irish craft 2008: the annual craft edition of the "irish arts review" || craft tour 2008
TRANSCRIPT
Irish Arts Review
Craft Tour 2008Author(s): Cornelia McCarthySource: Irish Arts Review (2002-), Vol. 25, Irish Craft 2008: The Annual Craft Edition of the"Irish Arts Review" (2008), pp. 10-11Published by: Irish Arts ReviewStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/20493443 .
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Craft
tour
2008
The inaugural
US Craft
Collectors Tour
will raise
awareness of
Irish craft in an
important
target market
and encourage
collectors to
visit Ireland,
writes Cornelia
McCarthy
10
Some of the most influential
figures in the US collectors
market recently completed an
intensive 'Craft Tour' of Ireland. This
group of collectors, gallery owners and
cultural journalists visited the studios
of craftspeople whose work they had
first seen at Sculpture Objects &
Functional Art (SOFA) in Chicago in
200?. The Crafts Council of Ireland
(CColI ensured that there was serious
curatorial support at SOFA to
demonstrate to the US market that
this work is important and here to
stay. Audrey Whitty of the National
Museum of Ireland gave an
illuminating lecture on purchasing and
contemporary acquisitions by the
Museum. Brian Kennedy, curator of
the Irish exhibit at SOFA, also gave a
series of talks. This curatorial support is important to the US collector and
adds credibility to the Irish offering.
Following on from the success at SOFA
and the subsequent enquiries about
visiting Ireland, CCol contacted tour
organisers and galleries in the USA and
started discussions with key partners
to plan a familiarisation trip to Ireland in
spring 2008. The 'Craft Tour' was
organised by CCol and Failte Ireland in
conjunction with Craft Northern Ireland
and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board.
Failte Ireland has recognised the
importance of showcasing contemporary
Irish craft: 'Cultural tourism, of which
craft is a key component, is the fastest
growing form of tourism', according to
Damien O'Brien of Fhilte Ireland. 'It is
growing at a rate of 15% per annum,
three times the rate of all other forms of
tourism, and estimated to be worth
E5.1 billion to the Irish economy.'
This tour, then, was an important step
in developing Ireland as a desirable'arts
destination' for US collectors of
contemporary craft. Now that they have
returned home, this key group will
encourage discerning collectors to travel
to Ireland, visit craftspeoples' studios
and purchase their work. Bringing US
collectors to Ireland to experience and
purchase Irish craft is a valuable spin
off from CCol's strategy of raising the
profile of Irish craft internationally. From
CCol's exhibitions and touring
programme, to the Portfolio selection
and the development of international
exhibitions, such as SOFA, the word is
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out that the value of Irish craft is high.
'We are trying to find more centralised
ways to promote the work of Ireland's
finest craft artists, many of whom are
living and working in remote, scenic
areas', says Una Parsons, CEO of CCol.
'One objective is to work with partners to
develop exchanges and tours, which
allow collectors to meet craftspeople
and experience the beauty of the
settings that influence their work'.
Nine individuals took part in the
recent trip. They were offered a packed
itinerary from which they could design a
bespoke trip that matched their
collectors' needs. The visitors were taken
to craft studios, workshops and galleries
all over the island, from Kilkenny's
National Craft Gallery and the Design
Tower on Dublin's Pearse Street to the
remote shores of Connemara's lakes and
up to the Ards Peninsula in Northern
Ireland. One of the social highlights was
a reception in Kilkenny Castle where
they met artists, collectors, crafts
administrators and local dignitaries.
The enthusiasm of all those on the
trip was palpable, as articulated by
Wendy Rosen, President of the Rosen
Group and AmericanSty/e magazine:
'My biggest impression of Ireland is
that you have the perfect balance of
high tech and low tech, carefully
preserving the best of both without
sacrificing one for the other. In the US,
we have allowed Wall Street to
cannibalise Main Street. It is obvious
that you have worked to keep both
strong and viable. The juxtaposition of
the old and the new is so amazing. The
acceptance and even celebration of
handcrafted items is so interwoven in
your culture. There is a quiet pride in
everything Irish. It feels like a natural
part of society, not pushed.' Beverly
Sanders, Senior Editor, American Craft
said: 'It was an extraordinary trip. It was
necessary to get a good overall look at
the crafts scene in Ireland and it was
wonderful to get to the countryside and
to see people in their settings.
Everybody involved was extraordinarily
helpful'.
'Your efforts at SOFA are paying off',
said Clemmer Montague. Clemmer and
her husband organise international
tours for collectors interested in
visiting galleries and artists' studios.
Following the Craft Tour, AmericanStyle
magazine is currently advertising a trip
to Ireland in spring 2009. The Montagues
will also be back with their collectors in
2009. In each case, the collectors like to
travel in small groups and visit makers
as well as meet artists in gallery shows.
Unlike the more private European
collector, the US collector likes the
'alumni' of their peers.
The Craft Tour has successfully laid
the foundation for future cooperation
and interaction between US collectors
and galleries and Irish craftmakers.
Perhaps it is fitting then, to finish with a
quote from David Montague: 'In terms of
the calibre of the craft artists we
visited, our time spent in Ireland was
worthwhile. We will be back.'W
Cornelia McCarthy is a consultant and project manager working with creative Industries.
1 Emily Kearnes, Mary Childs and Stanley
Wooley at CCol exhibition at SOFA 200?
2 The US Collectors Dinner at Kilkenny
Castle
3 Sara Flynn in her ceramics studio
4 Mary Childs and Joe Kelly, Director of
Craft Northern Ireland, in Karl Harron's
glass studio
5 Baskets by Joe Hogan
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