Standard Setters: Michael McCrory
Prizing Craft
Eleanor Flegg discusses the work of Michael McCrory, chosen by a panel of experts on behalf of the Crafts Council of Ireland to recognise consistency in design excellence



It is a popular misconception that the craftsperson is a Luddite, wedded to materials and techniques that properly belong in the past, and eschewing the technologies of the 21st century. The silversmith Michael McCrory is a case in point. Although silversmithing requires skills that our ancestors would have used thousands of years ago, McCrory has combined these with contemporary engineering and computer technology to bring this traditional craft to a new level.

McCrory has been working in silver since he graduated from Belfast College of Art in 1965 and began an academic career when he started lecturing in silversmithing and jewellery at the Ulster Polytechnic/University of Ulster in 1967. In 1996 he took early retirement from the post of Head of the School of Fine and Applied Arts, which he had held since 1990. This was the starting point for a new direction in his work. 'I decided then that I would do the work that I want to do. This is completely different from doing what other people want. Silverware to me has to be aesthetically pleasing, with a sculptural visual strength. My designs are founded on a balance of line, form, and proportion which harmonise with the detail in the tactile finished pieces.

Having developed an interest in the area of press forming silver, he purchased a hydraulic press in 2000. In 2002 McCrory was awarded a Major Award from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland to develop his work. He used part of this award to travel to California to visit Lee Marshall at Bonny Doon Engineering. Marshall had pioneered the use of a hydraulic press in silversmithing, a technique which McCrory was to learn from and develop in a slightly different direction. 'You can use the press to make things that would be very difficult to make by hand,' McCrory explained. 'It also allows me to work much more quickly. What used to take two to three days can now be done in half a day or less. This has to be calculated against the cost of developing the technique and making all my own press tools, which took time and money.' The press, however, is no substitute for the traditional silversmithing techniques, which are used in combination with the new technology.

Also as part of the Major Award, McCrory began to experiment with computer aided design. 'Up until then I had been relying on my drawing skills. I looked at a range of different programmes and eventually settled on one called Cinema 4D, which I've been using ever since. The computer has been a revelation for me – it's revolutionised how I work. I can use the drawings that I create on the computer to create a lot of the forms, although there are elements that have to be done by eye.

The catalogue of McCrory's work to date is impressive. In 1997 he was commissioned with his wife, Deirdre McCrory, to create the Presidential Heraldic Shield of Mary Robinson for Dublin Castle. Two years later he was adviser to the Scottish Office on the design for the new mace to be presented by the Queen to the Scottish Parliament. In 2006 he participated in 'Silver Connections', an exhibition that combined the work of three artists from one family. McCrory was joined by his wife, Deirdre McCrory who works in enamel and print, and their daughter, the silversmith Cara Murphy. All three were selected for Portfolio in 2006. Other notable projects include a patent for a break free fishing lure; designing and making the prototype for a device to stop cross infection of contaminated injection needles. The latter design was awarded the British Design Council Award

For further information see www.michaelmccrory.com