Victoria & Albert Museum, London, January 2008

Distressed Thimbles, silver, silk, by Deirdre Nelson (© Shannon Tofts/craftscotland)

COLLECT is the international fair for the applied arts and attracts collectors, curators, makers and the general public to view and purchase contemporary work from the best craftspeople and galleries from around the world.

Established now for 5 years, I have always felt that Scotland has had very limited exposure at Collect. Craftscotland, the Scottish Arts Council funded website for Scottish crafts, addressed this in 2008, and applied for and was selected to host a stand.

Makers from Scotland were invited to apply for inclusion and 13 were selected by the panel. The mix of craftspeople covered well-established makers and a good representation from the new generation.

From glass to jewellery, textiles to ceramics, the stand attracted lots of interest and the majority of people I spoke to were pleased with the experience of exhibiting at this prestigious show. There was a good rash of red dots on much of the work – always a healthy sign early on in the proceedings!

Makers represented by Craftscotland were Marianne Anderson, Jilli Blackwood, Ray Flavell, Anna Gordon, Sarah Keay, Sara Keith, Anna King, Hannah Louise Lamb, Grainne Morton, Deirdre Nelson, Graham Stewart and Andrea Walsh.

However, although selling is very important at Collect I do feel that raising the profile of our makers cannot be overrestimated in the international art world, and to see Scotland showing work on a par with the very best in the world is gratifying.

The long term benefits in establishing contacts throughout the world should result in new commissions, exhibitions and opportunities.

Of the 42 stands I was particularly impressed by the jewellery shown by Galerie Marzee from the Netherlands, the Danish ceramics represented by Cultural Connections, and some outstanding metal art by the Korean, Jung-Sil Hong who uses a highly challenging technique to create work that is reviving old Korean crafts into the present.

Australia Contemporary is an initiative by the Federal government and the JamFactory International Craft Initiative, and shows the way that top craft and design can be exhibited with great success to an international audience.

The makers all took the theme of Tea Ware and a collection of utensils and objects were created in metal, ceramics and glass that all had associations with the preparation and enjoyment of tea.
It was one of the few galleries that had a themed exhibition and I felt it worked well and pushed many of the makers outside their familiar territory.

Clare Beck and Adrian Sassoon presented a focus on Monumental Pots by four artists who have a reputation in this area but whose work is usually made for commission. I have only ever seen relatively small pots by Kate Malone and Richard Spira, so viewing their spectacular 5 to 6ft high pots at close quarters was wonderful.

Sarah Myersough Fine Art showed some outstanding work by the worlds top wood-turners. In particular the exquisite work of Irish wood turner, Liam Flynn, one of the leading exponents in his field of hollow-form vessels.

The only other Scottish stand was that of the Scottish Gallery showing work by their selected makers, the majority who are well established on the crafts scene. Familiar faces such as Dorothy Hogg, Jack Cunningham and Wendy Ramshaw attract a strong following from collectors and curators.

Of the 42 stands 18 were from the United Kingdom and of that 18, 9 were London galleries. Obviously collectors look for work from the same makers from year to year, but I do feel it is important to have new makers and galleries to keep the mix fresh and exciting.
Last year I felt that was not being addressed but in 2008 there was a significant handful of new exhibitors, and established galleries were showing some new work.

This was also assisted by the series of exhibitions, lectures and events running alongside Collect, under the title Collection. It was good to see that Scotland was represented here with a programme of events taking place in Edinburgh and a lecture in London from some of the makers represented by Craftscotland.

The V&A are also showing two other exhibitions; New Faces (until 2 March 2008), the Crafts Council’s showcase of recent graduates, including Edinburgh graduate Jessica Townsend’s wonderful cast glass room sets and furniture.

Out of the Ordinary: Spectacular Craft (until 17 February 2008) is a truly inspiring exhibition and shows work by eight contemporary artists transforming everyday materials – including dust – into beautifully crafted and surprising installations. This is the first V&A/Crafts Council collaboration on an exhibition and bodes well for future work.

Collect always inspires and surprises and is a journey well worth making. Makers, collectors, curators and professionals can all benefit from having the opportunity to view such diverse work from around the world and to compare and contrast the way each country approaches craft.

I look forward to seeing even more makers from Scotland in 2009 as we have some world-class craftspeople whose work should be seen at events of this kind and Scottish craft given the status it deserves.

Craftscotland will be producing a DVD on the experience of exhibiting at Collect and also plans to run some workshops that may encourage more makers to apply for inclusion next year. Watch their website for more details.

© Pamela M. Conacher, 2008

Links

• CraftScotland
• Craft Council
• V&A