Author: Raf Malanga

One moment in the raftered attic workshop above a historic shop in St. James’s learning how the hundreds of small feathers gracing a hat soon to be worn at Ladies Day at Royal Ascot must each be painstakingly placed by hand and individually sewn (no glue for this remarkable national treasure of a milliner). The next at COLLECT gazing with awe into deep depths of a contemporary glass bowl so blue so serene that one could have plunged in; a truly stunning museum-quality work of art whose effortless beauty belied the sweat, technique or genius that went into its making. Or Saturday morning on the Pimlico Road learning how to play (and losing) an impromptu game of Chinese chequers on a board hand-made from Kentish oak that came down in the Great Storm of 1987.

Grayson Perry caught something of the spirit of the last few days when opening London Craft Week on Wednesday, he evoked the ‘relaxed fluidity’ of the happiness of a maker at work or the hard-to-pin down but very human relationship a craftsman has with the material he is shaping, carving or blowing.

But maybe best I leave the last words to two people I met while zigzagging across London. Ndidi, a creative from an ad agency who told me: ‘From today I am a collector. I just had no idea it was so easy or affordable to buy or commission such beautiful things from such talented artists’. And Jake, a twenty-something city-type who said wryly; ‘it’s a bit embarrassing how little I knew or thought about the difference between hyped-up high end stuff and these (cradling a pair of half-finished shoes). Never again..’

Previous Newsletters with top picks of the week
10 May 2015- Robin Wood
9 May 2015-Fashion
8 May 2015- Designers
7 May 2015- Daniel Charny
7 May 2015- Peter Bazalgette
4 May 2015- Frances Sorrell
29 April 2015- Grant Gibson
21 April 2015- Charles Saumarez Smith

Luke
Saturday began with a team catch up over some breakfast early in the morning in Farringdon before we all split up to cover our various duties for the day. Running the social media for a project like this means you’re often married to your computer and mobile phone being as reactive from a remote location as you can to all the flurry of activity across the internet. London Craft Week has been a joy to work on though as I have also been sent to events and exhibitions around the capital to report live and meet the people involved face to face, it’s been the perfect example of how the virtual world of social media and real first hand interactions meet.

My brief but enjoyable encounter for Saturday was to pop into the Crypt Gallery and take in the Make Create exhibition. A cavernous underground setting that feel like it ought to be filled with the interned bodies of noblemen of another century is instead home to an odd assortment of art such as a golden brick gleaming in a polystyrene wall and a doll being clawed at by terrifying clay hands. This exhibition was certainly one of the more left-field things I’d seen at LCW15.

The rest of my day was spent where I could get reliable WIFI and putting my self dead centre of the murmuration of tweets that were flying around the twittersphere and watching the week come to life in the words of the craftsmen and the audience London Craft Week had brought to them.

Marieke

First stop was the RSA Innovation Hub at Fab Lab London. I never knew anything like this existed, what a fantastic resource that anyone can go and use, with 3D printing machines, laser cutters and the like. I used the laser cutter to etch a glass jar, and fashioned a necklace out of old computer parts- felt very creative!

Next up was Wyvern Bindery, a gem of a shop in Clerkenwell, where we had the opportunity to gold foil and stamp our own bookmarks, much harder than it looked.

Lots of fun but had to scoot over to Knightsbridge, where I joined the Crafting London- Sloane Street tour with the lovely Penelope from Fox and Squirrel, visiting Louis Vuitton, Fendi and Smythson to learn more about the craftsmanship of their signature products.

Itala
Gemma Kay Waggett was set up on the ground floor of Heal’s with a group of London Craft Week visitors around a table who were listening eagerly and asking plenty of questions about the craft of screen-printing.  I recognised a lady I had met the previous day at Linley and she had already spent her day productively, attending a number of events and making a purchase at the Cox + Power Open House that morning.

Gemma demonstrated how she creates her signature geometric prints and sensing all of our curiosity she invited us to each have a go at making our own printed notebooks using her design on the front cover.  Many of the guests had backgrounds in textiles and therefore particularly deft hands and printing.  Sadly, I could not say the same for myself!  Nonetheless, the passionate maker reminded us that the subtle differences between each print is what makes them special and differentiates them from mass produced objects which are often just churned out in factories and this is what London Craft Week is about.  Meeting the makers behind these carefully made crafts and experiencing the making process for ourselves, gives one the opportunity to understand the amount of skill and patience it takes to produce them and from the positive reception received, I am certain that many visitors will be considering taking up the craft themselves.

