23/09/2026
Long ago and far away…
A teacher’s perspective on the proposed closure of Jewellery & Silversmithing, Textiles and Performance Costume at Edinburgh College of Art.
I graduated from Edinburgh College of Art in 2000, from a culture of art, making and experimentation that shaped my career and continues to influence my practice as an educator.
During my time there, I had many formative experiences. I was short-listed for the RSA Student Design Awards and awarded a Goldsmiths Precious Metal Bursary. We were encouraged to enter competitions regularly as a class, and I continue this tradition with my own students and have celebrated many of them receiving recognition in national competitions. I also travelled to Munich with the whole class to see Schmuck and visit Galerie Marzee.
I travelled to the other side of the world to undertake an exchange at RMIT in Melbourne, where I studied Printmaking and Gold and Silversmithing. I also had the opportunity to work for Malcolm Appleby, the renowned engraver and silversmith, who is currently exhibiting at the Scottish Gallery in Edinburgh.
After graduating, I attended a course at Goldsmiths' Hall, where I heard from industry leaders about many aspects of the jewellery profession. Later, I designed a collection for a well-known Scottish manufacturing company and worked in retail jewellery. I was invited to exhibit my work at the G8 Summit in Gleneagles. I have subsequently spent more than 20 years working in education.
These photographs are from my first experiences of jewellery design, when my teacher arranged for a lecturer from ECA to visit our school. That meeting was significant: I later applied to Edinburgh College of Art with the intention of studying Jewellery and Silversmithing.
This is not a competition for the oldest photograph, but if it were, I would argue that the first encounter matters enormously. The people, places and experiences that introduce us to a subject can change the direction of a life.
Last year marked 25 years since I graduated, and my classmates and I came together to celebrate our “silver anniversary”. We attended the degree show and shared food, drink and time together. It was a wonderful reminder of the community and legacy that ECA has created.
As an educator, I have also witnessed first-hand the impact that studying jewellery and making can have on students. The skills, ways of thinking and appreciation of materials developed through these subjects can lead to many different careers, from engineering and design to surgery, while also fostering a lifelong enjoyment and appreciation of art and making.
Being invited back to teach enamelling at ECA, meeting former students and reconnecting with students and colleagues over the years has been immensely rewarding. These experiences have all contributed to my enthusiasm for education and continue to inform my teaching practice.
As teachers and educators, we are nourished and replenished by other artists and designers. We do not operate in a vacuum.
That is why the vitality of these subjects matters beyond the walls of a university. Their influence reaches into the wider creative economy and into the networks of artists, designers, makers, galleries, shops and independent businesses that support Scottish talent.
And I am only talking about Jewellery and Silversmithing here. There is an equally important story to tell about Performance Costume and Textiles.
The loss of these subjects is therefore about more than the closure of courses. It is about the loss of opportunities, communities, knowledge, skills and future possibilities.
Looking back, it is impossible for me to separate my own career, teaching practice and creative life from the opportunities these subjects provided.
The wider case and the potential impact of the proposed closures have been outlined by Craft Scotland in their coverage, which I have linked below for those who would like to read further.
Craft Scotland along with organisations and leaders across the craft sector call for the reinstatement of undergraduate craft degrees at Edinburgh
