Full Report

Forming Ideas

Evaluation Report

Fiona Godfrey

2011

Full report

Contents Page

1 Introduction

1.1 Background and context

1.2 Aims and activities

1.3 Evaluation methodology

2 Organisation

2.1 Structure and schedule

2.2 Budget and organisation

2.3 Promotion of project and selection of cohorts

3 Outputs

3.1 Summary of outputs

3.2 Research visits

3.3 Dissemination events

3.4 International contacts

3.5 Web-site

4 Outcomes

4.1 Summary of outcomes

4.2 Debate of craft across the craft, design and art sectors

4.3 National and international networks /confidence to work internationally

4.4 Collaborative projects

4.5 Case studies

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4

5

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2

2

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5 Impact

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6 Strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities

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Appendices

Appendix A Forming Ideas – logic model

Appendix B Research visit feedback questionnaire

Appendix C Dissemination event feedback questionnaire

Appendix D Final evaluation questionnaire

Appendix E List of international contacts

Appendix F Outcomes audit

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Forming Ideas – Evaluation Report, Fiona Godfrey 2011

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1 Introduction

1.1 Background and context

Taking place over three years from October 2008 to March 2011, Forming Ideas was a professional development programme that aimed to broaden and strengthen debate around contemporary craft practice, build national and international networks and lead to new opportunities for presenting international crafts in the UK.

During 2006-8 Arts Council England undertook work to identify strategic development issues facing the contemporary craft sector, in order to inform future work at national level. This work resulted in Forming the Future, a major contemporary craft initiative that spanned

England and reached out to international craft practice. Along with two other projects (The

Shape of Things and Museumaker) Forming Ideas was one of three programmes funded under this initiative. The Grants for Arts budget awarded to Forming Ideas from Arts Council

England was £196,000. Arts Projects and Solutions 1 were selected to deliver the project because of their track record in developing professional development programmes within the contemporary art field and their ready network of international contacts in the sector.

1.2 Aims and activities

The aims defined for Forming Ideas were:

 to increase the level and rigour of critical discourse around craft

 to broaden critical debate around craft and curatorial practice

 to advance collaborative working practice across sectors, regionally, trans-nationally and internationally

 to build curatorial networks inside and outside of the UK

 to build and share skills and knowledge

 to build links for future international exchange

 to contribute to a more diverse visual arts sector by exploring global issues

 to grow greater, more informed audiences for craft by enabling curators to communicate and present work clearly and in the best possible context

The Forming Ideas programme comprised research visits that led to events aimed at sharing new research and knowledge with the sector. Three cohorts of curators made four international visits – one visit to Cairo, two visits spanning all five Nordic countries and a visit to Brazil. These took place between October 2008 and March 2010. These visits led to a series of five conferences, seminars and debates which took place in London and

Birmingham. In addition, a web-site (www.formingideas.co.uk) was established to support the development of a Forming Ideas community. This would provide a space for the exchange of ideas, knowledge and information about the programme.

1.3 Evaluation methodology

The evaluation approach was based on the Logic Model defined for the Forming Ideas project. This can be found in Appendix A. Since the impact of a project of this nature may go

1 www.artprojectsandsolutions.com

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on emerging over several years, the evaluation focused primarily on capturing outputs and immediate outcomes.

The evaluation methodology was twofold. A formative element supported the development of the project throughout with the aim of enabling organisers and cohorts to refine their approaches as the project evolved. The summative element; capturing outputs and outcomes as well as exploring strengths and weaknesses, is encapsulated in this report.

The following methods were used to capture data:

 Questionnaires asked participants to comment on what they wanted to gain from their research visit and whether the experience had met those needs, along with practical questions about the quality of organisation (Appendix B).

 Questionnaires for those attending the dissemination events asked them to identify what they wanted to gain from attending and whether the experience had met those needs, along with practical questions about the quality of organisation (Appendix C).



Interviews were carried out with a selection of participants who took part in visits.



An ‘outcomes audit’ was used periodically to record activities initiated independently by participants as a result of their involvement (Appendix F).



A cohort day at the end of the project provided participants from across the three cohorts the opportunity to meet others and discuss outcomes .



A final evaluation questionnaire at the end of the project invited participants to comment on how well the project had supported them to develop outcomes and asked for comment on areas in which their confidence had grown (Appendix D).



Three individuals for whom the project had a significant impact were interviewed for case studies.

 The Forming Ideas project director (Ann Jones) was interviewed for her views on the project.

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2 Organisation

2.1 Structure and schedule

The schedule for the project is shown below. Evaluation feedback showed that this was well-paced, allowing time for relationships and ideas to develop, while also maintaining momentum and focus.

Table 1 – Forming Ideas Schedule

Date

October 2008

May 2009

July 2009

Event

Research visit - Cairo

Research visit – Denmark, Sweden, Finland

Cairo dissemination event - Khamseen symposium

September 2009 Research visit - Iceland and Norway

February / March

2010

May 2010

Research visit – Brazil

Nordic dissemination event 1 – Craft and Identity seminar

July 2010

January 2011

March 2011

Nordic dissemination event 2 – Language and Craft seminar

Brazil dissemination event – Brazil -the Cultural

Contemporary conference

Nordic event 3 - Practice Makes Perfect debate

Duration

7 days

10 days

2 days

10 days

14 days

0.5 day

1 day

1 day

1 day

2.2 Budget and organisation

The Forming Ideas programme cost £249,000 comprising Grants for Arts investment of

£196,000 with additional funds of £53,000 raised from other sources as cash and in-kind.

The project team consisted of:

 director (and curator for the Nordic and Brazil projects)



Egypt project curator

 administrator

 evaluator

 web-site designer and engineer

 web-site administrator

All feedback points to the project having been very effectively organised. There were many evaluation comments that reflected appreciation for the level of commitment and attention that was given to the project by the delivery organisation Art Projects and Solutions:

‘They delivered for me what was promised and more, and are still supporting work as best they can since the end of the project.’

Managing the project proved more demanding in some areas than anticipated. Time had been allocated to support with the dissemination events (including marketing, dealing with flights, arranging accommodation, dealing with per diems etc). However there was a much

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greater demand for support in driving some events and liaising with the international speakers than had been anticipated or budgeted for. The decision by the Nordic cohort to hold three dissemination events also contributed to the increased demand on the project team.

A knock-on effect of this was that a larger proportion of the project budget than had been anticipated was spent on research, delivery, management and administration; almost 40% of the project budget in all. Overall however, cautious budgeting and success in identifying additional funds led to an underspend.

2.3 Promotion of project and selection of cohorts

Forming Ideas was primarily promoted by Arts Council England regional officers. The Crafts

Council also promoted the project and opportunities were advertised on Arts Jobs. The response was good, with between twenty and thirty applications for each cohort.

Applications were rated by the project director and three Arts Council officers. Applicants were selected on the basis of their total scores. The need to ensure a regional spread and types of curator and organisation was also taken into account. Arts Council offers across the regions were consulted on the proposed choices.

The selection process for the cohorts generated interest from a wide variety of applicants, which enabled choices to be made that allowed representation from a wide range of organisations and geographical areas. The size of each cohort (apx 12 in each group) was considered to have worked well; being small enough to enable a depth of connections and debate and big enough (in theory at least) to enable the work of organising events to be spread realistically between participants. The majority of those who responded to the evaluation praised the diversity of those selected for the visits, which enabled relationships to form across sectors and between those who may not previously had reason to have contact. This diversity also challenged ‘silo’ thinking.

Participants were selected on their written application alone. The letter inviting applications outlined in broad terms the aims and plans for the visit and set out clearly the obligation that participants would be expected to organise a dissemination event and contribute to the project evaluation. Applicants were asked to outline their reasons for their interest in the country to be visited, their curatorial interests, their willingness to share knowledge with their peers and their ability to work collaboratively on an outcomes conference. Selection criteria were:

 a convincing reason to carry out research in the country / countries to be visited

 willingness to share knowledge and networks

 commitment to keeping a reflective blog on their visit

 commitment to working as part of a team to deliver an event/s exploring issues emerging from their travel

 a track record of curating and presenting craft and design

 evidence of their own / their organisation’s commitment to presenting progressive contemporary craft

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There was disappointment in the level of involvement in ongoing project activity after the visits by some participants, which led to questions about ways in which the recruitment process might have been strengthened to increase the emphasis on outcomes from the outset. Interviewing participants may have ensured greater sense of their capacity for involvement in dissemination events and further outcomes.

Some participants were particularly active in enabling outcomes. Feedback suggests that the ideal participant might be profiled as having:

 a remit that in some way straddles the crafts and visual arts sectors

 existing involvement in networks or debate at national level

 flexibility within their organisation to be able to shape future work to take in new developments and opportunities arising from involvement in Forming Ideas

 capacity within and support from organisation to be able to contribute to dissemination events

 particularly where freelance – an established reputation across several organisations

 strong abilities to collaborate with others on projects

 the ability to see the bigger picture and be part of wider dialogue – ie not just interested in benefits for own career or organisation

 genuine interest in the added value that can come from collaboration

 understanding of the importance of tangible outcomes of publicly funded projects

The tables that follow list those involved in each research visit and summarise the profile of each group. Arts Council representatives were also invited to join each cohort, primarily in order to advocate for and support outcomes. All Arts Council officers invited were part of the original national craft officers group who developed the national craft strategy from which Forming Ideas emerged. Following an Arts Council England restructure, a number of these have now moved to posts outside of the organisation, though many remain in the sector.

Table 2 – Forming Ideas cohort members

Egypt

Name

Sara Black

Yasmin Canvin

Zelina Garland

Janis Jeffries

Kate Newham

Title

Director

Curator

Curatorial

Services

Manager

Professor Visual

Arts

Curator Eastern

Art and Culture

Organisation Region

ProjectBase, Cornwall South West

East Independent

(Now Fermynwoods

Contemporary Art)

Birmingham Museum &

Art Gallery

West Midlands

Constance Howard

Resource and Research

Centre in Textiles,

Goldsmiths

Bristol Museum & Art

Gallery

London

South West

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Kate Stoddart Curator

Grainne Sweeney Creative

Director

Arts Council

Representatives

Ailsa Golding Assistant Officer

(no longer in post)

Jennifer Hallam Visual Arts

Officer (no longer in post)

Andrew Proctor Visual Arts

Officer

Independent

National Glass Centre

Arts Council

Arts Council England


East

North East

North East

Yorkshire

South West

Nordic

Name

Liz Cooper

David Falkner

Jennifer Harris

Mir Jansen

Simon Martin

Title

Craft

Development

Curator

Director

Organisation

Smiths Row, Bury St

Edmunds

Head of

Curatorial

Services

Stanley Picker Gallery,

Kingston University

Deputy Director Whitworth Art Gallery,

Manchester

Programme

Manager

Yorkshire Artspace

Pallant House Gallery,

Chichester

Broadfield House Glass

Museum

Kari Moodie Glass

Interpretation

Officer

Manager Rachel Moses

Erica Steer Co-Director

Adam Sutherland Director

Neil Walker Visual Arts

Officer

Arts Council

Representatives

Tanya Bryan

Julie Lomax

Visual Arts

Officer, Design and Public

Realm (no longer in post)

Head of Visual

Arts

Design-Nation

Devon Guild

Region

East

Grizedale Arts, Cumbria North West

Djangoly Gallery,

University of Nottingham

East Midlands



London

North West

Yorkshire

South East

West Midlands

London

South West

North West

London


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Robert Martin Visual Arts

Officer, Crafts

(no longer in post)

Arts Council England South East

Brazil

Name Title

Stephen Beddoe Programme

Manager

Yvonna

Demczynska

Visual Arts

Officer

Organisation

Artquest, University of the Arts

Flow Gallery

Deirdre Figueirdeo Director

Christine Fletcher-

Jones

Craftspace

Chief Executive Walford Mill

Melanie Kidd

Sara Roberts

Kelda Savage

David Sinclair

Head of

Exhibitions

Martina Margetts Senior Tutor,

Critical and

Historical

Studies

Curator

Crafts

Programme

Officer

Exhibitions /

Education

Coordinator

Hub: National Centre for

Craft & Design

Royal College of Art

Independent

Manchester Craft and

Design Centre

The Civic Barnsley

Region

London

London

West Midlands

South West

East Midlands

London

South East

North West

North West

Arts Council

Representatives

Michelle Bowen Visual Arts

Officer (no longer in post)

Richard Edwards Resource

Development

Officer

Jackie Lee Visual Arts

Officer, Crafts

Cohort

Egypt




East Midlands

London

West Midlands

Table 3 - Summary of Forming Ideas cohort profiles

Number Profile

11 3 x officers from Arts Council England

1 x senior lecturer/academic

6 x curators (freelance or based in organisations)

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Nordic countries

14

Brazil 13

1 x Egypt project curator

3 x officers from Arts Council England

1 x academic (University of Manchester / Director Whitworth

Gallery)


1 x Nordic project curator

3 x officers from Arts Council England

1 x senior lecturer


1 x Brazil project curator


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3 Outputs

3.1 Summary of outputs

In summary, the outputs of Forming Ideas were as follows:



38 crafts professionals from a range of organisations (predominantly curators) took part in international research visits.



