L. A. Pai Gallery celebrated 20 years of the annual National Jewellery Student Competition in 2023. The competition is based on technical excellence, ingenuity, and strength of creative vision. One of a kind, production prototypes, jewellery and objects are considered equally. Students from across Canada are invited to compete. The 2023 winner was Rayce Min from NSCAD University.
‘Dog taking piss’ is the way Rayce describes his art practice, because the inspiration for him to create art is that he wants to leave ‘the evidence of his existence’. Rayce has had this idea since he was in high school, when he was making graffiti and tagging all around the city to tell people that he was there. His love of graffiti and making marks led him into jewellery making, as he believes that wearing jewellery is a way of ‘leaving marks on people’.
Originally a puppet, Mr. Trashface was transformed into a wearable piece.