Gabbee Stolp
( she/her)
I live on the country of the Muwinina people
Photography: Nina Hamilton
Gabbee Stolp grew up in lutruwita/Tasmania. The peaks of the Sentinel Range on the way to Strathgordon and the neon beer mug light on top of the Maypole Hotel in New Town were two of her favourite things.
Gabbee’s artistic practice exists across several mediums, with a primary focus on contemporary jewellery, object-making and textiles. Her works explore human inter-connectedness with nature and examine the current geological epoch, dubbed the Anthropocene, during which time human impacts on the environment have become indelible.
The thoughtful use of natural and sustainable materials is integral to Gabbee’s practice, as is a focus on the processes involved in making. Gabbee constructs pieces predominately through the act of sewing, a gesture she considers to be both nurturing and restorative. With this gesture she aims to remind the wearer of the strength and the value of human tenderness and the depth and vulnerability of our more-than-human world.
In 2016 Gabbee completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts (First Class Honours) at RMIT University, where her major studio area was Object Based Practice/Gold and Silversmithing. Gabbee has exhibited widely throughout Tasmania and Victoria, including recent group exhibitions at MONA and Craft (Craft Victoria). Gabbee was a finalist in the 2021 Women's Art Prize Tasmania and the 2021 Henry Jones Art Prize. Gabbee is a founding member of State of Flux Workshop, a contemporary jewellery and object gallery and studio space in Hobart.
Gabbee currently resides in nipaluna/Hobart, with her partner Tim, her two cats, and a hoard of collected objects and broken sea shells.
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Where did your passion of jewellery and art originate?
I grew up in a very creative family. My mother and my maternal grandmother had a huge influence on me growing up with an interest in home-crafts. Mum was into every crafting trend of the 90s, be it paper-tolle, quilling, folk-art painting, dried flower arranging or embroidery. I followed suit. When I finished school I went straight to uni and started nursing but I never stopped making things. My Mum died just before I turned 25, and I was making a lot of crappy crafty jewellery around that time, I was getting so much out of that that someone suggested I try a TAFE course in jewellery making. I did! And things just grew from there.
What inspires you and your work?
Nature inspires me a lot. I'm interested in how humans interact with, respond to and use nature. I'm also interested in how through memories, we ascribe meaning to places and objects.
I am inspired by materials; The materials I most often use are found-natural objects such as shells, rocks, coal and charcoal. I also collect water from significant places, to use in the process of creating metal works. These materials have deep histories, stories and meanings attached to them and I draw from this to create works that encourage reflection and consideration of the materials themselves and where they are from.
What do you consider to be your greatest achievement to date?
I feel like every time I'm invited to participate in an exhibition, it's a dream! Last year I was very fortunate to get to make some jewellery for Kirsha Kaechelle's Ladies Lounge at MONA. It was a real thrill to see my jewellery in this space, alongside some of my artistic heroes! Some other major highlights have been the group exhibitions 'Shaped' at Craft (Craft Victoria) and 'they tell you which rock they were and how they traveled so far' at Salamanca Arts Centre (in conjunction with Constance ARI).
Being involved in the creation and opening of State of Flux Workshop (contemporary jewellery and object gallery and workshop) along with Anna Weber, Emma Bugg and Jane Hodgetts, has also been a major boost for me. Contributing to the building of a community of contemporary jewellery and object makers in Tasmania, is really exciting.
How has your practice changed over time?
I think my work has always been motivated by a need to make things with my hands as a way of communicating my thoughts. I think over time that I have formed a better, more clear understanding of what I am trying to communicate myself.
When I studied Jewellery Design at TAFE and at Art School, I initially had a real focus on making things wearable and "precious", I was interested in the idea of elevating found natural objects, to make them "more precious". Lately I'm much more interested in giving materials a voice and letting their inherent preciousness be the focal point.
What do you hope your audience gains from your work?
I hope my audience gains a deeper awareness of their own relationships with nature and place. I hope this encourages them to appreciate and take care of nature more.
What is next for you?
Over the past month or so, m
y focus has been very much diverted into my "other job" as a nurse. I hope things settle in the world and I can devote more time to making and to being outdoors. I have an exhibition along with my brother Matt, coming up in September at Moonah Arts Centre. My work for this exhibition will be focusing on silver gulls, why people generally dislike them, and why I think they shouldn't!