Description
The Crafts Council is an independent body funded by the Arts Council of England. The Crafts Council offers public access to its own reference library and picture library and Photostore, an electronic image database of contemporary craftwork. It publishes CRAFTS, its own magazine, six times a year, as well as organising Origin The London Craft Fair at Somerset House, COLLECT at V&A and extensive touring exhibition programmes. The Crafts Council provides economic support to crafts people by creating opportunities for exhibiting and selling their work and helps a number of new makers each year to set up in business through the Crafts Council Setting Up Scheme. Photostore is the Crafts Council's applied art research and commissioning tool, profiling over 1,000 selected designer-makers and featuring 50,000 images of their work. Now available online, Photostore enables users, through its instinctive search options: to browse information on designer-makers efficiently, look at examples of their work and contact makers of interest from the user’s desktop.
Collections description
The Crafts Council Collection began in 1972, a year after the Crafts Council (then the Crafts Advisory Committee) was established. The first objects in the Collection date from the time of the British Potters' Exhibition, when pieces by such potters as Bernard Leach, Hans Coper and Lucie Rie were acquired. Its purpose is to buy work by artists living in England, Wales and Scotland for public exhibition. It is administered by the Exhibitions Department at the Crafts Council, 44a Pentonville Road, London N1 9BY. The Collection numbers over 1200 objects spanning all the main media: ceramics, glass, metal, jewellery, furniture, textiles, wood, baskets, automata, calligraphy, lettering and bookbinding. It includes the work of many internationally acclaimed figures and we aim to maintain a balance between purchasing work from young makers and those already well established. Work is rarely purchased retrospectively, although a leeway of five years does exist.
The purchasing panel, comprising of makers, critics and museum/gallery representatives as well as Crafts Council staff, meets annually to discuss purchase recommendations; these are then followed up by studio and exhibition visits.
General Information
Brochure or leaflet available with directions to museum
Pre-booking service for groups
Collections
Specialist publications on collections available
Object identification and/or written enquiry service
Object study facilities available (enquire in advance)
Public access available to collections information
Disability Access
Toilets for disabled
Touch exhibits and/or handling sessions
Wheelchair access to all public areas
Children and Families
Events and resources for children and families
General Education
Academic publications and resources available
Adult lectures and courses held
Education facilities available
Loan service
Member of staff available with responsibility for education
Teaching/resources available for HE/FE students
Schools Education
Primary school education service available
Printed/audio-visual information available for schools
Secondary school education service available
Facilities
Library
Library with public access
Mail order service available
Meeting room available
Object study facilities available (enquire in advance)
Research facilities for academics
Shop
Study facilities
Visit our City Heritage Guides for more
listings in London
