The Crafts Council’s new programme Collective offers contemporary craft makers the chance to direct and develop their own professional development. Rosy Greenlees, the council’s executive director, introduces it.
Craft is a lively, entrepreneurial and independent-minded contributor to the economic, social and cultural life of the nation. Our role is to enable those at the heart of the sector to develop and grow and supporting makers has been central to the Crafts Council’s work over the last 35 years. The Crafts Council Development Award alone has helped over 1,200 new makers, including Caroline Broadhead, Tom Dixon, Thomas Heatherwick and Shelly Goldsmith, at the starting point of their careers.
However, over this period craft practice has changed and makers now have diversity of career paths and opportunities. It is crucial, therefore, that makers are supported throughout their careers extending and challenging their practice if they recognise the need to do so. With this in mind the Crafts Council has launched a comprehensive programme of support for makers. This programme, Crafts Council Collective, comprises five strands: Hothouse, designed for new and emerging makers, Injection and Artistic Licence for more established makers and Craft Rally and Portfolio for all makers. Collective will provide tailored business development, time for makers to explore their practice and take creative risks, support from peers and experts, opportunities to develop aspirational models of practice and opportunities to share knowledge, resources and advice.
Crafts Council Collective has been developed following extensive evaluation of former schemes, recommendations from the Craft Blueprint, developed in partnership with Creative & Cultural Skills and from Turning Point, Arts Council England’s ten year strategy for the visual arts. It will enable the Crafts Council to have an programme of initiatives that collectively strive to meet the needs of all 33,000 makers across the UK at all stages in their career.
The success of Collective will rely on strong partnerships with other organisations across the UK. We want to connect with exemplar regional or locally focussed schemes that already provide development and networking opportunities and extend these to a national level. Craft Rally, Portfolio and Hothouse will be delivered with a range of partners whilst Injection and Artistic License will be delivered directly by the Crafts Council. Whilst we continue to develop these programmes we will launch the first initiative, Craft Rally, in February 2010.
Craft Rally is a democratic, inclusive programme of CPD opportunity for all makers, regardless of location, discipline, point in career, or any other set boundary. Digitisation and virtual communication have revolutionised the way makers communicate and practice. Craft Rally will help connect thousands of makers many of whom work in isolation and often feel they lack peer support or networks. Craft Rally is a physical and virtual knowledge transfer network where makers can demonstrate and share innovative and aspirational models of practice. There will be four rallies per year across the country. The first Craft Rally will take place on 25 March at 45 Millbank in London and will be delivered in conjunction with ArtQuest and Yorkshire Art Space. The content of this rally and indeed all future rallies will be generated and steered by makers through a virtual network ensuring its direct relevance to the needs of the craft sector. Craft Rally is for makers, by makers.
The broader craft industry contributes £3 billion GVA (Gross Value Added) to the UK economy, greater than the visual arts, cultural heritage or literature sectors. Collective will ensure that individuals can take control of their own professional and personal development and together create sustainable models of practice for the whole sector that will define contemporary craft practice in the 21st century.
More information on all aspects of Collective in the Professional Development section at www.craftscouncil.org.uk/professional-development
