LIVE 24-SEVEN “ 14 FOR ME, BEING ABLE TO CROSS THE MEDIUM
OF FINE JEWELLERY INTO THE WORLD OF HIGH FASHION WAS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY AND A VERY IMPORTANT PART OF MY JOURNEY.
and your work for his shows challenged anything you'd done previously, to include the metals you had traditionally worked with (you went from fine materials to brass, aluminium and silver), pushing the boundaries of jewellery design too and some of those pieces are hailed as contemporary works of art in their own right. Do you have any favourite pieces that you created for those shows? One of my favourite (and most challenging!) pieces that I created was the Coiled Corset (A/W 1999, The Overlook). Earlier that year I had worked with Lee on an African-inspired neckpiece for Bjork’s album cover. It was a challenging project, as I had only just begun self-teaching silversmithing to meet the demands of the catwalk.
When Lee asked if I could create the same neckpiece, but for the whole torso, I knew it would absolutely challenge my skills as a goldsmith. I remember him saying to me that “nothing is impossible” and that if I can make the neckpiece, that I could also make the corset. After that, I spent 16 hours a day for 10 weeks creating the piece.
Since then, I have always continued this mantra that “nothing is impossible.”
Shaun, can we take it back to the beginning of your career and your training and early years that took in Hatton Garden and the restoration of Victorian, Art Nouveau and Art Deco jewellery; how important was that grounding – that life apprenticeship? I worked for a small company called ‘English Traditional Jewellery’. There were two masters, Brian Joslin and Richard Bullock. They taught me everything I could ever possibly need to know about goldsmithing and I sat in between the two of them. One taught me technique and attention to detail and the other one taught me speed. I had the best of both worlds and remained working there for 13 years.
I learnt every element, which included working on diamond solitaires and tiaras. I also restored some of the most beautiful antique jewels; from Art Deco to Art Nouveau, Victorian to Edwardian. Through this period of my training I was truly inspired by my past masters; the skill and innovation of design to reflect the time they were in. This triggered a passion inside of me to also explore and evolve my craft through designs that reflected the time I was in. This awakening then led to my journey with Alexander McQueen and then the launch of my own house creating collections for the 21st century.
Your work and talents caught the eye of Alexander McQueen
What was it like working in the world of high fashion? You really were a catalyst for the two worlds working together in such an equally important way. For me, being able to cross the medium of fine jewellery into the world of high fashion was a great opportunity and a very important part of my journey. I could translate my skills from my goldsmithing roots onto a platform where there were no commercial constraints; my work was there to portray the concept of the designer, allowing me to create pieces with true creative freedom; to think outside the box and fuse to mediums and create the new. I could later take elements of those wonderful pieces to build collections to create pieces to be worn away from the catwalk and they are the collections you see before you.
You really do push boundaries and throw any rules and preconceptions out of the window, yet possess an absolute respect for traditional skills; you are a jewellery atelier really aren't you, a new breed of jeweller? I started the House of Shaun Leane to create one-of-a kind designs that will inspire future generations of goldsmiths. My aspiration is to create something new, precious and eternal; I believe in designing beautiful objet d’art with longevity, at the same time, distinctive and with a sense of timeless elegance.
What inspires your work and how do you capture the inspiration? I can imagine a highly-coveted little black book in a pocket somewhere?
LIVE24-SEVEN.COM
CE L EBRIT Y INTERVI EW SHAUN L EANE
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