CCI-newsletter-1986-60-November-December

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1986

Crafts Council of Ireland Thomas Prior House Merrion Road Dublin 4

Telephone 680764 / 603070 ethnic market should be approached, and it could be seen to be a reasonably successful first step.

The input of the speakers was varied and interesting.

Brian Jefferson dealt with the mechanics of costing and pricing, possibly in too great detail.

However, the basics needed repeating and in the context of the Seminar they provided a foundation on which subsequent talks could be set. Brian's experience and mastery of his subject showed in the rapport which he quickly established with his audience.

At the Seminar in Kilkenny, I to r: Mr David Frost of Pierre Deux; Professor Brian Jefferson; Mr William D Finlay. Chairman of the Crafts Council; Mr Norbert Nelson of National Crafts in New York; Mr Michael Jackson, Vice-Chairman of the Crafts Council of Ireland.

Photo M Diggin

MARKETING QUALITY CRAFTS At the recent Crafts Council seminar Marketing Quality Crafts in Kilkenny, the contributors were Professor Brian Jefferson of the University of Georgia who has written a successful book on the marketing of crafts; Norbert Nelson who has a gallery in New York: National Crafts; and David Frost, who is manager of Pierre Deux retail outlets.

It was a first move by the Crafts Council to provide craftworkers with some idea as to how the non-

Possibly Norbert Nelson's contribution was nearer to the needs and expectations of the craftworkers and his National Crafts Gallery presents interesting possibilities for Irish Crafts in the US. His suggestions are to be carefully considered in the near future.

David Frost was most entertaining and sent his audience home in high good humour. When the memory of the fun had faded, however, what remained was a very clear picture of a very select market and what is required of us to become part of that market. If we never knew the real meaning of merchandising, David left us all in no doubt as to its value.

On reflection a complementary set of speakers who between them ensured that is was possible for everyone to get some value from the Seminar. A positive result is the obvious need for more such projects.

A Very Happy Christmas and a

Prosperous New Year to all Craft workers

BEYOND THE PARISH PUMP Sean McCrum attended the Potters Workshop in Cork between 4 and 5 October, and found that it raised issues much wider than potting.

A good conference should raise as many questions as it answers.

Even when it caters mainly for the needs of people working in a single medium, like ceramics or weaving, points should begin to emerge which also relate to others.

APPOINTMENT The Chairman and Management Committee of the Crafts Council take great pleasure in announcing the appointment of Terry Kelly as Executive Officer.

Terry Kelly studied pottery, silverwork and fabric printing among other crafts at the Crawford School of Art in Cork, where she received an Art Teacher's Certificate. She has worked since then as a colour consultant, was Mayor of Limerick from 1983 to 1984 and was Executive Director of the Heritage Trust from 1985 until recently, during which time she was responsible among other things for funding, management and promotion of the major environmental Options.

Terry Kelly says emphatically that the Crafts Council is run for the craftsman. "Council policy is to actively promote a climate in which crafts at all levels can thrive, first at home and then abroad," she says. "Craftsmen must tell us what the needs are if we are to make sound decisions as to what remedial action is required".

With no less commitment, however, she adds that craftsmen must in return give the back-up that is necessary to meet the Council's aims by producing at the right time work of sufficiently high quality to justify the efforts made on their behalf. "If this means taking a long, hard look at what craft in Ireland is today, and questioning honestly whether it is what it needs to be, then so be it."

The Council and Secretariat look forward to welcoming Terry Kelly when she takes up her appointment in January.

2

The Potters Workshop was held on 4 and 5 October at the Crawford School of Art in Cork. By using as demonstrators three potters who work differently, it avoided a problem which besets too many other similar weekends. It did not cater for a single party line on the only true way to use a material like ceramics.

Of the three, Takashi Yasuda makes utilitarian ware on the wheel and believes that whatever may be personally unique in an object should evolve through traditional forms. Ewen Henderson uses ceramics as a sculptural medium, hand-building pot shapes.

