SILVER LINING

Galleri Specta
June 12th - 16th 2024 
Opening on June 12th, from 5pm-8pM

Peder Skrams Gade 13, 1054 Copenhagen


SILVER LINING is inaugural exhibition produced by SPACIOUS COPENHAGEN. A new nomadic platform, SPACIOUS COPENHAGE foces on contemporary jewellery art, holloware objects as well as thematic collaborations with other artistic practices. SILVER LINING is presented as an installation in Gallery SPECTA, where the boundaries between classic design and modern reflections are explored. SPACIOUS COPENHAGEN commits a `friendly takeover' of the gallery creating a dynamic dialogue between space, time and object.

REBELLION AND SIGNIFICANCE.

Jewellery – and vessels – are in and of themselves a broad field. From the very beginning they have accompanied the entire creative history of humankind. We’re talking around 100,000 years. Not bad for such seemingly ancillary items that are used, worn, disposed of or thought little about, or are hung, pinned or applied like ornamental insignia in order to attract attention or distinguish ourselves with. Enmeshed in social and religious, ritual and ceremonial acts, reduced to function or status-oriented ways of thinking, likewise to trivial mundanity, these objects of ours barely eke out an existence ordinarily, despite the fact that their evolution and aesthetic role reflect social, political and philosophical phenomena in a seismographic way. They are carriers of meaning! 

With modernity came changes to the disciplines, energised as they were by the reform movements of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The boundaries between art forms became fluid, with hierarchies and regimes the focus of discussion, in particular since the 1960s with gender-specific themes, and performative and installative practices. Discourses now run parallel, and transgressions, hybrids and transformations are the order of the day. High and low as categories of evaluation have run their course. Various protagonists of the current art scene are known to flirt with banal everyday items, bringing their adulterations into play. Yet jewellery and utensils are still entangled in the traps and pitfalls of tradition and convention. Nonetheless, we too are observing a change of direction in craft. Our view of it is experiencing a U-turn. Trends of non-compliance, digression, or anomaly are forming – just alongside the rational path of gold- and silversmithing, a path beholden to perfection, flawlessness, beauty and smooth-flowing functionality.

These golden rules are being violated, concepts of beauty and destinations of purpose negated. Jewellery and utensil are taking a stand, are participating in aesthetically, socially and politically relevant issues. They encourage rethinking and reflection, a radical, reflective stance; they formulate the antithesis to their own genre, through reversion, through absurd and surreal interventions, through eccentricity and transference. Back and forth, exchange, amalgams, persiflage, gendering, juggling with a variety of heterogeneous elements are all part of the repertoire. A completely new identity, a new autonomy within the gold- and silversmith’s craft is evolving, one which draws from historical knowledge, rubs up against the present, and takes a critical stand against it. It is a case not of nonsense, a dearth of principles or lack of dexterity, but rather about the non-rational vision that belongs to the world of imagination, of fantasy, and that possesses the potential to encourage stimuli, transformations, innovations.

Ellen Maurer Zilioli

SILVER LINING presents unique artworks that revolve around pieces which represent an extended development, a unique transformation, or a paraphrase of what we today associate with classic jewelry design and silversmithing.

The exhibition show works from 15 artists that each in their own way challenge and question norms within jewellery and holloware disciplines. Although the pieces are primarily created in silver, the title SILVER LINING refers to works of the selected artists as being radiant and aspiring towards excellent possibilities for their field in the future.

SILVER LINING is curated by Sofia Björkman og Annette Dam

Anders Ljungberg/Jorge Manilla/Klara Brynge/Hongxia Wang/Maria EUGENIA Muñoz/Markus Pollinger/Kim Buck/Hanna Havdell/Sarah Hurtikarl/Else Nicolai Hansen/Janne Krogh Hansen/Marie-Louise Kristensen/David Clarke/Sofia Björkman/Annette Dam

One enters a total installation, witnessing a gallery space that appears to have been left behind after a celebratory dinner. A large table that was the center of the preview dinner remains, covered with jewellery art and holloware objects. A deconstructed jug and porous silver glasses, where the red wine slowly seeps out, contribute to a sense of the transience of time. The jewellery is scattered across the table as if the guests have left them behind in a hurry. This scenario invites reflection on the archetypes that could have worn the jewellery and the stories that they carry with them.

SILVER LINING invites the viewer to look past the aesthetic and the value of the materials used and instead delve into the layers of meaning and symbolism that the artworks represent. The total installation challenges us to reflect on the relationship between art, object and human, and how jewellery and holloware works function as symbols shaped by their context, time and social norms.

Hanna Havdell
Havdell's necklace and bracelet explore how memories, collections and fragments can be embedded in jewellery. Her cast silver objects, created in such thin forms that they are not completely filled, appear as shadows of what they could have been. Havdell's objects remind us of the stories and memories we carry with us and how they become part of our identity. In the exhibition some of the artist's objects are left on the table, as charms and small collections, in where we see a reflection of people's urge to hold on to the past while moving forward.

