Kate Pickering is helping jewellers develop strong, sustainable careers – and planning a jewellery school for communities and professionals.
Jewellery incubator Vanilla Ink started with Kate feeling “lost after graduation”, with a wide range of skills but “no idea how to put them in to practice”. Support from the Cultural Enterprise Office focused the idea and allowed it to be first established in Dundee.
“It supports and promotes the jewellery and silversmith industry,” she says. “It aims to bridge the gap from education to industry, supporting start-up jewellers in their own transition from student to professional.”
Kate now operates from Glasgow, having just moved from MAKLab in the city to Hidden Lane in the West End as part of plans for a new jewellery school, which she’s currently raising funding for through Kickstarter. The school will further develop the professional development workshops, one-to-one mentoring and networking already offered.
“I left Dundee in 2014 with a heavy heart,” she admits. “It has a very supportive community, one that’s hard to replicate. Dundee will always have a part of my heart.”
The Vanilla Ink Jewellery School is in collaboration with master goldsmith Scott McIntyre, and the two plan to “create a jewellery hub” that will provide skills and training for professionals and complete beginners.
The space will allow Vanilla Ink to work with people from a range of different communities and use jewellery making as a means to develop technical and soft skills, build confidence and learn about entrepreneurship.
The jewellery school project also aims to reach people struggling to deal with mental health issues, something which has been a major feature of the adult life of Scott. He found that making jewellery was a form of therapy which they pair now want to share with others.
Kate’s own early inspiration came from “being my Dad’s sidekick whilst he gardened or repaired things” and loving “the idea of changing something and trying to make it better”.
Studies in jewellery, metalwork and design at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design developed her skills – and a passion to help others realise their creative potential, while also creating successful independent businesses.
Last year Kate launched a week-long ‘Inker in the Window’ project at MAKLab, with five jewellers and a silversmith each spending a day in the studio’s window working in front of hundreds of passers-by.
“It was great to put the making process in front of an unsuspecting audience. Simple, yet effective.”
Ultimately, Kate plans to “build a centre for jewellery and silversmithing in Scotland”. “A building that inspires, educates and champions the sector.”
Her ambition, drive – and the incredible impact she has had on aspiring jewellers in Scotland – mark Kate as a clear V&A Dundee Design Champion.
“Design is everything and everywhere,“ she adds. “It would be very hard to live without it!”
For more information, please visit the Vanilla Ink website.
The V&A Dundee Design Champions are inspirational designers creating high-quality work and helping to enhance people’s lives, or champions of the power of design to improve the world.
We will announce 50 Design Champions in the run-up to the museum opening on Saturday 15 September 2018.
V&A Dundee’s Design Champions project is working with Dezeen as its media partner.
Dezeen is the world’s most popular and influential architecture and design magazine, with an audience of 2.5 million unique visitors each month.
