Future Jewellery

Speaker: Hazel White, University of Dundee: Crafting the Idea



If your jewellery had another use, other than just being an attractive accessory, what would you make it do?

Jewellery designer and Programme Director of the Masters of Design Programme at the University of Dundee Hazel White let us in on her research into this very question. Telling Tales is a project that uses jewellery to explore digital scrapbooks with the specific intention of making communication easier for older people who are less mobile.

Hazel began introducing how her relationship with jewellery developed. While studying for her MA she explored whether jewellery could become permanent parts of our body. She gave us the example of a wedding ring that can be surgically screwed to your finger…painful yes? Necessary…not sure… The Future of Craft? Maybe!

But rather than exploring ‘permanent jewellery’ her research took her down a more anthropological approach,looking at the significance of charm bracelets so see how people react to their jewellery. After gauging opinions following a six week test the types of answers people came up with were about monitoring, similar to how ‘baby monitors’ work i.e. their jewellery could be doing a job. Sounds strange that the jewellery function comes first and the function second but it’s also a refreshing concept. The use that would appeal to me, would definitely be the ‘Oyster Card’ approach, but could something so useful be attractive too or is it like how a lot of ‘organic cotton clothes’ are actually quite ugly, they are ‘good’ but ‘bad’ at the same time.

Hazel’s work led her to her project Hamefarer’s Kist based on research she has undertaken with older people in the Shetland Isles. Her concept is a knitted remote control. Whereby a person has a box of knitted cushions, each cushion represents a person and when that cushion is lifted up they can receive an up to date ‘photostream’ from Flickr of that person, making it an easy and accessible way to keep in touch with relatives without the complexities of using a computer that actually aren’t very useful for people with mobility issues.

Overall verdict?
Wow! I can honestly say that other than a t -shirt I’ve seen in Argos that tells the times in LED lights across your chest, I have never thought of jewellery other than in an artistic/fashionable sense. I have made and sold bracelets that double up as money pouches and belts that have pockets on them but they are very typically functional. Giving jewellery such a personal meaning opens up a whole new world. The future of jewellery is truly sci-fi and as for knitting being part of the grand scheme of things – perfect. Everyone’s knitting these days and this application is taking it to the next level.

Sustainability via IT

Speaker: Leonardo Bonnani, MIT Media Lab. The Tools and Tool-Makers of the Bazaar: New Paradigms in Computer-Aided Craft



‘Science doesn’t advance, it’s pushed and that’s what prototyping is to me,’…is how Leonardo Bonanni introduced his take on Prototyping. With a background in architecture, Leo has been teaching a course called ‘Future Craft’ at the MIT Media Lab for three years. The course is about about making product design sustainable – but not as we know it. We’re not just talking‘reusing materials’. He introduced us to alternative ways to be sustainable, mainly by making what you need, when you need it and sharing the specific knowledge and tools you need to do that task via computer aided solutions.

So why does something need to be made in the first place Leo outlined case studies of new products that can help people all around the world, like wheelchairs that can go up stairs and wearable computers for soldiers. He also shared some of the trends in sustainability that he’s seen over the last few years.

These include: Being Open – making your designs available to everyone regardless of the resources they have, using your own tools but also making them available for mass production and being Virtousic; finding ways to express the skills you’ve developed over years like a potter going digital so we can share their your knowledge.

Sustainability is clearly more than just a buzz word and it’s good to see it interpreted in new ways to what we're normally exposed to. Leo gave us all something to think about – especially when you think about people who are precious about their crafts. Some crafters/makers/designers/artists etc hate sharing their work or telling you how they do things but if we don’t open up and teach others, skills can be lost and in this sense sustainability is essential for the future of craft and other industries.

Mission to Mars

Speaker: Constance Adams - Synthesis International: Techne and Logos at the Edge of Space

There’s thinking big and thinking BIG, but nothing is as big as Space so it was an intriguing start to the event to hear from Constance Adams, a specialist in high performance architecture, design and innovation for human spaceflight…..in other words, a spaceship designer! She’s the scientist everyone wants to be when they’re a kid – a Nasa consultant and her talk was about the craft of designing and building an environment that humans can survive in on a mission to Mars.

