Dr Jessamy Kelly

Job title:

Senior Lecturer in Glass and Ceramics

Role:

Head of Subject Area - Design

Jessamy.kelly@ed.ac.uk
07950627264

Office:

5.26, Evolution House

Office hours:

Monday - Friday, 9am - 5pm

Research Output:

Edinburgh Research Explorer link

Biography

Dr Jessamy Kelly is a lecturer in Glass and a practising glass artist based in Edinburgh.

She is the Head of Design at Edinburgh College of Art. This role focuses on the development and management of staff and students within the School of Design as well as the operational and strategic management of the school within ECA. She studied Glass and Ceramics at the University of Sunderland and went on to complete her Masters in Glass at Edinburgh College of Art in 2002. She gained her practice-based PhD at the University of Sunderland in 2009.

Research interests

Glass & Ceramics
Material culture
Contemporary Craft
Digital Technologies
Sustainability

Teaching

Jessamy is the Programme Director of the MA in Craft, where she also instructs a variety of specialised core courses focused on critical making and studio craft practices. She is responsible for creating and leading the "Objects of Desire" elective course, in addition to developing the overall MA Craft Programme.

In her teaching role, Jessamy conducts lectures, seminars, and workshops that explore contemporary craft within its cultural and historical contexts. Her particular craft expertise lies in glass blowing, kiln forming, and glass casting, all of which she incorporates into her studio-based teaching methods. Additionally, she brings a wealth of experience in ceramics across a range of techniques including slipcasting, glazing, slab and hand building technicques. She is specilaised in teaching glass product design and interior architectural glass commissions.

With a commitment to pushing the boundaries of traditional craft, Jessamy strives to guide her students toward innovative and experimental approaches in their studies, helping them to forge new paths in the field of craft.

Research

Jessamy's research interests are focused on materiality, material intersections, new digital technologies and craft processes. Through her practice based research and creative practice she examines the qualities of glass as a medium and its ability to imitate or be mixed with other materials. Her research outputs include papers for leading peer reviewed journals such as the Society of Glass Technology, Glassac and the MDPI Special Arts Edition. She has co-curated a range of exhibitions and events at ECA including the Transition: ECA Glass Alumni exhibition, the North Lands 20 Conference and the annual RAFT research group exhibitions. She has also worked collaboratively on a number of interdisciplinary research projects and as a design facilitator and co-curator for museum-led design projects and exhibitions. Her work has been exhibited widely throughout the UK as well as internationally in France, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and in the United States. She is currently vice chair of the RAFT research group based at ECA and a member of the Society of Glass Technology History and Heritage Panel.