For five days at the end of February and into March, 40 galleries from across the world showed a thrilling selection of work at Collect in London. Now in its 21st year, the fair at Somerset House is a global gathering of the most relevant makers, curators and collectors in craft today. Showcasing avant-garde work across multiple disciplines, it is a barometer for the skills, techniques, materials and themes that are currently captivating collectors. Here are five key themes.
Neon
It’s not the usual colour palette associated with the handmade, but flashes of neon crept onto the podium at Collect. Tim Fluck’s porcelain tabletop compositions combine brutalist forms with Memphis-style pattern and neon inflections. Richard Perry adds fluorescence to sculpted pieces of Istrian marble, which he transforms with acrylic and lacquer, while Kim Yongjoo incorporates neon pink into wall pieces made of hook-and-loop fasteners on wood. Canadian textile artist Anastasia Tiller keeps things vibrant in her tufted scenes, while Sayuri Ikake’s heavily pigmented, textured ceramic sculptures pack a punch.
