Indian Summer: the reinvention of the Birmingham Guild of Handicraft in the twentieth century

Peart, Tony ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6367-1387 (2020) Indian Summer: the reinvention of the Birmingham Guild of Handicraft in the twentieth century. The Journal of The Decorative Arts Society 1850 to the Present, 44 . pp. 19-45.

Preview

PDF - Published Version Available under License CC BY-NC Download (1MB) | Preview

Abstract

To date, the only publication to document the work of one of the country’s leading Arts & Crafts Movement metal workshops, The Birmingham Guild of Handicraft, has been the 1984 exhibition catalogue ‘By Hammer and Hand’ (Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery) with only five pages documenting the earliest years of the Guild from 1890-c.1910. This has had the effect of creating the image of a workshop of idealistic artisans creating austere ‘Arts & Crafts’ pieces. In truth, this is only a small part of the Guild’s story. This paper is based on extensive research conducted over many years with the intention of ultimately publishing a monograph on The Birmingham Guild of Handicraft. It is the first opportunity to share newly discovered primary research material with an interested audience and illustrates some of the spectacular work produced by the Guild during its heyday in the inter-war years as the country’s leading architectural metalworkers. The paper explores how and why a small-scale, philanthropic ‘craft’ workshop of the late nineteenth century managed to evolve, adapt and ultimately, successfully re-invent itself in the twentieth century. Early twentieth century design reform, as exemplified by the Design for Industries Association, is also addressed as is the stylistic influence of continental Art Deco. Contemporary opinions on the often-problematic relationship between architect and artisan are also explored and documented. The time frame involved captures the decline of British, labour intensive, ‘craft’ manufacture in the post-war era and explores the effects of the rapid change in design taste that occurred concurrently, creating a ‘perfect storm’ for many design-lead manufacturers.

Item Type:	Article
Journal / Publication Title:	The Journal of The Decorative Arts Society 1850 to the Present
Publisher:	The Decorative Arts Society
ISSN:	0260-9568
Departments:	Institute of Arts > Graphics and Photography
Depositing User:	Tony Peart
Date Deposited:	01 Mar 2022 10:45
Last Modified:	05 Aug 2024 12:28
URI:	https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/6362

Downloads