Muriwai Arts Trail 2010
Alan Preston
Alan Preston is a leading contemporary New Zealand jeweller, and co-founder ofAuckland jewellery store, Fingers. A penchant for wearing exotic jewellery grew into a career for Alan Preston, after a short-course in the artistic playground of Camden, London. Upon his return to Auckland in 1973, he juggled a career as a wharfie and jeweller before founding the Lorne St store, Fingers, with a group of friends and colleagues. A move towards greater experimentation with different materials in the jewellery scene, such as Perspex, rubber, in the 1970s coupled with a trip to Fiji, propelled Preston to create jewellery that was uniquely ‘home-grown’. Preston holds a masters in Psychology and this Lower-Hutt boy has since carved a successful career for himself producing jewellery from materials sourced from New Zealand and the Pacific. In 2006 Preston was the first recipient of the Deane Award for Decorative Arts which is open to all New Zealanders. Preston has won the Best Craft Design at the DINZ Best Design Awards in 1992, a Creative Development Grant from the QEII Arts Council in 1993 and a Presentation, Promotion Audience Development Grant from Creative New Zealand in 2007. His current inspiration is his place of residence, Muriwai Beach.
