Catalyst: Festival of Creativity - Make Good Livelihoods

Make Good Livelihoods Sat 18th & Sun 19th June Make Good Livelihoods is a free public weekend of activities, demonstrations and talks to celebrate the people who make their livelihood from craftsmanship in Sheffield, and inspire others to do the same. Young people will be offered a rare opportunity to see the work of some of Sheffield’s most exciting craftspeople, find out how they became makers, and have a go at making something themselves. The Millennium Gallery will come alive as metalworkers, wood-workers, textile artists, sculptors, graphic designers, printmakers and fashion designers demonstrate the skills, knowledge and spirit required to create beautiful and useful things. Hear how practitioners at Sheffield Hallam University and other craftspeople make a satisfying living, and how you can take steps towards it. Students from Hallam University, Freeman College, UTC and Sheffield schools will be on hand to share their making skills too. Sheffield Institute of Arts opens the doors of its stunning new home in the former Head Post Office, where you can try your hand at digital making techniques. Portland Works will run activities ranging from traditional forging to high-tech creation with their Hackers and Makers. Open access media lab Access Space will offer bespoke workshops for people to create works using digital embroidery and laser-cutting. All are welcome to this weekend of activity to reveal how Sheffield’s rich heritage of craftsmanship, so admired by renowned Victorian thinker John Ruskin, is alive, constantly evolving, and providing good livelihoods for people today. The Make Good Livelihoods weekend draws inspiration from the exhibition In the Making: Ruskin, Creativity and Craftsmanship, at the Millennium Gallery until 5th June. Make Good Livelihoods is a collaboration between SHU, the Guild of St George, which owns and support the Ruskin Collection, Museums Sheffield, Portland Works and Access Space. It is part of a wider programme of Ruskin in Sheffield events.