ABOUT
Fenella is based at the Old Dairy on Pierrepont Farm, a two minute walk from Frensham Little Pond in Surrey. Old Barn Workshop was established in 2019 by both Fenella and Jessica Noble and provides a unique setting for weekly classes, private parties and one to one tuition, as well as being the home of their own creative practises.
Previous to setting up her own workshop, Fenella was the Silversmithing & Jewellery Artist in Residence and Tutor at South Hill Park Arts Centre. In 2013 Fenella graduated with a first from her BA Hons degree in Metalwork and Jewellery from Sheffield Hallam University before completing a postgraduate Silversmithing residency at Bishopsland Educational Trust in South Oxfordshire. Fenella’s work can be seen and purchased at various Exhibitions and shows throughout the year as well as through her online Shop.
Artist’s Statement
My silverware focuses on the space and patterns created within the structures of each piece as much as the pieces themselves. In this way, my work is different because it is less interested in using large amounts of material as seen in more ‘traditional’ silverware, and more interested in the skeletal constructions and what they can reveal.
Exploring these themes within my work I seek to develop functional pieces of jewellery and silverware suitable for use within the modern age and home. Combining a range of traditional Silversmithing skills and techniques, I create hollow flat units that are then worked and formed into three-dimensional structures.
Growing up in Mexico City, surrounded by vibrant traditions and a highly creative culture, art and design became a profound passion very early on. Mexico is a testament to how some of the most creative work can be conceived from very little, proving that material and material value can be negligible yet the outcome beautiful and striking. This is something that I have always hoped to emulate within my work and career as a silversmith.
Malcolm Appleby's workshop (engraving masterclass)
Education & Placements
Awards & CommiSsions
2020
The Saudners Scholarship
2018
The ‘Miss Sarah Charles Award for Verve and Style’ - Breeze Art Fair
2016
The Sheffield Assay Office Precious Little Gem's Commission 2016
2014
The Goldsmith’s Company Precious Metal Bursary
Malcolm Appleby engraving masterclass competition
Cooksongold Graduate Bursary for British Silver Week
2013
Bishopsland Precious Metal Bursary
The South Square Trust Bursary
2012
Design Travel Award from The Cutler’s Company in Hallamshire & The Worshipful Company of Armourers & Brasiers.