Crafty Conversations
Crafty Conversations
Podcast Description
Over the course of this summer, I took a sabbatical from teaching and cycled over 2,200 kilometres from one end of the country to the other, meeting nearly twenty craftspeople along the way. From silver spinners and wheelwrights to kilt makers and basket weavers, I learnt the stories behind their endangered skills and what it takes to keep these crafts alive today.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
Centers around rare and endangered crafts, the personal journey of a cyclist visiting artisans, and the cultural significance of traditional skills, with episodes like interviewing metalsmith Rebecca Walklett about unique copper techniques and reflecting on the planning stages of the biking adventure.
Over the course of this summer, I took a sabbatical from teaching and cycled over 2,200 kilometres from one end of the country to the other, meeting nearly twenty craftspeople along the way. From silver spinners and wheelwrights to kilt makers and basket weavers, I learnt the stories behind their endangered skills and what it takes to keep these crafts alive today.
Episode 8
In this episode I go back and chat over the phone to architect Hugh Conway Morris about his approach to designing and building using traditional materials and low-impact methods. Working from a converted barn near Gloucester, Hugh explains how timber, earth, and lime can be used to create buildings that are both environmentally considered and deeply rooted in craft , while still feeling ambitious and modern in their design.
I also reflect on Day Six of my ride: starting out from my parents’ home in Wiltshire, visiting blacksmith Hector Cole in the morning, and then heading north to meet Hugh before a short but memorable ride to a quiet campsite near Huntley, where a Victorian rectory garden and the first settled evening of the trip offered a welcome change of pace.
To see images from this conversation and the wider trip visit
https://www.instagram.com/crafty_cyclist/
To visit Heritage Crafts
https://heritagecrafts.org.uk/
And to see more about Hugh
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