International links were made with arts professionals through 190 scheduled meetings. Networks were extended through scheduled networking events, private views and conferences. It is difficult to estimate the number of independent artists, craftspeople, designers, academics and curators who were met but the number is in excess of 250 (Appendix E).

Details of organisational contacts are available on the

Forming Ideas website and include galleries, social enterprise and outreach projects, craft fairs, cultural centres and agencies and commercial organisations.

 Approximately 330 participants attended five dissemination events.

 Over the duration of the project, there were well over 10,000 visits to the web-site www.formingideas.co.uk by visitors from at least 25 different countries.

3.2 Research visits

Countries to visit were selected through wide consultation with the craft sector to identify craft ‘hot spots’. Itineraries were developed in conjunction with key contacts in each country.

The richness and diversity of experiences on the international visits, with intense and varied itineraries ably put together by the project organisers, emerged through the evaluation as a particular strength of the project.

‘The trips were comprehensive and well-organised. Ann deserves special recognition for her absolutely ceaseless energy in keeping the momentum of moving a large group of diverse individuals around often challenging contexts, and establishing and maintaining a sense of collective purpose to the trips.’

‘I recently organised my own research visit to China with a colleague from another museum.

It took us both a lot of work over two months to sort out all the details and practical arrangements. Finding and making contacts in particular was a big challenge. Then when we were there sometimes things went pear-shaped because we didn’t always have the cultural understanding to make things work. It made me appreciate the huge amount of work that went into making our Cairo visit such a smoothly organised and valuable experience.’

All visits clearly provided inspiration and provoked enthusiasm as well as providing valuable connections. It is clear that the depth of understanding of the different cultural contexts experienced will enable work from these countries to be presented in the future with

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sensitivity and in ways that are well-informed. It was also clear that prior research and briefings about the countries to be visited were valuable in supporting this.

Participants agreed that visiting as a group had added value beyond that which they would have experienced had they visited alone. Being in a group had provided valuable informal time to discuss experiences and responses during the visits, raising the level of debate.

Opinions were challenged and differing perceptions shared. Negotiating the understanding of a new cultural territory together – including food, landscape, history, politics and society - had raised understanding and insight. The intensity of this collective experience had enabled solid and respectful relationship to emerge.

There was agreement that having a key contact in each country had been valuable, enabling the experiences in each country to be seen within the more general cultural context.

Building good links with these people means there are now well-established pathways for future research and collaborations.

While there was good evaluation feedback for all the visits, Brazil and Egypt were considered to have been the most successful choices of destination. The Brazil visit had been particularly successful in generating enthusiasm and ideas, revealing a dynamic interplay between art, craft, design and their application in the context of social enterprise.

Egypt also offered excitement and challenge. Though the models seen in Cairo were not easy to translate into the UK context, the visit provided the curators with an important insight into a time of struggle for a new Egyptian visual identity. Of the Nordic countries,

Iceland stood out as the most interesting. Within the context of a strong oral, rather than visual tradition, curators witnessed a time of rapid development in contemporary art, craft and design that was not constrained by visual legacies from the past. Finland, Sweden and

Denmark offered less in the way of new ideas. Finland, Sweden and Denmark offered less in the way of new ideas, as summed up by the project director:

‘Although our visits to these countries caused us to re-evaluate practice and support for craft in the UK, we found practice in these countries less exciting than we hoped and the barriers between sectors if anything more rigid than in the UK. We felt that actually practice in the

UK is further ahead. If I was starting again, I wouldn’t choose any Western countries to visit, but would maybe look at African countries, China or other Asian or Middle East countries. A reconnaissance visit would have been valuable in ensuring we found the most valuable places to visit, but this would have had a major impact on the budget.’

3.2.1 Egypt visit – detailed evaluation feedback

Nine out of ten participants completed evaluation questionnaires. Eight rated their visit as

‘very valuable’ and one as ‘fairly valuable’ on a 1-3 scale. Comments on the questionnaires showed that all of the project aims had been met at some level during the course of the visit.

Discussion with participants showed that they had gained valuable new perspectives on the crafts as a result of the visit. This particularly focused on the context in which crafts in Egypt are supported and presented. There being little in the way of a contemporary crafts sector, two models emerged that were of particular interest. The first was most clearly exemplified

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at the Townhouse Gallery, where links with the mechanics who populate the area in which the gallery is situated create a very particular form of outreach support for traditional skills.

This was felt to be particularly inspiring and of potential influence for projects and models in the UK.

‘I was inspired by the Town House’s radical approach to socially engaged practice and it made me re-think the way I work.’

The second model was exemplified at the Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre; a weaving workshop through which generations of families have developed and passed on highly developing styles of tapestry weaving.

In terms of the potential for presenting Egyptian crafts in the UK, there was also a strong sense that participants had gained confidence in how they could address and do justice to the multi-layered complexities of Egypt’s history and politics.

Questionnaire feedback suggests that the aim around ‘advancing collaborative working practice’ was more strongly met amongst the curators from the UK than with curators from

Cairo.

3.2.2 Nordic countries visit – detailed evaluation feedback

Eight out of thirteen participants completed evaluation questionnaires. Although feedback was largely favourable, the questionnaire feedback showed the Nordic visits to have been considered less valuable than Brazil and Egypt.

Comments would suggest two reasons for this. There were several comments that reflected insularity in the Nordic crafts scene – the sense of a lack of interest in international exchange and debate, in some the group met and particularly in Denmark. This was countered somewhat in Sweden at the IAPSIS Centre where there was a stronger sense of collaboration and international sharing.

Comments also suggest that there were less in the way of new models and approaches to learn from, particularly in terms of presenting and supporting traditional crafts.

‘There was less discussion than I had hoped for between participants, the analysis of what we were exposed to was not generally critical. There seemed to be a lack of perspective from outside of the cannon.’

‘I didn’t feel there was much for British Craft to learn from the situations in Norway and

Denmark…. I think this level of practice is already present in Britain.’

The project director herself also commented:

‘I wish we could have found more inspiring work and am wondering – did we miss it or was it there in the first place?’

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One interesting model, and the one which seemed to offer most in terms of informing new approaches in the UK, was at the Fiskars Village in Finland, which is the permanent home to a community of creative professionals. What was of particular interest here was the lack of hierarchy or distinction between art, craft and design, with many residents engaged in practice across all three disciplines.

In Iceland, there was some sense of some disappointment that crafts were most often set within a traditional handicrafts model. However, participants did see the beginnings of rapid and very creative developments in the visual arts, unconstrained by past conventions. Of particular interest was the work of the Icelandic Love Corporation, whose art projects frequently incorporate elements of craft practice.

Nonetheless on this visit, there was a strong sense that the relationships forged could lead to collaborations between UK curators and those met abroad, as one participant commented on his return.

‘(I will) set up a return visit by Nicolai Gjessing (Managing Director of the Danish Arts and

Crafts Association) to Lustre 2009 with a view to a member representation at 2010 and to make similar subsequent invitations to Fiskars, Gustavsburg and the Norwegian Arts &

Crafts Association. I am also considering mounting an exhibition in Autumn 2010 to coincide with the British Art Show in Nottingham exploring some aspect of conceptual craft.’

Of all the groups, the Nordic cohort were the group that made most use of the web-site on their return as a space for blogging, discussion and recording information that could be of value to others in the UK.

3.2.3 Brazil visit – detailed evaluation feedback

Eleven out of twelve participants completed evaluation questionnaires. All participants who responded rated their visit to Brazil as ‘very valuable’ on a 1-3 scale. Of all three visits, this one stands out as generating particularly positive comments about the value and ambition of the itinerary. The following comment is typical of many.

‘Inspirational. I got more out of the trip than I ever could have imagined.’

Comments were made that provided evidence that all project aims had been met. There were several comments that highlighted how the visit was particularly interesting because

Brazil’s cultural and social and political contexts are so markedly different from that in the

UK. Participants commented on how much the visit had done to enable them to understand the subtle complexities of this extraordinarily multi-layered, multi-cultural society in which the influence of military dictatorship and modernism have played a key role.

‘The visit increased my awareness of the mixed cultures in Brazil; including Italian, Japanese,

African, Portuguese, Amazon Indian, also people’s resilience and charm, the complex politics

and socio-economic issues and the negotiation towards a global identity.’

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‘It was very interesting to see how making and craft skills are incorporated into both

Brazilian design and fine art practice. It was interesting to hear how the country’s recent political history has influenced the development of the sector and individual artists’ creative expression; and how indigenous craft practice is beginning to influence the creative sector in terms of being part of developing a contemporary Brazilian identity in terms of design.’

In terms of deepening and broadening the debate about contemporary craft, the Brazil visit appeared to have been particularly interesting in how crafts practices are very much integrated within a whole drive around asserting cultural identity, enabling social enterprise, valuing grass roots creativity and a ‘make do and mend’ approach which is very relevant in the context of environmental concerns.

‘It was very interesting to see how making and craft skills are incorporated into both

Brazilian design and fine art practice. It was interesting to hear how the country’s recent political history has influenced the development of the sector and individual artists’ creative expression; and how indigenous craft practice is beginning to influence the creative sector in terms of being part of developing a contemporary Brazilian identity in terms of design.’

Taken together, comments made suggest that a particularly potent energy was generated by this visit that is likely to fuel further outcomes, for example:

‘The links forged during the visit have…. created a desire to initiate an extensive cultural exchange programme between designers, artists and craftspeople from the Yorkshire region and Brazil at some point in the future.’

There were few comments about how the visit could have been improved and these were isolated, so likely to be down to individual preferences.

3.3 Dissemination events

Five very different dissemination events took place. All were well attended and the majority well-received, with the evaluation evidence suggesting that a large number of people gained new insights, contacts, ideas and enthusiasm. The numbers and profile of those attending were as follows.

Table 4 – Dissemination events

Event Apx. number attending

Profile of audience How event was promoted

No. evaluation questionnaires returned (with percentage)

Egypt

Khamseen

Symposium

55 Artists/makers, curators of craft, art and Middle East, critics and students

Forming Ideas alumni

Forming Ideas website

Electronic/viral via

V&A / Jameel Prize and School of Oriental and African Studies mailing list

Ismaili Centre mailing

12 (22%)

14


Nordic countries 1

Craft and

Identity


Language and

Craft


Practice makes Perfect

Brazil

The Cultural

Contemporary

97

34

27

117

Artists/makers

Curators/critics of craft and art

Students

Collectors.

(Large percentage of audiences originated from Nordic countries)


Makers / curators of craft

Students

Critics

Academics

(invited audience)


Makers, artists and designers

Curators

Policy makers

Academics

Professionals running workspaces


(invited audience)

Artists, makers and designers

Curators

Academics

Cultural policy makers with interest in Brazil

Critics

Students

Forming Ideas alumni list

Art Projects &

Solutions mailing list

Participant contacts

Speaker contacts

Advert in ArtMonthly


Crafts Council –

Collect mailing

Norske

Kunsthandverkere mailing

Art Projects &

Solutions’ contacts

Participants’ mailing


Craftspace website and mailing

Birmingham School of

Jewellery

Participants mailing


Kingston University network

Art Projects &

Solutions’ contacts



Participants’ mailing

Royal Collage of Art mailing

Brazilian Embassy mailing

(Lack of control over mailing led to event being over- subscribed)

11 (12%)

12 (35%)

13 (50%)

34 (29%)


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Each event was very different in approach and focus. The range of models responded effectively to different audience needs, from academic conference, seminars with break-out sessions and round-table discussions. The success of the dissemination events was enhanced by the willingness of the cohorts and project team to learn from formative evaluation feedback to enhance the offer of each subsequent event. Between them, the five events addressed all the aims of the Forming Ideas project, each taking a different emphasis, summarised as follows.

