Dr Eloise Donnelly brings the Silver Society to Sheffield

Read this wonderfully descriptive write-up by Dr Eloise Donnelly, Curator, Historic Furniture & Decorative Arts Heritage Collections at The Houses of Parliament, London on the Silver Society members' tour of exhibitions in Sheffield.

As Sheffield geared up for the Goldsmiths’ North art fair in July 2024, a group of Silver Society members met at the Millennium Gallery for a tour of two exhibitions surveying the history of silversmithing and metalworking in and around Hallamshire.

Led by curator Emma Paragreen, we explored the displays drawn from the collections of the Sheffield Assay Office and Sheffield Museums Trust, and were treated to a handling session and discussion with two silversmiths discussing the Assay Office’s most recent commissions.

Emma began by giving us an introduction to the exhibition exploring the history of Sheffield Assay Office, which was curated to mark its 250th anniversary in 2023. The objects shown revealed the huge variety of items and techniques represented in the collections, from the flatware for which Sheffield is renowned, through to commemorative pieces and milestones in the Office’s hallmarking history, such as a gold and steel penknife of 1915, the first piece of gold to be marked in Sheffield. The juxtaposition of 18^th century archival documents from the Assay Office’s early history with a video of metallurgical analysis in the Office’s laboratory underlined the blend of tradition and innovation in the Office’s work.

Contemporary collecting and new commissions were brought together in a display which included work by Chris Knight, Katey Felton and Zoe Watts, and which emphasised the Assay Office’s ongoing support of student metalsmiths at Sheffield Hallam University and makers based at Silver Space (part of Yorkshire Artspace).

Two Silver Space-based makers, Shinta Nakajima and Colette Bishop, offered fascinating insights into their technique and process in a handling session looking at their recent commissions for the 250th anniversary of the Assay Office. Shinta spoke about his piece ‘Embraced, White Rose’, an extraordinary sculptural form inspired by the white rose and celestial light depicted in the Wilton Diptych, while Collette talked about the creation of her spectacular silver plate, resplendent with iconography associated with the city and its metalworking through skilful chasing and repoussé work.

After breaking for lunch we visited the second exhibition, Show Your Metal, which showcased the richness of Sheffield’s metal collections and its metalworking history to mark the 400^th anniversary of the Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire. Emma introduced the display, speaking about the development of the project and selection of objects, which included new acquisitions, such as Clothed Atkin by Francisca Onumah, and loans, including Propagation Project: Lavender Dew by Junko Mori, who also produced a film for the exhibition to demonstrate her silversmithing and blacksmithing techniques.

The exhibition took us right from the making of early forms of knives (‘thwittles’) to the invention of crucible steel and heavy industry, through to conceptual work by contemporary makers. The groupings of objects highlighted the multifarious material and visual qualities of metal, as well as its meaning and associations; loans of pieces by Cornelia Parker played on its value, while individual, human stories were told through the display of buttons, jewellery and clothing. The exhibition touched on the environmental impact of metalworking, as well the future of the material, looking at techniques such as 3D printing and contemporary uses in medicine and transportation. Together, it included 200 pieces drawn from the collections with 30 loans, and was a wonderful exploration of the history and meaning of metal in the city of Sheffield and beyond.

Huge thanks to Emma, Shinta and Collette for such an enjoyable and stimulating visit!

Eloise Donnelly

• The Sheffield Assay Office's 250th anniversary display has been very well received in the last year, raising the profile of the Office and has been visited by many groups, societies and the general public.
• The Show Your Metal Exhibition has been kindly sponsored by Sheffield Assay Office (as Silver Sponsor) and can still be seen until it closed on 29th September 2024 at Millennium Gallery, Sheffield.
• Work by Sheffield Silversmiths , Shinta, Nakajima, Chris Knight, Brett Payne, Josephine Gomersall, Una Low, Rachel Colley, Grave Horne, Maria Hanson.

The Sheffield Assay Office was established in 1773, under an Act of Parliament and today the company assays and hallmarks the precious metals - silver, gold, platinum and palladium. Sheffield Assay Office is one of only four UK assay offices who all work to uphold the Hallmarking Act of 1973 and continue to ensure consumer protection for customers purchasing precious metals.

To find out more about the whole range of services offered by Sheffield Assay Office, such as our hallmarking and analytical services, please email us at info@assayoffice.co.uk or complete the contact form on our website at http://www.assayoffice.co.uk/contact-us ,

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