2010 the year for crafts

[robin wood]

I'd like to make a prediction that 2010 is going to be quite a year for traditional craft skills.

For many years the traditional crafts have been the quiet relation of the fine arts, we have seen related things such as organic gardening, self sufficiency and real food hitting the headlines. This year is going to see crafts in the media in a big way.

The highly popular Victorian Farm team are currently filming the follow up Edwardian farm with an even bigger proportion of crafts in the show. The presenter Alex Langlands is patron of the Heritage Crafts Association and during the filming has already been been rick building, tanning, barrel making, lobster pot making, hedging and forging a devon style bill hook with many more to come.

2010 will also see the launch of Monty Don's new Mastercrafts tv program. If these prove successful we could see crafts becoming as popular on tv as celebrity chefs which would be a huge boost to the field. The HCA has been working hard to get the message out that whilst crafts are important in many ways perhaps the least recognised is the fact that they are a part of our cultural heritage. Smith is after all our most common surname.

If you are interested in traditional crafts and would like to know more have a look here.

http://greenwood-carving.blogspot.com/2010/01/2010-year-for-traditional-crafts-to-be.html

Or become a supporter of the Heritage Crafts Association (costs nothing) www.heritagecrafts.org.uk

 

[swyn]

I would echo that and look forward to a positive and rewarding outcome!

Swyn. (Mason & part time forestor)

 

[HillBill]

I just registered. I have plans to start up my own small crafts business this year anyway.

 

[bhofmann]

I just registered as well, with a link to the woodturning club I'm in (Woodbury Woodturners).


Go go crafting!

 

[MattF]

Have just registered with heritage crafts as well

Matt

 

[Whittler Kev]

Me too. Good idea to support them

 

[Melonfish]

always good to support heritage crafts! i've signed up too.

 

[robin wood]

Just a little update to this thread. Today John Penrose the Minister for Heritage said

“ The Heritage Crafts Association has brought together a fine range of different living crafts which are valuable parts of our heritage. The Association’s commitment to supporting small businesses all over the country producing useful, functional and decorative objects in traditional ways is truly impressive. I hope the increased public interest in these hands-on crafts will lead to many more people exploring and deploying these skills so that they are not lost to future generations. The fact that the BBC has given 12 hours of prime time tv to “The Edwardian Farm” is a measure of the public’s enthusiasm. “

More here
http://traditionalcraftsblog.blogspot.com/2010/11/crafts-are-valuable-parts-of-our-our.html

And last week the skills minister John Hayes called for a new arts and crafts movement http://heritagecraftsassociation.blogspot.com/2010/10/skills-minister-calls-for-new-arts-and.html