Lucie Davis Reimagines Retail Tags as Enamel Pins
Artist Lucie Davis transforms disposable retail price tags into wearable copper and kiln-fired enamel pins exploring material value.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Lucie Davis creates the Precious Price Tag Pins collection
- Familiar retail sticker labels turned into wearable art objects
- Combines laser engraving with traditional kiln-fired enamel
- Explores object value and consumer culture through craft
Artist Lucie Davis has transformed familiar retail price labels into wearable and collectible objects through her latest series, Precious Price Tag Pins. Following her viral Oyster card acrylic nails project, the new body of work examines how value can be reassigned to overlooked everyday items through material transformation, repetition, and traditional craft techniques.
The production process begins with metal cutouts laser-engraved with the graphic details of standard price labels. These copper pieces are then finished with vitreous enamel and fired in a kiln to achieve a permanent, glossy surface. During the firing stage, the designer deliberately experiments with varying temperatures and times, creating unique shifts in color, texture, and finish driven by the unpredictability of the kiln.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
Before firing, the corners of the copper pieces are hammered to introduce small deformations that mimic a sticker peeling away from a surface. The project itself originated from Davis's experience working in a shop during her university years, where repetitive exposure to price tags highlighted printing marks, creases, and bends that are now meticulously reproduced in the metal and enamel objects.
This project offers a compelling commentary on modern consumer culture by elevating disposable, mass-produced ephemera into durable, collectible art pieces. By shifting material permanence, Davis encourages audiences to rethink the hidden beauty within everyday objects that are typically discarded without a second thought.
Each pin features laser-engraved copper with kiln-fired enamel, completed with a silver-plated tie tack pin and clasp. Because of the variations in the engraving, metal manipulation, and firing process, no two pins are identical, ensuring each piece carries a distinct surface texture and individual character.
"Precious Price Tag Pins transforms the familiar price label, an everyday symbol of consumer culture, into a series of wearable and collectible objects."
Lucie Davis
Source: designboom
Found something wrong in this article? Report an issue with this article
Comments
Leave a Comment