Now in its tenth year, London Craft Week (LCW) is one of the highlights of the art calendar. Renowned for spotlighting exceptional craftsmanship from around the world, this year’s event – held from 13-19 May 2024 – is simultaneously reflecting on the evolution of the craft sector over the past decade, while also looking at the trends and developments that will define the future of craftsmanship. Spanning sectors including art, design, luxury, fashion and accessories, there’s something for everyone as LCW delves into the stories behind the world’s finest objects and explores inspirations through a programme of immersive experiences, exhibitions and workshops. 

But, with literally hundreds of events taking places across London, where to start? Highlights include the Secret Ceramics initiative, featuring more than 100 objects created by leading artists to support the opening of a new ceramics studio in White City, enabling young people to experience the power of working with clay. Elsewhere, don’t miss the inaugural edition of Modern Masters – a free outdoor programme of contemporary art featuring large-scale works by renowned American glass artist Dale Chihuly at Chelsea Barracks – and visit Cromwell Place as it transforms into a one-stop destination for métiers d’art, hosting a programme of exhibitions celebrating elite craftsmanship, luxury and fine art. 

Overwhelmed? We thought so – which is why we’ve curated a guide to London Craft Week 2024. From pop-ups championing the beauty of the handmade, to taking an exclusive look at Rolls-Royce’s bespoke collection created especially for the event, read on for the must-see events of London Craft Week 2024. 

London Craft Week x The Fife Arms at Mount St. Restaurant, Mayfair

Hugo Macdonald of Bard. Image: Giovanni Gastel

Scottish designer and tartan weaver Araminta Campbell

For the first time, Artfarm – the independent hospitality company behind The Fife Arms and Mount St. Restaurant, owned by gallerist Hauser & Wirth – is partnering with London Craft Week. As the city-wide festival celebrates exceptional craftsmanship from around the world, Mayfair’s Mount St. Restaurant will host a panel discussion on 15 May – led by artisans and craftspeople who have close ties with The Fife Arms, such as Scottish designer and tartan weaver Araminta Campbell, accessories designer Iseabal Hendry and Hugo Macdonald of Bard – to delve into themes of nature and place in Scottish craft, and how the Highland landscape inspires and informs their practice.

15 May 2024 at The Scottish Room, Mount St. Restaurant, 41–43 Mount Street, W1K 2RX

Curator&Maker, Holland Park

Curator&Maker, a London-based pop-up known for championing the beauty of the handmade, returns for its fifth edition from 15-22 May in Holland Park with ‘The Wind In The Willows’ – a new retail showcase celebrating the changing of the English seasons and the welcome arrival of spring. After a number of sell-out pop-ups, this event will bring together the very best of British creativity and craftsmanship, with thoughtfully curated delights for both the home and garden, as well as fashion, artwork and stationery from nine carefully selected makers from around the UK. 

The spring collection will invite shoppers to discover eclectic patchwork rugs made from upcycled tweed, beautiful ceramic dinnerware and charming garden accessories. Creative types should opt for linen-bound sketchbooks or unique flower collages, while wonders for your wardrobe will come in the form of practical but stylish clothing. In addition to shopping, Curator&Maker will also host a talk by designer Emma Bridgewater, who will explore the theme of making art with former Royal ballet dancer and maker Bruce Sansom and brush maker Rosa Harradine on 16 May. 

From 15-22 May 2024 at Myriad Antiques, 131 Portland Rd London W11 4LW

Savoir-Faire Demonstrations from Jaeger-LeCoultre, Bond Street

During London Craft Week, the Michelangelo Foundation will present the work of the 20 pairs of artisans who took part in the first edition of the Homo Faber Fellowship – an education programme supported by Swiss watch house Jaeger-LeCoultre. After a one-month creative and entrepreneurial course taught by the French ESSEC Business School, these talented fellows spent six months in the European workshops of their paired master artisans, with locations spanning from Ireland to Portugal. The resulting 20 unique objects will now go on show in London from 14-18 May at Cromwell Place, where visitors can discover a diverse range of crafts and techniques, including ceramics, textiles, wood marquetry, stone sculpture and silversmithing. 

