Auckland-born Emily Siddell began working with kiln-formed glass while studying Jewellery and Glass design at Carrington Polytechnic (UNITEC).

Her interest in contemporary glass and jewellery has led to her kete work, oversized glass and ceramic necklaces, leis and garlands. These works reflect the influence of Māori and Polynesian culture which is such an integral part of the Auckland community and has been hugely important in generating her own identity as an artist in the Pacific.

Siddell combines kiln-fused glass, beads, ceramics, and occasionally flax and woven fibres in her work which is often sculptural in form and scale. She considers most of the work jewellery, insisting that jewellery does not necessarily have to be worn, but can exist as an object in its own right.

In recent years she has been exploring the ceramic side of her practice, translating the use of ‘wild clay’ (hand-dug local clay) to an urban Auckland context; continuing her interest in ideas of reuse.

Siddell’s work is held in numerous private and public collections including Auckland War Memorial Museum;  the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa and the collections of the Wallace Arts Trust and the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

‍