Louisa founded ‘Future Icons’ in 2017 as an arts and crafts agency. Future Icons is a membership-based business where selected artists from design and craft sectors receive consultation and showcases curated by Louisa. Recently she collaborated with Mayfair Art Weekend to produce a one- month selling showcase at the Burlington Arcade.
Why did you start Future Icons?
In 2016, I decided to leave an executive position at a charity called Craft Central because the future direction was different from my own. I took a step back to re-think what I want to do and discovered a few things.
First, I always wanted to be an agent. Throughout the 17 years of my career, I’ve been so fortunate to meet all these incredible designers and watch them become world leading designers and craftspeople. Second, the perception of ‘craft’ was very underrated and needed to be changed. Back in 2014 the term ‘Craft’ was often related to things like finger knitting, or more of a poor quality, hobby-ish work. However, after taking the position at Craft Central and seeing the incredible craftsmanship from all these talented artists, I thought craft needed to be elevated to be respected. And that is why I started Future Icons.
What does “craftsmanship” mean to you?
Craftsmanship represents ‘process’ to me. To give you an example, I have a member from Future Icons who is an animator. Even though a lot of people say that animation is more like an artwork instead of craft, the process he takes in building an animation, from brainstorming an idea, hand painting it in watercolor and charcoal to digitizing it into a beautiful animation, is craftsmanship. Another example is my husband. As a software developer, he is constantly building products. I think that is a craft as well. Craftsmanship is not limited to creating textiles or pottery. It’s about the process - how you got to the end result.
What type of artist do you represent?
Members of Future Icons include a ceramicist, textile artist (e.g. digital embroidery, hand embroidery...), passementerie (a type of weaving) maker, traditional loom weaver, hand weaver, metal worker, blacksmith, animator and various artists who make paper collage.
One of my selection criteria is determining whether my husband and I would put that object or artwork in our home. If the answer is yes, 9 times out of 10, I will take that person on board and support their business.
People see craftsmanship from the past very differently to craftsmanship now. What is your idea towards the future of craftsmanship?
It’s important that we keep the skill sets of craftsmanship alive. We’ve been living too long in a ‘throw-away society’. With the awareness of sustainability rising, I believe there will be more people like me believing in ‘buy well, buy once’. In the future, crafts will hopefully be passed down through generations, repaired when needed, and sustained. Quality always sells. That’s why I do a lot of quality control with Future Icons’ purchases.
On the other hand, it would be amazing if new technologies can further empower the design and crafts industry. Integrating technologies (which usually stands for machine-made and not handcrafted) into crafts has always been a big debate between my clients and myself.
For example, some of my clients have a long waiting list of new work. Even though new processes might produce more efficiently, many of them refuse with a flat “No”. To a lot of design and crafts businesses, it’s really about focusing on the manner of production. I have 100% respect for that, but as technology develops it does provide more opportunities.
Is there any quality an artist needs to have in your opinion?
Patience!
Are there any artists from Future Icons we should pay attention to?
One of my artists, Elizabeth Ashdown, is a passementerie maker. Passementerie is a beautiful traditional edging or trimming embroidery on a curtain or military uniform. I met her at a studio a couple of years ago, where she was doing edging for interior fabrics. I asked her, “Can you weave a few of these together to create artworks and place them in a frame to celebrate that technique?” She’s one of the only five known in the UK who can do this. From then on, she became my client, and her work, especially her use of color, is incredible.
Another member I’d recommend is Judy McKenzie. She is in her 60s, and ceramics is her second career. Graduated from the Royal College of Art and Ceramics in 2019. Her technique of creating ceramic vessels is mind-blowing as well.
What is your vision?
My vision is continuing to promote crafts within the art world. I’m trying to encourage the general public to spend the same amount of money on crafts as they would on a traditional piece of framed artwork or photography. We’re slowly getting there - where people preserve and appreciate craft.
Tell me “Something New”
Something new to me is the idea of collaboration. The pandemic has been an extraordinary period in our lives. It has forced us to learn to help one another, revisit our humanity and return to what really matters. There is a new idea of collaboration between artists and craftspeople as well. My clients came to me after the Burlington Arcade showcase reception and said, “We’ve got an idea! We want to do Chinese whispers but in crafts, using our different skill sets.” Basically, one of my clients would create something and then send it to my next client, who then would create something new from that piece, then send the culmination on, etc.
What will this look like? I have no idea. However, what I am confident about is the artists I represent are highly skilled, and their unique approaches to the crafts and artwork will make the finished product amazing.
I think collaboration between artists is going to be the next new thing that we’re going to see more of. I have already developed a vision for this even though it is still in an incredibly early stage at the moment.