9 - A contemporary Britannia silver beaker.

A contemporary Britannia silver beaker. Rod Kelly, London, 1996. The rounded beaker chased in low relief with leaves and fruiting branches, the interior gilded, 8.3cm high, approx. weight 4ozt Footnote: Rod Kelly (b.1956) is one of Britain’s foremost silversmiths, renowned for his mastery of low-relief chasing and the artistry of his vessels. Trained at Glasgow School of Art and the Royal College of Art, Rod is now based in Shetland, where he draws inspiration for his work from the weather and the wild landscapes of the natural world around him. His work is held in numerous public and private collections, including the V&A Museum, the National Museum of Scotland, The Fitzwilliam Museum and the Ashmolean Museum. His numerous commissions include ecclesiastical silver for St Paul’s, York Minster and Lichfield Cathedral, a cup for the Golden Jubilee Stakes at Ascot and a silver and enamel dish for the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. Rod Kelly describes himself as ‘meticulous’ and ‘endlessly patient’; attributes that lend themselves to the art of chasing. “Chasing as a technique is very slow”, he explains, “it’s not immediate. A beaker, for example, would take me seven or eight days and I’m very happy with the sort of pace.”