But we’re not talking mini modelling….as Constance explained, when you’re designing for space flight, you need to create full-scale models. She’s been involved in designing prototypes of full size living quarters for six astronaut to survive a 180 days trip to Mars for 15 years. Her work involves designing and testing everything an astronaut could possibly need on their space mission. Making furniture for variable gravity, thinking about sleeping and eating: all these things need to be designed on the ground through physical prototyping – that makes a lot of sense….but there’s also other aspects to consider.

Sending things to space is hugely expensive; it costs an estimated $50,000 to orbit a kilo of weight so space travel literally is ‘travelling light.’ But how does an astronaut know what they might need..for example what if a lighbtbulb blows…..taking lots of spare light bulbs would be expensive, what if they were able to make their own while they were up there?? (It’s not like they can be couriered supplies…)

DIY space crafting is just one of the areas Constance is looking into – equipping astronaut with knowledge to make things to help them survive, doing simple DIY with materials they have with them just as we may do an odd job with things we have lying around, the same is possible in space and was done once when a solar ray needed repairing - the team figured it out.

To conclude she left us with some words from Scrimshaw ‘craft keeps you sane in long slow hours’….spending 180 days in space can obviously get dull, although the team are busy completing specific tasks the novelty factor of looking out of the window wears off after a couple of days. So what could our astronauts get up to in their down time?? What about doing some hobby crafting??? Anything is possible in space design, every material would need to be prototyped (they already need space pens as an ordinary biro doesn’t work in space!)..so space friendly knitting needles wouldn’t be so peculiar.

It would certainly inspire them visually, most space rockets after all have totlaly whitewashed walls so it’s hard to know when your upside down or not….but brightly patterned interior fabric panels could change this.

What a fascinating insight. It’s so rare you get to hear from someone who’s job is something to do with Space….but to find someone who’s talking about the relationship between space and craft? The symposium is already living up to it’s name….it’s definitely about Future Craft.

Prototype Symposium:10-11 June 2010 - About to start!

Hello!


I've survived my 9 hour sleeper train journey from London to Dundee (estimated 3 hours sleep) to keep you up to date with the the event, live as it unfolds!

I've been blogging about crafts for quite a few years, it's my passion. From new developments in the UK crafts industry to emerging artists, I try and keep up to date with important crafty news with the aim of sharing it with other like minded people.

I'll be blogging throughout the next two days, covering all aspects of the event commenting on the the speakers and discussions. Here goes....it's just starting!

Glenn Adamson at COLLECT 2010

Listen to an excerpt from the V&A's Glenn Adamson talk at COLLECT 2010, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m62nm7bfB2I

It's from the seminar 'The Speed of Craft: Presented by Think Tank, A European Initiative for the Applied Arts' at the Saatchi Gallery, 14 May. 

 

 

There is a publication from THINK TANK entitled 'Speed' which documents their 6th meeting and exhibition. ISBN 978-3-85474-224-1.

further info at http://www.thinktank04.eu/page.php?3

Cutting Light

An exhibition of new work by glass artist Jessamy Kelly
29th May – 19th June 2010

Queen’s Gallery,
160 Nethergate,
Dundee, DD1 4DU

A solo exhibition of new work by glass artist Jessamy Kelly will open at the prestigious Queen’s Gallery, in Dundee in May 2010. The material quality of glass and its reaction to light intrigues glass artist Jessamy Kelly; she harnesses the light in her work by cutting away the glass to reveal the inherent luminosity if the material. Minimal amounts of cutting and engraving are used to shape her sculptural work. Jessamy’s work shows balance, precision and great delicacy. Jessamy has recently completed her PhD in Glass and Ceramics at the University of Sunderland and is currently Artists in Residence at Edinburgh College of Art. Her work has been exhibited widely throughout the UK as well as internationally in France, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands and the United States. She has won many awards including the Craft and Design Magazine Maker of the Year Award in 2009.

This exhibition is part of the new national initiative Craft Festival Scotland conceived by the Past Present and Future Craft Practice researchers at the University of Dundee.

Chicks on Speed - come to Scotland!

Chicks on Speed: Don’t Art, Fashion, Music

5 June – 8 August

Press view: Friday 4 June

This is the first major solo exhibition in the UK of Chicks on Speed; an ever-changing multidisciplinary art group who apply punk-inspired DIY ethic to interrogate the boundaries of art, craft, fashion, music and new media. 

