Open Call for Papers. Involution: Making Jewellery, Creating Change

The conference will run from Friday 4th - Sunday 6th October, with workshops, exhibitions and other events scheduled around that time.

The Jewellers and Metalsmiths Group of Australia have convened biennially since 1980 to celebrate, educate and showcase contemporary jewellery in the region. The Theme: Involution: Making Jewellery, Creating Change captures the entangled pushing and pulling of organisms constantly inventing new ways to live with, and alongside one another. As creatives, we grow and develop within our fast-changing surrounds; we strive to find meaning, construct metaphors, seek comfort, push boundaries, develop narratives and explore relationships. Through our connections we seek to wander outside and beyond our prior limits.

The Conference will bring together practitioners, educators and students, collectors, curators, critics and cultural theorists for two days of discussion, debate, interaction and the exchange of ideas in the Cultural centre of Perth’s CBD. Workshops and exhibitions will run either side of the event over a range of venues.

Submissions are now open for Conference papers, Workshops and Exhibitions addressing the above themes.

Submission Requirements:

• Initial submissions for papers should take the form of a 300-400 word abstract together with a 1-page CV.
• For workshops and/or exhibitions please include a clear and concise outline of your proposed activity and concept; including format, participating artists and required venue and/or facilities.

Selection will be made from the Expressions of Interest received by the due date. JMGA will evaluate submissions addressing the conference theme.

Key Dates:
Deadline for Abstracts and expressions of Interest for workshops: 31st March 2023
Notification of accepted submissions: April 2023


Graduate Metal is a national showcase of recent graduate work and was last held in 2017.  We will be running the exhibition in 2024 and seek expressions of interest from Graduates from any Australian or New Zealand University or TAFE program since 2017-2023. As the tertiary sector has been subject to much change and very affected by Covid, we are seeking to put together a list of potential exhibitors at this time. Please send an email to register your interest, and more information will follow nearer the time.

Anyone wishing to discuss ideas or for more information, we encourage you to contact the committee: jmgaconference2024@gmail.com

Stay up to date with more information as it comes to hand on the JMGA WA website www.jmgawa.com.au