8th November - 31st January 2002

BOLD JEWELLERY BY FIVE OF GERMANY'S TOP DESIGNERS

CRAFTS
JANUARY 2002

GERMAN JEWELS
Five top German jewellers contribute a diverse collection of work, ranging from cutting edge, pieces to subtle, beautiful forms in a new exhibition at the Kath Libbert Gallery. This is the first international show at Salts Mill - the converted textile mill which also houses the largest private collection of Hockney's work.
Look out for Martina Lang who combines precious amber with silver and cord to produce sensual, tactile pieces including necklaces and rings. Ursula Hoffman started as a textile designer and conservator before becoming a jeweller - as proved by her neckpieces and bracelets made from hundreds of pieces of hand-dyed silk fabric. Each of Vitalis Kubach's pieces has a 'soul' - such as her hollowed-out Rhine Pebble pendants where the insides are decorated with gold and space is left for the owner to place their own 'treasure'. Goldsmith Anna Gluck combines unpretentious, geometric forms in matt silver and gold with invisible settings to create elegant pendants and earrings.
Finally Barber Schmidt's Gordie Knot rings begin as flat pieces of gold or silver which the wearer twists and knots together. Coloured plastic inserts can also be entwined with the ring - or worn alone as a fun accessory.
LH
'Schmuck' is at the Kath Libbert Jewellery, Salts Mill, Victoria Road, Saltaire BD18 3LB (01274 599790) until 31 January.

TELEGRAPH & ARGUS
9 JANUARY 2002

Don't miss this gem of a show
An innovative exhibition of Work by five top German jewellery designers is taking pride of place at the Kath Llbbert Jewellery Gallery at Salts Mill, Saltaire.
The exhibition, entitled Schmuck, features a diverse collection of work by well-established jewellers. Pieces range from cutting edge, conversation-stopping designs to the subtly different and the simply beautiful.
Kath said: "The exhibition is an opportunity to see some of the most creative work being produced by a number of Germany's top jewellery designers. I am delighted to bring the show to Salt's Mill - furthering my aim of making the best design talent accessible to people.
"And for those who are wondering Schmuck is German for 'jewellery'!"

Yorkshire Post, 10 Novermber 2001 review of *Schmuck*

YORKSHIRE POST
10 NOVEMBER 2001

Baubles and bangles...
Handmade jewellery crafted from silver, gold, amber, silk, pebbles and plastic went on display In 'alt's Mill at Saltaire, near Bradford, yesterday, in the first exhibition featuring the work of international designers at the gallery. The selling exhibition - entitled Schmuck, which is German for jewellery - is running at the Kath Libbert gallery until the end of January. Top German designers Anna Gluck, Ursula Hoffman, Vitalis Kubah, Martina Lang and Barbara Schmidt have contributed to the exhibition. Sara Tunstall holds a silver bangle designed by Barbara Schmidt.

Picture: Gerard Binks.

Findings, January 2002 review of *Schmuck*

FINDINGS - The Association for Contemporary Jewellery's quarterly newsletter.
January 2002

Schmuck - Five Jewellers from Germany
Kath Libbert Jewellery,
Salts Mill, Saltaire,
8 November-31 January 2002

For those of you who don't venture much into 'the provinces' I can strongly recommend the trip to Salts Mill in Saltaire near Shipley in Yorkshire. This magnificent building was the vast mill set up by the Victorian entrepreneur and philanthropist Titus Salt. It now houses exhibitions of the region's most famous son, David Hockney, and a variety of other businesses, including Kath Libbert's Jewellery Gallery.

'Schmuck' is presented alongside the 'shop' part of the gallery space and is easily distinct from it, allowing the work of the German jewellers to be seen as a group show in its own right. Readers may remember a trailer for this exhibition in the last Findings, illustrated by an image of the 'Gordian Knot' rings by Barbara Schmidt. Her work is also available in plastic postcards, pre-cut and ready to pop out so that the lucky recipient can fold up their own Gordian ring. These clever structures are rather pleasing and look like a fun idea, particularly in plastic. Her other pieces did less for me as this theme was not expanded. There were necklaces of long gently folded rectangular units with a motif of regular saw-cuts across the fold, and brooches in slightly twisted versions of the same units, attractive but not as funky as the rings.

Ursula Hoffman comes from a textiles background and her prime area of interest must be colour since it is the most obvious feature in her work. Necklaces of small pompoms and matching clip earrings, a necklace of beaded spheres in contrasting tones, and collars of frayed dyed silk using a bright cheerful palette. At first glance this is a bit like Angela O'Kelly's work, but softer and possibly lighter (I often want to handle other people's work but at an exhibition one has to settle for touching only with the eyes). Symbolism as a theme cropped up in the work of two of the exhibitors: Vitalis Kubach who had some minimal and understated pieces in metal but was at her strongest with her 'Seelensteine', soul-stones worn on a simple cable. These were pebbles from the banks of the Rhine, cut open, hollowed out and lined with gold leaf. The combination of materials and simple forms created a pleasing totality, hence the name. Martina Lang in contrast used sensual cushion forms that suggested the physical rather than the spiritual. The two tone pendants and large rings although bold didn't look as interesting as the carved amber encased in a gold or iron frame. This amber is opaque and buttery and looks quite edible, contrasting well with the fine square wire.