Mark
Morning started with a fascinating talk on Bleigiessen, the Heatherwick Studio installation at The Wellcome Trust by Stuart and the two glass artists who worked on the project: Max Lamb and Peter Jones. The piece at 29 metres tall and constructed from 26,732 cables under tension and 142,070 glass spheres is stunning.
On then to watch one of the masters from Dovecote Studios in Edinburgh demonstrating tapestry weaving in front of the huge Kitaj tapestry at the British Library.

Then to QEST and the Griffin Gallery’s show at the Crypt. An eerie place. The star piece in my book was Carrie Ducker’s 200+ steps. At F&M lovely to see the eponomous Michael Ruh (the subject of BBC4’s wonderful Make:Glass released last week) in Crafted’s show.

On then to CAA’s wonderful pavilion in Southwark. Bravo to the Arts Council for helping them out!
Then back north to Trunk’s welcoming store and Japanese belt master Takaharu Osako and their delightful neighbours, the jewellers Cox & Power.

Home for a couple of hours to The New Craftsmen to sing the praises of the stunning Made of Mayfair collection and then down to our amazing installation with Floris in “The Mine”. Quite the coolest place I’ve been to at Craft Week! Well done Floris and Katharine May.

Finally off to Sarah and Gerard Griffin for what was THE evening of Craft Week. Their home contained the who’s who of all the best of British Craft – in form and in person. Lovely to meet up with Sam and Valerio from Gallery Fumi and to catch up with Marthe Armitage and Julian Stair to name just a few. Sarah, Gerard you are stars!

Marieke
Made in Clerkenwell at Craft Central, and Cockpit Arts Open Studios both provided plenty of great opportunities for the photo shoot today.

Saw the talented Helen Beard doing her ceramic decoration demonstration, and managed to control my urges to buy everything, and came away with just a vase, bowl and earrings!

Marieke
‘My day started at Vacheron Constantin, where I had the great pleasure of watching their master watchmakers at work, including Selynn Blanchet, who taught me how to carefully handle the tiny screws using tweezers and a screwdriver. Next stop was Mulberry on Bond Street, where there was a palpable sense of excitement in the air, as I saw hoardes of tourists walking the street clutching their LCW guides. Mulberry was buzzing, with a queue of people waiting to have a go at making their own persoanlised leather bracelets. I made one for everyone in the team! I jumped in a cab and headed over the Rachel Vosper, where we had a wonderful time making scented candles. I met Karen and Karen from David Collins Studio, who told me all about how their team were experiencing all the LCW events, and meeting up at the end of the day to share their experiences, inspirational. Karen says ‘You guys are doing great work for London Craft Week, and the studio is buzzing with excitement.’ I also met Matthew, who just handily happened to be a photographer, and bought his camera along to capture him making a candle for his daughter Ella Rose. He choose the Rose and Magnolia scent- very fitting’

Itala
‘Lock and Co’s event was really informative, I met their milliner Sylvia Fletcher, who explained the intricacies of hand stiching each hat, I loved the floral black hat with petals. Next up was Ormonde Jayne, where Linda Pilkington was on hand to greet her guests with Nyetimber and chocolates. Guests were sampling the scents, and passer bys were desperate to join in, but unfortunatly the event was fully booked! They all hopped into taxis and sped off to Ormonde Jaynes workshop, to start making their very own perfume. Linley’s event had a queue lining up outside, to see the live demonstartion of marquetry by Bethan Englefield. A Canadian couple had come over for 2 days just to attend London Craft Week, and were commisioning a piece at Linley.’

Luke
‘My role mainly involves coordinating all the social media activity, so I spent the day in the HQ receiving the teams images and hearing their stories, which really brought the event to life. Happily I was released from the PC in the afternoon to visit Nortons, Carre Ducker, Dashing Tweeds and Caroline Groves which were all busy with people and there was the feeling that somthing special happening at each venue. Speaking to caroline Groves she was really happy that her change of direction into bag making was getting a positive reception. One Cleeve case she had on display took 50 man hours alone just to do the gold tool. Dashing Tweed were in mid demonstration explaining the patterns used to produce different weaves. One lady was purchasing cloth from them, whilst the rest of the crowd watched in delight at the demo. At Nortons I got speaking to one of the
customers, a young lady who had been to loads of events already, and was trying to go to as many events as possible over the coming days. In the late afternoon I spent the time in Fenwicks Bond Sreet, where I reported live on a discussion between milliners Stephen Jones and Noel Stewart as they discussed the importance of hat making in the fashion industry and how as a milliner you need more tenacity and less ego than other designers. Stephen Jones also made the salient point of how hats are the most important accessory, as they do more to
affect mood and also frame your face than anything else. My final visit of the day was to take part in a twitter conversation during the Scents of Occasion event. Odette Toilette and Sarah McCartney played with their
audiences sense of smell, building up perfumes using ingrediants such as strawberry, orange and rose. We learnt some fasciating insights into the perfume industry such as 90% of perfumes are synthetic due to
availability of ingrediants. Everyone left with a lovely bottle of perfume.’