Table 5 – Focus of dissemination events

Egypt

Khamseen

Nordic 1 Craft and Identity stimulated depth and breadth of debate, generated understanding of the role of crafts within a changing society provoked reflection on craft and its relationship to a nation’s identity

Nordic 2

Language and

Craft

Nordic 3

Practice makes

Perfect presenting crafts in the best light through the ‘language’ used to contextualise it – verbal and non-verbal examined what was most important in providing the support to artists, makers and designers for them to create challenging work

Brazil

The Cultural

Contemporary provided an opportunity to see a range of innovative practice in Brazilian contemporary art / craft

As the table below shows, the second and third Nordic events were the most successful in meeting the needs of those attending followed by Brazil. The first Nordic event was the least successful in meeting needs.

Table 6 – Dissemination events - audience feedback


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There were strengths and weaknesses with each of the events.

Although there was praise from those attending the first event (Egypt – Khamseen) for the value of the presentations and debate, the scope of the event was limited. While audiences interested in contemporary cultural practice in the Middle East were targeted, numbers were smaller than envisaged. Had the topic been broadened (perhaps to encompass development across the Middle East rather than just Cairo) it might have attracted a wider audience. There was also a charge for this event. This proved onerous on administration and might have contributed to disappointing audience numbers. Subsequent events were free and this allowed participants to experiment with different models, releasing them from the need to generate income. One of the particular successes of the Khamseen symposium was the way the cohort team worked together very effectively, dividing up the workload appropriately and strengthening their links through this collaboration. For example, each participant was allocated one speaker to look after. The team also played an active role in generating the audience for the event.

The Nordic cohort chose to work in small groups on three different events.

The first Nordic event Craft and Identity was shaped by Erica Steer and Jennifer Harris. For a variety of reasons this event was the least successful in meeting audience needs. One speaker was unable to attend due to the Icelandic ash cloud and some of those who did present did not stick to topic. This proved a learning experience about the need to ensure that presentations were seen well in advance; allowing dialogue between the team and speakers to ensure that presentations were relevant. The closing debate did offer up some challenging questions to the panel from a particularly well informed audience. The event was held within the context of Collect. Whilst the context helped to swell audiences with knowledgeable professionals the downside was it seemed an ’add-on’ and numbers at the networking event held afterwards were low due to people wanting to see work on display.

The second Nordic event Language and Craft was particularly successful. The event opened with presentations from members of each cohort that raised the prominent issues arising from their research (Yasmin Canvin represented Cairo, Jennifer Harris the Nordic countries and Deirdre Figuidero Brazil). A core team of three (Liz Cooper, Mir Jansen and Deirdre

Figuidero) were involved in its curation and took on the responsibility of liaising closely with speakers to ensure they stuck to topic. There was a clear focus which was of genuine relevance and value to the targeted audience. Speakers were asked to provide provocations, which appears to have contributed to effective discussion through lots of break -out sessions.

The third Nordic event Practice makes perfect was successful in the depth and quality of discussion and the clarity of its focus. The event was attended by a small invited audience, and emphasised discussion, which generated a collective buzz around new ideas. The organisation worked well, with a small core team devising the concept (Mir Jansen, Robert

Martin and David Falkner) and Art Projects and Solutions picking up main responsibility for the development and organisation in conjunction with the Stanley Picker Gallery team.

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The Brazil event The Cultural Contemporary was successful in attracting a large audience and delivering an ambitious programme. It was clear that the event enabled a large audience to dramatically increase their knowledge of Brazil, though there was some dissatisfaction with the limited opportunities for break-out discussion. As the event fell predominantly to one person to plan (Martina Margetts) with only marginal input from others, it was less successful in engendering further debate and collaboration across the wider group.

Sustained collaboration and dialogue were integral to delivering the project aims. The intention had been that the cohorts would learn and develop new skills and confidence from the experience of organising the events, as well deepening their connections with speakers and organisation in the countries visited. This worked well for those who chose to remain fully involved.

'Conceiving the project so that it had resource and a vital requirement for dissemination activity after the visits made it achieve more than any other curatorial visit I have been on and has helped to deepen learning, facilitate reflection, thinking and critical engagement,

strengthen networks and share the learning with a wider constituency.’

In contrast, there was frustration that a number of those participating in the visits contributed very little (in some cases nothing) to the organisation and delivery of events.

‘The failings of the programme were largely down to the participating individuals returning ideas and energies to the project. Perhaps due to the expanded time-frame of the project and the increasingly complex funding scenario that we were all entering at the time, there was definitely some sense that it was increasingly hard for the Forming Ideas team to keep interest going once everyone was back in the UK, and not everyone assisted, contributed to, or even attended the event outcomes with the same enthusiasm that they received the trips.’

A suggestion made was that pre-visit briefing meetings could have been used to establish the framework for what could come out of each visit and to begin to define responsibilities from the outset. There were also suggestions in evaluation feedback that planning meetings for the dissemination events could have been timetabled further in advance to ensure availability and commitment.

Across all the events, the need for speakers to deliver in the English language hadn’t always worked well. Translation may have worked better in some instances.

It would have been valuable to budget for transcriptions of presentations from each event, as these have proved a valuable outcome of the project and an important aspect of the web-site content. In the event, the project director took on the task of transcribing as its value became obvious.

The tables below show the evaluation responses to each event. Detailed commentary follows that reflects the specific evaluation responses to each events. The evaluation form for the dissemination events asked attendees to indicate what they most wanted to gain

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12

10

8

6

4

2

0 from attending the event and to rate how effectively the event met these needs.

Comments made by participants were grouped against the original Forming Ideas project aims to assess which appeared to have been most strongly met The form was amended slightly for the third Nordic event Practice makes Perfect as a different focus for the event was deemed appropriate.

Table 7

Egypt - Khamseen

reason for attending whether needs were met broadened awareness of global issues in craft / curatorial practice ideas about craft / curatorial practice to apply to own practice new contacts / networks in the craft / curatorial sectors challenge to own craft practice / curatorial work

Table 8


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Nordic 1 - Craft and Identity

8

6

4

12

10

2

0 broadened awareness of global issues in craft / curatorial practice ideas about craft / curatorial practice to apply to own work new contacts / networks in the challenge own practice / work craft / curatorial sectors reason for attending whether event met needs

Table 9

Nordic 2 - Language and Craft

12

10

8

6

4

2

0 broadened awareness of global issues in craft / curatorial practice ideas about craft / curatorial practice to apply to own work new contacts / networks in the craft / curatorial sectors challenge to own work / practice reasons for attending extent to which event met needs

Table 10

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Brazil -The Cultural Contemporary

30

25

20

15

10 reasons for attending

5 whether event met needs

0 broadened awareness of global issues in craft / curatorial practice ideas about craft / curatorial practice to apply to own work new contacts / networks in the craft / curatorial sectors challenge to own work / practice

No table is available for the third Nordic seminar Practice makes Perfect as the evaluation questions were framed differently for this seminar. This was because the focus of the event was different and the questions asked for the other events were not relevant. However,

100% of those who responded felt that the event either met, or strongly met, the needs they identified as reasons for attending.

3.3.1 Egypt symposium – detailed evaluation feedback

Hosted by the Ismaili Centre in London, The Eygpt symposium Khamseen (meaning sandstorm in Arabic) sought to explore how art and craft practice in Cairo is impacting on society through the work of contemporary practitioners and innovative art projects, questioning in particular how society can nurture traditional skills whilst remaining open to innovation.

There were many positive comments about insights gained from the Khamseen event and about possible actions. Comments suggest a depth of critical debate – particularly around ideas about co-production, the idea of the replica in craft, and questions about the relationship between fine art practice and the traditional crafts.

‘The content of presentations was fascinating and presented speakers, artists, curators and ideas not often discussed in the academic and artistic conferences in London.’

There were several comments that pointed to a heightened interest in international exchange and collaboration.

‘I will try to make more and deeper links with known craftspeople such as in West Bank

Luxor.’

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There were a number of comments that reflected disappointment that the conference seemed very much framed around contemporary art (and its appropriation of traditional crafts) rather than contemporary craft / design practice.

One participant noted that it would have been helpful to have had more by way of introduction / explanation for those fresh to the debate.

3.3.2 Nordic countries seminar 1 – detailed evaluation feedback

Held in London, the first Nordic countries event Craft and Identity: New Nordic

Developments attracted an audience of nearly 100. This was a large event with the lowest level of audience satisfaction and the lowest rate of return of evaluation forms. The event was held as part of Collect and the low rate of evaluation forms may reflect that there were many other things happening and less time to complete forms. There were fewer comments than for other events that suggested that thinking had been challenged or practice moved forward.

‘Today’s seminar has had little impact on my practice.’

‘Overall I was quite disappointed – little gained in the way of new ideas or insights.’

The event was seen to have been valuable in putting the Nordic countries on the craft map, and in giving a broad survey of current practice. However it does not appear that it met the

Forming Ideas project aims about deepening or broadening critical debate. Comments suggest that this may have been down to how the speakers drifted from topic.

‘I was disappointed by the talks given by the visiting curators. I felt they talked too much about their organisations and not enough about their insights into craft, its curation and its promotion.’

It may also be that the event reflected the general consensus on the research visits that the

Nordic countries offered less in the way of new models and perspectives than Brazil and

Egypt, which are further apart culturally, socially and politically from the UK. In fact, given the theme of the event, there was a clear sense of disappointment about what was being presented in terms of global issues.

‘I gained insight into… the apparent insularity and mono-cultural approach to thinking and practice in Nordic countries that does not appear to embrace ethnic diversity or even seek to

be pro-active about it.’


Held in Birmingham, the second Nordic countries event Language and Craft sought to explore whether the language used to talk and write about craft contributes to perceptions of its value, particularly in relation to contemporary art practice.

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As part of the event, Professor Jivan Astfalk 2 was commissioned to produce an exhibition of conceptual craft and to give a talk Language of the Few using the works exhibited to illustrate her presentation.

This event was much more successful in meeting audience needs than the first. This was a much smaller event than the first, which appears to have been one of its strengths.

‘Everything was excellent. Really enjoyed the format of the day, allowed lots of networking, the discussions and the questions set were very interesting and all the speakers were good and kept to topic.’

‘As a process, the symposium reaffirmed my belief in the value of smaller groups of people gathering to discuss important issues. Dissemination is often more deeply achieved through such scaled events rather than multi-streaming, all singing conferences.’

Perhaps unsurprisingly, given the theme for the symposium, there were many positive comments that pointed to the aim about ‘growing audiences for craft by presenting work in the best possible context’ having been met, particularly in terms of thinking broadly about how to interpret and introduce craft objects and projects.

‘Text / language is necessary, but not necessarily in the traditional format it is used in by the institutions (academic / museums).’

‘I will try to be less reliant on text-based interpretations alone – not a new idea but a timely reminder. I will try to stop pigeonholing craft objects, especially by media or technique…’

‘I will give more thought to the method and degree of interpretation. I will follow current debates about craft more closely. I will create more thinking time, read more (Heidegger) and familiarise myself with Twitter.’

Comments made suggest that by focusing on the practicalities of language and interpretation, the event was particularly valuable in terms of advancing thinking, understanding, debate and new ideas. Comments focused less on advancing collaborative practice or building links for future international exchange than for other events.


The third Nordic event Practice makes Perfect was the smallest of the three and was for an invited audience only.

Hosted by Kingston University this event took the form of a day of presentations and dialogue exploring innovative ways to commission, facilitate and assist with the production of logistically complex projects by contemporary practitioners. Inviting representatives of three distinct organisational bodies from the public and industrial sectors across Denmark,

Sweden and Finland, and considering existing models of practice here in the UK, Practice

Makes Perfect sought to generate debate around how best to assist practitioners with the

2 Professor at the School of Jewellery at UCE in Birmingham

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creation of ambitious new work. The event had a stronger emphasis on artistic production than on presentation than for other events. This arose from debates during the Iceland visit around the place within curatorial practice for supporting the production of new work.

The evaluation shows that this event was the most successful in meeting audience needs by generating valuable, practical debate about new models to support craft production. It is clear from the evaluation feedback that the event contributed to advancing collaborative working practice and to building and sharing skills and knowledge.

‘I have new contacts at IASPIS and Danish Art Workshop – I have collaborations in mind and

have emailed them already.’

‘There is a gap between the kind of specialist-production support facilities offered by universities and those that can generally be offered by studio organisations. Denmark offers an interesting model of how that gap can be filled.’