Whilst he does that, his work could not be anything other than ceramics. Sandy Brown concentrates on surface decoration, although the shapes on which she paints are important. Like Henderson, she works within the Western, twentieth-century arts tradition of subjective expression, and brings that approach to the decoration of a ceramic surface.

They demonstrated a wide range of approaches in the working demonstrations and discussions.

However, they were still potters talking to other potters. In that situation, the legitimacy of building up group support can easily turn to group self-congratulation. That can enhance rather than break down cosy isolation. Michael Robinson raised several points in his lectures which went further than whether a pot is well made.

This and the next article look at some of the points which began to emerge then and throughout the weekend and try to develop them.

There were four points which are closely linked: isolation; the maintenace and development of standards; how standards can evolve through and into tradition; and what tradition is within a contemporary Irish context.

Isolation and Ideas For anywhere like Ireland, the breakdown of isolation is fundamentally important in devdoping any activity, let alone ceramics. Ideas and technical skills can too easily fail to develop because the inward looking of isolation prevents any serious examination of outside contacts and concepts. This balance, between attitudes which develop locally and their international setting, is important. It can easily became parochial introversion when the international context is weakened. It can just as easily fall into the trap of superficially imitating international styles and their surface effects only. The visual arts, like painting in the 1970s in Ireland, already indicated what the problems are in this area.

However, whether anyone likes it or not, concepts developed outside this island are what set the and standards to which person and local attitudes must respond. A failure to work within these limits produces provincialism at its worst, instead of regional strength. The international context is unavoidable.

Clearly, Ireland is also geographically isolated. Where ceramics are concerned, that also involves isolation from the manufacturing traditions of England, which have been the basis for Irish ceramics. Because there has been no effective twentieth century manufacturing tradition here like the UK's, and became the studio pottery movement here is only twenty or so years old, there has been no serious attempt to relate made objects to hand-made, applied art work. This is beginning to alter.

In addition, there has been very littling willingness to admit that, like painting in Ireland, Irish ceramics have responded to outside movements, rather than initiating any major changes themselves. This is not to downgrade individual achievements, some of which have been considerable, but it is the case. In the nineteenth century, for example, the Belleek factory responded to the fashions of the times but established its own presence. This century, studio and craft pottery here have all responded to existing concepts. In many cases, they have failed to relate their own working back-

ground to these ideas. As a result, concepts have developed outside Ireland have not been related to local conditions. Isolation from the mainstream of these movements has prevented people here from analysing what their benefits and disadvantages are here.

And Bernard Leach...

The tradition upon which much current Irish studio ware is based is Bernard Leach's. His orientalism was itself an attempt to overcome the poor condition of English studio ceramics. Leach had to import ideas to resurrect the concept, something which was necessary at the time. Those ideas came from outside the main body of European attitudes. Despite their original usefulness they have, until recently, hindered the development of ceramics on the basis of the European concepts within which n ^ t potters are brought up here.

Opening Up To counter the problem of isolation, two strategies have so far evolved.

Ceramics courses at art colleges set local work in an international context by bringing in non-Irish potters to give working sessions.

Ceramics are also set within wider, art-based attitudes, which are important for this whole area.

Secondly, open seminars are being increasingly provided outside art schools for professional potters.

This has developed since the Carrigaline ceramics exhibition and seminar in 1982, which placed Irish and international potters in the same workplace and set utilitarian and sculptural work in the same context. Although these seminars are increasing in number, they are still seen as once-off events: they are not part of any coherent pattern. Once again, they are isolated.

Thus the first layer of problems developed outside Ireland had not been resolved when the studio pottery movement began here in the early 1960s. It was compounded by the isolation and lack of any pressure to develop from these concepts. Financial success, for example, has been accepted as the measure of aesthetic standards.