Out of the five exhibitors my favourite was Anna Gluck whose pieces were very simple hollow shapes with either a silver or gilt finish. These geometric forms are strung on steel cable and can be worn individually or combined, not a new idea but beautifully presented as a well thought out range of work. Altogether an enterprising exhibition.
Frances Julie Whitelaw

Jewish Chronicle, November 2001 review of *Schmuck*

JEWISH CHRONICLE
16 NOVEMBER 2001

Gallery show links owner to sad past
JOY SABLE
A FORMER textile mill in Bradford is hosting an exhibition of contemporary jewellery which has provided gallery-owner Kath Libbert with an unusual link to her past. Ms Libbert, whose family was forced by the Nazis to leave their small Czech village in 1938, is exhibiting work by five of Germany's leading jewellery-designers.
"I felt a certain ambivalence when I visited Germany," she said.
"Everyone was very friendly. But I had a real feeling that, in another time, I could not have been there, and that I wouldn't have been accepted."
The jewellery was "very beautiful and wearable," she added.
The exhibition will be at Salts Mill, Saltaire, until January 2002

Limited Edition, December 2001 review of *Schmuck*

LIMITED EDITION
DECEMBER 2001

AND THE CROWNING jewels
Whether you are flamboyant or prefer to bIend into the background - jewellery can help you make a real statement.
Those who dare to wear this Christmas will dazzle with large bright pendants and bold earrings, while others who want to be seen, but in a more subtle way, tend to opt for the more delicate designs.
In Bradford's cultural quarter - Salts Mill in Saltaire - Kath Libbert has set up her own emporium of unique jewellery sourced from contemporary designers not only at home, but abroad.
Her debut international show Schmuck (German for jewellery) - is up and running until January 3 I .
The exhibition showcases the work of five contemporary German jewellers and gives Yorkshire folk the chance to buy pieces they wouldn't find anywhere else in Britain.
Ursula Hofmann's range of unique hand-dyed silk neck and arm ruffles, as well as pom-pom style earrings has flamboyant stamped all over it
"They are just fun and can brighten up anything you are wearing," says Kath.
For those who want to be different, but prefer more simplistic styles, there is also a vast selection of everyday-wear rings, bracelets and earrings in silver, gold, or a combination of the two.
Earrings featured here are stylish clip-ons, but also suitable for those with pierced ears. The earrings, from German goldsmith Anna Gluck's range, are unique because they are hand-formed. Their composition is a mixture of 24ct gold and stirling silver, yet they are comfortably lightweight.
Brooches, the one featured here is a platinum silver heart, can be worn during a daytime function and transformed into a stunning pendant by night for that glamorous occasion.
And this combination set is a bargain, considering you effectively get two for the price of one. This item is £ I 77 for the brooch and you pay an extra £30 for the special torque wire neckpiece to display your pendant.
The torque wire is specially-designed to be invisible, and it comes in different lengths so you can capture different looks from choker-style to drop pendant.
"It is designed to look like the item is floating on your body," says Kath.
Another unique neck-piece is the reversible pendant - a circular design in gold on one side and silver on the other costing £233.
"It helps you to re-invent your own jewellery and gets a fresh look every time you put it on," says Kath.
German designer Barbara Schmidt has also incorporated versatility into her range. Her funky Gordian Knot rings have plastic, coloured inserts which can be matched to the colour of your outfit.
The rings, which are sterling silver, are £87 for a single twist design and the coloured inserts are £4 each.
Says Kath: "They are not going to be to everyone's tastes, but they are for people who want to appreciate something which has been hand crafted."

YORKSHIRE LIFE
NOVEMBER 2001

... Something new
Schmuck
SILVER is just one of the materials featured in 'Schmuck' (trans. 'Jewellery'!), an exhibition of work by five German jewellery designers at the Kath Libbert Jewellery Gallery in Salts Mill, Saltaire.
Libbert already enjoys a reputation for staging bold exhibitions of contemporary jewellery, and this, her first international show will doubtless develop that reputation. Featuring a diverse collection of work by successful, well-established jewellers, pieces range from cutting-edge, conversation-stopping pieces to subtle and simply beautiful creations. The artists have used an eclectic mix of materials, from precious metals and stones to hand-dyed silk, twine and even plastic rings.
Kath Libbert Jewellery Gallery is open daily from l0am to 6pm, telephone 01274 599790

Schmuck

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