The Red List
of Endangered Crafts
The Heritage Crafts Red List of Endangered Crafts, first published in 2017, was the first report of its kind to rank traditional crafts by the likelihood they would survive to the next generation, based on intangible cultural heritage safeguarding principles, led by Heritage Crafts, the only UK UNESCO-accredited NGO working primarily in the domain of traditional craftsmanship.
The list attracted extensive media coverage both in the UK and abroad, shining a light on heritage craft practices under threat from a number of identifiable issues. It is our hope that this research will act as a call to action to those who have it within their power to resolve or alleviate these issues, and that this project will mark the start of long-term monitoring of heritage craft viability and a shared will to avoid the cultural loss that is borne each time a craft dies.
Heritage Crafts committed to updating the list on a regular basis, and so between September 2022 and May 2023 over 900 organisations and individuals were contacted directly by email and telephone and invited to contribute to the research. Participants were asked to provide background information about each craft, such as its history, techniques and local forms, as well as current information relating to the number of skilled craftspeople and trainees, and the ongoing issues affecting the viability of the craft. In May 2023 the fourth edition was published, increasing the number of crafts examined to 259, with five new critically endangered crafts and 17 new endangered crafts added.
Each craft was then classified into one of four categories of endangerment using a combination of both objective criteria (such as numbers of crafts people and trainees) and subjective criteria (issues affecting the future viability of the craft including training opportunities and market trends). Issues affecting the viability of heritage crafts vary on a craft-by-craft basis, though many can be grouped, and possible solutions devised that will help many crafts practices become more viable.
For the purposes of this research, a heritage craft is defined as ‘a practice which employs manual dexterity and skill and an understanding of traditional materials, design and techniques, and which has been practised for two or more successive generations’. The research focuses on craft practices which are taking place in the UK at the present time, including those crafts which have originated elsewhere, and on those aspects of each craft with a high reliance on hand-work and which involve high levels of hand skill.
If you have any queries about the research, are aware of a heritage craft that is not listed, or have further information to add about any craft, please contact [email protected].
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In today’s @telegraph:
@billbaileyofficial: Children should learn to make kilts and cricket balls – AI cannot take those jobs
“Children should be taught to make kilts and cricket balls at school because they require skills that would not be replaced by AI, Bill Bailey has said. The comedian and Strictly Come Dancing winner, 59, urged the Government to include heritage arts and crafts in the national curriculum… Bailey explained that “in the not-too-distant future, AI will be a real threat to many jobs”, but that craft trades involve “manual dexterity,” meaning they are “potentially going to be in huge demand because they can’t be replaced by robots or AI”.
Read more via the linktr.ee in our bio (subscription required)
This week’s #mondaymaker is Bethan Wyn Williams @bethanwynwilliamsstudio – an artist and surface pattern designer based in Bristol.
Bethan specialises in hand-crafting intricately detailed repeating patterns for luxury textiles, wallpaper and home accessories. Taking inspiration from the landscape of rural North Wales, where she grew up, and embellishments of the Arts and Crafts Movement, Bethan seeks to incorporate the natural world into her work. Bethan loves the initial process of researching design ideas, collating images, scribbling down notes and sketching – given the unlimited opportunities ahead.
If you want to learn more about Bethan’s work, become a member of Heritage Crafts and read her exclusive interview in the members portal: https://www.heritagecrafts.org.uk/join-us/
#heritagecrafts #mondaymaker #surfacepatterndesign
This week’s #craftfocus is folding knife making.
A folding knife consists of a blade, spring, two linings, two bolsters, two ‘scales’ for the handles, and wire for riveting the knife together.
The blade blanks and springs are cut from sheet steel. They are then marked, drilled, nicked and straightened before being hardened and tempered. The blades are then ground and cleaned, before the knife is assembled.
The assembled knife is then ‘knocked up’ using a hammer and an anvil. The knives are then ground and shaped to the required finish, before being given a final polish and sharpening.
Folding knife making is listed as endangered on our crafts list.
