PHILIP NOAKES FIPG
A Passion for Silversmithing
Philip is one of the foremost silversmiths working and teaching in Australia. In recognition of this the Institute of Professional Goldsmith’s in London granted him Fellowship status in 2016. The only Australian fellow, he is a maker of fine hollowware and exquisite jewellery who enjoys being part of the continuum of the age-old traditions of two specialised crafts. He completed the technically demanding full time Diploma in the Design and Craftsmanship of Silversmithing at Sir John Cass College of Art London in 1972 and is a skilled exponent of traditional methods having also gained the City and Guilds of London Institute certificates in 1970 and 1971. After graduation as a prize-winning student, Philip was placed by Goldsmith’s Hall’s curator, Graham Hughes, in the workshop of somewhat unconventional but inspiring Louis Osman (maker of the crown for the Prince of Wales Investiture). Regularly hammering 18ct gold to give a final finish to large objects was a heady affair. The unusual surfaces preferred by Osman were a legacy Philip has carried into his own work.
