National Life Stories: Crafts’ Lives

Jerwood Foundation has awarded Crafts’ Lives a total grant of £18,000, to make five life story recordings with leading makers in 2024 and 2025. Crafts’ Lives was established a quarter of a century ago, and the project documents the lives of Britain’s leading craftsmen and craftswomen for National Life Stories, the oral history fieldwork charity based at the British Library.

 

Building on Tanya Harrod's key text The Crafts in Britain in the Twentieth Century (1999), the Crafts’ Lives collection currently features over 160 makers from across the studio crafts in the UK: glass, ceramics, furniture, textiles, metalsmithing, jewellery, basketry, calligraphy and book arts. The project has benefitted from an array of expert advisors, including the late Emmanuel Cooper – Crafts’ Lives advisor, interviewee and Chair of the Jerwood Applied Art Prize, Ceramics in 2001.

The life story recordings stand apart from research and journalistic recordings as they are detailed ‘audio biographies’, situating the details of work and career within the context of an entire life. This body of interviews maps the influences, inspirations, friendships and collaborations between interviewees and different generations of makers.

Past Crafts’ Lives recordings have been funded by the generosity of individuals, trusts and foundations - for which NLS acknowledges the generous support and persuasive skill of the late Sir Nicholas Goodison - NLS Chair 2003-2015.  Jerwood Foundations’ patronage will enable the recording of a new generation of designer-makers.  

 

Amanda Game, Independent Crafts Specialist and Trustee of National Life Stories, said:

Jerwood Foundation's grant to Crafts’ Lives is a welcome reminder of the important relationship that Jerwood has had with the field of crafts for almost three decades.  From the first Jerwood Prize for the Applied Arts co-organised with the Crafts Council in 1995 to well devised, and funded, projects such as Jerwood Contemporary Makers and Jerwood Makers Open, the charity remains a leader among cultural Trusts and Foundations for their support for innovation in the crafts.  This is reflected in the many references made to the charity in Crafts’ Lives interviews with leading makers.

Lara Wardle, Executive Director and Trustee Jerwood Foundation said.

I am delighted that Jerwood Foundation is continuing its longstanding relationship with National Life Stories and has awarded a £18,000 grant to enable five further Crafts’ Lives recordings. These recordings will form part of a richly rewarding oral history archive, which is invaluable to both researchers working today and future generations that follow.

For more information please visit British Library and for a list of interviewees please contact nls@bl.uk

December 17, 2024