Meet the Makers
London Craft Week creates an opportunity for established and emerging craftspeople to share their stories and make their work available to a larger audience, allowing the unsung artists, makers and brands as much sunlight as the world-famous names.
In our seventh year, London Craft Week 2021 features work and events from over 450 makers. Meet the artists, get close to their work and hear them talk about their creative process and what inspires them in a range of exhibitions, workshops, demonstrations, open studios and online sessions.
We’ve featured a selection of maker profiles and exhibition highlights below.
Lucille Lewin
Before pursuing a career in fine art, graduating from the Royal College of Art in 2017, Lucille Lewin had an influential career in fashion as Founder and Creative Director of Whistles and Creative Director of Liberty. During LCW, join Lucille in conversation with Louisa Buck, contemporary art correspondent at The Art Newspaper, as they discuss Lucille’s new exhibition ‘In Good Company’. Find out more.
Zuza Mengham
Bally Art Haus presents an exhibit of sculptural pieces by London-based artist and designer, Zuza Mengham. Rooted in a preoccupation with abstracted form, materials and their stories, Zuza’s work explores the connection between traditional crafts and new methods of making. Tying together soft layers of colour, the exhibition pieces draw upon the Alpine landscapes where Bally’s heritage is rooted. Find out more.
Geoffrey Preston
Geoffrey Preston is one of the UK’s leading architectural sculptors, specialising in decorative plaster and in particular the art of stucco. His recent work has an emphasis on floral sculpture, taking inspiration in the modelling of flowers and leaves in 18th-century plasterwork and their representation in other decorative arts. Discover Geoffrey’s new works in ‘The Art of Plaster’ exhibition at Sibyl Colefax and John Fowler. Find out more.
Darren Appiagyei
Darren’s work embraces imperfection, placing emphasis on the analysis and malleability of the natural form to create functional, textural objects. Through emphasising knots, cracks and lack of symmetry, each piece is imbued with it’s own individual story: a celebration of difference. Darren’s work is on display at the Garden Museum amongst the plants of the courtyard garden throughout London Craft Week. Find out more.
Dharma Taylor
Dharma Taylor is a multidisciplinary designer and maker with a background specialising in textiles. During LCW, discover an exhibition of one-off pieces Dharma has created exclusively for Paul Smith. Made from solid oak, the woodwork pieces were crafted in memory of Dharma’s great grandfather, a self-taught carpenter, while the textile work takes inspiration from the artist’s childhood memories of sunsets in London. Find out more.
Bill Amberg Studio
Bill Amberg Studio has existed for over 30 years, producing bespoke leather products, interiors and furniture. Bringing together designers and artisans from the worlds of saddlery, case-making, bookbinding and other forms of fine leathercraft, the studio has a mission to explore the aesthetic and material possibilities of leather. Bill Amberg Studio’s works will be on display at the Takumi Townhouse during LCW. Find out more.
Mac Collins
Mac is an emerging British designer who strives to create narrative-rich and experiential work. He has an ongoing focus on materiality and drawing specifically from off-cuts, shapes and textures created by default, as part of the furniture-making process. Discover his collaboration with FLOOR_STORY as part of London Craft Week, where two new, handcrafted rugs are on display at their Shoreditch showroom. Find out more.
Jinno Neko
Jinno Neko is a bamboo craftsperson, papier-mâché artist, illustrator and fashion designer. She uses papier-mâché as a medium, integrating bamboo crafting techniques into her creations and bringing together her passion for Hong Kong folklore and culture. On Thursday 7 and Saturday 9 October, visit Crafts on Peel’s exhibition ‘Imagine the ‘Im’possibilities: Bamboo’ to watch Jinno demonstrate her technique. Find out more.
Exhibitions
Crafting a Difference
Crafting a Difference presents a new show for LCW at the Argentine Ambassador’s official residence, curated by Andrea Harari and Brian Kennedy. The exhibition will bring together over 200 works in ceramics, wood, glass, metal, textiles and paper by over 30 artists carefully selected from the five galleries, Cavaliero Finn, jaggedart, MADEINBRITALY, Ting Ying Gallery and Vessel Gallery. Find out more.
Outside In
Sarah Myerscough Gallery presents their off-site exhibition ‘Outside In’, showcasing art and design pieces by international artist-makers who have made ethical and emotional decisions to use organic materials that connect us to the natural world. These ancient materials – wood, willow and grasses – are reimagined for the contemporary world as the makers express their devotion to nature. Find out more.
Mosaic Works at Layers
SoShiro presents a striking new work in collaboration with Cuban multimedia artist Alexandre Arrechea and the Mosaic School of Friuli, Italy. The handmade modular unit, entitled ‘Collector’, explores the relationship between the human body, architecture and colours, taking inspiration from Arrechea’s native Havana by layering vibrant tones with echoes of the city’s buildings. Find out more.
Unveiled: The Meissen Edition
Esteemed milliners Rachel Trevor Morgan, Edwina Ibbotson and Noel Stewart have worked with the iconic porcelain manufacturer Meissen to curate an exhibition of fine porcelain-inspired hats, hosted by the renowned Thomas Goode & Company. To accompany the exhibition, the curators are leading a pin-making workshop at Thomas Goode on Thursday 7 October, using Meissen porcelain elements. Find out more.
Imagine the ‘Im’possibilities: Bamboo
‘Imagine the ‘Im’possibilities: Bamboo’ is organised by Crafts on Peel and co-sponsored by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (London). Ranging from the established to the emerging, traditional craftsmen and contemporary artisans from Hong Kong, Taiwan and Japan have come together to share their journey in reinventing the craft of bamboo at 180 The Strand. Find out more.
Modernity London
At the newly opened Westbourne Grove gallery in London, Modernity presents its curated collection of rare and unique 20th-century Nordic design and art, in addition to contemporary ceramic works from Alvina Jakobsson and Sandra Davolio, whose studios are based in Sweden and Denmark respectively. Alongside these contemporary works are classic design pieces from Finn Juhl, Hans Wegner, Josef Frank and Paavo Tynell, amongst others. Find out more.
Young Masters
Cynthia Corbett Gallery and Young Masters curator and judge Preston Fitzgerald present a showcase of past Young Masters winners and alumnae as well as new fresh diverse talent. The exhibition takes place at the recently inaugurated Gainsborough Hotel – a hub of contemporary art in the vibrant South Kensington art district. Find out more.
Cracked ft. Troy Town Shop
‘Cracked’, curated by Leonie Mir, is dedicated to hand-moulded ceramics made without the use of a wheel. Join Leonie today for a tour of the exhibition and discover works by emerging and established artists. At the same time, Tristan Hoare is delighted to be hosting the Troy Town Shop. Founded in 2014 by Aaron Angell, Troy Town Art Pottery is a ceramic workshop that provides a home to Hoxton Gardenware, a youth-led not-for-profit enterprise. Find out more.
Calling all Makers
The Sipsmith Founders’ passionate love of gin led to them pioneering the craft gin boom.
In celebration of London Craft Week we are asking you to nominate a Smith who’s passion and love for what they craft should be recognised and championed.
Simply tag them in this post for a chance to win a morning of mentorship with the Sipsmith Founders!
Featured Image: Tessa Eastman by Alun Callender
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