Published: 09 Jan 2017
American Craft Council invite Scotland's makers to flagship event to develop US market
Craft Scotland is delighted to announce a new partnership with the American Craft Council (ACC) which enables a group of 20 makers and designers based in Scotland to showcase their work at the exclusive American Craft Show Baltimore in February 2017. The highlight in North America's craft calendar American Craft Show Baltimore 2017 has up to now only showcased the work of North America's leading craftspeople. Attended by over 20,000 people across three days from Friday 24 to Sunday 26 February, it is an unrivalled opportunity for Scotland's makers and the first time an international presence has featured in the show.
Craft Scotland Director Fiona Logue said: "Scotland has a rich heritage in craft and making and what is particularly exciting is how that influences makers working in Scotland today. The makers and designers selected are a mixture of emerging and established talent all of whom challenge perceptions of what Scottish craft might be and it is that vibrancy that has been recognised by the American Craft Council. We're delighted to be able to facilitate this opportunity for Scotland's makers and to continue to develop links between Scotland and North America.”
The 20 makers selected represent a broad range of contemporary Scottish craft from across the country. From Adam Henderson's precious metal jewellery inspired by transactions in the modern world to Lara Scobie's stunning sculptural ceramics, the makers selected include jewellers, ceramicists and textile artists. A number of the works take their inspiration from Scotland's breath-taking seascapes and stunning coastline, flora in the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Scottish folklore and Scotland's urban creatures.
Pamela Diamond, Director of Marketing and Communications at ACC, said: "The American Craft Council is delighted to partner with Craft Scotland and welcome its talented delegation of artists to our 41st annual Baltimore craft show taking place Friday 24 to Sunday 26 February 2017. As the leading nonprofit championing craft in the United States, ACC firmly believes in the value and inspiration that exchanging ideas, cultural influences, and methods of making can provide for both artists and show attendees alike. We look forward to hosting this exciting showcase of 20 artists representing Scotland’s fresh and contemporary take on craft."
A celebration of all things handmade, the American Craft Show Baltimore 2017 is a five-day show: with two days for trade, followed by three retail days where the show is open for the public. The show’s retail days attract approximately 20,000 visitors, a must-see for serious craft collectors and craft enthusiasts alike. This is the perfect opportunity for Scottish makers to connect with a passionate American audience and introduce them to the wealth of design-led, high-quality craft Scotland has to offer.
Clive Gillman, Director, Creative Industries at Creative Scotland said: “Scotland’s makers do a fantastic job of bringing together the authenticity of their craft and materials and placing them in an adventurous future-facing practice. Their ambition and skill places them at the forefront of all that is best about our art and creative industries in Scotland. This is a great opportunity to showcase this work and to introduce it to new audiences across the Atlantic.”
ENDS
For further information, image and interview requests please contact Owen O'Leary at Oh Really, on 07815992658 or email owen@ohreally.co.uk
Craft Scotland is the national agency for craft. We work to unite, inspire and champion craft through creating opportunities for makers in Scotland to practice, exhibit, sell and promote their craft and for audiences to see, purchase and learn about craft. We lobby for craft as an essential and integral part of our cultural, economic and social life and work in partnership with other like-minded agencies. We are a central point of information about craft in Scotland and identify and create new activities to build awareness and understanding of craft. We are a charity supported by Creative Scotland. Scottish craft contributes over £70 million to the economy, from an estimated 3,350 Scottish craft makers.
American Craft Council and Craft Scotland Background
In late 2000 Craft Scotland embarked on a new adventure to share Scottish craft with American audiences in a move to increase the international awareness of Scottish craft. Quality craft is incredibly popular amongst American audiences: they are highly engaged, knowledgeable and keen hear the story behind craft pieces.
In 2011 Craft Scotland selected 25 makers for a Scottish Showcase at the Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show, run by the museum’s Women’s Committee. The Scottish Showcase was a hit, and brought the impressive calibre and contemporary nature of Scotland’s makers to the attention of the American Craft Council. After Philadelphia, Craft Scotland continued developing an American audience for Scottish craft with a showcase at SOFA, Chicago for four successful years. In 2017 the American adventure continues. Building on the initial interest from the Philadelphia show, Craft Scotland has selected 20 Scottish makers to present their work at ACC’s flagship show in Baltimore during the retail days, Friday 24 to Sunday 26 February 2017.
