Housewares Business-to-business magazine for housewares retailers and their suppliers
‘The Victorian House Of Arts And Crafts’ is the name of a new BBC Two series presented by Anita Ranim, alongside potter and ceramic designer Keith Brymer Jones (who is head of design at housewares company MAKE International) and arts and crafts expert Patch Rogers.
Due to air in early 2019, the four-part show will transport six craftspeople back in time to experience the ideas and practices of Arts and Crafts visionaries William Morris, John Ruskin and Gertrude Jekyll.
The broadcaster said: ‘Formed in protest against the dehumanisation of workers and mass-produced goods, these pioneers felt a return to nature, and taking a pride in handcrafted goods, would enhance their lives and create a better society. But will it work today and what, if anything, can the craftspeople take from the experience that might enrich their lives in the modern world?
‘Cut off from 21st century life, the group of artisans will be transported back into a remote Victorian Arts and Crafts bubble where they must lovingly breathe life back into an original Arts and Crafts property.’
Forming a community and living and working collectively, the craftspeople must decorate and furnish four key rooms – one per episode – making everything from scratch, inspired by nature and in keeping with the rules of the movement. The group will make hand-printed wallpaper, bespoke craft furniture, furnishings and ceramics, using archives and original source material.
Keith Brymer Jones, who is head of design at MAKE International, said: “Being part of the presenting team on ‘The Victorian House Of Arts And Crafts’ programme is truly inspirational. The crafters living and working together in the house and growing as a group really reflects what the Arts and Crafts movement was all about.”
Emma Cahusac, commissioner of BBC Arts, said: “I’m thrilled to bring ‘The Victorian House Of Arts And Crafts’ to BBC Two. The series will offer viewers a unique and immersive journey into the past, whilst sharing the struggles and triumphs of our six gifted artisans in the house. I really hope people will be inspired to try to find the time to incorporate arts and crafts into their own busy lives.”
Anita Rani (middle) will be joined by potter and ceramic designer Keith Brymer Jones (left) and arts and crafts expert Patch Rogers (right) to present a new series for BBC Two: ‘The Victorian House Of Arts And Crafts’
