Gunilla Treen (British 1949-) §
Three Brooches, 1973
£378
Auction: 28 April 2023 at 11:00 BST
Description
each initialled and dated (to reverse), acrylic, mother of pearl, lapis lazuli, malachite and white metal
Dimensions
5.7cm wide, 8.8cm wide and 7.3cm wide (2 1/4in wide, 3 1/2in wide and 2 7/8in wide)
Provenance
Provenance
Exchanged from Gunilla Treen with Ann Sutton O.B.E. in return for Ann's knitted jacket.
Footnote
Exhibited
Craft Advisory Committee Touring Exhibition, Sutton / Treen: Contemporary Textiles and Jewellery, 1974-1975;
Arnolfini, Bristol, The Jewellery of Gunilla Treen: A Ten Year View, 1980.
Gunilla Treen had graduated from the Central School in 1971, and was noted as one of the few innovatory jewellery designers of the decade in her use of new materials, forms and colour.
This set of three brooches was an important work by Treen, and was designed to be worn as a group. It shows Treen's signature triple layered acrylic sheets, with a clear centre holding mobile shapes in various semi-precious materials. She was one of the pioneer artist jewellers to experiment with plastic, and this work in the early 1970s excited many in the field but upset the traditionalists. It allowed a spontaneity and use of colour, and allowed the jeweller to break away from notions of elitism and wealth from use of precious metals.
When Ralph Turner, the then Director of Exhibitions at the Crafts Council, said that he proposed a two-artist touring exhibition, and that he thought of partnering Ann Sutton with Gunilla Treen, he was astounded that neither of the pair responded with anything other than enthusiasm. Reflecting on this time, Sutton says ‘I had been an admirer of this fresh-thinking jeweller for some time and couldn’t think of anyone better to show alongside. During this exhibition we became friends, and she even came to live near me in Banbury for a while.’
In the 1960s and 70s, it was normal for artists to exchange works. There was a dearth of informed collectors, and so to swap work was a very pleasant way of ensuring that works, which are now seen to be of museum quality, stayed in good hands. Sutton recalls one particular swap with Treen, ‘The set of brooches, cut from perspex in three layers, kaleidoscope fashion, small shapes of lapis lazuli, malachite and jade, was a masterpiece. The set was designed to be worn together, and I loved it for the way in which it moved and changed according to the way it was pinned on. I had just been exploring machine knitting, and had made a jacket which suited Gunilla well. We swapped.” The exhibition, which included brooches but not the jacket, was shown at the Arnolfini Gallery in Bristol in 1980.