Curiosity and innovation are ageless as Anne Marquiss, jeweller and AAS Board Member highlights in her introduction to the older makers group who invite interested Members of all ages to join their get-togethers.
Six months ago I was asked to host a regular monthly get together on zoom, for “older” members. As an active jeweller, I hadn’t considered my age (70), as being particularly relevant to my practice as most of my colleagues and customers are younger.
However, I agreed to try it, and I’m delighted to have had this opportunity to virtually meet some amazing Members who are like me, experienced, curious, innovative and still hungry for knowledge.
Each month we decide on a topic of conversation to focus our discussion. Alison Bell and Ann Marie Shillito, who piloted the meetings, start us off and we go deep into all aspects of personal creativity and making. We’ve touched on areas such as self development, direction, collaboration, archiving our work, validation. We finish off the meeting with one of us giving an informal presentation about our work, past and present.
This month we shared the wide range of inspiration for our practices. These glimpses into each other’s processes, contexts and outcomes reveal the wealth of skills and creativity amongst us, and is totally inspiring. We are learning from each other but importantly having a good laugh and reality check at the same time!
Zoom has been invaluable in bringing us together, we are scattered across Scotland and hearing about each other’s location and circumstances leads to understanding our different ways of working or appreciating what we have on our own doorsteps.
There is definitely no age restriction for coming along to this group, so if any members would like to join us, the Older Members Get-Together is on the first Friday of the month, 10.30-12ish for informal discussions, and you’re very welcome. We are open for questions and ideas from younger makers. Our collective experiences and disciplines are wide and varied. We want to share and learn!
