“Gold and Steel are materials that are intrinsically tied to stories of our culture and how we define ourselves. Our cultural myths abound with references to gold and steel: Our egalitarian heritage that can be tied back to the Gold Rush and it’s opportunities for all, and the steel of Ned Kelly’s armour which represents our distrust of authority. The landscape from which these materials originate, is a defining element of our identity, from the iron-oxide red of the centre to the golden sands of its edges

I have long been interested in the concept of Australian identity and the role jewellery has to play in the expression of this identity. Recent investigations into the role of landscape in the definition of our identity have taken my work off the body and onto the wall. With this new work, I plan to make use of the materials of gold and steel to put the landscape onto the body.”