Part B, Hosier Lane during the Steal This Event, 2010. Photo: Gabriel Anderson
Melissa Cameron tells the story behind Melbourne’s radical street jewellery scene of the 2000s.
Early in the twenty-first century, something remarkable happened in Melbourne. Radical jewellers subverted the hierarchy of precious metals as personal capital by creating objects to adorn public spaces. In City Rings (2003), Caz Guiney placed gold rings throughout Melbourne’s CBD for public discovery. Roseanne Bartley created ornament from street refuse, such as paddle sticks, bottle tops and plastic shards left over from car accidents. And in General Assembly, Blanche Tilden and Phoebe Porter enabled wearers to assemble their own brooches inspired by the signage in Melbourne’s car parks.
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- Part B members in Hosier Lane – [L-R, top:] Stephen Robb, Christine Scott-Young, Dianne Beevers, Melissa Cameron, Helen Dilkes, Claire McArdle. [L-R, bottom:] Eufemia Coppi, Jill Hermans, Justine Austen, Tassia Joannides, Lindy McSwan, Mary Hackett. Photo: Gabriel Anderson
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- Melissa Cameron, Steal This invitation, 2010
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- Hands taking a work from a wall in Hosier Lane, set below a Part B business card at the Steal This exhibition, 2010. Coated Steel, magnets. Photo: Gabriel Anderson
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- Dr Mary Hackett setting up her work for Steal This, 2010. Painted Steel, magnets. Dimensions vary. Photo: Melissa Cameron
One of the most remarkable events in this scene occurred in 2010 when a collected called Part B staged a “flash mob” style event in one of Melbourne’s iconic laneways. Using magnets, they attached specially made jewellery to pipes and other metal fixtures for the passersby to take. Bypassing the commercial system, Steal This was a joyful celebration of serendipitous public adornment.
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- Part B, Man Jewellery montage (montage by Melissa Cameron), 2011. Jewels by various Part B artists, as worn by others. Photos: Marc Morel
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- Part B, ManJewellery business card by Eufemia Coppi. 2011
This history of street jewellery is particularly relevant to the current issue of Garland. To learn more, we interviewed one of its key instigators, Melissa Cameron. How did Part B evolve? What does the name mean? What were its other projects? What is its enduring influence?
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