Since 2016, the Art School has participated in London Craft Week, an annual event that showcases exceptional craftsmanship through a journey-of-discovery programme around the city.
For the 2025 edition of London Craft Week, the Art School will host a two-day event showcasing some of the historic and contemporary craft skills we champion on our undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. The free admission event will take place on Friday 16 May and Saturday 17 May 2025 and includes an engaging programme of activities, as well as the exciting opportunity to glimpse inside a real Art School.
WHAT’S ON
Friday 16 May | 13:00-17:00
13:00-17:00 Carving Competition
13:00-17:00 Carving Open Studios
13:00-17:00 Conservation Demonstrations
13:00-17:00 Taylor Pearce Drawing Prize
13:00-17:00 National Saturday Club Exhibition
10:00-17:00 Foundation Show 2025
Saturday 17 May | 13:00–18:00
13:00-16:00 Carving Competition
13:00-16:00 Carving Open Studios
13:00-17:00 Have a go at Stone Carving
13:00-17:00 Conservation Demonstrations
13:00-17:00 Illumination Demonstrations
13:00-17:00 Gilding Demonstrations
13:00-18:00 Taylor Pearce Drawing Prize
13:00-18:00 National Saturday Club Exhibition
13:30-14:30 Printmaking Workshop (ticketed)
14:45-15:45 Printmaking Workshop (ticketed)
16:00-17:00 Printmaking Workshop (ticketed)
16:00 Carving Competition Voting Closes
17:00 Prizes Announced
VENUE INFORMATION
City & Guilds of London Art School, 124 Kennington Park Road, SE11 4DJ
WOOD AND STONE CARVING
The wood and stone carving studios will be open, and visitors are encouraged to cast their vote in the ever-popular two-day carving competition. This year, the competition is themed around ‘Beasts’. Thank you to those who sponsor the prizes: The Masons’ Company Craft Fund and The Carpenters’ Company.
As well as watching wood and stone carving in action, you can have a go at stone carving yourself.
NATIONAL SATURDAY CLUB EXHIBITION
The Art School is proud to be part of the Craft&Making strand of National Saturday Club programming, which was recently formed by NSC in partnership with QEST. The Art School’s Saturday Club offers local young people the opportunity to learn rarely-taught heritage craft skills, with a contemporary twist. An exhibition of Members’ work will be on display for visitors to view.
TAYLOR PEARCE DRAWING PRIZE EXHIBITION
You are invited to view an exhibition of entries for the Art School’s Taylor Pearce Drawing Prize, open to students on our Carving and Conservation degree programmes. The array of exhibited drawings reflects students’ course work in a variety of approaches and subjects, including sketches, studies or more sustained drawings. The winning entry will be announced at the 2025 Degree Show.
DEMONSTRATIONS
Students on our BA (Hons) Conservation: Books & Paper and BA (Hons) Conservation: Stone, Wood & Decorative Surfaces courses will give demonstrations of different conservation techniques and processes. Find out first-hand about the specialist knowledge and skills needed to conserve and restore cultural heritage. Tutor Sarah Davis will demonstrate Medieval Painting & Illuminations, Gilding Tutor Rian Kanduth will demonstrate Gilding techniques and Painter Stainers’ Decorative Surfaces Fellow Alison Poon will show wood graining demonstrations.
PRINTMAKING WORKSHOP
You’ll have the opportunity to learn the traditional process of ‘blind printing’ with Printmaking Fellow Ben Topping who is leading a series of short, hands-on workshops on Saturday 17 May. Blind printing is the historic Intaglio printing process without the ink, so you’ll leave the Art School’s historic Print Room with beautiful debossed artwork but no inky fingers. The one-hour workshops are for over 18s. Register here.
FOUNDATION SHOW
The Foundation Show is an end-of-year celebration of the outstanding work of our 2025 graduates studying for our Foundation Diploma in Art & Design. During this year of exploration, students interrogate and extend their art practice and create an impressive body of work, which you are invited to see at this end-of-year show.
Refreshments will be available in the Art School’s café.
VENUE INFORMATION
City & Guilds of London Art School
124 Kennington Park Road
SE11 4DJ
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