The Crafts in Britain in the Twentieth Century

Fromceramicstosilversmithing,calligraphytotextiles,hotglasstobookbinding,craftshaveplayedarichandcomplexroleinthesocial,cultural,andartistichistoryoftwentieth-centuryBritain.Thisall-encompassingbookisthefirsttosurveythefullrangeofindividualcraftdisciplinesandkeypractitionersfromthepre-WorldWarIyearsoftheArtsandCraftsMovementtothe1990s.TanyaHarrodshowshowthecraftsmovementemergedinresponsetogeneralizedanxietyabouttheproduction,commodification,andconsumptionofobjectsinahighlyindustrializedsociety.Caughtbetweenthemorepowerfuldisciplinesoffineart,architecture,anddesignforindustry,craftshavedefinedandredefinedthemselvesthroughoutthecentury.Thebookbeginswiththecraftrevivaloftheearly1900s,tracingthecomplexlegacyofJohnRuskinandWilliamMorris.TheauthorthendiscusseshowtheArtsandCraftsMovementwasforcedtoreexamineitsaimsduringtheGreatWar;howthedevelopmentofthecraftswascloselyconnectedtothedevelopmentofmodernismbetweenthewars;andhowduringWorldWarIItheideaofthehandmade,oftenintheformofvernacularcraftdiscoveredinremotepocketsofEngland,playedasignificantpartinpropagandizinganationalcultureworthdefending.Thebookalsoexploresthepostwarbeginningsofacounterculturalworkshop-basedcraftmovementledbyBernardLeachandthecontinuingredefinitionofcraftsasthegovernment-fundedCraftsCouncilpushedthemtowardthefineartsandthenthegovernmentattemptedinthe1980storecastthemasexemplarsofenterpriseculture.Harroddescribestheincreasinglyblurreddivisionbetweencraftanddesignformassproductionattheconclusionofthebook.Alongwithhistorians,educators,artists,craftspersons,andcollectors,readerswithaninterestinBritishculturalhistorywillfindinthisbookmuchtodelightandfascinate.ThisbookaccompaniesanexhibitionofBritishcrafts,"ThePleasuresofPeace:Craft,ArtandDesigninBritainfromthe1940stothe1960s",thatwillopenattheSainsburyCentreattheUniversityofEastAngliainspring1999.