Image: Jan DONALDSON
The Poetry of Voice I Brooch
Cast pewter, Brass, 925 Silver, 18ct Gold, 23ct Gold Leaf, Turquoise, Paua Shell, Cotton, Linen fabric, Felt, Found objects – vintage tin, recycled ivory bead, brass switch, kilt pin, 25 x 8 x 3cm
Gallery Shop
1—28 September 2025
Dr. Jan Donaldson (PhD) presents an exhibition of brooches and jewellery in the Gallery Shop throughout September, exploring identity through artifacts. Using form, image, and symbol, the works investigate the intimate and often uncanny relationship between object and self. Drawing on the theatricality of dolls, puppetry, and masks, the works engage with beauty, illusion, and the human condition. “My work is inspired by the relationships between artifacts and identity,” the artist says, “and explores objects intimately linked to identity… allude to the drama and folly of human existence.” Each piece is a narrative, blending the emotional with the symbolic to offer a compelling reflection on identity, desire, and the roles we inhabit.
Through the use of found and recycled materials, the artist layers memory, energy, and history into each object, capturing what she calls the “essence, the knowledge, and the life force” within these materials. Her practice is shaped by both personal and collective narratives—an instinctive process where “the object acquires a life.” Addressing themes of disfigurement, paralysis, connection, and emotional truth, the works become relics of human experience: raw, vulnerable, and charged with meaning. They exist as both personal artifacts and universal symbols ‘canny’ and ‘uncanny’ bearing witness to the complexity of being.
About the Artist
Jan Donaldson’s studio practice is based in Shepparton, Australia. She studied at RMIT University in Melbourne and holds a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Fine Art, a Master of Art (Fine Art) Degree, and a Diploma of Fine Art in Gold and Silversmithing.
Jan exhibits regularly and her work ranges in scale from jewellery to large sculptural works. She is known for her use of the figure and text, as well as for her research into the relationships between objects and identity.
Jan has been lecturing for over 30 years in regional Victoria and Melbourne, is a former President of the Jewellers and Metalsmiths Group of Australia (JMGA) Vic and past editor of Lemel Magazine, the quarterly journal of the JMGA. She has been an artist in residence and workshop instructor at numerous schools, universities, community groups, arts organizations and galleries. She is a former gallery director and has extensive experience working on community arts projects.
Works for sale in the Gallery Shop are available for purchase from Benalla Art Gallery, or by contacting the Gallery: T 03 5760 2619 or gallery@benalla.vic.gov.au
