By Fiona Logue
For a small country, Scotland has a big international reputation as a remarkable centre for craft making and design.
At a time of economic uncertainty, it makes sense to do all we can to promote the country’s 3,500 skilled craftsmen and women who create such phenomenal ceramics, textiles, furniture, jewellery, glass, furniture and much more with their hands.
Scottish makers generate £70 million annually and the sector would love to see this contribution grow with craft playing an ever-greater role in the economy and further developing as a source of fulfilling creative careers.
One way we can encourage this is to increase awareness of our excellence in the UK as well as overseas, which is why, for the first time, we have a dedicated country showcase at the London Design Fair called Scotland: Craft & Design.
This event follows on from the success of our recent Craft Scotland Summer Show that showcased more than 30 makers as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
Too often the images that spring to mind when people hear the term “craft” are more about the couthy than the cutting edge, and more to do with tradition than innovation. The reality is that we have a vibrant craft sector that is at the forefront of creative thought and practice. Scottish makers are quick to adopt new technologies and combine these with skills that have grown out of a long-tradition of craftsmanship. What results is a vitality and inventiveness that can be breathtaking.
Scotland is a leader in craft making and design because, while we cherish our heritage, we have always looked outwards. Scottish culture embraces new ideas and welcomes people and influences from across the globe.
The teaching of craft skills at graduate and postgraduate level in Scotland can be exemplary. This and an open business environment mean some of the most talented choose to stay here and build careers, further adding to the diversity and quality of the sector.
If we are to maintain and develop this national strength we also need to make sure that we are engaging young people at school, giving them the opportunity and appetite to learn about materials and how to make things.
A recent report on innovation for the Crafts Council in England emphasised that this type of creative knowledge has far-reaching benefits. It says "there are clear links between craft and the eight great technologies identified in the UK Government’s industrial strategy as technologies in which the UK is set to be a global leader. In particular, advanced materials, robotics and synthetic biology are areas in which craft skills and the depth of material knowledge of makers can play an important role”.
This underlines how craft, and the skills it embodies, are of greater relevance in a world where progress is often predicated on practical creativity.
A social and economic positive of craft and design is that they can be practised almost anywhere. The 22 makers in London this week encompass an area from Orkney to Dumfries and Galloway.
Our partners in the Scotland: Craft & Design pavilion are Emergents, a community interest company promoting creative careers and enterprise in the Highlands and Islands. This matters: Scottish craft is of disproportionate value in fragile and remote communities, providing vital income. Helping find new markets and customers for makers in such places helps consolidate and strengthen wider communities.
Yet, for the sector to further flourish and contribute more to Scotland’s wider economy, we must be prepared to pay a fair price for people’s work. It often surprises me that people who would not baulk at paying thousands of pounds for a painting can be reticent about a few hundred pounds for craft of the highest quality.
Our pavilion presents a sample of Scotland’s finest craft, showcasing new ranges of tableware, glass sculptures, organic willow forms, soft merino textiles, hand-built vessels and contemporary vernacular furniture.
Just as important will be the chance to meet the makers themselves. They have the most remarkable dedication to their work; one even grows his own oats to provide the straw backs for his chairs.
These are people to be celebrated, creating work to be cherished in a sector that, if nurtured, can go from strength to strength.
Fiona Logue is director of Craft Scotland.
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