Participants (see their HS progress)
- Antonia Boyle
- Aphra Cheesman
- Nina van Duijnhoven
- Jack Hadley
- Fran Leitch
- Nikki Perry
- Amelia Rothwell
- Mia Straka
- Simon Swale
- Susan Videler
- Michelle Wilkinson
- Macarena Bernal
HS6 collaboration video work
WELCOME TO HANDSHAKE 6 (HS6), 2020 – 2021/22
The HS6 two-year programme offered emerging jewellery artists a unique opportunity to develop skills through masterclasses, mentoring, and work development involving experimentation and exhibiting. Iris Eichenberg (US) selected twelve talented artists and paired them with recommended mentors who provided regular feedback and support throughout the two-year program. In 2019, Iris Eichenberg came to Auckland and conducted a masterclass with HS6 artists, igniting various conceptual and design approaches and opportunities. Her public lecture at Objectspace in Auckland drew a full house of enthusiasts.
Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19, each HS6 artist was able to continue their research, experimentation, and development online with the assistance of their assigned mentors. The first exhibition opportunity was pre-Covid and curated by Weasel Gallery in Hamilton (now rebranded as Laree Payne Gallery). During Covid, the HS6 artists showcased their work at various exhibitions, including “Signing-In” at Te Auaha, Wellington, and a large, curated exhibition called “CHAINreaction” at the Refinery as part of the first Nelson Jewellery Week.
Throughout the programme, the artists benefited from a series of lectures and workshops on professional ethics, fundraising, communication, and design. They also received valuable training on presenting and promoting their work online through the ON-E masterclass workshop led by Estella Saez (ES).
Despite the obstacles presented by COVID-19, the HS6 artists remained resilient, supporting each other and working together as a team. Their successful funding campaign and the production of a video and catalogue for the final exhibition MORPH at NorthArt in Auckland showcased their extraordinary qualities and demonstrated the power of effective teamwork. Overall, the HS6 program provided a valuable opportunity for emerging artists to develop their skill set and showcase their refined work to a wider audience.
Iris Eichenberg’s masterclass in 2020
HS6 focused primarily on the individual development of each mentee’s art practice, with feedback and assistance from their selected mentor. Their exploration package included research, experimentation, various design processes, and material explorations. The year kicked off with a JEWELcamp, covering expectations, obligations, and professional ethics.
Renowned artist and educator Renee Bevan conducted her influential PUSH-PULL workshop, providing a series of methods for exploring and expanding ideas and designs.
Following the JEWELcamp, a masterclass from Iris Eichenberg equipped HS6 artists with various toolsets of new approaches and opportunities.
HS6 artists at their MORPH opening, Northart, Auckland, August 2022
- (top row:) Maca Bernal, Simon Swale, Susan Videler, Antonia Boyle, Nikki Perry, Jack Hadley, Michelle Wilkinson
- (bottom row:) Fran Leitch, Mia Straka, Nina van Duijnhoven, Aphra Cheesman, Amelia Rothwell
HS6 NEWS & BLOGs:
GATES / GATEWAYS
Summer 2021. Time to RESET. But also for some reflection… Hard to believe it is a year since we all first met together for the Handshake introductions and masterclass with Iris and Renee in Auckland. It seems both like yesterday, and a lifetime ago… It was so great to...
Whirlwind in Wellington
Although belated I thought I would share my 2cents on the group show we had in wellington at Te Auaha gallery in October 2020. I brought along my partner both for support and because we both needed a change of scenery after 2020’s madness. We arrived in wellington at...
Te Auaha Show
Our first exhibition at Te Auaha was about showing our process. My process is doing, making, and generally quite a lot of it. I don’t draw, I don’t spend a lot time thinking prior to making. I sit down and just start… doing something…and from that something little...
Signing-In
EXHIBITION: 31 Oct - 13 Nov, 2020. Te Auaha gallery, 65 Dixon St, Wellington (opening event Fr 30 Oct, 5:30 pm) SIGNING IN reflects the participants’ work as a group since the start of their mentorship and marks the halfway point of their two-year journey. Here you...
Sheet
Tent (September 2020). Hazel twigs, drum kit, cotton, wood. What did I actually do in September work wise…I moved out of my workspace which became a building site while we renovated and restored our old windows, the dust sheets became my two boys’ den for a while (and...
Warming up
Again I am drawing a blank about what I’ve done in the last month and a half. Life has messed with me again. Interference at its best. We have just moved back into a Level 1 Covid restriction in Auckland which means we can virtually go about our every day lives with...
Data Structure
Pictographs and data structure, a daily diary over three months… finding the way.
Reflections on ‘Stuff Theory’ by Maurizia Boscagli
I recently came across this book which helped to bring together some of the ideas I’ve been thinking and reading about. It’s also helped me to set some parameters on what I am making as The Everyday is very broad and I got to a point a few months ago where I felt I...
Break Down
In 2001, British artist Michael Landy addressed excess consumerism and waste, by destroying all his possessions in an art project called “Break Down”. In the 3 years leading up to this event, every single one of his 7227 possessions was carefully classified and...
Knot Musings
I’ve had time to muse recently and realised how prevalent the knot is in our lives. Here follows a short chronology of their entwining in my life. One of our first moments as a human involves the severing of the life blood cord, that energy transfer complete and a...
The doing
Blank. Full moon...lack of sleep. Just spent the last two and a half weeks in Level 3 lockdown again in Auckland, New Zealand after an outbreak of Covid-19 from a mystery source. This time we were a little unprepared. Our heroic Covid-free world status was...
How to prepare bones for carving
This post is not for the faint of heart (or stomach). It features images or descriptions of handing meat and animal bones. Before you start preparing your bones you need to know what to ask for and where to get them. I get my bones from a local butchery, it’s best to...
What came before…
Stones. You lie on the ground, minding your own business when I go for a walk in the countryside. On the shore, you watch the waves come tumbling towards you, sometimes catching you and drawing you back to tumble gently backwards and forwards for another...
Head, Hands and Heart: Part 3 – Consider our invertebrates
Everyone can contribute to preserving biodiversity – the actions we take every day shape the environments around us, the ecosystems around us; what we choose to consume, how we transport ourselves, what we are doing in our backyards, or what we are not doing, all of these actions have an impact.
As a maker I need to examine my material choices.
“Go and do something while you wait and see”!
(August 2020) Tie at end of sleeve. False end? Or real? The annoying childhood quote which I'm still trying to tie/sew up lose ends with...and accomplish - Practice, Patience, and Persistence! (August 2020) 10 days, 4 hours of sewing per day. P.P.P...on...