Welcome to Find a Maker

MAKER OF THE DAY

Anya Keeley

My current practice uses wire working at its core in combination with a variety of vintage, found and reclaimed materials. Sustainability has always been central to my making methodology with me recently making a shift back towards a textile based practice, leading to a re-evaluation of all the materials I use in an attempt to become even more sustainable in creating my outcomes

Inspiration is derived from folklore, fairy tales and childhood adventures, along with a nostalgic nod to the television programmes I watched while growing up. Ideas eventually form into anthropomorphic creatures and characters, each named using found words from damaged books and sheet music.

During the first lockdown I returned to incorporating fabrics in my work, out of necessity, as I was unable to get my hands on any plain flour (I previously used a flour & water paste for my paper-mache creatures).
I originally studied textiles and surface pattern at college before I moved to Hereford to study an HND. It was there that I pursued my love of 'drawing' with wire and began incorporating found and reclaimed objects.

I recently completed a Masters in Contemporary Crafts, the focus of my studies was based on the use of found objects within art, with particular attention to what and how I collect and why I feel compelled to collect.

Taking on the role of urban archaeologist, with references to mudlarking, the scavenger, rescuer and magpie, my practice is built around the gathering of neglected, mundane, discarded, broken, stained, redundant objects and related materials. The subsequent role that I then adopt is that of the bricoleur, bodger, fossicker and conservator, repurposing, combining and curating the 'finds' so that they take on new identities and forms utilising sympathetic interventions to create individual protective, talismanic and amuletic artefacts with a familial aesthetic, allowing the outcomes to evolve while preserving the deterioration.

I studied HND Design Crafts at Hereford College of Art, graduating in 1996, returning a couple of years later to top it up to a BA (Hons) and went back again, in 2018, to study a Masters in Contemporary Crafts, graduating with distinction in December 2019.

View Here

The Capital of Craft Podcast with Cathryn Gwynn

Craft Festival Wales Special

I met Cathryn Gwynn at her home studio in Cilgerran, a village near Cardigan in West Wales. 

Her early life in Cardiff led her to a career in writing, editing and finally teaching at Preseli School. She later began an access course in art, leading to a degree in Textiles from Carmarthen School of Art in 2020.

Text, texture and textile: three words which reflect sher practice as a mixed-media artist. She is drawn to thread, pen, ink and paper and work somewhere on the cusp of these materials.

Cathryn Wynn will be giving an illustrated talk about her work at The Capital of Craft at Craft Festival Wales at Cardigan Castle. 

Her work is part of an exhibition of 8 important Welsh makers at Canfas Gallery in Cardigan. Woven, curated by Suzi Park from Cambrian Wool, runs from September 5-October 5th. 

Craft Festival Wales September 5-7, 2025

Listen here

Award Winning Festivals

Since 2003 we have run multi-award winning Festivals in Bovey Tracey, Devon, Cardigan and Cheltenham. In June, we host the UK's best loved and finest contemporary Craft Festival in Bovey Tracey featuring over 200 curated makers. Hosted in idyllic parkland on the edge of Dartmoor. Complimented by an dazzling number of workshops, demonstrations, masterclasses, talks, family activities, street theatre, live music and feasting! In March we head to the beautiful Regency town of Cheltenham, presenting 100 makers at Craft Festival at the Town Hall. In September we will be hosting our first Craft Festival Wales at Cardigan Castle.

View here