A cult jeweller and rising star of the art world, Leo Costelloe’s delicate metal and glass pieces tap into the coquette aesthetic, and explore femininity and queerness
- Who is it? Leo Costelloe is an Australian-Irish artist who makes jewellery and artwork in London
- Why do I want it? Hand-forged jewellery and art objects referencing hyper-feminine shapes such as ribbons, bows, cutlery and dolls
- Where can I find it? Private commissions via the brand’s website and via Dover Street Market New York, plus several art galleries in 2024
Who is it? “I know that bows, ribbons, these feminine objects are part of the coquette aesthetic, whatever you want to call it, right now,” jeweller and artist, Leo Costelloe, tells AnOther at a Dalston cafe, their Aussie accent softened by years in London, “but I’ve been making these shapes since uni.” The artist grew up all around Australia, from Uriarra to Sydney and Perth. Costelloe’s Australian mother split from their Irish father and worked for the government while making art on the side – she’d studied bio art and made taxidermy among other things. After moving to London aged 19, Leo took on their own dual lifestyle, first working for a fashion stylist, then becoming a florist by day – “there’s a lot of florists in my family,” they say – for six years, while exploring queer east London by night, gogo dancing and doing drag.
Having witnessed friends graduate from arts courses “without having learnt many skills”, Costelloe, who is more smiley and relaxed than their slightly sombre work might suggest was wary of studying fine art, although they were always creating work. Eventually, “I chose BA Jewellery at Central Saint Martins,” they say. “I knew the course was relatively open, and would teach me metalworking skills and good material knowledge.”
Even their undergraduate work had a clear style. “I worked a lot with hair, silver, and base metals like brass and copper. I used textile techniques – knitting and weaving,” they explain, pulling up a photo of a delicate set of lingerie woven from copper wire. “I chose hyper-feminine motifs as a way of subverting them, by making them out of metal – exploring my own queer identity,” they explain. This still informs their work; delicate bows, ribbons, dolls and found objects like cutlery. “I’m known for bows, but I always want to move forward.”
During Covid, short of floristry work and money, they started selling pieces via Instagram, and have since built up a devoted following, selling one-off commissions to collectors, while exhibiting in art galleries, and even dabbling in film.
Why do I want it? Costelloe’s delicate, “traditionally feminine motifs” with an otherworldly, historical feel – from bows to dolls to ribbons and combs – seem as though you could stumble across them in an antique shop, or grandma’s attic, if your grandma was a Tim Burton character, at least. This “haunted Victorian child” or “coquette aesthetic” style feels very current, like Lana Del Rey’s romantic aesthetic – a Costelloe fan and Instagram follower herself – or the imagery for Yorgos Lanthimos’s Poor Things, which matches Costelloe’s decorative energy.
A glass bow sculpture so delicate it’s almost unreal (Costelloe undertook a residency with Andrea Spencer, an artist who works with glass) is purely ornamental, whereas delicate woven and chain silver bow necklaces, rings and headpieces are wearable. Other objects, though not technically jewellery, like a shining, twisted silver fork and spoon “are still functional” says Costelloe; “you can eat with them”.
Their work is regularly exhibited in art galleries, with several exhibitions planned in 2024. “The art world operates differently from the fashion world,” they explain. “For fashion, you’d want to produce things in larger quantities, whereas with art, scarcity is more important. Everything is hand-forged and one-of-a-kind. There’s no factory, where we’re opening hundreds of moulds of things.”
Their latest piece isn’t jewellery or sculpture, but a short film that’s screening in London this week. Costelloe may be feted by the art and fashion worlds alike, but they’re showing no sign that they’re ready to be pigeon-holed.
Where can I find it? Private commissions via the brand’s website and via Dover Street Market New York, plus several art galleries in 2024.
Leo Costelloe is part of the group exhibition, The Blush Upon Her Cheek at West Gallery in London, which is on show until February 22. They will screen Beautiful Bride in the City, with an artist’s talk at Kupfer Project in London, on February 15.