‘I think it is really interesting to see that there are different models out there that operate outside of the HE environment such as Danish Craft workshops. Another really good example of recognised institutions providing excellent support for artists is the Rijksacademie in

Amsterdam who do not offer accredited programmes but who support artists through long term residencies with technical expertise, workspace provision and professional development support- aimed at a very broad international cohort of (usually) emerging artists.’

There was praise for the choice of speakers and the mix of delegates.

‘The variety of delegates ensured a rich debate discussing current issues and practical ways to support creative practitioners.’

Several delegates also talked about how valuable they found the tour of Kingston

University’s facilities.

Comments relating to the aim of ‘growing greater, more informed audiences for craft’ were not strongly in evidence. This was understandable, because the event focused more heavily on new opportunities for production than promotion or presentation.

There were also fewer comments than for others events relating to the aim of ‘building

curatorial networks’. Nonetheless it was clear that the event had been extremely valuable in forging connections between different sectors, as summed up by the project director.

‘This event was particularly amazing for the way we saw knowledge exchanged between different sectors – really breaking down barriers and silos. So much practical information was shared between fine art, design, craft and academia; ideas about financial support for example, access to art college equipment, associate schemes and about pooling resources to further access to knowledge.’

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3.3.5 Brazil conference – detailed evaluation feedback

Hosted by the Royal College of Art, Brazil – the Cultural Contemporary was the largest of the five events, attracting well over 100 participants. With a wide range of speakers, the conference aimed to inform its audience about Brazil's contemporary visual culture, with a focus on areas of craft, design and social change. The event attracted a broad audience, notably including wider representation from the commercial cultural / design sectors. The event was clearly very successful in meeting audience needs.

‘An amazing event with good discussion.’

‘I’ve gone from knowing about 3 things about Brazilian culture to knowing about 300.’

(curator / teacher)

There were many comments praising the range and balance of speakers.

‘A great line-up, insightful and highly informative.’

‘The subjects played off one another very effectively and led to some very interesting topics for discussion.’

There were also comments suggesting that some delegates found some the talks too academic, while a number suggested that break-out workshops would have been valued.

Many comments point to the event having deepened and broadened critical debate about craft, perhaps due in part to the complexities of Brazil’s cultural and political history.

‘It raised my awareness of the complexity of dealing with craft / design in Brazil (or similar countries.’

‘I gained new insights into craftism (reinventing modernity through tradition) modernity and indigenous developments in Brazil.’

‘I gained insights into Brazil’s psyche: sustainability attitudes, the general positivism about

‘make do and mend’ and how this has been reflected in craft and design. There were also some interesting discussion about exploitation and West patronising attitudes towards Brazil and how low-tech is a foundation for creative thinking in many Brazilian art practices and inventiveness.’

The greatest number of comments on evaluation forms group around the possibility for growing a more diverse visual arts sector by exploring global issues. Comments clearly suggest an enthusiasm and hunger to share and present Brazilian crafts more widely.

‘A new critical mass around Brazilian design and exposure of Brazilian projects is gathering.’

‘It reinforced my sense of the interest / excitement in Brazilian creative culture.’

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Comments also suggest, importantly, that the event appeared to have built sensitivity to how best this can be presented.

‘I will explore new ways to present / represent Brazilian art forms through commission and collaboration – opportunities to open dialogue, move away from tendency to show work that might ‘typify’ a notion of Brazilian art’

3.4 International contacts

Forming Ideas facilitated exchange and connection with over 250 individuals working both in organisations and independently. Organisations include galleries, social enterprise and outreach projects, craft fairs, cultural centres and agencies, commercial organisations. The full list can be found in Appendix E.

As well as benefiting those visiting from the UK, there is evidence of the value these connections have offered to those in the countries visited, as for example in this email from the Director of the Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre in Cairo.

‘..we at the Ramses Wissa Wassef Art centre in Egypt have had the pleasure of receiving curators from different UK Museums whom in 2009 invited me as the director of the centre

to take part in the London Forming Ideas symposium at the Ismaili centre. For me it was an opportunity to meet many personalities whom are part of the main players shaping the contemporary art seen in the Middle East and the Arab world. The seminar was also a great platform to introduce the philosophy of the RWWAC to the attending audience. As a result, two UK Museums, Bristol and Exeter, have acquired tapestries woven by artists from the centre, to be part of their Textile collection. In brief the project provided us with international exposure as well as connecting us with what is going on in the modern contemporary arts in our part of the world.’

3.5 Web-site (www.formingideas.co.uk)

The web-site was conceived as a key part of the Forming Ideas project. Its initial aim was to be a tool by which the participating curators could access information, exchange ideas and information and provide a nucleus for networks. It was envisaged that the site would be a platform for discussion for artists, writers and curators, featuring reports on the visits, details about upcoming conferences and related articles. All cohort members were asked to commit to an online blog when applying to be part of the programme and were given training and a log-in to be able to contribute to the site.

Disappointingly, use of the web-site varied and in their evaluation feedback participants’ feelings about its value were frequently lukewarm. The site was most frequently used as a source of information; for reminders about names of contacts, web-sites of organisations visited and so on. The site was set up with forums for discussion and information sharing.

However, these were little used, so the site did not become a focus for exchange and discussion as hoped. The need to register and then log-in each time to access the forums was felt to have been a barrier. Some participants chose to use the site sporadically for blogging and some valuable collections of photographs and accounts of visits were also contributed. However much of the material on the site was contributed by the project team rather than by participants. Those consulted put their lack of involvement down to time

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constraints, lack of confidence about blogging and a reluctance to share raw thinking in a public domain. It was also clear that a critical mass of interest was needed in order to energise others.

‘I wish more people had submitted photos and blogs. I was quite active to start but perhaps became rather discouraged by the lack of other delegate activity.’

Feedback also suggested that the site may have been more useful to participants in preparing them for visits and supporting them with organising events if a greater range of papers and articles could have been made available before visits took place. Several participants said they would like to read up before their visits and the web-site could have facilitated this. However, this would of course have required clearance with writers and publishers, adding to the administrative burden.

Behind the scenes there were some issues about administration of the site that are worth noting. There were some frustrations around delays when the web-site needed updating.

This was carried out by a freelancer at one remove from the project team. The conclusion has been that it would have worked better if responsibility for the updating web-site had been the responsibility of someone embedded in the project team, who would be both available and motivated to respond quickly when changes or updates were needed.

A further suggestion is that a briefing meeting between the project team, web-site administrator and project evaluator at the outset could have helped generate stronger possibilities for the web-site to play a role in the evaluation process through on-line discussions and feedback.

Despite these challenges, at the end of the project the web-site provides a valuable legacy of the Forming Ideas project that will remain live until 2013. Each of the three main areas of the site (Nordic, Brazil and Egypt) has been populated by material that gives a good sense of the feel of each visit and its context. Transcripts of presentations from the dissemination events have also been added, along with relevant articles and papers. The site also includes itineraries of visits and lists of contacts and resources.

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4 Outcomes

4.1 Summary of outcomes

The intended outcomes of the Forming Ideas programme were that it would:

 stimulate debate of craft across the craft, design and visual arts sectors

 develop national and international networks

 enhance confidence among participants to work internationally

 stimulate collaborative projects and exhibitions, leading to new opportunities available to galleries and museums

Across the life of the project, all of the desired outcomes have been met, some more strongly than others. The project very effectively stimulated debate of craft across sectors and developed networks and potential for collaboration, particularly within the UK.

Participants feel more confident about working internationally, both in terms of confidence about representing the countries visited knowledgeably and in terms of the contacts made.

Some evidence is available at this stage of collaborative projects and exhibitions arising from the programme.

Commentary on each of these aspirations is drawn from the final evaluation forms

(returned by 15 of the 30 who took part) well as from discussions with participants including on the final evaluation day.

4.2 Debate of craft across the craft, design and art sectors

14 of the 15 who responded to the final evaluation form felt that the Forming Ideas had effectively supported them to debate craft across the craft, design and visual arts sectors.

One was unsure.

This largely positive feedback was supported in interviews with participants and feedback on the final evaluation day, as reflected in the following comments.

‘The breadth of interest / knowledge of the individuals selected to participate in the visits supported a wide range of views and opinions. The inclusion of an academic on each trip was invaluable – both in terms of the quality of discussion during the visit, and in shaping the ensuing event.’

‘It is clear that Forming Ideas has had a considerable impact in enabling debate and discussion, and in facilitating networks and ideas.’

Feedback suggested that debate was broadened and deepened in a number of ways, specifically:

 a broader charting of possibilities around the territory of craft, beyond what appears now to many of those involved as a rather narrowly defined Western orthodoxy

 new ideas about possibilities for promoting craft in the UK around production, promotion and interpretation

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 a greater sense of shared discourse between people from very varied backgrounds and at different stages in their career development, for example those from the museums sector, galleries, higher education and academia.

 inter-disciplinary debate about how craft permeates art, social enterprise, design, architecture and street art

4.3 National and international networks / confidence to work internationally

All 15 of those who responded felt that Forming Ideas had effectively supported them to develop national and international networks. Respondents were also asked to list areas where their confidence had grown through involvement in the project. The greatest number of comments related to the value of building national networks. Ten of those who responded said they felt more confident about collaborating nationally, while eight said they felt more confident about collaborating internationally.

‘Getting to know a cohort of curators better was really helpful in building relationships, discovering synergies in programming ambitions and also getting to know what different people’s particular different interests and specialisms were.’

‘Funnily enough it’s my links with the cohort in the UK that have been most productive.’

‘Forming Ideas has helped to provide me with a very strong breadth of contacts across the

UK.’

These new UK networks have now been formalised. Regional directors of CraftNet (a newly established network that has emerged from the Cultural Leadership Programme) have agreed that the Forming Ideas network can be absorbed into CraftNet as a way of keep the debates started by the project alive. All Forming Ideas participants have been invited to join.

(It is hoped that this may also be extended to those involved in Museumaker and The Shape

of Things.)

There were also a number of comments about the value of making contacts in the countries visited.

‘I have been introduced to a huge number of fascinating venues and their key staff members across five entire countries in a very intensive way. This kind of opportunity is invaluable to opening up possibilities both professionally as an individual curator and on the part of a small visual arts venue…’

‘Should the need arise, I feel I have a greatly extended national and international network that I could happily access.’

‘The programme has provided the groundwork and contacts with which to initiate work within the sector, together with key government, organisational and individual contacts.’

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As requested, the lists of contacts and organisations will be available on the Forming Ideas web-site.

There were many comments that suggest an increase in enthusiasm for presenting work from the countries visited and, importantly, enhanced confidence in being able to present this work in appropriate, informed and insightful ways.

‘The experience was very valuable for my professional development. I now feel confident that I can bring a much richer, more real, considered picture of modern Cairo to the people of Bristol in ways that I couldn’t have conceived of without visiting.’

Some evidence has also emerged about ripples out to those who attended the dissemination events. For example, a delegate from the Royal Academy who attended the

Brazil conference contacted the Forming Ideas project team about following up connections in Brazil, and a participant from Spike Island who attended the Nordic Practice makes

Perfect event has now forged a contact with Danish Art Workshops.

4.4 Collaborative projects

11 of the 15 who responded to the final evaluation felt that Forming Ideas had been effective in stimulating them to develop collaborative projects and exhibitions. (Several were unable to comment as their roles had changed and they no longer had the capacity to deliver on this aim.)

The outcomes audit found in Appendix F lists all known projects resulting directly from

Forming Ideas. These include a number of collaborative projects and exhibitions. Many of these are still at ideas stage. Activities that have resulted directly from the project include the following.

 A special edition of the Journal of Modern Craft will be devoted to discourse emerging from the Forming Ideas project. This initially came from conversations between Janis Jeffries, a member of the Egypt cohort and Glen Adamson, one of the journal’s editors, who attended the Khamseen conference. Martina Margetts from the Royal College of Art and Jennifer Harris of the Whitworth Art Gallery are part of the group taking this forward. Some comments suggest that a publication element to the project could have emphasised research outcomes and offered wider collaboration.



Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery purchased a number of craft pieces in Cairo as well as a contemporary video piece that are now on display.



The Whitworth Gallery worked with the Nordic Festival to mount an exhibition of work by textile designer Edith Lundebrekke (from Norway) in January 2010.



Albin Karlsson (a Stockholm based artist) took up a residency at Yorkshire ArtSpace.

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

A collection of baskets purchased in Brazil now forms part of a touring exhibition on recycled baskets.

