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CLUSTER CRAFTS FAIR

Now that we are all living in uncertain and challenging times, it feels natural to be looking to the future, and having things to look forward to on the other side of this difficult patch. Whilst the world’s art and design calendar has been postponed for the time being, we are still excited to be planning our next show at Ugly Duck, a three-level location in Bermondsey, a former warehouse pocket of south London. The concept of the show is very much inspired by the building itself and has been curated as such, with each floor dedicated to Cluster artists inspired by underground, land and sky, respectively.

But what does this mean exactly? At Cluster we are really excited about this concept, and how neatly craft fits into not only our lives, but also the strata of the natural world. Many of us feel closer to nature than ever, with its fragile tendencies, and we will be exploring this in sensitive and bold ways. The basement level will be showcasing earthy textures and ceramics, including a wealth of international artists and makers such as:

Australian artist Cassandra McArthur, who works with and is inspired by found materials of clay, rock and minerals in her immediate natural environment. She uses these to create ceramic forms which remind us of the functional and efficient ways nature works. We are looking forward to introducing Cassandra’s work to the UK for the first time.

This is just a taste of what you can expect in September, but we want to whet your appetite and introduce a small selection of our artists from each floor of our upcoming show. Back to the ground level of Ugly Duck, cast your minds forward to London Craft Week and await the arrival of the following artists and makers as we look to the functional work of the land:

Sarmite Polakova, who lives and works between Amsterdam and Riga. She describes herself as a designer, material explorer and storyteller whose objects have a clear functionality in the modern home with their designs merging sleek and natural aesthetics. We love the PineSkins mat, which invites us to slow down and lose ourselves in the textures of the forest.

Toby Duncan relishes mankind’s coexisting relationship with nature and treats us to rich textures while celebrating the natural patterns of decay, erosion and life cycles. With a long history of making wall-based, mixed media work, we can’t wait to show you Toby’s ceramics in September.

Ivan Baj is another artist we can’t wait to show you. He works across different media including glass and interiors, and founded Arcade Murano in 1990, producing high-quality glass pieces using the unpredictability of natural resources such as water and sand as a  point of departure.

Lucas Huillet is a French artisan designer living and working between Paris and the gorgeous rural setting of Cerbère. Lucas looks at raw materials through the lens of sustainable development, assessing how we might borrow the techniques of the natural world in how we live and create. His delicately misshapen and organic-inspired designs allow the owner’s home to inch closer to nature.

As we peer towards the sky for the show’s third floor, look no further if you are finally getting round to finding that statement light feature. With the sky comes hope, space and illumination, and our artists will show you how it’s done:

British designer Mona Sharma has a simple and authentic outlook on design. She’s building herself up to be something of an industry press favourite, with features in Wired, Design Milk, Design Boom and Curbed showcasing her innovative, adaptable and stylish lighting designs.

Last but not least, we are excited to host again and show you more from one of the top UK lighting brands - Haberdashery. Their exquisite designs create a feeling of immersion into a surreal world, illuminated by stunning colors and warmth.

As you can tell, we are very excited to show you what we’ve been working on, and while we are looking forward to September’s showcase, we hope you can take time where you can do what makes you happy. For us, that is enjoying and exploring new craft designers and makers, and we love bringing that to you. In the meantime, keep an eye on our website and social media for regular updates, and join in the conversation! Tell us about your favourite artists, designers and makers and why you love them, so we can all bask in the incredible talent the global craft community has to offer.

Thank you for reading,
Issey Scott