Jacqueline Mina OBE  is a highly celebrated contemporary goldsmith and jewellery designer, known to be a pioneer in experimenting with textures and sculptural forms in precious metals. She was born in Buckinghamshire, 1942, and studied at the Royal college of Art. After graduating in 1965, she remained a visiting lecturer for 22 years, where she continued to share her passion, and often unorthodox approaches towards her craft. Today, she is well regarded in the world of goldsmithing for her experimental jewellery making techniques, as well as her distinct approach to form.  

Some of Mina’s most popular pieces involve her signature  ‘fusion inlay’ of platinum and mesh and gauze into gold, a technique she, herself, developed. One of her pieces, dated to 1984, bears the first ever hallmark for combined 18ct gold and platinum. Her work is often varied in texture, and structural in shape. She cites the ‘abstraction of nature and art’, and the ‘dialogue between inner and outer planes’ as key influences, with the surface of precious metals as a major preoccupation. 

Lot 142: Jacqueline Mina. An 18ct gold stylised brooch, with scalloped edge, to scroll catch, London hallmarks, 1980
Estimate: £200 - £300

Awards and accolades

Mina’s revolutionary approach to jewellery has not gone unnoticed; the admiration of her craftsmanship by the jewellery world has also led to her collecting a number of awards. In 2000, she won the Jerwood Prize for Applied Arts, with the judges praising her for her ‘consistent innovation and a significant contribution to contemporary jewellery’. She was later also awarded an OBE for services to art in 2012.

Exhibitions of Mina’s work

Her work has been exhibited nationally on numerous occasions. Notably,  the Goldsmith Company paid tribute to her work through their ‘Dialogues in Gold’ exhibition in 2011. This was later follows by ‘Touching Gold’, an exhibition which toured the UK. She also has a piece on display in the Victoria & Albert Museum, the National Museum Scotland, and the Smithsonian Design Museum, amongst others.