Last week, British paper company GFSmith hosted a free five day event to showcase the skill, passion and craft behind their products. The event, Beauty in the Making, was a collaboration with It's Nice That,Monotype and the British Council's Architecture, Design and Fashion department and took place in a magnificently cavernous basement in Bloomsbury.
On entering the space five, huge, metre high stacks of vibrant paper stock revealed the week's schedule, while the rest of the space immersed the viewers with the history of paper and design. Workshops in envelope-making and letter pressing taught new skills while It's Nice That curated a series of speakers events by artisans and exponents. There was even a screening of Linotype:The Film, a feature length documentary about the Linotype typecasting machine directed by Doug Wilson.
The event celebrated every aspect of the design process because as they explain, "It is a sad truth that most people never see the skill and craft that happens behind the scenes in so many parts of the creative industry. There is real beauty to be found in the everyday processes that provide the creative community with the products and services they take for granted."
While many brands showcase their craft through behind-the-scenes videos or campaigns, its great to see a brand curate a physical event and exhibition that celebrates the knowledge and heritage of the brand and encourages people to celebrate 'the making' as an art form in its own right.
I was lucky enough to get a pair of Free tickets to the Wednesday night talk, featuring Wired’s associate online editor Olivia Solon, NB Studio’s co-founder Nick Finney, illustrator and co-founder of This Is It collective Rose Blake, and gallerist Hannah Barry. Check it out here.
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