About me
I am an Irish designer and maker based in London, UK. My work questions traditional ideas of value and preciousness, unpicking and critiquing social norms, often in a humorous way. I also enjoy experimenting with unusual materials and finding new ways of fabricating beautiful objects.
I graduated from Goldsmiths University in 2015 with a masters degree in Design Critical Practice. Previously, I completed a degree in Craft Design: Jewellery and Metals from the National College of Art and Design, Dublin, receiving first class honours for my thesis and jewellery collection.
Projects
- LONDON HOUSING CRISISThe aim of this project was to critique the current housing crisis in London which is spiralling out of control. I created an art installation in one of London’s most salubrious neighbourhoods, Jacob’s Island. The installation was made up of 11 bird houses, each hand painted and carrying a shocking fact or statistic about London housing. I also calculated how expensive it would be to ‘buy’ or ‘rent’ a bird house in Jacob’s Island and put two of the bird houses up for sale and for rent at £304 an
- INSTRUCTIONAL JEWELLERYCufflinks designed for a friend with dyslexia who has difficulty differentiating between the spelling of some words, for example, ‘where’ and ‘wear’. The cufflinks were intended as a discreet and helpful reminder for him at work. The gloves and ring are for anyone who wants a subtle and playful reminder or keepsake.
- WHAT'S THE CRACK?My work is loosely based on repair. I create solid pieces of the negative spaces left by various cracks in walls, pavements etc. around the city. My aim is to make the damaged and overlooked parts of the city appear unique and precious by treating the (now solid) negative spaces as one would a diamond and make wearable jewellery pieces. My work is designed to be interactive; the wearer now owns a little piece of the city and is encouraged to seek out the location where it came from, like a reverse treasure hunt, helping to engage the wearer with Dublin like never before. Some of the pieces will have a screw mechanism to attach/detach the pieces from the ring shanks, necklaces etc. In this way, the wearer will have the opportunity to decide whether they want to leave the piece in place to repair the crack, or to keep it and wear it. I also aim to place several of these pieces around the city and give clients a ring shank (with screw mechanism) with gps coordinates on it and encourage them to find their piece of Dublin. I am also beginning to develop the idea with scaffolding structures. Materials: aluminium, copper, brass, Sugru*, nickel, silver, matchsticks, steel epoxy, driftt wood, cement, paint Techniques: casting, anodising*, electro-forming** *Sugru is a self-setting rubber. Visit http://sugru.com/ for more information. It’s really cool stuff! **anodising is to coat a metal, in my case, aluminum, with a protective film by chemical or electrolytic means. Basically, the aluminium is treated with acid and an electric current to make it porous to specialised dyes. ***electroforming is a process of forming metal through electrodeposition in a plating bath. The object is formed by controlling the electrodeposition of metal passing through an electrolytic solution onto a metal form. More simply, a metal skin is built up on a metal surface, or any surface that has been rendered electroconductive through the application of a paint that contains metal particles. Essentially, a metal part is fabricated from the plating itself.
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Work history
Designer & Maker
Working with George and a small team on designing and building a 60 metre long lighting installation for a hotel in Scotland.
Shop Assistant
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My main duties at Autumn and May were to attend to customers and deal with any queries, both in person and over the phone or via email, taking sales and returns, processing web orders, posting and packaging customer orders, organising special orders, bespoke designs and jewellery repairs as well as updating the store's website and social media. As key holder I was responsible for opening and closing the store, merchandising, window displays, cleaning the jewellery and keeping the store clean and tidy at all times. I also was involved in liaising with suppliers, ordering stock and stock-taking.
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Skills
- Drawing
- Design
- Prototyping
- Research
- Jewellery Design
- Illustrator
- Indesign
- Photoshop
- Merchadising
- Accessories Design
- Rhino
- Adobe MS Office Suites
- Production Co-ordination
- Stock Management
- Sampling
- Liasing
- Schedule Coordinating
- Website Administration
Education
MA Design Critical Practice
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PASSED WITH DISTINCTION
An intensive design programme centred around designing not only the design 'thing', but also who and what we are and how we engage with the world around us with an emphasis on studio practice and innovative design methods and processes.
Electives: Technonatures, creative technologies, technical workshops, digital technology.
Skills acquired: Design research (qualitative and quantitative eg. cultural probes, interviewing, surveying, observation), academic writing, 3D modelling/rendering, 3D printing, laser cutting, prototyping, photography, creating presentation, public speaking and exhibition organising.
BDes Hons Craft Design: Jewellery and Metals
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AWARDED FIRST CLASS HONOURS
Skills: drawing, research, design, jewellery making, metalworking.
Awards
Design and Crafts Council of Ireland Future Makers Practitioner Support Award
I won this prestigious award from the Design and Crafts Council of Ireland for my Molten and Metamorphic Jewellery Collection. I used the prize money to enrol in the Central Saint Martins course How to Build a Jewellery Business.
http://www.lornaboyledesigner.com/#/moltenandmetamorphiccollection2014/Design and Crafts Council of Ireland Future Makers Innovation Award
I won this prestigious award for my degree show collection. I used the prize money to set up my jewellery business and create my Molten and Metamorphic jewellery collection.
http://www.lornaboyledesigner.com/#/moltenandmetamorphiccollection2014/