Interview by Mark Tamer
This is the second in our series of interviews with art students who are at the beginning of the their studies. Just about to start a Jewellery Design BA at Central Saint Martins (CSM) is Honor Beddoe.
Can you tell us a little about yourself and why you’ve chosen the course you have?
Making and designing things has always been something I enjoy. I knew fairly early on in secondary school that I wanted to continue with the arts in some way. So, to investigate this further I decided to do an art and design foundation and wanted an away-from-home experience and so chose to study in Leeds for a year. Unfortunately, the course was cut short by the pandemic but I really enjoyed exploring and manipulating all sorts of materials. Even in the first term and as I researched degree courses, I definitely could feel myself moving towards design subjects. My projects often resulted in three-dimensional outcomes and the jewellery course at CSM is broad and has a non-traditional approach to jewellery, so I am looking forward to experimenting.
Do you have some examples of your work that you can share with us?
The coronavirus peaked in my third term and we went into lockdown and so I couldn't produce a physical final outcome. Instead we were asked to create digital images that suggested ideas of our end product. I used citrus fruit as the inspiration for this final piece, imitating its colour, form and texture to imagine a jewellery design.
© Honor Beddoe
Any artists/makers/musicians etc that you particularly like that you think we should check out?
I suggest taking a look at Tatty Devine - their designs combine beautiful and playful ideas using extremely simple materials such as colourful acrylic. They both started out as fine art students who went on to create jewellery pieces from thrown away bits of plastic they found in a skip. Also, if you have not seen it already, I suggest watching Rihanna’s recently released Savage x Fenty fashion show. It is a performance art piece which powerfully represents real cultural, gender and body diversity. I feel she is setting a new standard in marketing fashion.
"I want to learn and leave university with identifiable workshop skills in jewellery making and to know how to market and sell my work."
We are still in the midst of Covid-19, so what are your hopes and fears for the next three years of your studies?
I hope that the need to work from home doesn't continue much longer. I want to meet my fellow peers at university and properly experience a studio and workshop environment. I also feel very lucky to have got into this course and look forward to seeing where it takes my creativity.
Any thoughts on what you’d like to get out of the course and what you hope to achieve by the end?
I want to learn and leave university with identifiable workshop skills in jewellery making and to know how to market and sell my work. I would also like to finish university having learnt traditional processes and to use those skills to explore innovative and abstract ideas.
We usually ask our interviewees what’s the one piece of advice they would give to an artist. As you’re only just beginning your artist journey, perhaps we should ask, what help do you anticipate needing most in the coming months and years?
As a new student I anticipate I will need help with how to initiate an idea, research and develop it effectively and produce a fully formed product. Talking about and explaining my ideas confidently is always a challenge. This year I will need help in practicing this skill as I will no doubt need to do this in my future career.
Thanks Honor for sharing your thoughts with us. We wish you luck and creativity for your first year at CSM.
Stay safe. Stay creative.
Team IMA
re-IMAgining the art world
You can find Honor on Instagram: @hiycb_art