About Foundry Collection.
Foundry Collection is the jewellery practice of artist Suzanne Curran. As an artist, teacher and maker her work has been rooted in ethical practice, collaboration and storytelling. With Foundry Collection Suzanne incorporates these values with sustainable sculpture, bridging her contemporary art practice with craft and wearable form.
At the heart of the collection is a simple idea: transformation. Foundry Collection explores how something overlooked can become something treasured, while remaining true to the values of reuse, intention, and longevity.
The Foundry Collection Story.
Suzanne’s intention was to explore Newcastle’s Industrial heritage - it’s past, present, and transformation - while staying true to her values of sustainability and reuse. This led her to Newcastle Foundries, one of the city’s oldest businesses, established in 1890. Suzanne expained her vision to make a sustainable jewellery collection from industrial waste. It was here at the foundries Suzanne discovered the beautuful bi product of the industrial bronze casting process, in the form of bronze metal ‘spill’. Inspiring the Foundry Collection.
One of a Kind Jewellery Sculpture.
The initial shapes are created by chance and then handsculpted. No two are ever alike. There is no mould and no replication, only singular forms shaped by the industrial process then refined through Suzanne’s artistic practice.
Foundry Collection pieces are designed as wearable sculpture: objects that hold texture, history, and evidence of their origin. The raw cast-off metal form remains present, but becomes wearable, balanced, and finished for everyday life.
Authentic Sustainability.
Sustainability is not a marketing layer for Foundry Collection, it’s the foundation. The creation begins with reclaimed material, giving new purpose to fragments that would otherwise be treated as waste. This approach keeps production small, considered, and connected to the source.
Packaging is designed to be practical and gift-ready, using eco-conscious materials where possible - small batch sewn, protective velvet pouches, kraft paper bags and eco boxes, plus a hand written note from Suzanne, each piece arrives safely and beautifully presented.
Suzanne’s practice has long explored how people respond to their environment and surroundings. Human interaction sits at the centre of her work: not only in how her objects are seen, but how they are touched, worn, and lived with.
The collection’s cast-off forms, repurposed into jewellery, hold an inherent history that is continued through use, wear, and storytelling.
About the artist: Suzanne Curran.
Suzanne Curran studied Fine Art at St. Martins School of Art (London), later completing a Master’s in Fine Art (Multimedia) at Cardiff School of Art, and a Postgraduate Certificate of Education from Cardiff Metropolitan University. Much of her artistic practice has been sculptural and human interaction is at the heart of her creative practice. The Foundry Collection presents a unique opportunity for this interaction, not only in the way that each piece carries the traces of its industrial origins but also in how it invites touch, wear and storytelling.
Her jewellery has also been featured on National Welsh Television drama ‘Bregus’.
Stockists
Foundry Collection jewellery is stocked at Newcastle Art Gallery Shop.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Foundry Collection?
Foundry Collection is jewellery sculpture by Suzanne Curran made from reclaimed bronze spill created during industrial casting at Newcastle Foundries (est. 1890), refined into one-of-a-kind wearable sculpture.
Why is each piece one of a kind?
Each piece retains its organic spilled form and is hand-refined by Suzanne.
Where is Foundry Collection stocked?
Foundry Collection jewellery is stocked at Newcastle Art Gallery Shop.