Issues affecting the craft’s viability include legislation – there are a number of laws concerning knives (though pocket knives are usually exempt) and recruitment issues – it is difficult to find people who wish to work in this type of manufacturing.
Images: Michael May @michaelmayknives
#heritagecrafts #craftfocus #foldingknifemaking
New Brewery Arts and Heritage Crafts are seeking makers and craftspeople aged 25 and under to take part in an exhibition at New Brewery Arts in Cirencester in 2025.
Our Young Makers exhibition will take place from the 8th February to 24th May 2025 and aims to highlight the wealth of skill, thinking, heritage understanding and imagination in the craft sector, played out in the hands of young makers.
We want to know what makes your work unique – does it bring a fresh perspective to traditional techniques? Tell a unique story? Have a sustainable focus?
The deadline for exhibition applications is 1st December.
Visit the opportunities page on our website or click link in bio to apply.
#newbreweryarts #cirencester #gloucestershire #makers #youngmakers #craft #cotswolds #heritagecrafts
This week’s #mondaymaker is Nina Perrot @clearsandsstainedglass – a master stained glass maker.
Nina has been creating stained glass for around two decades. Trained by master craftsman Keith Knickels twenty years ago, Nina is a member of the Guild of Master Craftsmen. Nina loves being able to continue the centuries old heritage skill of stained glass making while combining it with a contemporary style. Working from her off grid smallholding, Nina is inspired by nature and natural designs, taking influence from the surrounding world.
If you want to learn more about Nina’s work, become a member of Heritage Crafts and read her exclusive interview in the members portal: https://www.heritagecrafts.org.uk/join-us/
#heritagecrafts #mondaymaker #stainedglass #glasswork
This week’s #craftfocus is leatherworking.
Leatherworking is the making of a wide range of leather items, often using techniques of sewing, moulding and embossing. It dates back over 400,00 years, being readily available for usage first as a by-product of hunting.
The leatherworking process is centred on the material – from sourcing the right leather to work with, examining the surface and preparing the leather, measuring and preparing/applying the pattern (marking cut lines) and cutting.
Additional processes include glueing, casing, stitching, dyeing, burnishing, skiving, stamping, moulding/shaping and perforation.
Issues affecting the viability of the craft include the time consuming process of preparing leather, and a lack of widely-available or accessible leather work training/qualifications, with a decreasing number of active makers.
There are also ethical and environmental concerns around leatherworking, resulting in a number of fashion houses moving away from it.
However, many would argue that leather is a highly sustainable material, using a by-product of the food industry that would otherwise be wasted, compared with some of the petroleum-derived alternatives.
Images: Armitage Leather @armitageleather & Billy Tannery @billytannery
#heritagecrafts #craftfocus #leatherworking #leather
Over 29 days we have profiled the recipients of our recent round of training bursaries.
Oliver Kinge, from Wiltshire, has a learning style that has not been served well by the mainstream education system. He also has a passion for blacksmithing that points to an exciting future. He will train one-to-one with blacksmith @melissacole001. Oliver plans to set up his own business, selling items at local farm shops, farmers markets and events throughout the year.
Oliver’s bursary is funded by Malcolm and Rosalind Gammie.
Oliver said:
“Securing the bursary from Heritage Crafts will provide me with the opportunity to continue in my training and acquire the resources I need to develop my skills as a blacksmith. This support will also enable me to explore blacksmithing as a career, to meet other professionals, and expand my skills and training further. Hopefully this will lead to me being able to produce items that others can use for years.”
This week’s #mondaymaker is John Potter, an accredited master fletcher at Twangers Arrows.
Fletching is the making of arrows, including shaping the wooden shafts and attaching the feather. He came into fletching many years ago through the necessity to provide himself with arrows for his longbows. John is the author of ‘Making Traditional Wooden Arrows’, 2020.
If you want to learn more about John’s work, become a member of Heritage Crafts and read his exclusive interview in the members portal: https://www.heritagecrafts.org.uk/join-us/
#heritagecrafts #mondaymaker #fletching