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports the arts, screen and creative industries across all parts of Scotland on behalf of everyone who lives, works or visits here. We enable people and organisations to work in and experience the arts, screen and creative industries in Scotland by helping others to develop great ideas and bring them to life. We distribute funding provided by the Scottish Government and the National Lottery. For further information about Creative Scotland please visit www.creativescotland.com Follow us @creativescots and www.facebook.com/CreativeScotland
Selected Makers and Designers for ACC Baltimore 2017:
Adam Henderson
Adam Henderson creates precious metal jewellery inspired by transactions in the modern world. As a conceptual jeweller, his work aims to make the wearer consciously aware of their connections in day-to-day life. His pieces act as a trigger that strike up a dialogue and encourage conversations about the topics at hand. He is drawn to instilling hidden detail and meaning within his work. adamhendersonjewellery.com
Carla Edwards
Carla Edwards is fascinated by the small details of plants. Her work is influenced by sketches from her garden, walks in the woods and the famous Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. Pattern and repetition of small resin and wire shapes are contrasted with simple forms of solid colour. Carla combines playful shapes and colour to make quirky, often asymmetric pieces. carlaedwards.co.uk
Catherine Aitken
Inspired by her background as a film producer and the costumes of 1940s/1950s starlets, Catherine Aitken loves working with heritage cloths - Harris Tweeds, wax cottons and Scottish linens. Each fabric is a textural delight with colours that reflect the rich landscape of Scotland; her designs are robust and ready to face all weathers. Using locally produced cloths creates a collection of slow, sustainable accessories. catherineaitken.com
Eileen Gatt
Eileen Gatt's silverware has a strong narrative element, inspired by the polar wilderness, Inuit culture, Scottish folklore, and the small fishing communities found along Scotland’s east coast. She has been involved in a number of collaborations with storytellers from as far afield as Alaska. Eileen has been designing and handcrafting silverware and jewellery for over 20 years. eileengatt.co.uk
Fiona McIntosh
From her studio in Edinburgh, Fiona McIntosh designs and produces a range of hand-dyed and hand silk screen printed wearable textiles using the discharge method of printing. Drawing inspiration from 1950s and 1960s imagery and colours, she produces a collection of desirable accessories from the finest natural fibres. Fiona graduated in 1984 from the renowned Scottish College of Textiles in Galashiels, in the Scottish Borders. tessutiscotland.co.uk
Gilly Langton
Gilly Langton is based in a pretty little fishing village called Plockton in the Highlands of Scotland. Her luxury jewellery company focuses on unique design and craftsmanship. The stunning coastline, breathtaking seascapes and heather-covered hills are the inspiration behind Gilly’s striking sterling silver and hand-dyed elastic jewellery. She combines simplicity in design with a vivid colour palette of ombre hues, neons and indigo blue shibori creating attention-grabbing necklaces, bangles and earrings. gillylangton.co.uk
Grainne Morton
Grainne Morton aspires to evoke a feeling of nostalgia. She consciously works in a miniature scale, hoping to spark a memory, a thought, a smile. Grainne’s vast menagerie of found items - ranging from the obscure to the miniature, found and fabricated - are the starting point for her designs. These objects take on narrative form and are collaged together until they connect with each other to create lively, colourful, spontaneous stories. grainnemorton.co.uk
Heather McDermott
Heather McDermott takes her inspiration from the ever-changing shoreline and landscape of Skye, the largest island in Scotland’s Inner Hebrides. Stimulating scenes of flotsam and jetsam are developed and translated in her work by utilising shapes and colours. Unconventional in size and structure, each piece of contemporary jewellery is an expression of sculptural form. The industrial nature of the stainless steel is hand formed into soft geometric shapes mimicking fishing nets and lobster pots. heathermcdermott.co.uk
James Donald
James Donald uses Scottish yarns to evoke a sense of place. His intricate weave structures are inspired by Scottish land and seascapes creating each cloth’s unique personality. As with previous collections all fabrics have been handwoven on a computerised 32 shaft Megado, which marries traditional hand weaving techniques with contemporary methods of production. pickone.co.uk
Joanne Thompson