Mark
‘I spent most of the day at The New Craftsmen which had a big surge in visitors. The Courtesan’s bed is a masterpiece! Good reports from St James church and Floris where TNC are also running events. In the evening I headed to the Collect Preview (bravo for the Crafts Council!) which was buzzing. Then to Jonathan Reed’s
supper at Collect with Grant Gibson hosting a discussion – Sarah Myerscough, Corrine Julius, Sam Walton and others contributing to a lively and optimistic discussion.’

Vanessa
‘The Cockpit team had the chance to attend the opening evening private view at Collect to see some of our wonderful designer makers that are exhibiting there. I was so pleased to see Cockpit Arts’ jeweller Mariko Sumioka (exhibiting with Katie Jones Gallery) named as ‘Winner of Jewellery of the year’. As part of ‘Collect Open’ on the top floor – fantastic installations by Katrin Spranger and Rita Parniczky.  Rita at last having the room to display her pieces so the scale and drama of her innovative weaving technique can be fully appreciated.  Katrin’s conceptual ‘edible’ piece will be part of the gallery talks on Monday and will bring a whole new dimension to enjoying your jewellery.’

Last night, Wednesday 6th May 2015, Grayson Perry opened London Craft Week at the V&A Museum. Makers rubbed shoulders with leading creatives, influencers, Captains of industry, editors and directors from the art, design, culture, food, luxury, fashion, media and government, whilst admiring maker demonstrations from London Craft Week’s public programme that started today.

Zoe Bradley from Walpole British Luxury’s Crafted programme, Vacheron Constantin’s watch engraver, Emma Yeo from Cockpit Arts and Davide Taub (bespoke tailor and Head Cutter) at Gieves & Hawkes, demonstrated their expert skills in paper sculpting, watchmaking, millinery and contemporary tailoring (hand sewing and pattern making) respectively and guests also enjoyed a private view of the V&A’s ‘What is Luxury?’ exhibition.

Grayson Perry opened the evening saying, ‘I am officially this evening’s liability but in all seriousness it is my enormous pleasure to be invited to launch London Craft Week. This is a great moment acknowledging that craft is woven into many parts of our lives. It is the place where we connect with the materials all around us. Craftsman working with their hands are relevant to modern life and encompass so many businesses from tailors and jewellers to car manufacturers and joiners, ensuring that Craft isn’t some sort of nostalgic thing’.

Key artists, designers and chefs who attended the evening included Grayson Perry (artist), Tom Dixon (designer), Mark Hix (chef), Rupert Sanderson (fashion designer), Edmund de Waal (artist), Jay Osgerby (designer), Richard Wilson (artist), Valentine Warner (chef), Kirstie Allsop (presenter), Ozwald Boateng OBE (designer) and Roja Dove (perfumer). Notable names from the fashion, art, cultural, media and luxury disciplines as well as famous faces, who celebrated the week’s opening and enjoyed the demonstrations ranged from Sol Campbell (footballer), Sir Peter Bazalgette (Chair of Arts Council England), Charles Saumarez Smith (Royal Academy), Penelope Wilton (actress), Amanda Berry (CEO Bafta), Kate Hobhouse (Chairman of Fortnum & Mason), Lady Carole Bamford (Daylesford), Jo Malone (entrepreneur), Kit Kemp (Firmdale Hotels), Enrique Loewe Lynch (President Loewe), Peter Williams (founder Jack Wills), Peter York (commentator) and Stephen Bayley (commentator).

From the tinkers and tailors to the candlestick makers, London has long been home to much exemplary craftsmanship. In recent years, too, advances in technology and a wealth of innovation have pushed the (handmade, letterpressed) envelope to exhilarating new heights. Having proved itself world class when it comes to design, jewellery, fashion and art (which each already have their own weeks) London’s inaugural Craft Week seems long overdue.

But on the other hand, it’s only recently that we have relearned an appreciation for this industry. For too long the word ‘craft’ has taken a back seat to bling, and only in the last few years (happily) has our newfound fascination with process and respect for heritage and provenance begun to redefine the term “luxury”. This, for me, is exactly what will make the week so unmissable. And I know I’m not alone in looking forward to celebrating bespoke, creative and rarified skills across the city.

