Connect by Jeff Durber © Jeff Durber. Photo Marcus Ginns. Courtesy Museums Sheffield.
Artists, makers and designers across the UK have produced the very best in bold, brave and innovative metalwork design, in the hope of winning the Museums Sheffield National Metalwork Design Award.
The new British prize of £10,000 seeks to raise the bar in design practice and will be presented to the winner on Tuesday December 2 2008.
“This award has truly proved a benchmark for the very finest in contemporary metalwork,” explained trustee of Museums Sheffield and award judge, the Duke of Devonshire.
“The calibre of the work the judges have seen has been superb, with great strides being made by designers and makers to push the boundaries of metal design and really explore the possibilities of what can be achieved.”
Element No.1 by Martin Drury (Sheffield). © Martin Drury. Photo Marcus Ginns. Courtesy Museums Sheffield.
The award, sponsored by Yorkshire South Tourism in partnership with Yorkshire Forward and South Yorkshire Objective 1, is a biennial prize launched to promote, support and celebrate innovation and excellence in craftsmanship for those working with metals.
A winner will be selected by a judging panel, which includes the Duke of Devonshire who has given his enthusiastic backing to the scheme. His home at Chatsworth includes a historic collection of metalwork craftsmanship, considered as the most innovative of its period.
The shortlisted works were also photographed at Chatsworth, juxtaposing the innovative and contemporary metalwork against the historic layout of Chatsworth.
Tea Bag Pot by Cameron Maxfield. © Cameron Maxfield. Photo Marcus Ginns. Courtesy Museums Sheffield.
Corin Mellor of Corin Mellor Design, one of the UK’s best-known designers of cutlery and metal wares, and Dorian Church, senior curator of Decorative Art at Museums Sheffield will also judge the competition.
The shortlist of makers includes well-known artists in their field alongside emerging talents from across the UK.
Finalists include Korea New Art Festival prizewinner Ji Hoon Choi; acclaimed Sheffield maker Victoria Kershaw and Lucian Taylor whose work is represented in the collections at the V&A.
Ocean Bowl by Roger Doyle. © Roger Doyle. Photo Marcus Ginns. Courtesy Museums Sheffield.
The finalists’ works will be on display at Museums Sheffield’s Millennium Gallery until December 3 2008.
Museums Sheffield is custodian one of the most important collections of decorative and domestic metalwork in the UK, which has been classed as a Designated Collection by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport in recognition of its national and historic significance.