At one level, it is relatively easy to remove geographical and design isolation once the inclination and the necessary planning exist to do so. The more difficult problem is the complacency which isolation causes. Where financial success is the only yardstick for quality success, because isolation has cut off any other, there is no impulse to concentrate on aesthetic expression.

Takashi Yasuda demonstrates at the Cork Potters Workshops.

Photo S McCrum

If the market buys a particular design, there is no need for development. Yet it is as important to a potter or weaver to make an aesthetic statement, as it is to a painter. Their media are as valid as any others to use for this end. If hand-crafted ceramics of any sort are used as a product primarily to make profits, their aesthetic quality takes second place. Similarly to a painting which does the same, the result is equally second rate. That is probably the most dangerous expression of isolation.

This introduces the whole question of standards into the discussion.

The next point is how to establish standards to meet the needs of the present Irish situation, because their development is closely tied to breaking down isolation. It also involves defining to which traditions these standards'are related, and what role they may have here.

Sean McCrum is a writer and exhibition organiser on the fine arts.

Mr Paul Derrez, The Nefherlands

JEWELLERS & METALWORKERS GUILD The recently formed Jewellers and Metalworkers Guild held their first seminar in Grennan Mills, Kilkenny in October of this year. Three guest speakers held workshops and gave lectures: Bill Walker Head of the Jewellery Department at Loughborough Polytechnic; AnneMarie Shillitoe, an expert on refractory metals, from Edinburgh, and Paul Derrez, a gallery owner and jeweller from the Netherlands.

Altogether fifty-three people, ranging from students to professional jewellers participated in this very successful seminar.

On the first day, Saturday, Paul Derrez gave a lecture on his work and his gallery in Amsterdam, emphasising the importance of promotion and display in jewellery.

Bill Walker then showed slides of the impressive work of the jewellery students at Loughborough Polytechnic. The afternoon was devoted to two excellent workshops held by Bill and AnneMarie.

On Sunday there were further slide shows and lectures. Paul Derrez spoke on the development of jewellery design in Holland from the 1960s to the present day. An informal discussion followed, during which it was decided to hold an exhibition early in 1987 and to establish a newsletter to circulate information and news within the Guild.

The co-operation of George Vaughan of Grennan Mills School, Thomastown in lending the Mills to the Guild was much appreciated and the Crafts Council are also to be thanked for their assistance and financial help which made the seminar possible.

EXHIBITION Mr Jim Dennison recently judged the sixth exhibition mounted by Cork Potters.

In his introduction, Mr Dennison referred to the significance ceramics has had in identifying the cultural attainments of great civilisations: this exhibition was important, he said, as part of the continuum of human experience in which "the artist craftsman serves as one of a number of conduits for cultural values."

Mr Dennison said he had awarded prizes as a result not only of measuring the merits of various works against others in the exhibition, but also in relation to ceramic activity elsewhere in Ireland and abroad.

The prize for Best Decoration was awarded to Leda May, whose work Mr Dennison considered to show a controlled but spontaneous decorative capacity and a clear understanding of the decorative elements.

The work of Peter Wolstenholme, who took the prize in the category, Most Innovative Piece, was distinguished according to Mr Dennison by its 'Irishness' — the synthesis and translation of experience.

No prizes were awarded in the Functional and Sculptural categories.

The award for Best Pieces in the Show went to Maxine Kearns for three bowls with geometric patterns which Mr Dennison said "carried associations beyond their physical form and were in fact metaphors". He added that "whilst defining past and particularly the present, the bowls also indicate or point towards the future."

Cork Potters opened their exhibition with San Francisco Potters at the Crawford Municipal Art Gallery on 28 November, very successfully in spite of the great difficulties encountered at what seemed like every turn. An offer by the Cork Corporation to supply plinths for the exhibition came to nothing when the Corporation workers went out on strike. An American airline's promised sponsorship of shipment of the San Francisco Potters work had also apparently failed due to that airline's failure to freight the

consignment on time. This airline having no further convenient flight available in the final week before the exhibition, the consignment was handed over to another line which succeeded in short-shipping it twice. Finally on the evening before opening, the exhibition arrived in Shannon... without its import papers. Only the good offices of Lep International got it to Cork in time to be set up for the opening.

