Practice based Research through Generations of Exceptional
Craftsmanship & Design Innovation
Established since 1998, Rajesh Gogna is a fourth-generation Silversmith & Goldsmith who is building on his family’s legacy dedicated to the art and craft of fine Contemporary Silversmithing. Rajesh was born in the UK and comes from the Rajput ‘sunar’ cast of India. His work explores traditional techniques to modern aesthetics.
Latest News
Munich Jewellery Week 2021
8th March- 14th March
BIO
I am a Metalwork Artist & Academic working in Design Craft and Contemporary silver based in the United Kingdom. I graduated from my MA at the School of Jewellery in Birmingham at the turn of the millennium in 2000. Over the past 20 years, I have developed an international reputation for my contemporary silver and have exhibited across the globe in Beijing- China, Finland, Denmark, Netherlands and Germany. My work is in a number of museums and private collections to include Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, National Museum of Wales and The Kamm Teapot foundation in North Carolina. I continue to contribute towards the furtherance of innovative design and critical thinking through my practice and academic research role at De Montfort University in Leicester. I also support the growth and maintenance of the industry by offering my expertise through my voluntary role as the Chairman of Contemporary British Silversmiths (CBS), the leading association for Contemporary Silver in the UK.
Research Themes
‘Tailoring form and function’ beyond materials and aesthetic value through metal narratives. The unzipped series explores the notion of play and interaction through examining a ubiquitous component that binds edges and explores deconstruction in modular/ functional reusable modules in an industrial modern 'avant-garde & kitsch' outcome to 'unzip': to reveal / conceal a work process.
My practice-based research examines functionality, traditional craft and design innovation in silver. The work challenges craft boundaries to influence design innovation and to embrace different contexts and emphasize the materiality of silver and human contact (maker's hand, user's or viewer's hands touching and handling the objects) to elicit re-consumption whilst combining a range of precious and non-precious materials together. The contexts for Jewellery and object are applied to both interior spaces and the body as seen in the Architect Series.