Craft and the History of the World
Five influential pieces from the Crafts Council Collection acquired in the last two years now form part of the British Museum and BBC’s popular A History of the World website.
The radio broadcasts by Neil MacGregor reach their conclusion on 22nd October, with the final 100th mystery contemporary object announced on 14th October. In the most recent section of the website timeline the following contemporary craft objects can be seen;
• Anne by Gareth Neal (2008) is a table designed on a computer programme, cut by CNC router machine and finished by hand that alludes to historic furniture making by the outline of a 1730 Queen Anne-style side table visible in the legs.
• Wedgewoodn’t Tureen by Michael Eden (2010) brings together traditional ceramic craft skills and digital technology. Eden has re-interpreted a Wedgewood tureen using Computer Aided Design.
• Social piece of furniture #6 by Anders Ruhwald in 2008 is a ceramic sculpture alluding to domesticity and function through the inclusion of a long table leg.
• Self-Assembly is a jacquard woven textile piece by Philippa M Brock (2008) is inspired by Sir Aaron Klug’s 1982 discovery of the 3D structure of viruses through 2D X-ray methods of study.
• Third Hand from Ballet to Remember series by Maria Militsi made between 2008 and 2010 is a collection of found objects that have had crafted 18ct gold ballet shoes grafted on to them, each striking a different pose.
See all the Crafts Council objects on the site here
There are currently 70 objects on loan from the Crafts Council Collection at 15 venues across the UK. Representing the very best in British craft over the last 35 years, the Crafts Council Collection covers a wide range of contemporary craft practice with more than 1,400 fascinating objects from both established figures and up-and-coming names.