Echoing this celebration of craftsmanship, Jaeger-LeCoultre will also showcase its very own watchmaking expertise at its boutique at 13 Old Bond Street. On 15 and 16 May, passers-by and guests can watch firsthand the engraving technique used on the case of the Reverso watch: a celebrated Art Deco timepiece first created in 1931 and famous for its unique pivoting case system and ability to personalise the caseback with an engraving or miniature enamel work. 

From 15-16 May 2024 at Jaeger-LeCoultre Boutique, 13 Old Bond Street, W1S 4SX

A Fine Line: Modern Makers at Pitzhanger, Ealing

Emmanuel Boos, Sextet

Image: Andy Stagg

Also coinciding with London Craft Week is a new exhibition at Pitzhanger Manor and Gallery showcasing modern ceramics and glass curated by Joanna Bird. The exhibition – named A Fine Line: Modern Makers at Pitzhanger and open from 8 May-4 August 2024 – brings together the work of 11 makers, sets against the historic Sir John Soane-designed interiors of the manor. Among the featured artists is Emmanuel Boos, known for his deep knowledge of ceramic glazes and innovative brick formations, and Steffen Dam, whose intricate glassworks recall botanical drawings of the 19th century. 

The exhibition will open for a special late-night reception on 16 May, where curator Bird will be in conversation with contributing artists Joseph Harrington and Gregory Warren Wilson. On 18 May, join a tour of the exhibition with Bird, exploring the connections between the artists on display and the architecture of Sir John Soane, while discovering deeper insights into the inspirations that shape the works of Emmanuel Boos, Prue Cooper, Joseph Harrington and others featured in the exhibition.

16 and 18 May 2024 at Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery, Mattock Lane, W5 5EQ

Rolls-Royce’s Bespoke Collective, Mayfair

To celebrate the tenth year of London Craft Week, Rolls-Royce will debut a unique exhibition of craftsmanship at its flagship residence in Mayfair. For this year’s event, the marque has taken inspiration from London, home to some of the most famous luxury hotels, restaurants and boutiques in the world, many of which are great examples of design and architecture. Rolls-Royce has looked to artisans from its Exterior Surface Centre, who have drawn inspiration from the famous haunts of London to create a true work of art: a map of London presented on the magnificent canvas of a Phantom bonnet, which features over 20 coats of paint and took over 100 hours to complete. 

Elsewhere, the Rolls-Royce team from the Interior Trim Centre have created a vibrant door card for the event. This special sample showcases a unique perforated artwork created in a vibrant Turchese leather, conjuring the impression of an aerial view of the River Thames. Continuing the London theme, specialists from the Interior Surface Centre have also created a picnic table that celebrates some of the city’s most famous buildings, which involved more than 50 hours of cutting, pressing and assembling before the table was lacquered. Fancy getting up close and personal with these bespoke pieces? Visit the Rolls-Royce Berkeley Street showroom for the best view in the house. 

From 13-19 May 2024 at Rolls-Royce Motor Cars London, 38 Berkeley Street, W1J 8HD

New & Lingwood x Lisa King batik collection, Marylebone

Tom Leeper and Lisa King

Lisa King

British luxury menswear brand New & Lingwood has collaborated with London-based multidisciplinary artist and designer Lisa King to create a capsule collection of garments which will be displayed in the Chiltern Street store during London Craft Week. Reimagining New & Lingwood’s signature pieces, King has used a unique Indonesian batik – the art of wax-resist dyeing – and, together with creative director Tom Leeper, has fused heritage cloth with the finest modern menswear. 

On 14 May 2024, also at New & Lingwood’s Chiltern Street store, join King and researcher and batik expert Dr Fiona Kerlogue for a discussion on Indonesian batik. King will share the cloths and stories that make up her Indonesian family batik collection, which have provided the basis for a collaboration with New & Lingwood, while Kerlogue offers context to the historical use, colours and motifs of the cloth used in the collaboration and charts the use of batik in modern-day fashion.

14 May 2024 at New & Lingwood, 14 Chiltern Street, W1U 7PY

Visit londoncraftweek.com

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