 An exhibition of contemporary Brazilian Jewellery curated by Adelia Borges, (a contact made in Brazil) will tour to four venues in the UK whose programmers took part in Forming Ideas.

 An exhibition of the work of 22 Brazilian artists will take place in Autumn 2011 as part of Barnsley Diversity Festival, directly informed by Forming Ideas visit.

 The Forming Ideas Project Director is in discussion with Kunsthandverk Norway and the Norwegian Embassy in planning a project to coincide with Collect in May 2012



An international residency programme Living Traditions driven by Walford Mill, The

Devon Guild of Craftsmen and The Craft Study Centre (University for Arts) is currently being explored. The programme will look to Brazil, India and Africa for makers who can take up residencies at the University for Arts.

Some collaborations are evolving in particularly interesting ways.

‘We invited Albin Karlsson, an artist we met in Sweden, to undertake a residency with us at

Yorkshire Artspace. He was here for 4 weeks and worked on the development of a new idea / new technology that he then developed further into a dance performance for the Moderne

Museet in Stockholm – performed last month. We now hope to get Albin back to Sheffield to do the performance here.’

It has been recognised that concrete outcomes may take several years to gestate, as reflected in the comments from a number of participants.

‘No specific collaborative projects have evolved as yet (these things can take much longer and require special focus) but lots of dialogue has opened up between myself and some likeminded organisations we visited.’

‘I imagine that many participants will have things 'up their sleeves' long beyond the cut-off date for the evaluation and the point should be reiterated that some outcomes will take many years to work their way through.’

It has also been acknowledged that that the slow speed of this development process is likely to be exacerbated by the current political and financial climate. A level of frustration was evident in the evaluation feedback about the lack of funding available to take forward ideas generated enthusiastically over the course of the project.

However, given that there were 32 participating curators (excluding the four ACE officers still in post and the project curators), there has been some disappointment about the lack of follow-up activity from many of those who took part in the visits. The project director summarised her appraisal of the level of involvement as follows.

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‘Of the 32 of those that went on the visits (not including Arts Council officers and the project team) only nine really continued to take an active role and interest in the project. I’d say a further fourteen made a contribution at some point, while seven had no further contact with the project at all after the visits.’

As already acknowledged, feedback suggests that more a careful selection of participants may have led to a greater number of tangible outcomes.

‘Perhaps those selecting individuals to participate in the visits needed to think more strategically about the possible outcomes ie a closer matching of the interests of participants to those included in the itineraries. Where things other than the seminars are happening it is because of a very close match with existing programme priorities.’

The project director suggested that greater delegation of responsibility and funding may have helped secure a greater range of tangible outcomes.

‘If we had just organised the visits perhaps we could have then ring-fenced the remainder of the budget (around £60,000) for the participants to bid into for seed-funding to develop outcomes. We could have stipulated conditions about collaboration with peers, international representation, dissemination of ideas, audience development etc. I suspect the result may have been less emphasis on us carrying the responsibility for outcomes as well as potentially a greater diversity of outcomes – publications, exhibitions, projects, events etc. It may also have resulted in less spend on administration. However, there would have been less control over quality and the need to address the core project aims.’

The programme was ambitious in its desire to bring together the craft and fine art sectors.

Perhaps understandably, there was some reticence from each sector to get involved, with a sense that several key organisations may not have felt the project was for them. As a result there has been some disappointment with how few of the emerging projects really grapple with new ideas about how crafts might be represented and supported within the fine art context.

‘Where were the major contemporary art institutions and where were the key movers and shakers in the craft world? They were all invited, but many of them didn’t seem interested.’

4.5 Case studies

Forming Ideas was established as a professional development programme and it is valuable to acknowledge the changes that the project has brought about in individuals, so three case studies are included. These detail the specific impact on the professional development of three individuals involved in terms of their enhanced understanding of the countries visited, contacts forged and increased capacity and enthusiasm to develop projects in the future.

4.5.1 Kate Newnham – Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery (visited Egypt)

Kate Newnham is a curator at the Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery, with responsibility for the Asian and Islamic collections. The gallery has a strong historical bias, including collections of ancient Egyptian glass and medieval ceramics. Kate hadn’t visited Egypt before and the visit provided an important opportunity for her professional development,

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particularly in terms of making connections between the historical objects in the Bristol collections and the contemporary craft practice she encountered in Cairo. She was intrigued by the way the visit challenged her ideas about craft practice, as she experienced in Cairo a thriving culture around craft that somehow at the same time didn’t quite fit with any particular preconception.

‘We simply couldn’t force what we saw to fit into our Westernised frameworks, and this is what was so challenging and interesting.’

Two encounters stood out as having particularly broadened her perceptions of craft. The first was a furniture project during which eight artists and ten manufacturers had spent six days working together with the aim of creating a body of furniture designs that would create a uniquely Egyptian corpus of work. This was particularly interesting because there is currently little evidence of Egypt having a recognisable profile in the world of furniture design and manufacture (unlike for example Scandinavia or Italy) and the project was a conscious strategy to make inroads into this world.

The second was a project supported by the Aga Khan Foundation involving the restoration of ancient buildings in medieval Cairo, an area in the centre of modern Cairo which until recently been has been very much in decline. Here she was interested to see how craftspeople were being supported to maintain and learn the use of very ancient traditional skills such as stone carving and mosque lamp-making.

Kate found the group discussions and networking particularly valuable and formed good links with Grainne Sweeney from the National Glass Centre and Andrew Proctor from the

Arts Council. These connections are continuing to prove valuable in her work nearly three years after her visit. Comparing the Cairo visit to a more recent visit with a colleague to

China, she commented:

‘There’s nothing like spending time in a context like that in a group talking about art and craft all day every day, particularly given that we were such a varied group who were all seeing things from a slightly different angle.’

When it came to giving time to the organising the dissemination event, Kate found more reason to question how her involvement in Forming Ideas would be of value to the tax payers of Bristol funding her post. With hindsight, she is now confident that there have been many benefits. The picture she describes is of many small outcomes adding up to a sizeable impact. These include the purchase of a number of pieces, including contemporary handblown glass, a modern patchwork tent panel, a cotton tapestry called Nile Flowers by

Mahrous Abdou from the Wissa Wassef Foundation and a recycled handbag. The tapestry is already on display in the Bristol collections . All of these will be displayed at some point to make links between contemporary and historic Egyptian craft practices.

Her involvement in the symposium led to further outcomes. Her responsibility before and during the event for the speaker from the Wissa Wassef Foundation led to her deepening her connection with the organisation and to the decision to fund-raise to purchase another

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wool tapestry. However, partly as a result of her connection, the organisation decided it would donate the tapestry to Bristol, which is now on display in the museum.

Kate’s direct experience of Cairo also led to her feeling confident about purchasing a video piece by Hala Elkoussy called Peripheral Stories, which is now on display in the museum. She says:

‘I was able to recognise how strongly this piece picked up on some of the aspects of Cairo that I thought were particularly interesting; the ring roads, the juice bars, the unfinished apartments. I was able, in a way I wouldn’t have been able to have done previously, to really see the strength of this work and how visitors would get a meaningful insight into modern

Cairo through seeing this piece in the Museum.’

Kate also talks about how valuable her experience was in enabling her to make the most of a recent placement organised by the British Museum by a curator from the Museum of

Islamic Art in Cairo. She was able to make a more immediate and meaningful connection and ongoing contact.

Since her involvement in Forming Ideas, Kate’s role has expanded so she now has responsibility for curating exhibitions of fine and applied art. She is confident that this will allow her experience of Cairo to permeate yet further in the future.

4.5.2 David Falkner – Stanley Picker Gallery (visited Nordic countries)

David Falkner is the Director at the Stanley Picker Gallery at Kingston University in London.

The gallery works with artists, designers and students to put on a broad programme of exhibitions and events with a particular focus on commissioning new work. With a challenging programme focusing on experimental and inter-disciplinary work, the gallery was successful in its bid to receive core funding from the Arts Council as part of the new

National Funding Portfolio. As David says:

‘If I don’t know what a particular project should be called, what box it fits into or how it should be labelled, then it interests me.’

Although David had had a history on involvement in the crafts and had always been interested in the scope for craft within the gallery’s programme, the focus had mainly in the past been on art, architecture and design. He describes how he saw the potential for professional development through Forming Ideas thus.

‘I was particularly interested in broadening my map of the crafts scene, both within the UK and abroad. I was interested in the question of what craft is, and particularly to further explore the question of where the process of using skilled processes to make by hand fits within today’s very diverse art and design sector.’

His visits to the Nordic countries gave him scope to extend this map, particularly through the extended time and experiences he shared with other UK curators.

‘I’m not sure I can think of any better way of getting to know the variety of perspectives and practices in the crafts scene across England than to spend time like this looking outside of

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the confines of our own country and the opportunity to engage together in making sense of

what we saw abroad.’

Similarly although his history had involved working abroad as both an artist and curator, he was interested in further broadening his capacity to bring international dimensions into the programme, and again the programme was very successful in enabling this, with concrete links forged with a number of organisations such as IASPIS, curators such as Anne Karlsen at the Hordaland Arts Centre (HKS) and individual makers such as Albin Karlsson. The experience also gave him a broader perspective on the impact of context on models of production and practice.

‘I suspect the differences in what we saw in the Nordic countries from our own context were more subtle than what was seen in Cairo and Brazil. What was particularly interesting for us was the opportunity to see contrasts between five different countries, particularly in terms of different political and financial circumstances and the impact of that on practice. For example, in Iceland, where current financial challenges prohibit many young makers from leaving the country, this situation is fuelling an exciting resourcefulness and creativity

within.’

With the Nordic countries visits taking him away from the gallery for extended periods of time, David was constantly looking at how to maximise what he could get from Forming

Ideas professionally and in terms of future gallery projects. His decision to offer to host the final Nordic Countries dissemination event reflected this drive.

‘Forming Ideas has been one of those projects where the more you put in the more you got out. Offering to host the Practice Makes Perfect event was not an entirely unselfish move. It took a lot of work but I knew it would benefit us for people to see the way we work at

Kingston and for the gallery to be at the heart of continuing discussions and debate. It certainly extended the value of taking part for me, and enabled me to develop the connections I had started to forge into real opportunities. I still feel very involved in Forming

Ideas and my experiences are still very much part of my thinking.’

He felt that the event was particularly valuable due to the inter-disciplinary nature of the discussions, resulting in a clear sense of new possibilities.

‘The Practice Makes Perfect event was a brilliant opportunity to bring together artists, designers, funders, studio facilitators and academics to discuss ways in which we could work across these diverse sectors to assist the production of ambitious new work. The Forming

Ideas context permitted these discussions to take place with a particular emphasis on making, yet without the conversation slipping into particular concerns of any one disciplinary territory. I believe everyone present got to think imaginatively together about how potential new models of collaboration might emerge in the near future.’

4.5.3 Christine Fletcher-Jones – Walford Mill Craft Centre (visited Brazil)

Christine Fletcher-Jones is the Chief Executive at Walford Mill Crafts in Wimborne Minster,

Dorset. Christine had only been involved in a limited amount of international work before her involvement in Forming Ideas. She had always been interested in making international links, wanting to bring new dimensions to her curatorial work, but had not previously had the opportunity or confidence to do so; feeling limited by funding, confidence, knowledge and ideas. She saw an Arts Council mailing about Forming Ideas. She was less interested in

35


the Egypt visit as she felt Egypt to be more associated with antiquities and museums than contemporary craft. She was excited about and applied to take part in the Nordic visit, and was very disappointed not to be selected. However, she was encouraged to apply for the next visit to Brazil, was thrilled to be selected and on reflection found this held a far greater opportunity.

She describes being ‘still completely overwhelmed’ by her visit, explaining how it gave her a completely new perspective on the country and broadened her sense of possible models to promote in the UK. Talking to Christine, the sense of energy and excitement the visit generated is palpable.

So inspired was she to share her experiences, one of the first things Christine did was to create an Apple Photo Book of her photographs, in an attempt to encapsulate what she gained from her visit. This has been shared with other members of the group, staff, Board

Members and funders of the Crafts Centre including lead officers at the County Council and

Arts Council, providing a valuable focus for discussion about future possibilities.

