Rehabilitation Project

Brief: Create something that speaks about rehabilitation, accessibility and community.

Artist: Sean Winterbottom

Title: Bee

Keywords: Reciprocation/Rehabilitation/Individual/Community

This piece is inspired by the reciprocal relationship between individual and community. I am interested in representing the ways in which an individual makes their mark within a community, and the extent to which the community surrounds, supports and accepts the individual, within a mutually beneficial relationship.

There is no individual without the meaning conferred by the collective noun of the community; just as the community cannot exist without the individuals within it. The success of the community depends upon the collective identities of the individuals within it: the power of the individual derives from the community in which it participates, and from which it takes its strength.

The work of art is a silver and gold piece of jewellery, to be worn as a brooch. The principal form of the art work is an image of a flying bee, imprinted upon a base of sealing wax.

The silver which forms the base of the work is an irregular circle of poured silver, representing the traditional use of sealing wax. This references the ideas of forming a bond, sealing a commitment, verifying an individual’s identity, leaving an impression and making a mark. The form of the silver is irregular, indicating that nothing is perfect. The action of creation (pouring molten silver or melting wax) produces an individual form, which is yet part of the recognisable category of the circle.

The use of silver is significant. Silver is a precious metal; it is valuable; it is seen as a currency; a substance for trade. Silver is also a conductor, and therefore acts as a medium. It is malleable and yet its base value remains constant whatever its shape or form. The transformation or transfiguration of the metal into an art form can only increase its value. The qualities of silver form a strong foundation upon which the design of the art work may be created.

Impressed upon the sealing wax/molten silver circle is the symbol of a flying bee, with wings outstretched. The way in which the image is set into the silver base references the tradition of a signet ring or stamp used to identify an individual on a contract, agreement or letter. The bee has a powerful symbolic value, indicating immortality, rebirth, diligence, bravery, industry, technical skill, social organisation, reincarnation, harmonious living, creativity, intelligence and life inspiration. In my culture (Irish) it is a symbol of the soul. When the soul leaves the body, it leaves as a bee. The bee also references the hive – a community which cannot function without the individuals in it, and without which the individual cannot function. The hive protects and nurtures the individuals within it, while the individual is recognised as producing, creating and contributing to the whole.

The incision/impression of the bee is filled with gold leaf. Gold has been chosen because, like silver, it is a precious metal which has a high material and cultural value, and it is highly conductive. Gold is seen as having a higher value than silver (it is technically a noble metal) so it is used here to highlight the value of the individual. The silver brooch is cast from a mould, but the gold leaf is individually applied – to ensure that each brooch is unique.

After the application of the gold leaf, the piece is polished, leaving darker marks in the recessions and pits of the silver, symbolising the difficulties and pitfalls of life, and the various landscapes of a community. The burnished gold shines against the backdrop of silver, just as the individual may shine forth. The individual has value to the community, and the community has value to the individual.

This work of art is intended to be worn, and the activity of wearing and using the jewellery is part of the meaning and process of the art. As the piece polishes through wear, different pits and hollows and depressions will become evident in the silver. These are natural and part of the form. Elements of gold leaf may flake from within the outline of the bee, but this does not decrease the value of the bee. Rather, processes of aging and wear create an individual piece which is unique and valued, perhaps even more so, for its journey, its uniqueness, and its shared experience with the wearer.

This work is inspired by the idea that everybody is a little bit damaged or irregular and has the potential for rehabilitation. Nothing in the world is perfect and that is what makes everything in the natural world unique. By wearing the brooch, the wearer becomes part of the rehabilitation of the object and thus part of the art work itself. The wearers provide the community or social environment in which the article can wear, change and develop. In this way, the individual life of the wearer helps to shape and define the brooch, as it is polished, worn and tarnished through everyday use and wear.

Rehabilitation is not about the individual but about the community. What needs to be rehabilitated is the community’s attitude to the individual. Rehabilitation does not mean making something the same as others; it means accepting the differences that occur and seeing them as a positive.

Wearing the brooch is a commitment to making a difference. By wearing the piece, a person is acknowledging the importance of the individual, the power of community, the acceptance of change and the strength of difference.