A plate catalogue of the works.

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A pendant from the found-object series incorporating a hand-carved fragment of verdite stone discovered on a hiking trail near Rustenburg. The elongated carved stone form is enclosed by a sterling silver casing with filed-down granulation texture and crowned by a crescent-like silver element. Organic carved motifs move through the stone surface, creating a dialogue between landscape, ornament and contemporary object form.

Trail Relic forms part of a body of work centred on found objects recovered through chance encounter and personal geography. Unlike domestic fragments unearthed in the garden, this piece began with a stone discovered while walking a hiking trail near Rustenburg. The object was not purchased or selected through commerce, but found through movement in the landscape. Its significance therefore lies not only in material presence, but in the memory of place, weather, pace and encounter. The found material is verdite, a stone historically associated with Southern Africa and valued for its carving qualities. Similar to soapstone in workability, verdite invites touch, shaping and slow subtraction. Rather than preserving the stone in its raw state, I chose to carve it, allowing the found object to enter a second life through intervention. The resulting elongated taper suggests seed, tooth, tool, talisman or ceremonial fragment. It resists fixed identity, occupying a space between natural specimen and invented artefact. Carved linear motifs move through the stone surface like roots, vines, waterways or growth channels. These marks were intended to echo patterns found in nature while also suggesting that the landscape continues to write itself into the material. The pendant therefore becomes a meeting point between geological time and human gesture. The sterling silver casing introduces a contrasting material language of refinement and precision. Around the upper section, filed-down granulation creates a softened field of small circular impressions resembling pebbles, rainfall, seed clusters or eroded mineral surfaces. This texture acts as a bridge between the rawness of stone and the polish of metal. The crescent-like silver crown above the pendant adds lift and symbolic tension, suggesting moonrise, horizon line or protective canopy. Conceptually, the work reflects on how place can be carried. A moment on a trail, seemingly ordinary and fleeting, becomes enduring through adornment. The found stone is transformed from overlooked ground matter into an object worn close to the body. In this way, jewellery functions as portable landscape. The piece also considers authorship differently from conventional making. Nature provided the material, chance provided the encounter, and craft provided the transformation. The final work therefore emerges through collaboration between landscape, discovery and hand skill.