Immerse yourself in Craft across County Down this August.
August Craft Month’s packed agenda explores County Down’s creative side.
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County Down is to celebrate the wealth of exceptional craft talent on its doorstep during August Craft Month.
Northern Ireland is at the forefront of the burgeoning craft movement across the globe. With internationally renowned makers, artisan craft start-ups and increasingly popular craft activity-led tourism, the vibrant craft sector is thriving.
There is a blossoming interest in and commitment to products that are made as opposed to manufactured and that are made locally, and the talented artists, designers and makers in Northern Ireland are meeting the demand.
Across all pockets of Northern Ireland there will be over 100 hands-on and intimate events including workshops, exhibitions featuring world-class artists, fun festivals, studio grand openings and insightful talks. August Craft Month boasts a host of new offerings for 2018 including workshops that vary in focus from wellbeing to genealogy tracing, and glass bead design to dress making.
The month-long celebration, enabled by CRAFT NI and supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland through the National Lottery, showcases the excellence and diversity of craft in Northern Ireland and provides a fantastic opportunity for everyone to make, see, learn about and buy craft.
Jan Irwin of CRAFT NI said: “We are thrilled to be co-ordinating the 12th annual August Craft Month. The events are a wonderful opportunity to highlight the remarkable quality of our artists, designers and makers in Northern Ireland.
“The public and our visitors are encouraged to engage with our makers, to enjoy the experiences and to learn more from some of our top talent. The dedicated August Craft Month website holds all the information regarding when and where these exceptional events will take place.”
Suzanne Lyle, Head of Visual Arts, the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, said: “CRAFT NI is back with another impressive programme of events and workshops taking place across Northern Ireland. Now in its 12th year, August Craft Month has been steadily growing each year with more and more people taking part and trying something new.
“The Arts Council is delighted to support this terrific celebration of craft, which offers an important platform to showcase the talent of our local craft makers and helps to bring great art to everyone.” August Craft Month provides a network for makers and the public to create, share and meet, and the immersive nature of a wide range of events ensures that August Craft Month offers such variety to suit a multitude of interests.
Highlights of August Craft Month 2018 across County Down include:
* At Top Floor Art Gallery in Saintfield, the Family Tree Textile Panel Workshop invites participants to explore their genealogy and delve into their family history, before artist Emma Whitehead assists in creating a beautiful textile family tree from the findings.
* ‘Linen Futures 2018’ curated by County Down based textile artists Jane McCann and Cecilia Stephens explores innovative approaches to the celebrating our NI linen and flax heritage, demonstrating a range of textile skills to embrace print, weave, embroidery and natural dyeing.
* Learn to knit a unique, improvised jumper, inspired by punk legend Johnny Rotten in Bangor, with a punk soundtrack to give you inspiration. You can bring scraps and yarn to trade, but materials and BIG needles will be provided.
For more information on the events across Northern Ireland, visit:
To find out more about craft all year round visit:
where you can subscribe for news, browse the Directory, an online listing of local artist/designer/makers, or click on the interactive Craft Map that includes details of shops, galleries, venues and makers’ studios across Northern Ireland that are open to the public.
