2018 marks ten years since the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) Department of Jewellery Design and Manufacture (in the Faculty of Art, Design and Architecture), embarked on a new mission – to develop self-starting designers with a competitive advantage in the challenges of the 4th Industrial Revolution.

In that time, the programme has evolved and blossomed, through a focus on the production of original work, into one of the most advanced jewellery design programmes in the country.In collaboration with the UJ Art Gallery and UJ Arts & Culture, the University of Johannesburg’s Jewellery Department brings you our most innovative exhibition yet: The 300 Art Ornaments Exhibition. This is a showcase of all levels of student work, where the viewer has the unique experience of being able to contribute to the experiential learning of each student, while buying original and interesting jewellery pieces at affordable prices in all manner of different materials, and aesthetics. Three of the department’s well-respected alumni, Maryse Castel (of MYCreations), Reon Davids (designing for Zurie Designer Jewellery), and Cailin Ernst (of Cailin Ernst Handmade Designer Jewellery), will be adding their current work to the exhibition, allowing the viewer to see first-hand the progression of their unique design styles.

Joining this endeavour is the Thuthuka Jewellery Project, spearheaded by Carola Ross. Thuthuka introduces a fun and fresh opportunity for new and different designs from Further Education and Training (FET) colleges and skills development incubators around the country.

The exhibition will open at the UJ Art Gallery on the 16 May 2018 at 17:30 for 18:00, with an all-black and no jewellery dress code, and will then run until 30 May 2018, with opportunities for walkabouts with the curators.

For more information, please feel free to call the UJ Department of Jewellery Design and Manufacture on 011 559 1125 or the UJ Art Gallery on 011 559 2099/2556.

About UJ Arts & Culture

UJ Arts & Culture, a division of the Faculty of Art, Design & Architecture (FADA), produces and presents world-class student and professional arts programmes aligned to the UJ vision of an international university of choice, anchored in Africa, dynamically shaping the future. A robust range of arts platforms are offered on all four UJ campuses for students, staff, alumni and the general public to experience and engage with emerging and established Pan-African and international artists drawn from the full spectrum of the arts.

In addition to UJ Arts & Culture, FADA (www.uj.ac.za/fada) offers programmes in eight creative disciplines, in Art, Design and Architecture, as well as playing home to the NRF SARChI Chair in South African Art & Visual Culture, and the Visual Identities in Art & Design Research Centre. The Faculty has a strong focus on sustainability and relevance, and engages actively with the dynamism, creativity and diversity of Johannesburg in imagining new approaches to art and design education.