Nancy Pickard

Fine Artist & Jeweller

Born 1963 in Sao Paulo, Brazil
Educated at Herm Island School, Channel Islands
The Ladies’ College, Guernsey,
Central school of Art, London and
Cardiff Art College.
Although she always drew and painted as a child, Nancy studied ceramics for the main part of her degree at art college. She worked as a community artist and part-time art lecturer whilst showing her ceramics nationally between 1986 and 1993: even having a solo show of her work at Contemporary Ceramics in London.

After the birth of her two children, continuing with ceramics had to be abandoned for a while: how do you manage a 9 hour firing with toddlers around? After some years of experimentation with drawing and computer based arts, concurrently with her role as co-ordinator of Women’s Arts Wales, a community arts charity in Cardiff, she moved to Cornwall in the hope of getting back to making her own work.
Nancy Pickard now lives and works in St Just, Britain’s most westerly town, perched on the cliffs between St Ives and Penzance, the rugged and unspoilt scenery has had a huge effect on her drawing and painting – but she has also developed a new interest in art jewellery: Nancy’s preoccupation with shapes, colour and texture has re-invented its self in enamelled copper and silver jewellery. The work is fired in a small kiln at 800 degrees centigrade – now firings last only two minutes!
Nancy enjoys combining different materials such as natural stones, shells and metals to make really unusual pieces which are now exhibited all over the UK and abroad. Themes from her paintings: shapes, rhythms and colour schemes, can be seen again in her unique jewellery and she often exhibits the two together so that the relationship can be seen.