Artefact & London Craft Week 2022

3rd May 2022

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QEST are delighted to return as event partner for Artefact, the contemporary craft fair at Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour. Now in its second edition, Artefact shines a light on artisanal excellence with an astonishing array of work on display, including museum-quality pieces from around the globe. Attracting top designers, architects, collectors and enthusiasts, it aims to highlight the joy that handmade objects can bring.

QEST Scholars will be showcasing their work and offering daily demonstrations of crafts including hand embroidery, ceramics and millinery. See Laura Thomas demonstrate Spanish lace handweaving on a table loom, Bryony Applegate make pendant lampshades and spheres by piping porcelain and slip-casting, Estella Castle using traditional heritage straw-working techniques and much more. Further scholars will also feature on the Makers Trail, showcasing their work throughout the week at different showrooms across the centre. Register for your visit here.

In addition, a number of QEST Scholars will have work on show with galleries during the event. For example Alice Walton’s intricately layered work will be on display with Ting Ying, while Cavaliero Finn will be showing the exquisitely patterned ceramics of Frances Priest. See the full list of participating galleries here.

The Conversations in Craft programme offers insider insights from the craft industry’s leading names. Featuring renowned experts, from gallerists to makers and curators, and chaired by writer and podcaster Grant Gibson, it delves deeper into contemporary craft. On Friday 13 May QEST CEO Debbie Pocock will be in discussion with panellists in Past and Present. As the world becomes increasingly digital are we in danger of losing traditional hand skills? And, if we are, does it really matter? Discover more and book your tickets here.

Award-winning ceramicist and QEST Scholar Julian Stair OBE will be discussing Prose and Pots with Grant Gibson on Wednesday 11 May (3-3.45pm). Book here.

QEST Scholars Bryony Applegate, Helen Brough, Jemma Gunning, Kate Rochester and Laura Thomas will discuss their practices and give us a tantalising glimpse at the future of British craft in The Future of Craft on Sunday 15 May (11.30-12.30). Book here.

With interior design placing greater value on craft, Artefact is an opportunity to discover, learn and connect with remarkable design talent at the world’s premier design destination.


The John Smedley Craft Prize, in partnership with QEST, seeks to inspire and nurture British craftspeople who have honed exceptional skills across any discipline and who produce beautiful objects using traditional techniques. John Smedley’s aim is to value and understand craftsmanship on a wider scale and support craftspeople as they continue a legacy of traditional workmanship while creating contemporary products that capture attention on an international scale.

During London Craft Week, John Smedley will celebrate the work of the 2022 John Smedley Craft Prize winner, QEST Arts Society Scholar and stone artist Zoe Wilson and uncover the links between the Zoe’s ethos and that of John Smedley.

9 May – 14 May 12-5pm. John Smedley, 55 Jermyn Street SW1Y 6LX


Sarabande Studio Takeover at Soho Home: Sarabande Studio are taking over Soho Home’s flagship store on the King’s Road, with QEST Scholar and embroidery artist Aurora Pettinari-York and paper installation artist Alice von Maltzahn taking up residence for London Craft Week. Walls of the Sarabande studios are mocked up to give you a sneak peak into the foundation’s creative space, usually off-limits to the public. Stop by and see Alice and Aurora demonstrate their craft.

27 April – 21 June. Soho Home Studio, 6 Duke of York Square, SW3 4LY


Makers’ Market: Celebrating the history of craftsmanship and championing heritage crafts, The Royal Exchange is hosting a makers’ market featuring a diverse selection of craftspeople who are not only at the top of their game but who are also passing on their knowledge and expertise to the next generation of makers. QEST Scholar and shoemaker Deborah Carré will be showcasing her work and demonstrating hand shoemaking at the event.

10-13 May, 9-6pm. The Royal Exchange, Bank, City of London EC3V 3LR


Where I Lay My Hat: An exhibition and retail space celebrating the positive impact of Shelter’s advice and support services for individuals impacted by our unjust housing system. A diverse range of hat designers/artists including QEST Scholar Lucy Barlow were invited to work with individuals who faced homelessness to understand their story and their future hopes. The hats in this project represent a ‘roof over the head’ while exploring the importance of having a home that you can call your own, a place to lay your ‘hat’ and to rest your head.

9-14 May, 10-6pm and 15 May 11-5pm. Boutique by Shelter, Unit EV8, Coal Drops Yard, N1C 4AB


Lora Avedian at Smythson: Smythson are celebrating the art of leather craftsmanship in collaboration with textile artist and QEST John Smedley Ltd Scholar Lora Avedian, breathing new life into Smythson’s surplus materials through a series of bespoke artworks. The work is inspired by Japanese textile art, in particular hand painted silk wall hangings from around the 19th century. Lora did research at the V&A Museum and took inspiration from some key examples in the British Museum archive. Each piece uses a combination of hand cut leathers with traditional hand and machine embroidery techniques.

9-14 May 10-6pm. 15 May 12-6pm. Smythson of Bond Street, 141–142 Sloane St, SW1X 9AY


An Evening with John Lobb and Rémy Martin: John Lobb Ltd is a family-run company that is world-renowned for their extremely high levels of craftsmanship and the fully bespoke shoemaking service that they have offered since 1849. Every pair of shoes produced for a customer of John Lobb Ltd goes through a 50 hour, 190 step process. At the heart of this process is a pair of hand-carved wooden lasts, made to the precise form of the customer’s feet. It is an integral part of the process that enables further shoes to be made to the exact same specification. Enjoy exclusive cocktails and tastings from Rémy Martin while meeting the last makers, including the Lobb directors, fifth generation members of the Lobb family.


Craftmasters Curates: At Home With Silver: Craftmasters collaborates with Connolly England to showcase a selection of the best of British silversmithing with an in-store exhibition and live demonstrations by three award-winning makers. These makers use heritage skills, passed down for centuries, to create exquisite, functional and modern objects for the home – heirlooms of the future. The demonstrations include chasing with Cornish silversmith Alex O’Connor; hand engraving with Annabel Hood; and Japanese dot inlay (hira zougan) with master silversmith and QEST Scholar Wayne Meeten.

13-14 May 2022, 10am-6pm. Connolly, 4 Clifford Street, London W1S 2LG


For more details on all events visit: www.londoncraftweek.com

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