“I am interested in the subtlety and transformative nature of silver as a drawing material. I began with drawing, painting and etching - my work in intaglio printmaking led me to engraving and working with precious metals. Through forming, chasing and engraving a drawing can transcend the page, playing out across the surface of silver.”

Anna Ólafsson MFA (DJCAD) is a British-Icelandic artist and designer based in the Scottish Borders. Working across the fields of drawing, painting, printmaking, etching and engraving, she makes artworks from metal, paper and light, inspired by the natural world.

She trained in metalwork and hand engraving with the celebrated engraver, designer, jeweller, goldsmith and silversmith, Dr Malcolm Appleby MBE FRSE, at his workshop in Grandtully, Highland Perthshire. Anna’s studies were generously supported by the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers, The Hand Engravers’ Association and the Walter Craig Charitable Trust, Dundee.

In 2024 and 2025 Anna was awarded a month-long fully funded scholarship with renowned silversmith and designer Rod Kelly to study the arts of chasing and silversmithing, supported by the South House Silver Workshop Trust.

Anna is a current artist in residence, working from South Studio at the Hugo Burge Foundation, Greenlaw, Duns, The Scottish Borders.

Anna was the 2025 winner of The Silver Society Prize and was recently awarded highly commended in the 2026 John Ruskin Prize.