Cork Potters are to commended on a very impressive exhibition.

Jim Turner's and Fran Wolstenholme's courage, stamina and enthusiasm must be recognised as the forces which mounted the Cork and San Francisco Potters 1986 exhibition against all odds.

BURREN IV The fourth Burren Workshop took place during early November, based | on accommodation in the holiday I cottages in Ballyvaughan. Fourteen j craftworkers mostly from the textile | and ceramic areas took part along | with four students — one each \ from Belfast, Dublin, Limerick and j Cork Schools of Art — and four Workshop Leaders. They were Barrie Cooke, the Irish painter, Mary Farmer, a tapestry artist who teaches at the Royal College of Art; Terry Moores, a ceramist from Boston in Lincolnshire who makes strange black forms; and Rushton Aust, a young fabric designer who has just set up his own print workshop in London, with the aid | of a British Crafts Council grant. | [ | | j j

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CORK AND SAN FRANCISCO POTTERS 1986 Facing page, above: Handbuilt porcelain vessel by Peter lolstenholme, winner of the vard for the Most Innovative fork.

Below: Three Pueblo-influenced Bowls designed and made by Maxine Means, Overall First Prize Winner This page, above: Set of decorated porcelaine by Leda May, winner of the Surface Decoration A ward.

Photos Bob Wright

Once all these ingredients were mixed together in the melting pot of the mysterious and magic place that is the Burren on beautiful clear winter days, an explosion of creativity was bound to result.

i Barrie Cooke started the Workshop I off by talking on the first evening about his love affair with the Burren which started almost thirty years ago when he moved to Kilnaboy and settled there. His | philosophy is based on gaining an intimate knowledge of an area (in his case, he did it through fishing and shooting and to a greater extent through study of the area's archeology) and absorbing it into his sub-conscious. Slowly, at some later time, his observations and reactions to the place would reappear onto his canvasses within the studio. Barrie then spent the next two days taking small groups of people on magical mystery tours of his favourite places, and certainly those who were lucky enough to go with him will never forget the experience we all had in this amazing place.

The other three Workshop Leaders worked tirelessly everyday with the participants. They started the week by seeing each participant and talking about their work, then during the week they often went out into the field with participants to discuss what they were doing.

Towards the end of the week, every participant was given a personal tutorial with the leaders to discuss the week's work and what directions it might take. On the last day, participants went around all the cottages to see each other's work in turn. It was clear at this continued on next page 5

stage that Barrie Cooke's mystical philosophy had had a profound effect on many participants.

These Burren Workshops are a wonderful experience. It is so valuable to get out of an everyday production studio, into a week long 'open' situation with strangers who will discuss and criticise your work so honestly, to have time to open your eyes and mind to new experiences and possible new directions. It was a measure of the Workshop's success, to see the many new directions participants were moving into at the end of the week. We can all look forward to an exciting exhibition of new work as a result of this, probably in Dublin in 1987.

I hope that all those craftworkers who did not take part will consider applying to take part in next year's Workshop wherever it may be. In my opinion it, or something similar, should be an integral part of any thinking craftworker's year.

Congratulations to the Clare Craftworkers and the Crafts Council for organising it, and to AnCO for their sponsorship.

Peter Wolstenholme Workshop Co-Ordinator At the fourth Burren Workshop there were eighteen participants from such widely varying disciplines as weaving, quilting, printing, painting, ceramics, metalwork, knitwear to felt and paper-making. There was an impressive line-up of Course Leaders which included painter, Barrie Cooke; tapestry artist Mary Farmer, ceramist Terry Moores; and textile printer Rushton Aust.

