Dinny Hall designs two collections for the National Portrait Gallery to celebrate the upcoming exhibition
Pre-Raphaelite Sisters launching in October 2019. The exhibition highlights the untold story of female agency in the art movement and the significant roles women played.

After meeting with the curator and viewing seminal art works Dinny explored the visual culture of the Pre-Raphaelite movement and identified two painterly motifs, which have been pared back and translated into contemporary jewellery crafted in sterling silver and 22K gold vermeil.

 

   

One collection, Sun Beams, is inspired by an otherworldly, ethereal presence felt across the entire exhibition. Rendered in 22k gold vermeil, each piece echoes the glorious use of gold across the surface of painted canvas and ever-ornate picture frames. The second collection, White Petals, is influenced by the recurring motif of white petals and blossom that appear throughout the movement.

 

Together both collections celebrate nature and the transience of beauty in a truly contemporary take on this early bohemian movement. Where symbolic nature was once the embellishment of the Pre-Raphaelite muse, today sculptural jewellery is the embellishment of the modern-day woman.

 ‘When asked to create a collection of jewellery inspired by Pre-Raphaelite art, which is so rich in embellishment and symbolism,
I made the conscious decision not to be too literal. I saw in the paintings the birth of something truly modern and bohemian,
so I have tried to take that essence and make the jewellery positively 21st century. I had in mind that should one of the women of the Pre-Raphaelite movement be alive today, she would be contemporary in every way,
and I hope she would choose to wear pieces from this special collection.’

Sun Beams & White Petals will launch at the National Portrait Gallery on the 17th October 2019