Henrietta Thompson
Editor at Large – Wallpaper

I have been interested in the Crafts pretty well all my life, not least because I am married to a Bookbinder-turned-Jeweller, who was trained at Camberwell School of Arts in the late 1970s and then worked as a bookbinder for nearly twenty years before turning to the more miniature world of fine art jewellery.

As a result, we have always followed, and as far as possible collected, the work of other craftspeople, first at the Cropredy Gallery in North Oxfordshire which was run by Ann Hartree in a barn owned by the Crossmans, later through the Crafts Council shop at the V&A and Marsden Woo, and more recently by going on annual pilgrimages to Collect at the V&A and the Saatchi Gallery.

In the early 1980s, craft was either low value and rural in the Bernard Leech rustic tradition or low value and urban in a funky Crafts Council way. What I have watched with the utmost interest is the way that Craft practice has gradually become properly accepted, as it should be, as a fine art with the emergence of practitioners who would not dream of being called craftspeople like Grayson Perry, Edmund de Waal and Hylton Nel. Just as important has been the emergence of dealers and galleries who treat the work with appropriate seriousness, like Adrian Sassoon and The New Craftsman.

London Craft Week will bring this form of practice which sits between art, traditional craft and luxury goods to a wider public.

Charles Saumarez Smith
Royal Academy of Arts

COLLECT 2015, Saatchi Gallery

The Crafts Council’s COLLECT has been running for 12 years and acts as a wonderful showcase for contemporary craft. This is very much making at the fine art end of the craft spectrum where function often plays a subsidiary role to aesthetics.  As well as containing some of the best galleries from around the world, this year the exhibition also has installations from the likes of designer Tord Boontje and textile artist Ann Sutton; there’s a dance piece from Caroline Broadhead and Angela Woodhouse; while the Crafts Council will be giving visitors a sneaky peak at its next major touring exhibition devoted to contemporary jewellery, I AM HERE. Oh and if you happen to be visiting on Saturday do feel free to come along to a talk I’m chairing at 2.45pm for London Craft Week on why we collect stuff. The panel includes leading gallery owner Adrian Sassoon, collector-curator Sarah Griffin and collector-designer Beverley Rider, so it should be well worth your while.

Mo Coppoletta

There are a lot of installations and shows devoted to the luxury, branded end of making at this year’s festival, and quite possibly for that reason I find myself drawn to an event that arguably represents street craft. In his famous essay of 1929, Ornament and Crime, Adolf Loos decreed that: ‘The modern person who tattoos himself is either a criminal or a degenerate. There are prisons in which eighty percent of the inmates have tattoos. People with tattoos not in prison are either latent criminals or degenerate aristocrats.’ How things change. The architect couldn’t possibly have foreseen a time when getting tattooed would become a rite of passage for students travelling the world on their gap year, nor could he have predicted the rise of the footballer-cum-global-brand David Beckham. And lord knows what he would have made of the rose painted on Cheryl Fernandez-Versini’s backside. Not only has tattooing become socially acceptable, it is a recognised craft. And Mo Coppoletta, who will be opening up his studio, is one of its best exponents in the world.

The Crafted City

Contemporary Applied Arts temporary pavilion in Southwark promises to be one of the highlights of the week. Designed by architect Allies and Morrison, which among other things was responsible for the excellent revamp of the Royal Festival Hall in 2007, it promises to showcase work from the likes of glass makers Michael Ruh and Kate Maestri, ceramist Dylan Bowen and furniture maker Alex MacDonald to name just a few. The idea is that it will become a place for visitors to meet, discuss, and explore craft. There will be talks too from silversmith Adi Toch and furniture designer Angus Ross. It promises to be fascinating.

Wyvern Bindery

Clerkenwell has long been a hotbed of radicalism and making. It’s where, for example, Lenin edited the underground revolutionary journal, Iskra, while by the end of the eighteenth century the area is estimated to have been producing 120,000 watches each year. Crafts Central is still located there of course and Cockpit Arts is around the corner (both will be having open studios during LCW incidentally), but there’s little doubt that Clerkenwell is changing. The famous cutting edge jewellery gallery Lesley Craze has recently shut up shop and the contemporary craft gallery Marsden Woo has moved to Shoreditch, while the area is increasingly dominated by office furniture showrooms. Perhaps this is why I felt a twinge of nostalgia when I saw that Wyvern Bindery was holding a demonstration that will allow visitors the chance to understand its process. It seems to me a place that is still intimately connected with the heritage of the area during a time of flux.

Grant Gibson
Editor of Crafts Magazine