Another immediate outcome from her visit was the purchase of several baskets from the

Favella (slums) project, made from recycled newspaper. These have been included in an exhibition of overseas recycled baskets touring alongside a current retrospective exhibition of Lois Walpole’s work. Basket making was developed as a way to create opportunities for income generation for the homeless residents of BORACEA shelter, whose previous source of income was garbage collection. The members of the workshop now use the same garbage material they used to collect in a more profitable way, by producing colourful products, made entirely from recycled paper and non-toxic dyes. As well as being shown at

Walford Mill being seen by 6,300 visitors, this exhibition has toured to North Wales, which attracted 23,000 visitors; and to Shetland attracting 2,360 visitors. The exhibition is also touring to the Netherlands, Nottingham and possibly Nova Scotia and onwards! Baskets from the Favella project were ordered to sell in the shop and then also tour with the exhibition. Frustratingly, although the baskets themselves were cheap to purchase, the high costs of shipping and associated taxes and import duties have made them expensive to sell in the UK, so it’s unlikely that further orders will be placed.

The close working connections and shared understanding forged with other UK crafts contacts have been valuable in expanding opportunities available to Christine. As a result of

Forming Ideas, she’s collaborating with two other curators from the Brazil visit (Melanie

Kidd at the Hub Sleaford and David Sinclair at the Civic) on an exhibition of Brazilian jewellery. This has now led to collaboration with the textile department at the Arts

University College Bournemouth, resulting in a student project that will involve textile students designing work directly inspired by the Brazilian jewellery exhibition.

A project under discussion has been inspired directly by Christine hearing a presentation about the Laboratório Piracema de Design in Belo Horizonte. Laboratório Piracema is an initiative that works with urban and rural communities across Brazil to improve design of products that reflect the vernacular, appeal to contemporary markets and use traditional craft skills in the making.

36


‘I’ve been particularly inspired by the insights the visit gave me into street art and craft and for community makers how their creativity can be key to their survival.’

Under the working title of Living Traditions, discussions are underway with the Crafts Study

Centre at the University for the Creative Arts and with the Devon Guild about the possibility of a four-year action-research project aimed at exploring in craft a maker-led international programme. The intention is to offer residencies at the University for the Creative Arts for international students. The project would also promote and develop community based, traditional craft practices in the UK, informed by international models, possibly involving an academic or maker from Brazil. Christine would lead on exploring models from Brazil, the

UK Crafts Study Centre would focus on models from Africa, and the Devon Guild on India.

The aim would be to actively explore different models and transfer knowledge between makers in the UK.

Another theme that Christine took from her visit to Brazil that she hopes will emerge in the future is the theme of ‘mending’. In the UK, this might for example explore the traditions of

‘invisible mending’ in textiles or the tradition of riveting together broken ceramics. She sums up this filtration of ideas through her practice by saying:

‘The visit was hugely inspirational. I’m always thinking about Brazil now. It’s shifted my consciousness, whatever projects I’m developing.’

Christine sees her involvement in Forming Ideas as having raised the level of ambition possible in her organisation for engaging in cutting-edge programming of international craft exhibitions and projects. She believes that this may have contributed to Walford Mill’s successful application for funding as one of the 650 galleries within the Arts Council’s new

National Funding Portfolio.


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5 Impact

The intended impact of Forming Ideas was that the project would result in:

 a breaking down of the barriers between visual art and craft / design

 an increase in the profile of craft as a means of creative expression

 more contemporary craft exhibitions being programmed by visual arts venues

 a development and growth in audiences for craft

It is early at this stage to say with certainty whether these aspirations have been met.

However, evaluation feedback and discussions on the final evaluation day certainly demonstrated that the project has changed perceptions of craft among a sizeable group of those with influence in the UK and enhanced their confidence in leading and advocating for new approaches to presenting and promoting craft.

On the final evaluation day one participant described the impact of Forming Ideas being

‘rather like the permeation of a gas through the craft / visual arts sectors’. An Arts Council

Officer involved in the project also summed this up in her feedback:

‘It is clear that Forming Ideas has had a considerable impact in enabling debate and discussion, and in facilitating networks and ideas. There are already tangible outcomes and projects being developed by some of the participant curators and their organisations. … The programme, through the web-site and events, has involved a greater number of people and organisations to those that attended the visits. Through this, it has gained a good profile and had an impact on the sector.’

Forming Ideas has created a huge repository of knowledge, understanding, confidence and enthusiasm. Particular themes arising from discussions during the course of the project include:

 the strong emphasis on craft in the Islamic world

 how countries are defining cultural identity through crafts practice

 different models of support for makers

 social enterprise and outreach work

 recycling / make do and mend / sustainability

 collaborations between the contemporary art world and traditional crafts practice

 politically engaged craft practice

 strength of self-determined ‘grassroots’ crafts practice in countries lacking infrastructure / financial support for crafts

 post-colonial sensitivities around Western patronage / support for crafts

 contrast between global / culturally specific craft practices

 urban / rural contexts for crafts production and their influence

 role of new technologies

 involvement of young people in defining ‘crafts’

It is clear that the project has brought together some key movers in the craft world from across a range of organisations including for example Craftspace, Kingston University, The

38


Royal College of Art, Goldsmiths, the Whitworth, Yorkshire ArtSpace and a number of influential freelance curators. These are people with passion, motivation and influence whose confidence and capacity to develop new models and advocate for the crafts has been enhanced by their involvement in Forming Ideas.

The project has made visible new possibilities for greater cross-fertilisation between sectors and disciplines; linking contemporary art, craft and design with traditional craft skills and making connections between the cultural sector and academia, where historically there has often been a divide. There is also evidence that those working with historical collections in museums and in the more traditional crafts sectors have forged connections with those in the contemporary visual arts sector, exposing them to its associated concepts and discourse.

It is clear that an arena for new practice and discourse has been opened up through the project. This is perhaps best summed in the words of the project director, interviewed for this report.

'I saw huge potential in Forming Ideas to open up channels between the visual arts and crafts sectors. For me key questions that we need to grapple with in the UK are 'Where is the place for the hand-made object in the contemporary art gallery?' 'How might we engage audiences with the interesting social questions that arise around the unique traditions of making in the UK? 'What could emerge when socially engaged contemporary art practice and traditional crafts practice come together?' I saw great potential for new models to emerge at this 'edge' and believed that looking outside the UK would enable those involved to see what is within with greater openness and acuity.

Prior to Forming Ideas I had worked on a pilot programme in the South West – Curatorial

Network, where international visits, residencies and events had taken place. However, there were few links between the different elements and I saw that an important opportunity had been missed. I felt that by involving the same groups throughout in a process that would lead them from international visits through to working together to organise dissemination events, networks could be firmly established and possibilities for future collaboration enhanced. I believed that this extended opportunity to work together was going to be particularly important because we were bringing people together from different sectors - from the visual arts, crafts and academia, people who quite possibly would not have chosen to work together in the past and between whom there may be barriers to dismantle.

I also felt it was important to structure dissemination events in from the outset; that for participants to share their experiences and ideas with their peers was going to be essential to enabling the influence of the project to ripple out more widely into both the fine art and craft sectors.

In retrospect, the choice of countries to visit could have been braver. Western models are well rehearsed and we gained less from visiting the Scandinavian countries to challenge our own orthodoxies, whereas being together in a group in the unfamiliar territories presented by Brazil, Cairo and Iceland instantly put us all on the same level. We were each taking on board our experiences through the lens of our own expertise and this created a shared space

39


in which new models could be assimilated and new ideas formed. Put simply, we were looking out at what was new and then with this new knowledge, looking back inside to question and reassess.

For me, the visits have certainly expanded my sense of what could exist in this territory between craft and contemporary fine art, between ideas and objects, thinking and making.

It's my hope that projects will continue to emerge at this edge that will further expand and articulate the possibilities. I believe it’s through socially engaged practice that contemporary arts, design and crafts could merge comfortably. For example, I would love to see the

Piracema design initiative working with our communities where traditional craft skills are still just about alive. The time is right because we are all having to look again at our values as a society and the scope exists because there is a body of curators who are increasingly committed to working with socially engaged practice, some of whom have been part of

Forming Ideas.’

It is clear that there are factors at play that may serve to limit the future impact of Forming

Ideas. Without doubt the biggest threat comes from the dramatic political and financial changes that occurred since the project began and which have had a major impact on the cultural sector. There is a new paucity of funds that precludes many organisations from planning further international visits to develop opportunities or to pay for international collaborations, residencies or exhibitions.

‘The opportunity for us to follow up on specific initiatives would obviously be great. If a further fund were made available for curators to develop and pursue shared project outcomes I believe the take-up would be significant and tangible.’

A further threat to future impact has resulted from Arts Council restructuring. This means that only four of the original nine Arts Council Officers involved in the project remain in a strategic position to continue supporting the outcomes of Forming Ideas.

The real legacy of the project lies with the curators who took part in Forming Ideas, who are actively working in the field and are able to continue to influence and disseminate the thinking gained from their involvement and present new work. This group now includes some of those previously in post at the Arts Council.

While a small number of those initially involved clearly have the energy to carry ideas further, the fact remains that there has been a heavy reliance on the Forming Ideas project team to coordinate networking and debate. With the end of this role, it remains a challenge to continue to operate a Forming Ideas network that will encourage and facilitate future collaboration. As one participant commented:

‘My fear is that without the coordinating role of Art Projects and Solutions, the gains made will start to slip away.’

The network of Forming Ideas participants as now established as part of CraftNet remains the most likely route to enabling contact and debate to continue.

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Valuable information will continue to be available on the Forming Ideas web-site. A redesign now enables participants to upload event information easily. Plans are in place for the web-site to remain live until 2013. Facebook and Twitter were both used informally during the project to share information and for collaboration and one suggestion is that a

Forming Ideas presence on Facebook could offer an accessible route for a wider audience in the future, including students.

Finally it is important to acknowledge that while there has been a strong emphasis on capturing immediate outcomes it will be valuable to continue to track impact in the longer term, as the evidence suggests that outcomes are likely to continue emerging, particularly as the dust continues to settle on the funding situation for the arts in the UK and as organisations slowly find their way to new financial opportunities.


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6 Strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities

The analysis below provides a summary of the factors identified in the report that both contributed to and limited outcomes, as well as the threats and opportunities that may influence future impact.

Strengths

International visits rich, diverse, informative

Weaknesses

Lack of involvement by a number of and well-managed.

Prior research and briefings about countries to be visited led to cohorts being wellinformed on arrival.

Visiting as a group enabled responses to be shared and ideas generated.

Diverse range of participants on visits from range of sectors and levels in organisations challenged ‘silo’ thinking and facilitated collaboration and understanding.

Extensive range of contacts forged in each country visited.

Brazil and Egypt particularly successful as choice of destinations in challenging UK orthodoxies.

Size of cohorts effective in enabling collaboration and network building.

Requirement for dissemination event to result from visit strengthened learning from project and contributed to relationships.

Dissemination events in general well attended and well received.

Effective support for dissemination events provided by Forming Ideas project team.

Small and focused dissemination events with opportunities for discussion successful in leading to opportunities for action. participants in follow up activity.

Fewer tangible projects directly arising from visits than hoped.

Web-site less valuable than hoped for debate and generating ideas.

Appointing a freelance web-site manager separate from project team led to some issues re updating and managing the site.

Selection process for cohorts could have tested capacity to contribute to outcomes more strongly, perhaps through interview.

Larger proportion of project budget than anticipated spent on research, delivery, management and administration.

Some lack of interest from influential organisation in the contemporary craft sector.

Finland, Denmark and Sweden less successful as choice of destinations.

Some dissemination events less successful – most notably second Nordic seminar.

Brazil dissemination event less successful as model of collaboration.

Egypt dissemination event attracted a smaller audience than it might have due to charging for tickets.

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Large and ambitious events successful in enthusing new audiences.

Valuable range of models for dissemination events explored through the project.

Timing and scheduling of the project over two and a half year period worked well in allowing relationships and projects to develop while maintaining energy and focus

Project team praised for commitment and attention to project.

A range of additional tangible outcomes have already arisen from project.

Threats

Changes in political / financial climate likely to limit further outcomes, particularly those involving international elements.

Changes in Arts Council structure mean that many officers originally well-placed to influence and support outcomes have left.

Outcomes likely to take time to emerge and need coordination.

No clear route for continued coordination of

Forming Ideas network.

No mechanism for continuing to capture impact of project in longer term.

Some speakers would have been better working with translation than speaking in

English.

Opportunities

Range of influential individuals and organisations from across sectors energised and equipped to work collaboratively around international craft themes.

Range of themes for international / UK based projects identified.

