Prisilla Hui, a third-year student at the Ontario College of Art and Design University, is the winner of the 2015 Vaccaro Family Scholarship!
“I have always been passionate about gemstones and jewellery and knew at an early age that jewellery designing was what I absolutely wanted to do,” says Hui. “What draws my creativity are all the intricate details and philosophies of life through my observations; living in the present and capturing the beautiful moments like a kind smile.”
An emerging Canadian jewellery designer, Hui was born in Toronto and resides with her single mother, younger brother and grandparents. Her love of jewellery began when she was given a box of jewellery as a little girl to play with. Her grandmother was her biggest influence as she was a collector of vintage jewellery and gemstones. Everyday afterschool, Prisilla would just look at the box of treasure and admire it until one day, she started to draw some designs. From then on, Prisilla focused on achieving her dream of becoming a jewellery designer.
Hui’s love of art and design led to graduation from Unionville High school with honours and distinction as an Arts York Major. She then went on to pursue her passion by enrolling at OCAD University.
Hui’s design style is elegant, intricate and is often unconsciously inspired by her attraction to the Victorian Era. She draws a lot of her inspirations from her dreams, nature and holistic healing philosophies. Hui often uses old-world techniques such filigree in her work and she crafts her designs using precious metals, semi precious and precious gemstones and occasionally, alternative natural materials.
Back in 2013, Beverly Hills Jewellers and CJ Expos teamed up to announce the creation of a scholarship for outstanding jewellery students – the Vaccaro Family Scholarship.
Now its in second year, the competition continues to receive entries all the way from Vancouver to Halifax with students competing for Canada’s largest scholastic prize for Jewellery Design. This year’s competition theme was ‘Ladies’ Night Out.’
The initial goal of the Vaccaro Family Scholarship program was to attract young individuals with an unrelenting passion for creating jewellery and a drive to succeed in the industry.
This year, the initiative received nine entries from jewellery design and metalsmithing programs across Canada. The pieces submitted were displayed at the CJ Expos exhibits in Toronto and Edmonton and attending retailers were able to vote on and select Hui as the winner.
This scholarship is a great launching point for an aspiring jeweller’s career and an invaluable way to gain exposure and recognition for design and craftsmanship within our industry. CJ