Known globally for their melting-pot-style – encompassing cutting-edge pop music, performance art, a record label, collage graphics, painting and DIY fashion. Chick’s on Speed’s practice is chaotic and firmly against sedative art. With their tongues firmly in their cheeks, they are happy to court controversy. 

The exhibition will open with a live art performance for invited guests on 4 June; featuring the ‘e-shoe’ – the world’s first wireless high-heeled shoe guitar, made in collaboration with Siberian-born shoe designer Max Kibardin and Hangar.org. These shoes will be unveiled alongside Chicks on Speed’s ever-growing collection of self made ‘objekt instruments’ – cigar-box synthesizers, super suits with sewn-in body sensors that trigger audio/video samples and two hats made in collaboration with Christophe Coppins and Hangar.org, based on illuminated drawings of Hildegard von Bingen, a 12^th century Christian mystic who received visions, composed ethereal airs, performed healings and even founded convents. These hats transmit the utterances of their wearers by way of microphones and speakers.

The DCA galleries will be further transformed into a giant stage and studio set for making music videos, experimenting with no-choreography and ongoing craft projects live, including loom-weaving inspired by Bauhaus design, lectures and workshops, film screenings of their fashion archive and selected video pieces. Chicks on Speed have been working with local and international artists and makers to combine traditional craft with cutting-edge technology.

Further highlights include a Theremin tapestry based on theremin technology, woven by The Victorian Tapestry Workshop, Australia, with hardware from Andre Smirnov @ the Theremin Institute in Moscow in conjunction with hangar.org.   A series of print based artworks produced with the DCA print studio and Fashion Archive.

Judith Winter, curator of the exhibition said:

““DCA are interested in working with artists that challenge the institution and the context of the gallery.  Chicks on Speed’s practice blurs the boundaries between creative disciplines but much more than that - their work counters political correctness and employs a range of feminist strategies that support creative radicalism.  I wanted to see if we could also hint at some of the connections in their practice to the history of interdisciplinary practice.

“Many of our early discussions were around the Bauhaus and in particular Oskar Schlemmer performance of the Triaddich Ballet. Conversation soon transgressed to the status and visibility of women within the Bauhaus - on to activism and early modernist performance through to conversations around the political actions of Valie Export in the 1960s.

“Anyone who is also interested in fashion or wanting an anecdote to global consumption should enjoy some element of the show.  We are looking forward to the unexpected!”

To coincide with the exhibition DCA are co-producing a book with Booth-Clibborn Editions that will be launched in September 2010. There will also be a series of events, films and workshops surrounding the exhibition. For further information visit www.dca.org.uk

Chicks on Speed: Don’t Art, Fashion Music is part of Craft Festival Scotland.

Gallery opening times: Tuesday – Saturday 10.30am - 5.30pm, Sunday noon – 5.30pm. Closed Monday except Dundee Public Holidays. Entry to the galleries is free. Tel: 01382 900 900.

Dundee Contemporary Arts, 152 Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4DY

www.dca.org.uk

www.chicksonspeed.com

Follow COS on facebook.

For more information, interviews and images please contact:

Teri Laing, Head of Marketing

Teri.laing@dca.org.uk
Tel: 01382 909241

Craft Australia

There is always lots of fantastic work and events going on at Craft Australia (CA) and if you've not managed to sign-up to hear what they are up to, here's some info to help you.

In the May 2010 issue of CA enews there is a contemporary jewellery focus and roundup of the JMGA conference held in Perth Western Australia 2010:

Craft Australia publishes a free online news letter, CA enews every month http://www.craftaustralia.org.au/enews/

The subscription to CA enews is free and I would like to invite you and JMGA members to. Subscribe at: http://www.craftaustralia.org.au/subscribe/

There is also an archive link to previous newsletters:
 http://www.craftaustralia.org.au/newsroom/newsletter.php?id=index

Craft Australia is celebrating its 40year anniversary in 2010 and as part of the celebration has set up a flickr page to showcase Australian studio craft and design. They are continually uploading images to this site and a number jewellery and object  images has been uploaded with many more to come.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/craftaustralia/

The Craft Australia calendar promotes contemporary craft and design through exhibitions, workshops, opportunities, conferences and trade fairs. They have listed a number of contemporary jewellry and object exhibitions and opportunities in the online calendars. http://craftaustralia.org.au/calendars/about

Handmade Nation, directed by Faythe Levine comes to Scotland

Wednesday 9 June 8 p.m.
Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee, Scotland

 Handmade Nation documents a movement of artists, crafters and designers that recognise the marriage between historical techniques, punk and DIY ethos while being influenced by traditional handiwork, modern aesthetics, politics, feminism and art. Fuelled by the common thread of creating, Handmade Nation explores a burgeoning art community that is based on creativity, determination and networking.


