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Crafts Council announces the 39 new makers selected for Hothouse 2015
The Crafts Council has selected 39 makers to take part in the six-month Hothouse programme across four regions in the UK. Delivered in partnership with Manchester Craft and Design Centre, Manchester School of Art (Manchester Metropolitan University), Kaylee Jenkinson, our Exhibitions & Events Officer, was on the panel to choose the North cohort. We will also host four of the ten Business Development sessions here and be on hand with help and advice.
Hothouse has quickly established itself as a gold-standard professional development programme for new makers. Over the last four years 122 participants have completed the programme with 100% of last year’s cohort of 38 saying that the programme had enabled them to think differently about the direction of their career.
This is the first year that Craft Scotland has sponsored a cohort of six makers all based in Scotland. Other new regional partners include Manchester Craft & Design Centre and Manchester School of Art.
The 39 makers selected already display a high level of technical craftsmanship and originality but the programme, which starts in February 2015, will equip them with the business and creative skills needed to run a successful and sustainable craft practice.
North cohort: Beatrix Baker (wood/mixed media, South Lake District), Joanna Gordon (Jewellery, Birmingham), Lynne Hutchinson (ceramics, Newcastle upon Tyne), Stephanie Lawton (Surface pattern and textile design, Manchester), Katherine Lees (ceramics, Manchester), Studio LW (Emma Leslie & Rhiannon Wilkey, furniture, London), Tom Philipson (furniture, South Lake District), Libby Ward (jewellery, Stoke-on-Trent), Judith Watson (textiles, London), Simon Wilks (ceramics, Shrewsbury), Jasmine Simpson (ceramics, Stoke-on-Trent)
Kate Day, our Director, says: “We’re delighted to be partners with the Crafts Council and Manchester School of Art for Hothouse North 2015. This programme will provide intensive business development for eleven talented craftspeople, supporting them to build sustainable and influential creative enterprises. Manchester Craft & Design Centre has a 32 year track record of nurturing designers and makers in the city, and we look forward to welcoming the Hothouse North cohort and helping them to develop their networks and knowledge.”