The course itself was fairly unstructured allowing time for people to explore the environment and find something that was of particular interest to them. The evenings were taken up with slideshows of the course leaders' and participants' work, discussions and also a lecture on Irish textiles by Mairead Reynolds Because daylight was short everyone was up early and out filling sketch books, taking photographs, absorbing the landscape or working in whatever way best suited them. Although the weather was on the whole dry, it was very cold but this did not deter people from getting every ounce out of their visit.

Overall, it was a great week. It provided an opportunity for the

participants to have time to think about their work, to re-define directions they are going in, to draw inspiration for future work and to talk with each other. The interaction of twenty-two very creative people working and discussing work together is bound to produce some interesting results Everyone has agreed to produce work for the Burren Exhibition to be held next April. It will be fascinating to see these ideas and drawings become finished work.

From the enthuastic response to the week it should prove to be an exciting and stimulating exhibition.

Patricia Murphy Participant Comment: The success of this year's Burren Workshop depended to an enormous extent on the calibre of the participants. There were eighteen outstanding artist/ craftsmen, some already long established as foremost in their disciplines, some formidable new talents who were seen by their fellows for the first time this year (this is in itself an indication of the great need that exists for a platform for new, young talent).

That they came at such short notice is fair comment on the value of the Workshop

From the Mouse House series Martina O'Sullivan.

MARTINA O'SULLIVAN'S HAT TRICK If ever there was someone who evoked the Irish environment in her work, it is Martina O'Sullivan.

From Mallow in Co. Cork, Martina was exposed at an early age to the delights of being creative. Her father always invented things, adapted things and made things and from this stemmed her talent for modelling.

Late confirmation of funding for the project forced postponement into early November (the Workshop normally runs in September) when many participants, visitors and feepaying people alike had returned to Having finished school, she went to teaching posts. In many cases the Cork School of Art where she there was a week's loss of did "Fine Art" for three years. A earnings for this reason. In all desire to work in clay made her cases, a week's production of apply to the Limerick School of / saleable goods was lost. where, through three years, she Still they came. developed her work culminating in her miniature models of the Three weeks before the project was sections of rooms — evoking due to begin leaders had still to be everyones own lifestyle. From there found. Colleges had just re-opened she went on to Kilworth Craft so that those in teaching posts had Workshops, where she further to be available to meet new developed her work, with a slightly students. Late granting of funds more abstract perception. She soon had restricted an earlier search. became established as a modeller That good leaders finally agreed to of excellence and had people come was due to the organisers' clamoring for her pieces. By this hard work, and belief in the project. stage, there was no shortage of What is worthwhile does not have people to appreciate the finer to be uphill on a slippery slope. It is aspects of her skills, her attention hoped at the Crafts Council that to detail and the awareness that funding for Burren V can be every piece was a part of Martina confirmed as early as possible in herself.

1987. Like January. It is hoped that sponsors will finally see the She applied for and was awarded a commitment and enthusiasm of place in Cardiff to study for a organisers and participants as Masters Degree. This place at evidence that the project is not Cardiff is one of the most just worthwhile — it's necessary. prestigious and sought after

internationally. For Martina the problem was how to raise the money necessary to study there, and this took a step towards resolution w h e n the National Council for Educational A w a r d s awarded Martina the Young Designer of the Year title w h i c h carried a prize of £ 5 0 0 . This was quickly followed by the Royal Dublin Society's Henry Higgins scholarship, w o r t h £ 2 , 0 0 0 .

ANNOUNCEMENTS Registered Craftsmen Slides requested for slide archive to be submitted before end of December.

Member Organisations 1987 Calendar of Events to be submitted before end of December.

Finally, she has w o n one of t w o scholarships available to graduates of all disciplines from the British Council for study in Britain. At £5,000 it is more than adequate to cover the cost of Martina's study.

Martina is now doing her year at Cardiff and she is bound to draw upon the influence of her surroundings there for the time being. Her final piece done in Ireland called "Irish J o u r n e y s " and bagftd on her home in Kilworth can b ^ P l e n touring w i t h Kilworth 5 Exhibition.

