Eighteen light candelabra, 1975, is an outstanding example of Stuart Devlin’s larger-scale silverware centrepieces, which resolvedly reflect his sculptural inclinations and innovative filagree work, intended to surprise and delight the viewer. A gift of Krystyna Campbell-Pretty AM and Family, the candelabra introduces a cornerstone of Devlin’s workshop’s expansive range that was not represented in the NGV Collection, sitting alongside his hollowware (vessels such as goblets and wine coolers), ceremonial objects such as his renowned Surprise eggs, 1973–74, tableware and jewellery.
Born in Geelong on 9 October 1931, Devlin commenced art school at fourteen, training for two years in an ecclesiastical metalsmithing workshop before enrolling in a diploma at RMIT in 1977 (gold and silversmithing). Remarkably, he was able to complete the three-year full-time diploma in just one year part time, receiving the highest marks ever awarded and, as a result, was granted a three-year travelling scholarship that enabled him to study at the Royal College of Art, London, for two years. He went on to receive the Harkness Fellowship, which took him to New York for two years, attending Columbia University and lecturing at universities across the United States.
After returning to Melbourne in 1962, the following year Devlin famously won the limited competition to design the first decimal coinage for Australia, which was issued nationally in 1966 and continues to be minted. The opportunity spurred Devlin’s rise to prominence and foregrounded his move to London, as the dyes for his first coins were produced at the Royal Mint in London, requiring Devlin to travel to England for three months.
The small business Devlin established in Clerkenwell, London, in 1965, soon developed into a large and profitable enterprise, incorporating showrooms and workshops in the West End. Through the workshop Devlin parted with the principles of minimalist Scandinavian design that informed his early work, developing a signature style characterised by textured and gilded surfaces that emphasise the richness of the metals from which they are produced. This evolution emerged from Devlin’s decision to begin making work speculatively rather than relying on commissions. His first uncommissioned piece was a sixteen-light candelabra, featuring revolving sockets into which candles could be arranged in several ways and which was acquired by the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths.
Eighteen light candelabra is one the grandest models by Devlin. Hallmarked London 1975 and engraved with Devlin’s signature, it is fabricated in sterling silver and silver gilt. The filigree arms branch into eighteen candle sconces, raised on a hand-beaten turned stem. The pieces created in Devlin’s workshop are all handmade. Works such as the candelabra were painstakingly hammered until the desired shape was formed, and large pieces may have to be annealed over forty times, taking up to 200 hours before planishing the surface. Polishing to this scale required between 50–100 hours and was handled by expert polishers.
Devlin’s workshop operated through to 1989 and its work was collected and celebrated internationally. In 1980, he was made an officer of the Order of Australia on the Birthday Honours List and in 1982 he was granted the Royal Warrant of Appointment as Goldsmith and Jeweller to Her Majesty the Queen. Beyond the workshop and before his passing in 2018, Devlin designed coins and medals for thirty-six countries across the world, notably coins for the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Between 1996 to 1997, he was Prime Warden at the Goldsmiths’ Company, leading the founding of a training facility for apprentices and designers, which he worked on from 2005 to its opening in 2012 – an initiative that reinforces his lifelong dedication to excellent craftsmanship and design.
Sophie Prince is NGV Curatorial Project Officer, Australian and First Nations Art. Stuart Devlin’s Eighteen light candelabra was generously donated by Krystyna Campbell-Pretty AM and Family through the Australian Government’s Cultural Gifts Program.
This article first appeared in the March–April 2024 edition of NGV Magazine.