Christine Mackellar Biography

"I could never imagine working a 9-5 kind of job. I enjoy working for myself by myself." 

Christine Mackellar was raised on a large dairy farm in the midlands of England, a perfect preparation for working long hours without immediate gratification. Having grown up alongside evolutionary cycles, such as calves being born and field stubble being plowed under, it was a natural progression for Mackellar to work with materials by manipulating and transforming their nature.

Flat sheets of metal and lengths of wire, Christine will tell you, have infinite possibilities. Her core technique is fusing gold to sterling silver, creating subtle color variations within intricate surface patterns. She textures the surface using hammers, engraving tools and a rolling mill. Gem stones and bimetal elements are used for contrast and punctuation, adding to the infinite possibilities.

Christine Mackellar has maintained a design and production jewelry studio in the Gowanus section of Brooklyn since 1980. From 1991 to 1997 she managed A Show of Hands Crafts Cooperative in New York City, and in 2008 she curated Gowanus Transformations: Celebrating 150 years of Manufacturing at the Brooklyn Historical Society in Brooklyn.

Publications: 500 Art Necklaces, Lark Books (2013) and Mixed Metal Jewelry, Lark Books (2010). She also has appeared in Jewelry Arts Magazine (2010), Instore Magazine (2009), American Style (2004), and Niche Magazine (1997). In 2010, 2011, and 2012 Christine was a Niche Award Finalist. In 1993 she was a Niche Award Finalist in two categories. The Cooperstown Arts Association gave her a Merit Award in 1998 and she created an ornament for the White House Christmas tree in 1993.