The circle is always the starting point for Joanne Thompson’s jewellery designs. Ancient chain maille patterns are her constant inspiration and she experiments with the scale, weight, form and texture of the chains. Her jewellery is voluminous; light, tactile and durable. Joanne translates precious metals into soft forms which flow and stir with the body. Every circle is formed, soldered and finished by hand. joannethompson.co.uk
Karen Suzuki
Exploring the possibilities presented by combining and reworking fabrics, Karen Suzuki’s creatures have a sense of uniqueness, vitality and spontaneity. Inspired by urban wildlife, her work expresses the fragility and complexity of these animals existing in the urban environment. Karen aims to fuse material, form and idea - so that each object’s story can be read in the very fabric it is constructed from. namelesswonders.jimdo.com
Lara Scobie
Lara Scobie creates large-scale sculptural ceramics that balance composition and form. By integrating drawing, surface mark-making, and volume, Lara plays with space and pattern. Lara has exhibited internationally and received multiple awards, including Honourable Mention at Mino Ceramics, Japan. For over 20 years, she taught ceramics and design at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design in Dundee, Scotland. larascobie-ceramics.com
Lynsey Walters
Lynsey Walters designs and makes wearable wool jewellery and hair accessories inspired by her vintage collection and her quirky sense of humour. Imagine a quaint garden crossed with a delightful haberdashery shop. Lynsey’s accessories are vibrant, with a delightful nostalgic charm. Lynsey has been in business for nearly 16 years, since graduating from the Royal College of Art in London in 2000 where she studied Constructed Textiles. lynseywalters.co.uk
Melanie Muir
Melanie Muir creates unique jewellery and decorative pieces entirely by hand. She has invented her own process involving veneers of polymer and several stages of firing after being inspired by the Japanese metalworking technique mokume gane. Melanie is constantly inspired by the colours, shapes and patterns that surround her in the Scottish Highland landscape. melaniemuir.com
Misun Won
Misun Won is inspired by the Korean traditional patchwork wrapping cloth Jogakbo and its relationship to fractal geometry. She wants to incorporate the beauty of Jogakbo’s playful rhythmic structure within her jewellery. Originally from South Korea, Misun is based in Edinburgh and she views her jewellery as a vehicle that conveys the similarities and differences between Scottish and Korean cultures. misunwonjewellery.com
Morag Macpherson
Morag Macpherson creates unique surface patterns for limited-edition fabric, wallpaper, cushions and accessories. Her influences come from art history, different cultures, lines, and natural and urban shapes. Her patterns are digitally printed and this allows her complete freedom of colour expression with no limitations, which is incredibly liberating. The making and patch working process is the final part of her creative journey and she enjoys the patience it teaches her. moragmacpherson.com
Myer Halliday
Myer Halliday is intrigued by the interaction of line, colour and pattern. His techniques explore how 2D surface decoration transforms our perception of 3D forms. He is interested in the way abstract mark-making and the quality of his lines interact with his materials - paper-like porcelaneous clay. Through his use of pattern, Myer enjoys exploring the tension between our human desire for predictability and the joy associated with the unexpected. myerhalliday.co.uk
Patricia Shone
“The world we touch every day is becoming increasingly synthetic: what we need to challenge us are the things of nature.” Patricia Shone’s work is informed by the powerful landscape around her on the Isle of Skye. Her highly textured vessels are made by using different stoneware techniques - raku firing, wood firing and saggar firing - to create a range of colour effects, surface effects and densities. patriciashone.co.uk
Rhona McCallum
Rhona McCallum creates contemporary, luxury jewellery that embodies the natural forces that shape, build and erode our landscapes. The process of forging allows Rhona to work expressively with precious metals and apply marks as if she was drawing. Each unique piece bares its own marks from the hammer, creating a natural and rugged finish that echoes the landscapes that inspired them. rhonamccallum.com
Ruth Hollywood
Ruth Hollywood makes jewellery inspired by natural geometry. Synthesising 100% recycled silver and colourful hand-mixed resin, her work moves over the boundaries between science, nature and art. Ruth’s work strongly appeals to those who love colour and care about sustainability. In her Glasgow studio, she puts new technology to work in harmony with traditional techniques. Ruth is inspired by contemporary design and architecture, and artists such as Frank Stella. ruthhollywood.com