Forum for continued discussion between

Forming Ideas participants established as part of CraftNet.

Arts Council officers who remain in post well-placed and informed to continue to support new craft developments fuelled by

Forming Ideas.

Web-site provides a valuable legacy of the ideas and debate generated by the project.

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Appendices

Appendix A Forming Ideas – Logic model

Assumptions Resources Activities Outputs

The programme will attract curators that might not normally programme craft

The programme will broaden the knowledge and experience of craft curators

Curators will influence their organisations and develop exhibitions

Curators will share new knowledge with the wider sector

The cohorts will work collaboratively to deliver debates and events

£249,000 International research visits for English curators

Website

Events to increase debate and disseminate knowledge

Outcomes Impact

38 arts professionals involved in international research visits and organising dissemination events c250 international contacts c330 attendees at dissemination events c10,500 visits to website

Stimulate debate of craft across the craft, design and visual arts sectors

Develop national and international networks

Stimulate collaborative projects and exhibitions

Lead to new exhibitions and projects available to galleries and museums

Enhance confidence among participants to work with internationally

Develop and grow audiences for crafts

More contemporary craft exhibitions being programmed by visual arts venues

Increase the profile of craft as a means of creative expression

Break down barriers between visual arts and craft/design

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Appendix B Research visit feedback questionnaire

________________________________________________________

1. Personal details (optional)

Name:

Organisation:

Telephone:

2. Background

2.1 What did you want to get out of your involvement in the Forming Ideas programme as a whole?

Please list as many as possible (for example wanting new contacts, understanding, ideas, networks, opportunities etc)

2.2 What particular issues concern or interest you around craft and curatorial practice?

___________________________________________________________________________

3. Value of visit

3.1 How valuable do you judge your visit to have been in relation to what you wanted to get out of it?

1. Very valuable 2. Fairly valuable 3. Not as valuable as I’d hoped

Please comment:

3.2 What specifically have you gained from your visit? Please list (this might include new thinking, ideas, understanding, contacts, enthusiasm, opportunities, etc.)

3.3 Is there anything you plan to do as a direct result of your visit?

3.4 Is there anything that would have made the visit more valuable for you?

3.5 Did you feel that the itinerary was well balanced? Please state your reasons eg whether sufficient opportunities for networking were provided.

3.6 What aspect(s) of the curatorial trip did you find most interesting and useful?

Please give reasons:

3.7 What aspect(s) of the curatorial trip did you find least interesting and useful?

Please give reasons.


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4. Practicalities

4.1 How useful was the information about the visit and the schedule provided prior to the trip?

1. Poor 2. Adequate 3. Good 4. Excellent

Please give reasons:

4.2 Is there anything that could have been done, or provided for you, either before or during the visit, which may have improved the experience for you? If yes, please specify:

4.3 How did you rate the travel and accommodation arrangements that were made for you?

1. Poor 2. Adequate 3. Good 4. Excellent

International flights

In land transport

Hotel

Please provide any comments here:

__________________________________________________________________________

5. Additional information

6.1 Do you have additional comments you would like to make about the curatorial research visit in which you participated?

6.2 Would you be interested in participating in future curatorial group visits?

If yes, please specify geographical areas or events of interest:

6.3 Did you make any specific contacts in <>, either within or outside your group, that you intend to follow up?

6.4 Have you had any initial ideas about areas of work that might result from the visit or comments about how it might impact on your curatorial/professional practice?

Thank you for your time.

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Appendix C Dissemination event feedback questionnaire

________________________________________________________

Name:

Organisation:

How would you describe your role? (Please circle any that apply) artist or maker / academic / curator / freelance consultant / gallery or museum director / student / other (please specify)……………………………………

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For all questions, 5 = strongly agree, 1 = strongly disagree

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For what reasons did you want to attend the event / conference?

I wanted to broaden my awareness of global issues in relation to craft and curatorial practice

I wanted ideas that I could apply in my own work

I wanted to meet new contacts and build new networks

I wanted my own practice and thinking about craft and curatorial practice to be challenged

5 4 3 2 1

Other (please describe)


How effectively has the event / conference met these needs?

Broadened awareness of global issues in relation to craft and curatorial practice

Ideas that I can apply in my own work

New contacts and networks

Challenge to my own practice and thinking about craft and curatorial practice

5 4 3 2 1



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Please list new ideas or insights you’ve gained today:

Please list to three things you will do, or do differently, as a direct result of today’s event:

What did we do well?

What could we have done better?


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Appendix D Final evaluation questionnaire

5 = very effectively / 3 = not sure / 1= not effectively at all

How effectively has Forming Ideas supported you to debate craft across the craft, design and visual arts sectors?



5 4 3 2 1

How effectively has Forming Ideas supported you to develop national and international networks?



5 4 3 2 1

How effectively has Forming Ideas stimulated you to develop

collaborative projects and exhibitions?



5 4 3 2 1

5 4 3 2 1

How effectively has Forming Ideas supported you to develop new exhibitions and projects available to galleries and museums?



In what areas has your confidence grown as a result of the project? (This could be for example in writing, speaking, chairing, organising events, curating / presenting crafts, critical debate, developing ideas for projects / exhibitions, collaborating nationally, collaborating internationally, organising international visits etc.) Please list as many as possible:

As a result of my involvement in Forming Ideas, I feel more confident about:







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Appendix E List of international contacts

The contact lists of individual participants will likely be different and more extensive but the names below were individuals met at formal meetings.

_________________________________________________________

Egypt

Organisations

Nairy Avedissian

Aleya Hamza

Noha Zayed

Julia Race

William Wells

Karim Francis

Nagla Samir

Ikram Nosshi

Patricia Aranet

Dina Bakhoum

Ayman Azabawy

Dr Amr Abdel Kawi

Stefania Angarano

Project Manager, Arts, Social & cultural Partnerships Unit,

British Council

Curator at Contemporary Image Collective

Managing Partner, Zafir T-Shirts

Deputy Director, British Council, Egypt

Aga Khan Trust for Culture

Co-Founder of Al Khatoun Gallery

Publisher of Magaz design magazine

Director of The Townhouse Gallery

Director, Karim Francis Gallery

Professor at the Applied College of Art and teaches at AUC

Director, Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre

Director, Mashrabia Gallery

Development Manager( Outreach & international Projects),

Prince's School of Traditional Arts

Dr Shafer is Assistant Professor, Art Program Director, Dr Ann Shafer

Sylva Nasrallah

Hadeel Eldeeb

Sherif Awad

Waleed Abdulkhalek

Mahmoud Ouf

Founder of Nagada Showroom

Senior PR Associate, Azza Fahmy

Contemporary Practices (online magazine of visual arts)

Director of Almasar Gallery

Zakhareef

Individual makers / academics etc

Maha Maamoun

Shahira Mehrez

Amal Kenawy

Maha Maamoun

Zeinab Khalifa

Huda Lutfi

Artist / photographer

Egyptian crafts expert

Artist at the Townhouse Gallery

Artist/photographer

Artist / Jeweller

Artist based at Townhouse Gallery Studios

________________________________________________________________

Nordic

Organisations

Denmark

Birgitte Jahn

Kristian Kastoff

Karen Kjaergaard

Danish Crafts, CEO

Danish Crafts, Head of Projects

Danish Crafts, Curator

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Maria Elskaer

Anne Mette Kildegaard

Anne Meret Groenlund

Nicolai Gjessing

Mark Lauberg

Hannah Houlberg

Frederik Hardvendel

Tainia Gronqvist

Norway

Anne Brit Ylvisåker

Anne Szefer Karlssen

Head of Exhibitions, Danish Design Centre

Galerie Metal, Director

Galerie Groenlund

Danish Arts and Crafts Association, MD

Danish Arts and Crafts Association

Ulla Houkjaer

Visit only

Britta Trondborg

Danish Arts and Crafts Assoication

Statens Vaerksteder for Kunst hog Handvaerk (The National

Workshops for Arts and Crafts)

Danish Musuem of Art and Design, Senior Curator

Galerie Pagter

Director, Trapholt Museum

Sweden

Linus Ersson

Frida Fjellman

Jenny Edland

Sophia Bjokman

Asa Skogberg

Adam Jeanes

Magnus Ericson

Sara Teleman

Cecilia Widenheim

We Work in Fragile Materials, (group of artists)

We Work in Fragile Materials, (group of artists)

Galerie Platina

Galerie Platina

Galerie Platina www.intercult.se

IASPIS

IASPIS

Maj Sandell

Agneta Linton

IASPIS

Gustavsbergs Konsthall, Artistic Director

Gustavsbergs Konsthall, Curator

Ylva W Franzen + others Tour of Artists studios at Gustavburg

Jun-hi Wennergren Nording Crystal Palace

Katarina Sjögren Crystal Palace

Inger Molin Galleri IngerMolin

Finland

Ingmar Lindberg

Martina Lindberg

Katarina Siltavuori

Paula Susitaival

Mikko Kalhama

Aila Kolehmainen

Ilona Anhava

Jukka Savolainen

Marianne Ave

Fiskars, former Exec. Vice President for Fiskars Corp. and

Chairman of the board for the Cooperative

Fiskars, Executive Manager

Gallerie Norsu

Artists O

Design Forum

Design Forum

Galerie Anhava

Designmuseo, Curator

Designmuseo, Director

Littala Group Communications and PR

Permanenten Vestlandske Kunstindustrimuseum (Bergen artmuseum), Curator

Hordaland art center, Director

Verftet” The United Sardine Factory (USF) - Studio Visits

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Stine Tveten Galleri Format, Director (Norwegian Assoc. for Arts and Crafts)

Æsa Bjørk Thorsteinsdottir S 12, owner and artist of artist-run gallery

Trude Gomnæs Ugelstad NK, Director

Ole Gaudernack

Elisabeth Sørheim

National Musuem of Art, Architecture and Design, Curator

NK, Director of Programmes

Various (networking event) Hovedoya Island and studio complex

Stina Hägkvist Momentum Nordic Biennial of Contemporary Art, Curator

Dag Aak Sveinar

Kristine Fresvig

Galleri F15, Director

Galleri RAM

Karianne Sand

Irija Owre

Iceland

Galleri Format, Olso space

Galleri Format, Olso space

Harpa Honnunarsafn

Thorey Vilhjalmsdottir

Margret Gudnadottir

Dr Christian Schoen

Museum of Design and Applied Art, Director

Icelandic Design Centre, Director

Gallery Kirsuberjatréö (plus met with founding artists)

CIA.IS

Halla Bogadóttir

Sunneva Hafsteindottir

Kraum – Icelandic Design

Handverk og Honnun

Kristin Adalbjorg Arnadottir Ministry of Culture, Iceland, Director of Communications and

Public diplomacy

Aslaug Dora Eyfjolfsdottir Ministry of Culture, (Advisor, Division of Arts and Museums,

Ministry of Education Science and Culture).

