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Metal Clay Masters Registry

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This blog post was originally written for the London Jewellery School blog which you can read here


The Metal Clay Masters Registry is a structured program of metal clay projects that are independently evaluated. You work at your own pace and on your own to complete the pieces to the specifications of the project. There are fifty projects in all and after you have passed ten you are designated as having attained one level e.g. Masters Registry I, on passing the next ten you have attained Masters Registry II etc.
At the time of writing no one has completed all fifty projects. There are two people in the world who have attained mastery level 4 (passing 40 projects) and they’re both British! They include visiting LJS tutor Julia Rai and Lesley Messam. There are British artists currently at all levels.
What are the categories?
There are fifty projects altogether in five categories (ten projects per category).
The categories are
  • Construction
  • Colour
  • Materials
  • Metal clay and other metals
  • Miscellaneous
There are specific guidelines for each project to tell you what is expected of the piece and you are marked against the criteria.

Why did I join?
I’ve known about the Masters Registry for a few years but have only just joined, primarily to stretch myself and give myself the challenge of following the project guidelines to make things I probably wouldn’t otherwise. Registration isn’t cheap so it is something you need to really consider before taking the plunge.
Julia Rai - cityscape pin

I highly recommend that you have a look at the Masters Registry website to see the types of project that people are making which are inspiring in themselves. I also suggest looking at Julia Rai’s website. She has photographed and written about every piece she has submitted for the registry and also explains about the pieces that didn’t pass and the feedback she received.

The Masters Registry is just that, it is for those who want to stretch out of their comfort zone to try to make things they wouldn’t ordinarily make. I’m already working on some pieces and I know this is going to be a long process with a lot of learning!

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