Making Value
A new report published today reveals for the first time the extent of the contribution of entrepreneurial craft makers to industry, education and community and the importance in this digital and information age of the mastery of real things.
The report ‘Making value; craft and the economic and social contribution of makers’ is published today (Tuesday 22 June 2010) by the Crafts Council at their annual conference Assemble 2010 held in London.
The keynote speaker at the Assemble 2010 conference is Michael B Crawford, the American philosopher and motorbike mechanic and author of ‘The Case for Working with your Hands’ that makes the case for work that requires the mastery of real things.
The craft makers’ stories provide a new description of the economic and social contributions that they make and help us fully understand the importance of crafts to our society.
They are ‘sociable experts’, with portfolio careers, who are resourceful and resilient, keen to collaborate; motivated by making a difference; and entrepreneurial in sustaining a successful portfolio practice.
They contribute to economic growth, within and beyond the creative industries, driving innovation through materials and processes.
With community and education settings they support learning and development, giving material voice to those who are often ‘hard to hear’ and enabling a wide range of social and educational impacts through providing new and meaningful ways for people to express themselves.
Commenting on the new report, Rosy Greenlees, Executive Director, Crafts Council, says:
“The research shows craft makers working across a greater range of industry contexts and community and education settings than has previously been realised and recorded.”
“This inspirational new report represents a collective biography that will inform policy development and support a whole range of agencies in developing partnerships and programmes which create new and relevant opportunities for makes, users of and participants in craft.”
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For further information, requests to attend Assemble 2010, interviews with Michael B Crawford and a copy of ‘Making Value: craft and the economic and social contribution of makers’ by Mary Schwarz and Dr Karen Yair please contact Jill Read on 020 7806 2549 or media@craftscouncil.org.uk
Notes to Editors
• The keynote speaker at the Assemble 2010 conference is Michael B Crawford, the American philosopher and motorbike mechanic and author of ‘The Case for Working with your Hands’ that makes the case for work that requires the mastery of real things.
• The Crafts Council’s goal is to make the UK the best place to make, see, collect and learn about contemporary craft.
We believe that craft plays a dynamic and vigorous role in the UK’s social, economic and cultural life.
We believe that everyone should have the opportunity to make, see, collect and learn about craft.
We believe that the strength of craft lies in its use of traditional and contemporary techniques, ideas and materials to make extraordinary new work.
We believe that the future of craft lies in nurturing talent; children and young people must be able to learn about craft at school and have access to excellent teaching throughout their education.
• 11% of the UK population visited a craft exhibition in 20089/09, and 17% participated in craft activity in the same year (DCMS/ACE Taking Part data update August 2009).
• More than 2.8 million visits were made to the Crafts Council website in 2009. To find out everything you need to know about where to make, see, collect and learn about contemporary craft visit www.craftscouncil.org.uk
• The Crafts Council is supported by Arts Council England. Arts Council England works to get great art to everyone by championing, developing and investing in artistic experiences that enrich people’s lives. As the national development agency for the arts, it supports a range of artistic activities from theatre to music, literature to dance, photography to digital art, and carnival to crafts. Between 2008 and 2011, Arts Council England will invest £1.3 billion of public money from government and a further £0.3 billion from the National Lottery to create these experiences for as many people as possible across the country.
