Self-Guided Trail: Seeds of Change: Self-Guided Tour
Work 2 of 12

An Adelaide-based craftsperson and metalworker, Julie Blyfield draws on South Australia’s nineteenth-century gold- and silversmithing traditions, in which Australian flora and fauna motifs in elaborate centrepieces and jewellery were utilised. Blyfield, who makes contemporary jewellery and vessels, sees her work as an extension of this history and she takes inspiration from historic botanical specimens across the region’s landscapes, as well as from plants and flowers collected by her. Her work with plants enables her to observe human interactions with the natural world and comment on issues of drought, extinction and environmental destruction. Primarily working in gold and sterling silver, Blyfield uses the techniques of oxidisation, chasing and repoussé to create delicate and detailed works.

Drought vessel, 2009, is constructed from finely chased silver leaves, with these forming an open vessel. The permeable nature of Blyfield’s vessel means that it cannot hold water and it represents her response to the parched Australian landscapes during the Millennium Drought.