Blister Pepper Mill
Silver and enamel, 8 x 8 x 12cm
Photographer, David Pauley
Blister Enamelled Candle Sticks
Silver and enamel, 10.6 x 10.6 x 18.5cm
Photographer, David Pauley
Prickly Pear Salt and Pepper Mills
Silver and sycamore wood, 6 x 6 x 12cm
Photographer, David Pauley
Enamelled Small Blister Box
silver and enamel, 6.5 x 6.5 x 4.5cm
Enamelling by Deirdre McCrory
Photographer, David Pauley
Pimple Bowl, salt
silver and enamel, 8.2 x 8.2 x 4cm
Enamelling by Deirdre McCrory
Photographer, David Pauley
Prickly Pear Bowl, salt
silver and enamel, 8.5 x 8.5 x 4cm
Enamelling by Deirdre McCrory
Photographer, David Pauley
Michael McCrory
Michael McCrory’s designs are founded on a balance of line, form and proportion, which harmonise with the detail in the tactile finished pieces. Deep drawing, press forming silver and computer-aided design bring the traditional craft to a new level. His inspiration comes from natural and manmade objects, museums and archaeological sites.
Interest in the growth, surfaces and textures of plants has led to the development of forms using the ‘Prickly Pear’, ‘Blister’, and ‘Pimple’ surface decoration. These surfaces with their textured finish also have an added function in hiding fingerprints, visible on highly polished silver. McCrory makes his silverware through a combination of hand raising and deep drawing with the hydraulic press. He has incorporated colour into numerous pieces by collaborating with his wife Deirdre McCrory, utilizing her expert enamelling skills. In recent pieces, silver is paired with turned wood creating an elegant contrast in colour and texture.
McCrory lectured in Silversmithing & Jewellery at the University of Ulster from 1967 – 1996 and served as Head of School of Fine and Applied Arts until 1996. He works mainly to commission and is a member of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths, London.
Collections
British-Irish Intergovernmental Council, Northern Ireland
Lisburn Museum, Antrim
National Museum of Ireland, Dublin
Ulster Museum, Belfast
V&A Museum, London, UK
Numerous private collections nationally and internationally
Selected Awards
2013
Travel Award, Arts Council of Northern Ireland
2011
Support for the Individual Artist Programme from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland (also 2008 and 2005)
Selected Exhibitions
Group Exhibitions
2017
Narratives in Making, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny
2015
Side by Side, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny; Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris, France
PORTFOLIO @ Solomon: Metals and Stone, Solomon Fine Art, Dublin
Bravura 2015, Blue Egg Gallery, Wexford
John Higgins Contemporary Silver, Lindfield, UK
The Irish Connection, The Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland
2014
The McCrory Family, Scottish Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland
Hopeaa & Emalia, The Craft Museum of Finland, Jyväskyla, Finland
2013
COLLECT, Saatchi Gallery, London, UK
Hopeaa & Emalia, Hoyry Galleria, Korpilahti, Finland
Future Beauty?, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny; Farmleigh Gallery, Dublin
ICON, Brown Thomas, Dublin
2012
PORTFOLIO, RHA Gallery, Dublin
2011
ACNI Contemporary Art in Northern Ireland, Parliament Buildings, Belfast
PORTFOLIO, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny; Farmleigh Gallery, Dublin; RHA Gallery, Dublin
Thirty, Flowerfield Arts Centre, Derry
2010
C3 Collecting Contemporary Craft, CraftNI, Ulster Museum, Belfast
Objects of Light, Danish Museum of Art & Design, Copenhagen, Denmark
PORTFOLIO, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny; Farmleigh Gallery, Dublin; Kenny Gallery, Galway
2009
Designers & Makers 2009, F.E McWilliam Gallery, Banbridge, Down
White Christmas, Naughton Gallery, QUB, Belfast
Design Collection 2009, Roger Billcliffe Gallery, Glasgow, Scotland
Silver with a Pinch of Salt, Goldsmiths’ Hall, London, UK
2008
PORTFOLIO, Bluecoat Display Centre, Liverpool, UK
You’ll Never Walk Alone, National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny
2007
Making Changes: Contemporary Craft in Northern Ireland, Ormeau Baths Gallery, Belfast; Millennium Court Arts Centre, Armagh
Made in Northern Ireland: A Dynamic of Change, The S. Dillon Ripley Centre, Washington DC, USA
Contact Details:
Michael McCrory
Hillsborough
Down
BT26 6AW
T. +44 (0)28 9268 3014
E. michael@michaelmccrory.com
www.michaelmccrory.com