Gudney Hegladottir

Audur Edda Jokulsdottir

Ministry of Culture, Head of Division Dept of Cultural Affairs

Ministry of Culture, Minister Counsellor

Erling Klingenberg

Iris Stefansdottir

Kling&Bang i8 Art Gallery


Zandra Aho

Abin Karlsson

Andrea Djerf

Exhibiting artists

Camilla Moberg

Soili Arha

Karin Widnäs

Markku Salo

Barbro Kulvik

Antti Siltovuori

Artists

Åse Ljones

Ida Helland-Hansen

Kari Aasen

Eli Veim

Maria Udd

Siri Tollefsen

Synnøve Vik

Artist

Artist

Artist

Galleri IngerMolin

Fiskars, Industrial Artist

Fiskars, Textile Artist

Fiskars, Ceramic Artist

Firskars, Artist

Fiskars, Designer

Fiskars, Industrial Designer

Harraka Island Studio Complex

Sardine Factory, Artist






Art Historian

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Kim Simonsson

Kristina Riska

Pekka Paikkari

Kati Tuominen-Niittyla

Synnøve Vik

Arabia, Artist

Arabia, Artist

Arabia, Artist

Arabia, Artist

Art historian

Tanja Saeter

Sigurd Bronger

Utstillingen Prize winner and glass artist

Jewellery designer

Kari Steihaug Textile artist

Inger Johanne Rasmussen Textile artist

Guðný Hafsteinsdóttir Studio visit ceramicist

Dóra Árna Studio visit ceramicist

Halla Ásgeirsdóttir Studio visit ceramicist

Áslaug Höskuldsdóttir Studio visit ceramicist

Sigrún Einarsdóttir

Páll Kristjánsson

Studio visit glass maker

Studio visit knife maker

Aurum, Guðbjörg Ingvarsdóttir

Guðrún Gunnarsdóttir

Studio visit designer and Jeweller

Studio Visit artist and textile designer

Ragnheiður Ingunn Ágústsdóttir Studio visit ceramicist

Hulda Hakon Artist

Eirun Sigurdardottir

Joni Jonsdottir

Icelandic Love Corporation

Icelandic Love Corporation

Icelandic Love Corporation Sigrun Hrolfsdottir

________________________________________________________________

Brazil

Organisations

Renata Mellão

Team

Maria Andrade

Giancarlo Latorraca

Audience of c.100

Visit only

Domingos Tórora

Caio Medeiros

Ivo Pons

Ary Scapin

Paula Dib

Daniela Cecchini

Elaine Landulfo

Alexandre Zabeu

Ana Estaregui

Ellen Kiss

Eduardo Wolk

Director of A CASA

Artesol

Paralela Gift Fair

Director, Museum da Casa Brasileira

Forming Ideas panel presentation Museum da Casa Brasileira

Instituto Tomie Ohtake

Designer who works with artisans in Minas Gerais

Estudio Manus, studio craft

Design professor Universidade Mackenzie and creative director of Design Possivel´s project

SEBRAE

Project Mandala / Product Designer

16th Craft Design Fair



Instituto de Arte Contemporanea

Abedesign (Brazilliam Association of Design Campanies)

A Casa

53


Eduardo Brandão

Ana Paula Moreno

Leila Arruda

Luiz Hermano

Júnia Ferretini

Gerson de Oliviera

Joyce Bisca

Maria Rita Lovro

Elisa Bracha

Foundation guide

José Spaniol

Luciane Tobias

Patrícia Scarparo

Baixo Ribeiro

Roberta Guimarãs

Ernesto Neto

Alessandra Clark

TT Leal

Visit only

Paula Bonami

Marconi Drummond

Visit only

Visit only

Fernando Maculan

Mariana Hardy

Bruno Campos

Julia Reboucas

Adelia Borges

Stephen Rimmer

Artistic Director, Galeria Vermelho

Manager, Ateliê Campana Brothers

Project Coordinator, Ateliê Campana Brothers

Ateliê Luiz Hermano

Head of Communications, Projeto Arrastão

Ovo

Galeria Luciana Brito

Galeria Luciana Brito

Atelier Acaia

Instituto Lina Bo e P.M. Bardi

Capela do Morumbi

Capela do Morumbi

Capela do Morumbi

Galeria Choque Cultural

Projects Manager British Council

Ernesto Neto Ateliê Nave

O Mundo de Lygia Clark

Founder, Coopa Roca

Museu de Artes e Ofícios

Restaurant owner, Bonomi

Curator, Pampulha Art Musuem

Casa do Baile

Igreja São Francisco Assis (church)

(architect, product designer, curator)A&M

Hardy Design

BCMF

Representative of Education Dept, Inhotim

Curator, Pavilhão das Culturas Brasileiras

British Council

Roberta Mahfuz

Malu Pena

British Council

British Council


Adélia Borges

Gerson de Oliveira

Jun Nakao

Domingos Tórora

Critic, Curator and Professor

Designer, Ovo

Fashion Designer

Designer

Caio Medeiros Estudio Manus,

Paulo Roberto C. Foggiato Designer

Miriam Pappalardo

Sérgio Cabral

Designer

Designer

Maximo Soalheiro

Adriano Mol

Marcelo Drummond

Natacha Rena

Carlos Teixeira

Andre Amparo

Ceramicist, Atelier Maximo Soalheiro

Jewellery designer

Typographer and founder Laboratoria Piracema de Design

Vernacular typography

Architect

Aeurasia Project - video installation

54


Freusa Zechmeister

Franklin Lee

Fernando Maculan

Mariana Hardy

Bruno Campos

Paula Dib

Domingos Tórora

Caio Medeiros

Luiz Hermano

Ernesto Neto

Elisa Bracha

Alessandra Clark costume design for Grupo Corpo Dance

Architect TBC

(architect, product designer, curator)A&M

Hardy Design

BCMF

Project Mandala / Product Designer

Designer who works with artisans in Minas Gerais

Estudio Manus, studio craft

Ateliê Luiz Hermano

Ernesto Neto Ateliê Nave

Atelier Acaia

O Mundo de Lygia Clark


55

Appendix F – Outcomes Audit

Egypt

Output / possible output

Curator from Townhouse invited to conference in

Falmouth

Spoke about Cairo visit at conference at The Hub,

Sleaford

Has been in contact with Deirdre Figueredo to make contact with Brazil organisations

Keen to collaborate with Christine Fletcher-Jones re Ling Traditions project

Plan to write paper about critically engaged social practice and activist artists

Suggestion of special edition of Third Text on

Cairo as cultural mash-up

Contacts made in Cairo have stimulated a South

Med. Forum at ISEA 2011, Istanbul, Sept

Discussion of future collaboration on glass projects

Lead

Sara Black

Yasmin Canvin Fermynwoods

Contemporary Art

Jennifer Hallam Visual Arts Officer,


Jennifer Hallam Visual Arts Officer,


Janis Jeffries Goldsmiths

Janis Jeffries

Janis Jeffries

Organisation

ProjectBase

Goldsmiths

Goldsmiths

Purchase of video work and 5 accompanying photographs by Hala Elkoussy, now installed in

Assyrian Gallery, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery

Acquisition of wool tapestry by UK based charity

The Ramses Wissa Wassef Exhibition Trust to be displayed at Bristol Museum and Art Gallery

Acquisition of contemporary Egyptian crafts

(small cotton tapestry / patchwork tent panel and hand blow glass) for initial online display at

Bristol Museum and Art Gallery and later display in Bristol’s new Social History Museum when open.

Discussions with various galleries about potential exhibitions

Kate Newham /

Grainne Sweeny

Bristol Museum and

Art Gallery /

National Glass

Centre

Kate Newnham Bristol Museum and

Art Gallery

Kate Newham Bristol Museum and

Art Gallery

Kate Newnham Bristol Museum and

Art Gallery

Kate Stoddart Independent

Nordic

Outputs / possible outputs

Dialogue with Sabrina Gschwandtner, US artist met in Stockholm via IAPSIS, informed thinking behind exhibition Making and Mending

Lead

Liz Cooper

Invited to be an international selector for 4th

Riga Triennial of Textile and Fibre Art in Latvia

Liz Cooper

Curated show of international jewellery (Under Liz Cooper

Organisation

Smiths Row, Bury St

Edmunds

Smiths Row

Smiths Row

56


the Counter) influenced by research in

Copenhagen and Stockholm

Liaising with IASPIS Stockholm re touring shows to venues in Sweden.

Will be leading on a special edition of Journal of

Modern Craft that will cover the Forming Ideas project

Worked with the Nordic Festival to mount an exhibition of work by textile designer Edith

Lundebrekke (Norway) – January 2010

Planning exhibition idea for 2014 to include one or two Nordic artists

Application for residencies for two Yorkshire

Artspace artists at Fiskars Village, Finland

Albin Karlsson (Stockholm based artist) invited to residency in Sheffield with possible further exhibition opportunity.

Hoping to organise exhibition informed by Nordic visit

Members of Danish Crafts Association invited to participate in Lustre – Contemporary Craft

Market, Lakeside Arts Centre. May extend invitation to Norwegian Crafts Association in

2012.

Researched possibility of exhibition to coincide with the British Art Show exploring aspects of conceptual craft

Brazil

Output / possible output

Commissioned Brazil Guide from artist for publication online as part of Artroute as a direct outcome from visit

Presenting an exhibition of Contemporary

Brazilian Jewellery (curated by Adelia Borges) which will tour to three other organisations in the UK that took part in the FI visit to Brazil

Fundraising for exchange between young people

16-25

Exploring idea of Brazilian representation for mac craft season 2013

Exploring idea of possible exchange between UK social enterprise refugee women and similar in

Brazil

David Falkner Stanley Picker

Gallery, Kingston

University

Jennifer Harris Whitworth Art

Gallery, Manchester


Gallery, Manchester


Gallery, Manchester

Mir Jansen Yorkshire Artspace

Mir Jansen

Erica Steer

Neil Walker

Neil Walker

Lead Organisation

Stephen Beddoe ArtQuest

Yvonna

Demczynska

Deirdre

Figueiredo

Deirdre

Figueiredo

Deirdre

Figueiredo

Yorkshire Artspace

Devon Guild

Djangoly Gallery,

University of

Nottingham

Djangoly Gallery,

University of

Nottingham

Flow Gallery,

London

Craftspace

Craftspace

Craftspace

57


Exploring idea of exhibition of best of social enterprise crafts worldwide including Brazil

A collection of baskets purchased in Brazil now forms part of a touring exhibition on recycled baskets (international section).

Purchased other baskets from Oficina de Artes

Boracea to sell in craft shop alongside basket exhibition.

Presenting an exhibition of Contemporary

Brazilian Jewellery

Possibility of exhibition called Stools: A portrait of

Brazilian design/craft culture (working title) in discussion with MAM, The Museu de Arte

Moderna de São Paulo

Co-ordinating the tour of an exhibition on

Contemporary Brazilian Jewellery curated by

Adelia Borges. The Hub will be one of four venues presenting the exhibition.

International collaborative exhibition, exploring cross-cultural exchange through three artistic partnerships between Norway and Japan – touring from January 2010

Deirdre

Figueiredo

Christine

Fletcher-Jones

Melanie Kidd /

David Sinclair /

Christine

Fletcher Jones

Melanie Kidd

Melanie Kidd

(on behalf of

Lesley Millar, an original Nordic participant who had to cancel)

Martina

Margetts

Pursuing ideas including exhibition in UK to raise awareness of ideas in Brazilian craft practice / exhibition of new developments in British craft and design for MAM-SP in Brazil / writing, curating or talking on Lina Bo Bardi and the interrelationship between modernism and vernacular culture / show/catalogue about

Maximo Soalheiro

Commissioned to review Ernesto Neto’s Hayward show for Crafts

Collaborating with founder of Flow Gallery

Yvonna Deczynska for ‘Paper Works’ exhibition to come to The Gallery@ The Civic

(+55) Brazil - Exhibition of 22 Brazilian artists taking place in Autumn 2011 as part of Barnsley

Diversity Festival, directly informed by Forming

Ideas visit

Presenting exhibition of contemporary Brazilian

Jewellery

Developing a touring exhibition of ceramicist

Maximo Soalheiro - under discussion with 4 venues

Organising UK exhibition of graphic designer

Martina

Margetts


David Sinclair The Gallery @ Civic,

Barnsley

David Sinclair

Sara Roberts

Sara Roberts

Craftspace

Walford Mill Crafts,

Dorset

The Hub, Sleaford /

The Gallery @ Civic /

Walford Mill Crafts

The Hub Sleaford

The Hub, Sleaford


The Gallery @ Civic,

Barnsley

Independent curator

Independent curator

58


Marcelo Drummond; forging links with

Winchester School of Art and UFMG


59

Full Report - Forming Ideas

Forming Ideas

Evaluation Report

Fiona Godfrey

2011

Contents Page

1 Introduction

2 Organisation

3 Outputs

4 Outcomes

5 Impact

6 Strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities

Appendices

1 Introduction

1.1 Background and context

1.2 Aims and activities

1.3 Evaluation methodology

2 Organisation

2.1 Structure and schedule

2.2 Budget and organisation

2.3 Promotion of project and selection of cohorts

Egypt

Nordic

Brazil

3 Outputs

3.1 Summary of outputs

3.2 Research visits

3.3 Dissemination events

3.4 International contacts

3.5 Web-site (www.formingideas.co.uk)

4 Outcomes

4.1 Summary of outcomes

4.2 Debate of craft across the craft, design and art sectors

4.3 National and international networks / confidence to work internationally

4.4 Collaborative projects

4.5 Case studies

5 Impact

6 Strengths, weaknesses, threats and opportunities

Appendices

Appendix A Forming Ideas – Logic model

Appendix B Research visit feedback questionnaire

Appendix C Dissemination event feedback questionnaire

________________________________________________________

Appendix D Final evaluation questionnaire

Appendix E List of international contacts

_________________________________________________________

Egypt

________________________________________________________________

Nordic

________________________________________________________________

Brazil

Appendix F – Outcomes Audit

Egypt

Nordic

Brazil

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