Power of Making

This autumn, the V&A and Crafts Council will celebrate the role of making in our lives by presenting an eclectic selection of over 100 exquisitely crafted objects, ranging from a life-size crochet bear to a ceramic eye patch, a fine metal flute to dry stone walling. Power of Making will be a cabinet of curiosities showing works by both amateurs and leading makers from around the world to present a snapshot of making in our time.

This FREE exhibition takes place from 6 September 2011 – 2 January 2012 in the Porter Gallery, the V&A’s gallery for contemporary exhibitions and installations.

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  Jewellery, Nora Fok. © V&A images

• The exhibition will showcase works made using a diverse range of skills and explore how materials can be used in imaginative and spectacular ways, whether for medical innovation, entertainment, social networking or artistic endeavour. Works on display will include moulded shoes by Marloes ten Bhömer, new Saville Row tailoring by Social Suicide, furniture such as a spun metal rotating chair by Thomas Heatherwick to individual handcrafted puppets from the 2009 film Fantastic Mr Fox, a six-necked guitar, bio-implant embroidering to aid surgical implants, a lion-shaped Ghanaian coffin, extreme cake decorations and new technologies such as 3D printing.

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  Rotational moulded shoe, Marloes ten Bhömer. © Marloes ten Bhömer

• Daniel Charny, who is curating the exhibition, said “This exhibition will celebrate the importance of traditional and time-honoured ways of making but also highlight the extraordinary innovation taking place around the world. We aim to show how the act of making in its various forms, from human expression to practical problem solving, unites us globally. We hope the exhibition will inspire people and cause them to more thoughtfully consider the role of making in their lives, in their society, in commerce and in education.”

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• People from around the world were invited to upload short films about making and a selection of the best entries will be continually screened in the exhibitions making area.

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For information regarding visiting the exhibition, please visit the V&A’s website