Sebastian Cilento studied sculpture and painting at East Sydney Technical College before travelling to New Mexico in 1995, where he spent six years learning silversmithing and lapidary work under a master jeweller outside Santa Fe. The years in New Mexico, working with high-grade American turquoise and studying early to mid twentieth century Native American jewellery, shaped the design vocabulary he has worked with since. He returned to Sydney and has been making jewellery from his studio here for over two decades, working in sterling silver and gold set with high-grade turquoise, carnelian and other semi-precious stones. His hallmarks are stamped 925, with a kangaroo and anchor. The design range covers rings, cuffs and bracelets, earrings, necklaces and pendants, across named collections including the Badlands, the Swell, the Split Shank, the Border and the Trader, each with its own form language drawing on Art Deco, mid-century American industrial design and early Native American silverwork. Pieces are made by hand in Sydney.