In 2006 first-time director Faythe Levine travelled to 15 cities, interviewing 80 individuals. Levine captured the virtually tight-knit community that exists through websites, blogs and online stores and connects to the greater public through independent boutiques, galleries and craft fairs. Interviews were also conducted in artist studios and homes of the featured makers. Faythe Levine will introduce the screening and participate in Q&A session afterwards. The event is part of the Prototype Symposium, co-convened by Duncan of Jordanstone College of ARt & Design and the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, which is taking place June 10-11th in Dundee. BOOK NOW: www.dca.org.uk/whats-on/films/handmade-nation.html




Stitched Up

If you’ve never been to a Friday Night Late event at the V&A, make a date in the diary! They are held on the last Friday in every calendar month. My experience is they are full of energy and fantastic fun! Last night’s ‘Stitched Up’ was no exception. Organised to coincide with ‘Quilts 1700-2010’ exhibition, curated by Sue Prichard, the evening was buzzing with activity. There were 15 activity options, catering for a range of tastes. Occurring inside the building and outside in the gardens, the event ranged from an alternative garden tea party to craft activities with both emerging and established practitioners.

I began by engaging in The Stitch Surgery supported by Coats Crafts and volunteers of The Quilters’ Guild.  A fantastic little ‘how to patchwork kit’ was provided from which you were encouraged to take a seat and get making! My attempts to follow the instructions in the pack were made easier by the encouraging chatter from fellow ‘stitchers’ perched beside me in the Grand Entrance and, the 1950s jazz music being played in the background. (To give an indication of how successful the surgery event was, I understand 1000 packs had been prepared, and by 7 p.m. only 30 minutes after the evening had started, all of them were gone! By any event organiser’s standards, that’s impressive.)

Following this, I took myself off to the Lecture Theatre where ‘Domesticity and Creativity’ in craft were being re-evaluated. A round table discussion with Sue Prichard, textile artist Caren Garfen, (creator of ‘How many times to I have to repeat myself ‘ which was commissioned for the exhibition) and Janice Langley, Trustee of the Women’s Institute (WI) was the means with which this subject was aired. The focus was given to why investment in the home is a way of redressing the work/life imbalance fuelled by contemporary technology. In essence the talk asked, Is taking time out a luxury or necessity? What value does it offer?

The view and discussion of craft, at times appeared to be at odds with my recent research, which focused on understanding craft as an intellectual rather than skill based activity. However, the emphasis on learning new skills via communities to support self-sufficiency (especially in the home) and social networking is an integral aspect of the craft continuum. Indeed, the presentation by the WI who proffered their contemporary tagline (or role) as Inspiring Women was fascinating.

Quilts at the V&A London

Visiting the Quilt’s exhibition at the V&A was a visual treat, a journey through three centuries of quilting demonstrating its relevance to daily life within each era. While there are many aspects of the exhibition that could be commented upon, for me, the two aspects standing out were ‘detail’ and ‘restoration’ of the relation between body, mind and soul.

The works collectively brought home a real need to pause and pay attention to detail. The volume of detail in each quilt demonstrated fabulous feats of craftsmanship. At times, the collective voice of this detail is overwhelming, but in the main, it acts as a reminder of the age-old approaches to creating pattern and textiles where ‘slow’, ‘intimacy’ and ‘narrative’ were greatly valued.

The exhibition also highlighted the importance of quilting to restoring meaning and purpose within communities and individuals. The work of Wandsworth Prison UK stands out in this instance, where quilting is incorporated into prisoner’s rehabilitation. The human value it has was clearly demonstrated. Here the meditative state that the making process nurtures and the introduction to one’s inherent (and sometimes dormant) creativity were key to rehabilitation. Powerful stuff.

This exhibition offered the focus for April’s Friday Night Late event, ‘Stitched Up’, which is my next stop.

