Where does the creative process begin for you? 

I find so much inspiration in the natural world around me; in the swirling layered bark of the gum trees I walk past every day, in the endlessly fascinating and varied patterns insects use to blend in (or stand out), or in the wattle birds that drink nectar from the grevilleas in my front garden. My challenge is then to translate these organic and ephemeral things into metal in a way that conveys the richness of the feelings these creatures and plants give me. Inevitably it never translates perfectly, but somewhere in the middle I find an interesting intersection of subject and materiality that creates something new and exciting.  

How have you arrived at this point in your practice? 

I have been an obsessive maker ever since I first learned to pick up a pencil, and have experimented in various mediums my whole life. In 2021 I did a short course on jewellery making, and fell in love with the visceral nature of the metal, becoming obsessed with the ability to craft something so fluidly out of such a solid material.  

Since then I haven’t looked back, seeking out any mentoring I could find, and self-teaching as much as possible. I’ve been at JamFactory since 2025 and have developed my skills immensely with the help of some amazing mentors and access to a plethora of fun tools to experiment with. I look forward to continuing to develop my skills in the future.

Is there an artistic medium you’re wanting to try? 

Jewellery is one of the most diverse artistic mediums out there, with so many different specialities you can make an entire career out of. For a while I’ve been really wanting to try gemstone freeform and intaglio carving. I have a lot of experience with carving wax for metal casting, and I’d love to try upping the stakes and translating those carving abilities to a more interesting (and less forgiving) material. There are some incredible artists I admire who create the most intricate and ethereal looking carvings in gemstones that look otherworldly, and it’s that ability to spark the imagination that I love about that medium. 

What does the South Australian arts ecology mean to you? 

I have been lucky to be a part of the JamFactory Associate Program for a year and a half now, and I have grown to have a deeper appreciation for the amazing arts culture we have here in South Australia. Not only do we have an amazing collection of incredibly talented artists, but I have found the general culture to be so encouraging and supportive. I think it’s so important as artists for us to lift each other up and maintain this culture going into the future. I believe collaboration and cooperation, as opposed to competition, always breeds more interesting and valuable work. 

What are your creative aspirations for the future? 

I’ve been experimenting with pushing the boundaries of patterning and texture creation with metal alone. By creating my own alloys, laminating metals, and trialling various patination methods, I want to make bodies of work that show metals used in new and exciting ways.  

I love the sentimentality of jewellery, and I aspire to have a practice that can balance a fun product line of wearable pieces with some more considered and experimental exhibition work. Above all, I want to continue to push myself creatively and technically and make the most interesting work I can. 

jaspergoldney.com