Applications for" grant aid in 1987 to reach CCI prior to Wednesday, 18 February 1987.

HAND SILK R O L L E R S A number of enquiries have been made to the Crafts Council for hand silk rollers for silk scarves.

Any information to Mary at Crafts Council of Ireland Thomas Prior House Merrion Road, Ballsbridge Dublin 4. Telephone 6 8 0 7 6 4

At this instant somewhere overseas there may be an individual who seeks to import the very product you manufacture. What is his name? Where is he from? Is he a reliable trading partner? More importantly how do you contact him?

Obviously, travel overseas is one sure way of securing new con­ tracts. However, many Irish Exporters are now too busy keeping their operation ticking over on the home front to engage themselves in such frequent globe-trotting ventures to locate potential markets.

Fortunately, Bank of Ireland International Banking Division have a unique means of further assisting you with your export promo­ tion. The Trade Services section of this division is operated by highly skilled and efficient professionals who are in a posi^prvto locate new markets for those contemplating entering the export field. They can also expand existing markets for those already actively involved in trading overseas.

Bank of Ireland International Banking Division has many agents in many countries. Taking their branch networks into account, this gives us vast outlets through which the Trade Services section can seek out untapped markets to promote an Irish product. It is through the medium of these correspondent banks that we ^fc^avour to locate your new prospective trading partners. ^ P i i s service is devised to boost Irish Exports and is provided at absolutely no cost to you. If interested, please complete and return the coupon below. We shall then be in a position to initiate a TRADE ENQUIRY on your behalf.

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IRISH S P I N N E R S LIMITED Kiltimagh, C o . Mayo Pure n e w wool bainin and coloured hand knitting yarns Telephone (094) 8 1 1 5 6

WEAVING EQUIPMENT Looms and accessories, books, dyes, yarns for weaving and knitting, spinning wheels Available from A n n O'Kelly 4 Eglington Park, Donnybrook, Dublin 4. Telephone 6 9 3 5 6 5

FOR S A L E Lover spinning wheel and accessories. Natural dye stuffs and wool fleeces.

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When trading internationally it is of paramount importance to assess the creditworthiness of the foreign parties. When we locate a prospective trading partner for one of our clients, we always ensure that an accompanying favourable status report on the foreign concern is provided.

Confidential status reports on companies or individuals at home and abroad are provided by us regardless of whether you have availed of our TRADE ENQUIRY service already mentioned. Any request for a status report of this nature must be directed through your bankers.

Trade Services also assist by providing advice, guidance and information on many regulations which influence international bus­ iness. For example, what are the exchange control regulations that effect the speed and ease of payments? What are the import regula­ tions, customs tariffs, correct shipping documentation etc. required?

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The Trade Services team take pride in being able to help expor­ ters identify possible new outlets for their products, checking out the creditworthiness of potential foreign clients and supplying gen­ eral, financial and economic information on the countries where the market is located.

ABOVE left: Harvest Knot Corozan Fan; right: Harvest Knot single mordiford. LEFT: Harvest Knot Welsh fan.

Harvest Knots by Carraig Craft Centre, Cavan. Photos F Sutton

HARVEST KNOTS The harvest knot has been a tradition in corn growing areas for centuries. It is a tradition of English rather than Irish origin and those here would be more likely to be found in northern areas. The examples illustrated would all be of English or Welsh origins. While these are more complicated designs, the harvest knot in general was a relatively simple thing made by twining together in rings or spirals the straw of wheat or oats or barley. They were worn at harvest time. In general, on those worn by the girls, the ears of grain were left attached and on the mens knots, they were removed — undoubtedly of some fertile significance.

Sometimes they were given as engagement presents or as indications of a loving relationship. The modern equivalent is the US practice of exchanging fraternity or sorority rings — that's civilisation for you!