Georgie Brooks on Motherhood and Spontaneity
“My children influence me to be present when I am working and to enjoy the whole process.”
Jeweller Georgie Brooks lives in Melbourne with her partner and two kids, Sunday who is 9, and Louis who is 6.
For Georgie, her children’s spontaneity is a constant inspiration. “Being creative in the present moment always generates fresh and exciting ideas. I love how my kids can just make something from a few scraps of paper and some coloured pencils. That influences me to try to be present when I am working and to enjoy the whole process. To enjoy and learn from a happy accident.”
This theme carries through to Georgie’s jewellery work, where raw materials spark inspiration. A recent example is the ‘Kerensa’ Ring (an old Cornish name meaning ‘love’) featuring a pair of Australian Sapphires that are made to sit perfectly together. Despite this, there is a rawness to the piece. “The cuts of these stones have been informed by the rough gems themselves, so they are completely individual. It’s a little like being a mum: things are kind of perfect, rough, unique, sometimes a bit raw and complimentary all at the same time.”
A recent commission has allowed Georgie to explore this idea more literally: “I’m currently designing two rings that stack together to represent two little girls. The description of the two sisters was ‘complimentary opposites’ so I have taken that as the design brief. The rings will be worn by their mum and then eventually given as heirlooms to the children.”
With a creative and family life that is richly intertwined, it’s no surprise that Georgie also collaborates with her children on art projects. “I am currently making a quilt with Louis – he does the drawings and I embroider his drawings. I made one for Sunny a few years ago and it is like a time capsule.”
Her children also each wear an animal charm that Georgie has made for them: “Sunny has an elephant because she is wise and Louis a little bear because he has so much courage.”
The joy that Georgie experiences with her children is obvious: “I enjoy constant love they show towards us and each other, the belly laughter that happens a lot, their amazingly philosophical questions (“If Beethoven was deaf could he hear bubbles pop?”) their drawings and learning, holidays when we don’t have to hurry, getting burnt porridge with cold tea as breakfast in bed, teaching or explaining things I have known forever to them for the first time and witnessing their complete amazement in a new concept…”
