About
Metalsmith Claire Malet finds her inspiration in natural forms and landscapes, and in the exploration of the relationship between the metals with which she works and the environment from which they are sourced. Through her on-going work with ‘found’ metal cans, she is exploring ideas of production, transformation, renewal through decay and reuse. She is also interested in perceived value; taking a throw-away, manmade, mass-produced food-can, Malet ‘transforms’ it into a ‘precious’ vessel.
In contrast, when working in silver, Malet makes pieces which focus on vessels and objects discarded by nature: a curl of split bark, a seed pod. In doing so, she makes pieces which – in contrast to those made from manmade tin-cans – transform and draw attention to the value of a ‘throw-away’ object from nature.
