Art and craft reunited is a joy to see and touch

Our culture, to its detriment, has managed to separate the idea of the artist from that of the craftsman. In fact, both activities, traditionally, were linked; in some cultures, they remain so. The metalworker, goldsmith and silversmith Malcolm Appleby reunites these roles seamlessly, making his work difficult to categorise but a joy to behold and touch.

Appleby trained at various colleges in England, including the Royal College of Art, in London, before moving to Scotland in 1969, originally to Crathes and later to Grandtully, Perthshire, where he maintains a thriving business. He has won many prestigious awards and commissions, including a set of ornamental table pieces which he made for Bute House, the official residence of the first minister, in 1999.

Here, Appleby’s skill, craftsmanship and artistry manifests itself in a wide- ranging series of small objects, including bowls, tumblers and various items of jewellery, such as brooches, rings and necklaces. A group of Crystal, Spiral and Star Textured Tumbler Bowls, made of silver with gilt, appears to possess an inner luminosity. Under careful lighting, the gold surfaces exude an exotic warmth while the external silver surfaces, finely engraved with intricate patterning, are thrown into sharp relief. Such objects invite a tactile response; their utility, although imaginable, is far outshone by their inviting aesthetic.

As Appleby’s repertoire has evolved, he has experimented with metals, often combining gold, silver and iron into what he calls “Malkie’s Mix”. The combination, fired at high temperature, allows for the surface to be worked in immense detail.

Over the years he has collaborated with numerous artist-artisans, such as Jane Short. Acid Rain Beaker (2015), with typically acerbic political comment, also shows how Short’s enamelling — in muted greens, blues and earth tones —can be incorporated to create a beautifully subdued abstract composition.

The Catchphrase Beaker series reveals Appleby’s disdain for the meaningless soundbites of politicians. Terms such as “Cool Britannia”, “The Big Society” and other nonsense have been engraved on the small silver and gilt beakers, to great effect. They resemble typographic runic inscription, part décor and part poem, and show Appleby’s gift for transforming the ordinary into the exceptional.

His work seems to improve with age and experience. At 70, he shows no signs of slowing down.

Until January 30