Artefact contemporary craft fair launches in London

A new craft fair launches this week in the London interiors mecca Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour, featuring handmade works of art by makers from across the world and daily demonstrations from QEST scholars including carver Zoe Wilson and globe-maker Jonathan Wright.

Artefact (22-29 June) debuts at a time when craft is experiencing a huge surge of interest from interior designers, architects and the general public, compelled by long periods spent at home over the last year and our increased desire to surround ourselves with objects that enrich our lives. Visitors to the contemporary craft fair will discover exquisite pieces in all manner of materials, from paper and porcelain, to metal, wood, glass and textiles.

Among them are works by LOEWE Foundation Craft Prize finalists, including the curvaceous, wave-like ceramic forms of Takayuki Sakiyama, evoking the power of the sea. The world’s oceans also provide inspiration for artists including Martha Pachon Rodriguez, who takes cues from sea urchins for her ceramic sculptures, and Helen O’Shea, an artist who turns plastic washed up on beaches into ethereal, sea creature-like forms covered in delicate scales.

UK galleries including Cavaliero Finn, Cube Gallery, Cynthia Corbett Gallery and Jaggedart will be showing their artists’ work, alongside international exhibitors such as Lloyd Choi Gallery, which specialises in Korean craft. The impressive roll call of makers represented ranges from leading lights (past and present), such as Emmanuel Cooper and Jacqueline Poncelet, to emerging talents.

Artworks by graduates of the Crafts Council Hothouse Programme will be showcased in Form Made From, a capsule exhibition curated by Brian Kennedy. The show will include towering ceramic forms by Eusebio Sanchez, intricate jewellery designs by Caroline Draper and colourful textiles by Dalia James and Lucy MacDonald.

‘Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour supports creative expression across the design agenda,’ says Claire German, managing director of Design Centre, Chelsea Harbour. ‘With its strong roster of contemporary craft and visual arts galleries, Artefact will be an unmissable physical event.’

The free-to-attend talks programme – masterminded by podcast king Grant Gibson, former editor of Crafts magazine – will take a deeper dive into the craft world, with the help of experts including Johnny Messums of Messums Wiltshire, Soshiro gallery founder Shiro Muchiri and furniture restorer and The Repair Shop host Jay Blades.

As well as watching QEST scholars demonstrating their skills at the fair, you can also enjoy a trip around the showrooms at the Design Centre to watch other artisanal techniques in action, including block printing by Molly Mahon at Schumacher and the Japanese art of kumiko woodwork with Biden Designs at David Seyfried Ltd. And if you need some respite or a place to congregate for meetings, head to the How to Spend It Restaurant at Artefact, where you can enjoy lunch in lush surrounds, thanks to botanical wallcoverings and an abundance of plants.