The kitchen is inspirational. At least it is for jeweller Pauline Bern whose exhibition Strain, Grate, Whisk, Scrub opens at the Dowse on 19 August.

This quirky exhibition examines the complex relationship that contemporary women have with their kitchens.

Bern's imagination creates things of beauty from mundane objects. Strain, Grate, Whisk, Scrub makes a strong statement about everyday life. With wry humour tiny kitchen strainers, sinks, plugs and potato mashers become objects of desire. Dishcloths and potscrubs become medals of survival for today's woman.

Bern's jewellery is about problem solving in everyday life. She says that her work is not about feminist issues, but issues faced by women. Sorrow, loss, triumph and tradition are seen from a woman's viewpoint with humour and irony.

Strain, Grate, Whisk, Scrub is the first major survey of Bern's work, covering nearly twenty years. It is also the first major survey of the work of a New Zealand woman jeweller.

The exhibition has been curated by writer and art commentator Douglas lloyd-Jenkins. The exhibition design, by Aucklander Tanya Wilkinson, puts Bern's work in its context - a kitchen unit.

Pauline Bern began working as a jeweller while in the United States in the late 1970s. She held her first solo exhibition at the Dowse in 1986 and her work was part of the Dowse's jewellery biennale in 1996. The next biennale will be at the Dowse in May 2001.

Bern won the Dowse's $10,000 Thomas Foundation Jewellery Award earlier this year for Scrubber, a piece from the Strain, Grate, Whisk, Scrub series. Scrubber appears in this exhibition made from silver but, thanks to the award, Bern will make it in gold for next year's jewellery biennale.

Strain, Grate, Whisk, Scrub runs from 19 August to 12 November 2000 at the Dowse Art Museum, Laings Road, Lower Hutt.