London’s 45 Park Lane Partners With The Artisan Collab
The exhibit at 45 Park Lane, a Dorchester Collection hotel, will feature the work of 10 creators from Sept. 5 to Nov. 5.
An unexpected, yet worthy stop on the London art trail, the Dorchester Collection's 45 Park Lane has an established arts program, an evolving collection, exhibits and even tours. On Tuesday, the hotel unveiled works from The Artisan Collab, a West Sussex, England-based initiative founded by interior designer and furniture designer Giovanna Ticciati. The exhibit will run until Nov. 5.
Curated by Ticciati herself, the exhibition is comprised of 10 international artisans, artists and designers that celebrate the best in modern craftsmanship and its techniques through a variety of mediums including sculpture, ceramic art, jewelry design, photography and painting. The exhibition's core concept revolves around the notion that humans are connected through their understanding of works and their intrinsic material qualities.
Currently on display are vessel-like ceramic sculptures rooted in mythology by Lucy Whitford and sculptures and paintings inspired by Byzantine artifacts by acclaimed Italian artist, designer and furniture-maker Gennaro Avallone. French sculptor Benoît Averly is showcasing a selection of his refined wood sculptures, while Sussex-based painter Mark Charlton's new works reflect his practice of using multiple materials, like paint and paper, and employing layering techniques to create an abstract quality. Jewelry designer Pippa Small, known for collaborating with King Charles III's Turquoise Mountain charity, has propelled to the fore traditionally crafted pieces that tell stories and give a voice to skilled artisans globally.
Turquoise Mountain was established in 2006 by King Charles to revive historic areas and traditional crafts, to provide jobs, skills in areas that have or are enduring conflict or have potential to develop their artisan heartlands, such as Afghanistan, Myanmar, Saudi Arabia and the Levant.
Showcasing in a hotel rather than a gallery was a well-thought-out choice, according to Ticciati. "The challenge was to make an exhibition of seemingly disparate pieces feel cohesive in a space that had a very different mood to the pieces. We found a synergy in the contrast: the master artisanship of the works against the elegance of the hotel," Ticciati said in an interview.
Across all works and artists, each piece within the exhibit expresses something difficult to articulate — "from the demonstration of fragility in Bruce Rae's silver gelatin flower prints…to the strength of Kate Boxer's wild and protective Blue Wolf…to the ancient motifs in Gennaro Avallone's gilded tapestry," she said.
Ticciati, an interior designer with a minimal aesthetic, started the Artisan Collab to unite the work of designers, makers and artists across multiple disciplines, in order to bring to the fore inspiring craftsmanship skills, techniques and storytelling, she added.
"The natural world provides materials and inspiration for all the pieces. I believe that people and processes are integral to the beauty of an object and wanted to give an insight into both and highlight the connection between nature and each other."