Very Little Common Ground (pendant) (2019)

Jonathan Boyd explores how jewellery should be regarded as a sociopolitical art form. Because jewellery can go beyond the gallery wall or display case, it has a special position in allowing both the maker and the wearer to have an interaction in public space. In this way, it becomes more of a performance than something purely aesthetic.

Very Little Common Ground is part of a series of works containing words and text used by politicians, the press and political commentators during the EU referendum in the UK. It was made to reflect the overload of information that typically results in conflicting and confusing ideas. The title refers to how little the thoughts and comments from two opposing journalists on the situation – one from the right and one from the left – merged. Therefore, the pendant reflects the conflict and divisions within the country and society by showing the journalists’ lack of crossover. Boyd felt that on both sides of the Brexit campaign, our cultural identities were being changed and manipulated by the language used by individuals in positions of authority

This piece is an example of how jewellery is used as a catalyst for a shared dialogue between the maker, wearer and viewer on current affairs. As jewellery is often a symbol of wealth when it becomes a political medium, this is a unique form of satire. National Museums Scotland already have a small collection of political jewellery including the Holloway Prison Suffragette brooch from  around 1909 (K.2021.4), David Poston’s Slave Manacle (1975, Sera Park Choi’s Stay Home (2020) (K.2021.5) and Jo Garner’s set of 5 brooches Crafting a Divide (2017) (V.2022.300.1-5). Very Little Common Ground (2019) will enhance this collection by representing a significant present-day political event. 

This image may be shared and re-used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives licence (CC BY-NC-ND). Any further use will need to be cleared directly with the rights holder.

Read our copyright policy for more information.