However, before closing on the Quilts exhibition, my last word has to go to Natasha Kerr for her work, personally, was the most inspirational in terms of concept and aesthetic sensitivity. The image featured in this blog entry is ‘At the End of the Day’, hanging, Natasha Kerr, 2007. Museum no. T.43-2008.

If you haven’t yet seen Quilts, it’s on until 4^th July, 2010.

Curated by Sue Prichard.

A word from Frances Stevenson - printed textile designer

Colour is the most fundamental part of each printed textile piece that I make, and I use it to provoke an emotional response in the viewer.  The viewers’s sensory engagement with colour provokes a response that delves into their own personal experience but also reflects cultural norms. For example, tangerine still conjures up painted woodchip wallpaper from the 1960’s for me, but at the same time it reflects 60’s culture. I usually avoid using tangerine as a general rule. However the point is that how we feel is often shaped by cultural as well as personal experience.

Cloth is one of the most sensual products that human beings engage with. We wear it every day and have done so all our lives.  ‘We’ have an exceptional sensory knowledge of it and we touch it to understand if it ‘suits’ us. The textiles that I make must satisfy the sense of touch, as there is a universal understanding of weight, drape, comfort and pleasure in cloth products that I seek to combine with the visual sense.

People are fantastic. ‘We’ like to play, show off, talk, make new things and make ourselves look and feel great. I have been bringing these human components together in the participatory craft process. The process gives the public centre stage to design and make their own creations bringing all of their own knowledge and experience into play. This inspires me to create new textile products that can be enjoyed by everyone.

Frances Stevenson, April 2010

New work  currently on show at the Future Craft research exposition in the Matthew Gallery, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, Dundee.

Lost Economy

Quick post to let you know there is a really intersting article on the BBC website re the crafts...
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8586172.stm

many thanks to Prof Nigel Johnson for bringing this to our attention

Innovation focus

Organisation of the "Prototype-craft in the future tense" symposium is off to a fantastic start!

Taking place on June 10th and 11th of this year, the event has an amazing line up of speakers including Business Innovator Michael Schrage, space architect Constance Adams, Turner Prize Winner Simon Starling, and the University of Dundee's own Interactive Jeweller Hazel White, to name but a few.

Participants will be joined by industry experts including Design Innovator supremo Colin Burns,  Dee Cooper  who is Director of Product and Service at Virgin Atlantic and, Chris Van der Kuyl, Scottish Entrepreneur and CE of Bright Solid.

This is an incredible and unique opportunity to see and hear about the astonishing diversity of prototyping, what it has acheived and will be acheiving in terms of research, collaboration and knowledge exchange across a vast array of disciplines.

Come and learn, come and share.
See http://www.dundee.ac.uk/djcad/prototyping/.
Early Bird registration fee, ONLY £195 - BOOK NOW!!

Hurry only a few days remaining to catch this offer

Future Craft invite

The 'Future Craft' research exposition runs from 26th March - 24th April and showcases work from over 40 craft practitioners including new works by Georgina Follett, Geoffrey Mann, Drummond Masterton, Louise Valentine, Frances Stevenson, Hazel White and Tim Parry-Williams.

The exposition is a culmination five years of research conducted by the 'Past, Present and Future Craft' research team at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, Dundee, U.K. Accompanying the expo is a catalogue detailing the research journey, giving insight into each of the five team members research.

Future Craft challenges current perceptions of craft and is being held, in the Matthew Gallery, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, Dundee, U.K.

V&A Quilts 1700-2010 :: Private View

Walking into the Private View of ‘Quilts 1700-2010’ was a bit of a fantastic, blurry and surreal experience – the main reception of the V&A unfamiliar with its lights dimmed low, buzzing in anticipation; clusters of the most fabulously be-decked people chattering excitedly over a soundtrack of dreamy fifties tunes; waiters and waitresses milling through the ever moving stream of guests offering champagne and nibbles atop Perspex trays whose middle was filled with bobbins, threads, snippets of patchwork and images of featured quilts.

Curator Sue Pritchard admitted it took 6 years for this exhibition to be where it is at today therefore the celebration for them was long awaiting.


Contemporary artist Tracey Emin gave an impelling opening speech whose own piece was an ode to her childhood abuser in the guise of a ‘Princess Bed’.  Emin stressed the importance of quilting not only as craft but as an emotional outlet, a personal mode for expression- a theme which ran throughout the whole exhibition exploring each individual piece’s own hidden history and untold story.