Markus Pollinger
Pollenger's works start with industrial forms that are transformed into new objects through manual processing. His use of materials such as stainless steel, copper and silver create a dialogue between industrial design and traditional craftsmanship, giving the works a new meaning and function.

Hongxia Wang
Wang's wearable objects are created with a poetic approach to the material. While traditional goldsmithing forms the foundation, the artist's idiosyncratic approach to the craft brings these conventions into a new aesthetic realm. Her works may seem sculptural and raw, while at the same time, delicate and fragile. They materialize as fossils born out of the creation process, where intuition plays a key role. Through her combination of traditional craftsmanship and spontaneity in hands and eyes, a jewellery language emerges that both touches and evades our expectations.

Maria Eurenia Muñoz
Muñoz's porous silver glasses, where the red wine slowly seeps out, questions everyday life and our reality when a South American perspective is confronted with a European view. These glasses, which seem dysfunctional in their form, create a dialogue about our daily consumption and the legacy of colonialism. When we see the red wine seeping out, we are reminded of the losses and transformations that have shaped our history and current times. Muñoz's works on the table thus become symbols of the challenges and questions we face in today's society.

Anders Ljungberg
The "Connect Me, Collect Me" jewelry reflects on connections and caring for someone or something. Janne Krogh Hansen's works combine organic and anatomical elements in a fusion that explores themes such as intimacy and nature. Through the jewellery, she tries to create moments that connect us with the world and each other.

Sarah Hurtigkarl
The wall mounted works, such as "The Uncommon Life of" and "Vision of a Spoon", explore the relationship between objects and identity. These pieces celebrate the beauty of the often overlooked details of life and create experiences that allow us to escape from our daily routine and delve into daydreams. By placing these objects as if they have escaped the everyday grind, they take on a unique and mysterious presence that invites the viewer to reflect on their own connection to the things they surround themselves with.

Klara Brynge
Brynge's jewellery, such as the "Closer", "Dream II" and "Furrow" necklaces explore landscapes and the abstractions of nature. She uses silversmithing techniques to create fragments that connect the two- and three-dimensional, and which activate the encounter between the organic and the architectural. Her works invite to a deeper understanding of how we experience and interact with our surroundings.

Jorge Manilla
Manilla's rings look like discoveries from a shipwreck, evoking memories of a mysterious past or a post-apocalyptic future. Expressing abstract and enigmatic narratives, these works explore the physical, mystical and emotional. By including these rings in the installation, the viewer is led to consider the stories and meanings we attribute to the objects we find and preserve over time.

Kim Buck
Kim Buck's works such as "Double Ribbed Puffed Up" and "Puffed Up Vase" explore form and function through a technique where flat silver plates are inflated into three-dimensional shapes. "Puffed Up" refers both to the technique and the ambiguous meaning of 'puffed up.' Resembling familiar forms such as spoons and vases, these works are created to evoke wonder and admiration rather than practical use, exploring our relationship with everyday objects and their aesthetic potential.

David Clarke
"Flaming Bunnies" explores our complex relationship with animals, ranging from beloved pets to mere exploitation of them as a resource. Created from porcelain, wax and electroformed copper, these works mix humor and seriousness in a reflection on our perceptions of wildlife and domestication.

Marie-Louise Kristensen
In the rings "In Search for a Silver Lining" and "HOPE", Kristensen uses humor and narrative to create jewellery that combines exclusivity with everyday materials and design. Her jewelry tells stories about human creativity and the ability to find solutions to life's challenges.

Janne Krogh Hansen
The "Connect Me, Collect Me" jewelry reflects on connections and caring for someone or something. Janne Krogh Hansen's works combine organic and anatomical elements in a fusion that explores themes such as intimacy and nature. Through the jewellery, she tries to create moments that connect us with the world and each other.

Else Nicolai Hansen
The works "Travel Bottle" and "Grater Ring" use silver to create everyday objects with an artistic twist. Else Nicolai Hansen's design process start with chaos and develop into recognizable forms that comment on contemporary life and rituals.

Sofia Björkman
The brooches "Bow", "Safe" and "All Love" were created with inspiration from inherited sewing tools. Her work reflects on the past, present and future, where each brooch becomes a symbol of the passage of time and the stories woven into the materials. Björkmans works use silver and steel, creating objects that tell stories of equality and change.

Annette Dam
The works in the "TAKING THE LIBERTY" series explores gender and power structures through the combination of traditional male and female accessories. Her works challenge conventional gender expressions and seek to create a new visual aesthetic that raises questions about identity and gender stereotypes.

Spacious Copenhagen - art jewelry gallery founded by Annette Dam

Spacious Copenhagen - art jewelry gallery founded by Annette Dam