so did jewellery and I am passionate about studying these ancient crafts.
- What do you love most about being a jewellery designer?
- I love being in my workshop always, it’s a cocoon filled with ideas and the means of production. I love seeing the finished work on the body of its wearer and how they interact and interpret the piece of work and make it their own. The creation of an object is time well spent for me.
- How would you define what you do?
- I’m a storyteller, I tell stories about the history of jewellery through the creation of contemporary objects. I create collections of jewellery that highlight the technology I have used to create them. Each of my collections is a celebration of the craft skills I have used in to bring to life a design.
- How did you make jewellery your profession?
- I opened my first studio a few weeks after I graduated from college in 1986. I found a derelict building in an unfashionable part of East London and taught myself how to plumb and fix glass windows, build jewellery benches and put up shelves. I built extra jewellery benches for my friends and invited them to come and share the space with me.
Sian Evans is a master artisan: she began her career in 1986 and she started teaching in 2001
Where
Sian Evans
