Alice Ayers

Postures of Peace: Held in This Hand

Alice Ayers is a final year Jewellery and Objects student, whose final project hopes to bring comfort to those with anxiety.

Give us a brief overview of your project

My project focuses on handheld objects formed as miniature sculptures that bring comfort to ease anxiety and relax the individual. Palm sized, these pieces are designed to fit comfortably in your hand and in the pocket so you can keep them with you in all situations for when you need tactile distraction; as cast solid brass or silver, the heavy weight is grounding to hold. The forms are based on postures, such as the foetal position, that bring feelings of comfort and safety and each piece has a different focus including weight, texture and shape to ensure a variety of forms that different individuals will respond to and feel more connected to.

Why did you choose this concept?

I chose this concept as someone who has struggled with anxiety and often found myself using various items as ‘worry stones’ to engage my hands and distract my mind. I find beauty in the fact that jewellery and figurines can be used for other purposes beside adornment or art, especially for the aid of mental health and reducing impacts of anxiety such as stimming (self-stimulating behaviours) by creating discreet fidget objects that bring comfort with physical interaction and sentimental connection.

What processes have you been using?

During this project I have felt close connection to the work through hand carving each piece using the processes of wax carving to create the forms inspired directly from the human figure and posture. I made full use of the talented craftsman of the thriving Jewellery Quarter to get these wax forms cast in solid brass, which felt most fitting to create weighty pieces that feel secure and reassuring to hold. I also cast a solid silver piece myself using the Cuttlefish shell casting process to utilise the natural textures of the shell and create a fossil like ‘worry stone’. Various metal finishing techniques give each piece a unique surface that fits the narrative of the piece itself including antiquing solution, mirror shine finish and grit blasting to give a softened matte finish.

What do you hope to achieve with your project?

I want to explore more of the emotional and sentimental aspects of anxiety relief aids contrasting the usual focus purely on the physical aids, as I feel having an emotional connection to the piece can also act as relief and comfort. I based the forms on human postures that make people feel secure and safe during uncomfortable or unsettling situations such as the foetal position, arms and legs crossed or sitting with knees to chest. I aim for my work to speak to everyone and therefore opened up the enquiry of my inspirations on social media to all by asking for their own personal postures of safety and security. This way I could use perspectives besides my own to influence the forms of my work and hope to achieve a holistic representation of anxiety relief.

How has your course helped you to prepare for working on your project?

My course has allowed me to become bolder and more experimental in my work, fully developing concepts that are personal to me and I feel passionate about representing. Through exploring many specialised processes during my time at university I had a range of available techniques to select from when assessing the most successful ways to materialise my concepts. With support form tutors and connecting with other likeminded designers on my course I was always be inspired by the wide variety of ways each individual approaches a project and interprets an idea.