Author: Fred Rich

Standing 51cm high, these enamelled vases are designed with game birds and plant life from the British Isles, with a particular reference to Scotland, and include 25 types of birds, with a total of 41 birds over the two vases.

The Jacques Cartier Memorial Award was introduced in 1958 and has been awarded just 40 times out of a possible 63. Fred is the only person to have been awarded this 4 times, and was completely bowled over by comments from the judges. In their opinion there is no one in the world producing work of this quality in terms of design and craftsmanship, nor has there been in the past. This is high praise indeed and reflects the thousands of hours it took to design and produce this magnificent pair of vases. Believe it or not, there is over 100 meters of 22 carat gold cloisonné wire in the two vases.

24 September – 6 October 2020

Goldsmiths’ Fair will be staged online only for the first time in its 38 year history. By taking the Fair online it continues to provide an essential platform for exhibitors, and give visitors a chance to see some wonderful new work and make online purchases.

You can register for a digital ticket through Eventbrite to be the first to know about this year’s online event and talks programme.

Details at goldsmithsfair.co.uk

Delivering a wonderful pair of vases during lockdown was not the celebratory occasion envisaged when Fred commenced work on them 3 years ago. However the client was delighted with these truly amazing pieces. Unfortunately due to the situation we were not able to have the vases professionally photographed but we will be arranging this when circumstances allow, and we will post the images a soon as possible.

The brief was for a pair of vases and the enamelled scenes to include, amongst other things, game birds and plant life from the British Isles, with a particular reference to Scotland. The vases stand 51cm in height and include 25 types of birds with a total of 41 birds over the two vases. We will be posting closeups of the enamelled scenes on Instagram.

We were hoping to be taking part in Goldsmiths North in Sheffield next month but that has had to be cancelled, and we will keep you posted on Goldsmiths’ Fair in London as soon as we have news. In the meantime we are happy to be tucked away in the studio in the beautiful South Downs working on other commissions, and hoping that 2021 with bring the opportunities to meet up with all those we will have missed this year.

This should be a wonderful event with over 200 designer makers showing their work, plus 30 demonstrating artists and a food village, in addition of course to the amazing RHS gardens. We will be part of a group of contemporary silversmiths displaying their work in the state-of-the-art glasshouse, where we will have a selection of our enamelled silverware, and one or two pieces of our 18ct gold enamelled jewellery.

Further information about the event can be found at craftinfocus.com

Street Tweets II reflects the hustle and bustle of busy London pavements, and especially the annoyance of people engrossed on their phones (note the headphones in gold). Made in silver, the enamelled sections are applied fine silver, to which 22ct gold wire is soldered to the edges, and the silver is then hand carved and enamelled. 18ct gold wire and silver wires are applied to the background, and the background has been hand carved to give the piece extra depth.