Arts and Crafts Festival

At Holy Trinity we believe, in the words of Fyodor Dostoevsky, that ‘The world will be saved by beauty’. In the Festival we seek to celebrate beauty in craft as well as bringing to life the socio-political context that underpinned that Arts and Crafts Movement, shining a light on its key concerns: education, healthcare, work, economics, the arts and the care of the environment.

We are delighted to work in partnership with Open House London – an annual event that welcomes the public right across the city and indeed the UK into buildings and interiors that are rarely seen – and brings hundreds of visitors through our doors.

In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, last year’s Festival went online: www.holytrinityartsandcrafts.org

The theme which frames our 2021 Festival is ‘Paradise Regained’. It could not be more relevant to our contemporary world, more especially as we emerge from the global pandemic crisis that reminded us not only of the very real dangers of undermining nature but also of the extraordinary healing powers nature offers us when we most need it. The sheer unique beauty of our natural earth world is under threat in a way unprecedented in mankind’s history.

The founding father of the Arts and Crafts philosophy, John Ruskin, was one of the first to recognize the connection between the rapidly expanding Industrial Revolution and the increasing levels of pollution in our cities, towns and countryside. The damage from industrial waste on his beloved Lake District led him to be an early pioneer of environmental protection. 150 years on from that fledgling environmental movement, the world faces challenges of climate change and pollution on an unparalleled scale. We are confronted by making significant changes to how we lead our lives. For religious groups, notably the Abrahamic faiths, the destruction of God ‘creation’ has wider theological implications. In many ways theologians are now at the vanguard of environmental awareness.

We trust that our 2021 Festival will bring a curiosity for and engagement in sustainability and environment. The urgent need to see and protect the threatened beauty of our planet. The Arts and Crafts Movement founded in the 19th Century could not be more relevant in our own troubled 21 st Century.

In a vibrantly mixed programme of discussion, lectures, music, fashion show, craft, dance and, of course, worship it will offer a diverse range of ideas and conversations. Watch this space for more details!