“people say that what we’re all seeking is a meaning for life. i don’t think that’s what we’re really seeking. I think that what we’re seeking is an experience of being alive.”
- Joseph Campbell, The power of myth
about
Hannah W Craig is a Canadian artist, jeweller & silversmith based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She holds a BFA in Jewellery Design & Metalsmithing from NSCAD University and a BA in Philosophy & Art History from the University of Winnipeg. Her work focuses on traditional metalsmithing techniques, appreciating these slow skills and the link to history that they provide—a means of energetic connection to a long lineage of ancient jewellery production. Hannah’s work is creatively motivated by a desire to bring an element of the magical and mysterious into the everyday. Her intricate pieces encourage one to find wonder in the commonplace, and to take delight in both the spiritual and material joys of life. Hannah is inspired by jewellery both for its emotional power and its technical challenges; her figurative work is driven by a desire to imbue the subject with the potent energetic qualities of an intensively hand-worked object.
Hannah is drawn to craft practices for the way they connect us to our shared human history and to one another. She specializes in the metal sculpting technique of chasing & repoussé, a method which has existed since pre-historic times and was discovered independently by cultures around the globe. Part of the magic of this technique is the fact that humans have been expressing themselves in this way for thousands of years, and that knowledge has been passed down through so many individual craftspeople. Also trained as a weaver, Hannah’s recent art works have integrated her textiles and jewellery practices, incorporating hand-woven fabrics and ribbons to create large scale wearable jewellery garments. The stewardship of these crafts through both learning and teaching is something she considers to be an important responsibility for artists.
Hannah completed an artist residency at Centre for Craft Nova Scotia as part of the 2022-23 airCRAFT program, and has been creating new work and further studying the techniques of chasing & repoussé and engraving with generous support from Arts Nova Scotia and Canada Council for the Arts. In 2023 she completed an internship with award-winning UK silversmith Miriam Hanid.
Photo by Riley Smith
curriculum vitae
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2017-2022 BFA Jewellery Design & Metalsmithing, NSCAD University, Halifax NS
2010-2015 BA Philosophy & Art History, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg MB
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2025 GO3D Entrepreneurship Program, TEAM Work Coopertive, Halifax, NS
2023 A Journey in Chasing & Repoussé (Workshop), Miriam Hanid, Suffolk, England
2019 Gem-Setting Intensive, George Brown College, Toronto ON
2019 Preliminary Level Certification, Canadian Gemmological Association, Toronto ON
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2024 Professional Development Grant, Arts Nova Scotia, Halifax NS
2024 Professional Development Grant, Canada Council for the Arts, Ottawa ON
2023 Creation Grant, Arts Nova Scotia, Halifax NS
2022 Arthur Lismer Award for Academic Excellence, NSCAD University, Halifax NS
2022 Canadian Silver Society Student Award - Honourable Mention, Silver Society of Canada
2022 NSCAD Student Art Award - Finalist, NSCAD University, Halifax NS
2021 Sandra Alfoldy Memorial Scholarship, NSCAD University, Halifax NS
2021 Nova Scotia Talent Trust Scholarship, Nova Scotia Talent Trust, Halifax NS
2013 Victor Y. Shimizu Kant Prize, University of Winnipeg, Winnipeg MB
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2024 Magpie Jewellery Exchange, New York City Jewelry Week, New York City, NY
2024 SWARM, Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax NS
2024 MAYHEM: Fashion Show, NSCAD Port Campus, Halifax NS
2024 INVASIVE, Chapel Gallery, Annapolis Royal NS
2024 The Nature of Imperfection: Jewelry & Adornment, Society of Arts & Crafts, Boston MA, Virtual Exhibition
2024 The Earring Show, Craft Council of British Columbia, Vancouver BC
2023 Sustainability Through Craft, Mary E. Black Gallery, Halifax NS
2023 in a world of their own , Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax NS
2023 CARVE WIND CHASE , CraftLAIR - Centre for Craft Nova Scotia, Halifax NS
2023 Bring on the Gems , SNAG Virtual Exhibition
2022 Verdant Bodies , Armory Art Center, West Palm Beach FL
2022 Tactile Chronicles: Canadian Silver Society Student Exhibition, L.A. Pai Gallery, Ottawa ON
2022 SNAG Juried Student Exhibition, SNAG Conference, Providence RI
2022 Anthology: A Collection in Bloom, Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax NS
2022 NSCAD Student Art Awards Gala - Finalists’ Exhibition, NSCAD Port Campus, Halifax NS
2022 NSCAD Student Art Awards Gala - Jewellery Department Showcase, NSCAD Port Campus, Halifax NS
2022 ALTAR (Solo Show), Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax NS
2021 Assemblage 2021, Art Gallery of Nova Scotia (Multipurpose Room), Halifax NS
2021 Life is Worth Living (Solo Show in Summer Residency Exhibition), Mary E. Black Gallery, Halifax NS
2019 Starfish Gala - Jewellery Department Showcase, NSCAD Port Campus, Halifax NS
2018 NSCAD: All In!, Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax NS
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2024 Airing the Archives: Craft Nova Scotia Textiles 1974-1986, Mary E. Black Gallery, Halifax NS
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2022-23 airCRAFT Residency, Nova Scotia Centre for Craft, Halifax NS
2021 Summer Professional Development Residency, Nova Scotia Centre for Craft, Halifax NS
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2023 “in a world of their own” Artist Roundtable, Anna Leonowens Gallery, Halifax NS
2023 “Chase: How to Find Joy” Artist Talk, Centre for Craft Nova Scotia, Halifax NS
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2024 "The Nature of Imperfection: Jewelry & Adornment Catalogue" Society of Arts & Crafts, Boston MA
2023 “Crafting is cool again, Nova Scotia studios say” Victoria Welland, CBC News
2022 “Silver Society Student Awards 2022” Anne Barros, Silver Society of Canada Journal