Being able to see the exhibition for the first time was such an amazing moment. The exhibition flowed through a series of ‘rooms’ and walls affording each quilt an appropriate ‘home’ in its own right – some were hung loosely from the wall tempting the viewer to pull them down and explore them further, some pinned flat like Jo Budd’s ‘Male/Winter, Female/Summer’, others displayed in situ on a bed, in a crib on a working frame, and other quilts came in digital form as films or slides. The presentation of contemporary quilts alongside older traditional ones was beautifully done, emphasising the timelessness of quilting and its associated themes. The placement brought new and diverse insights to the subjects explored and it encouraged thought and questioning from the viewers. Turning the corner into the ‘Making a Living’ section to find Kirsty Fenton’s quilt ‘Threaded Wrists’ was a rather bizarre and wonderful moment. It encapsulated everything she had set out to do in terms of subject and aesthetic. Certainly a piece worthy of sitting aside that of artists we have studied and admired during our time in the textiles department at Duncan of Jordanstone College.

All in all, the Private View was a wonderful experience – an aptly surreal and exciting event!

By Kirsty Fenton and Sara Nevay

Craft Festival Scotland Launch

On Thursday 25th March, the first national festival of craft in the UK – Craft Festival Scotland – is launched in Dundee.  With over 50 inspiring events happening across the country it celebrates the diversity and creativity of craft, tempting everyone to discover and enjoy craft.

The journey towards this event started in January 2009 when we invited people working in craft across Scotland to gather to discuss a national festival.  The PPFCP research project already had a collection of exhibitions and an international symposium with the V&A happening in Dundee in 2010, creating an opportunity to work together and initiate a national celebration of craft.

Twenty people came to the meeting representing Aberdeen, Dumfries & Galloway, the Scottish Borders, the Highlands, Ayrshire, Fife, Edinburgh and Glasgow, and the group supported developing a national festival of events with Dundee at the core of it. 

After agreeing the festival would happen in May and June 2010 we then spread the word to private and public galleries in Scotland, open studio events, the Scottish Degree Shows, and invited them all to become part of the festival. 

At the same time, we successfully approached the Scottish Arts Council for funding for a national marketing campaign, and worked with partners in Dundee. The Courier joined as media sponsors, the McManus developed a month long programme of workshops and craft focused events and DCA will hold their first ever craft exhibition with Chicks on Speed, who will working at Duncan of Jordanstone for a month before their event.  On a national level we liaised with the V&A, Crafts Council and craftscotland.

We now find ourselves excitedly approaching the event we have been creating for over fourteen months.  We have been amazed and delighted at the way people have wanted to become involved and support the vision. Flamboyant millinery in the Scottish Borders, interactive objects on Shetland, the Innovative Craft maker/curator project in Edinburgh, a month of events in the Highlands with all the Scottish art colleges participating through their annual Degree Shows and open studios events in North Fife and Dumfries & Galloway.

It is a true reflection of the energy, passion and quality of craft in Scotland, and we hope everyone will enjoy the festival in May and June, our first Craft Festival Scotland.

Craft Festival Scotland update

Save the date!! On 25th March, 2010 we are launching Craft Festival Scotland, a new national initiative emerging from five years of research at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design (DJCAD). Matthew Gallery, DJCAD, Dundee, Scotland.

To find out what we're up to, visit our website  - www.dundee.ac.uk/craftfest

become a follower/fan via twitter and facebook pages:

http://www.facebook.com/CraftFestivalScotland

http://twitter.com/CraftFestScot

Groovy Chicks

This was too good not to share! many thanks to MSc Craft and Creative Business student Charonne Ruth for bringing this to our attention.

Enjoy :)

Craft Festival Scotland on Facebook

Craft Festival Scotland is a new national initiative conceived by the Past, Present and Future Craft Practice research team, University of Dundee. It celebrates the array of great work being produced by practitioners, curators, and gallery owners and seeks to promote it in a united manner, echoing the collegiate nature of the craft ethos.

Over 50 opportunities are included in this ambitious event with new works and exhibitions organised specifically for the launch. The details of which we'll be sharing with you very soon.

Our plans have been in the making for two years and our efforts are coming to fruition with a Facebook page launching today and a dedicated website launching in a few weeks! Twitter will also be our ally, so look out for us there too!