Barbara Mullally – Jewellery – Crown and Pumpkin

My inspiration

Stories, aphorisms, odd facts and images
My garden; pods, seeds
Tom Thomson’s and Paul Klee’s use of colour
Art jewellery by Charles Lewton-Brain, Thomas Mann, Marilyn Da Silva, Alex Calder, Claudio Pino, and the enamels of Catherine Crowe

My art history

L’École des beaux arts du Québec, sculpture and tapestry
Silversmithing and jewellery making: Algonquin College, with Carl Shutt; Haliburton School of the Arts, with Lois Etherington Betteridge, Brigitte Clavette, Jeffery Ellis, Michael Letki, Charles Lewton-Brain.

My favourite things

Making things
TOOLS, love tools, metal
Reading- so many books, so little time!
Stones with pattern, clear stones with wonderful inclusions, natural objects that seem like jewels
Enamelling on copper and silver: it’s all about the colour
The colour red, and the red-white-black combination

My story
My father was a painter. He let me use his oil paints when I was very young, made things with me out of cardboard, tin cans, sticks, magical things. My mother was a superb professional dressmaker and let me use her sewing machine when I was about five; I created doll “costumes” and learned to sew by osmosis. I went to art school, but later became waylaid when I needed to find paid employment. Having two kids will do that to you. I took a government job, got tracked for management and spent the next 30+ years doing that during the day and making art at night and on weekends. I decided to become a silversmith because I like making small thing: I studied sculpture, but the small called out to me. I’ve been banging metal for over 25 years.

I work at my bench most days. I’m a morning person. I’m a French-language docent at the National Gallery. To relax, I work or read, garden, run, bike, cross-country ski, do Pilates.

I like wine and the occasional good Irish whiskey or single malt scotch. I love real food. Need I say I love shoes?

I’ve been involved with the Crown and Pumpkin Studio Tour since its inception.

My dream
To work more in gold – it’s such a lovely material. To master enamelling. To travel. To continue working and creating until I die.