This exhibition draws work from the whole range of the Crafts Study Centre’s collections. It investigates the way that particular collections relate to a book of some description. The book may be a formal record of a craft process; or a scholarly analysis of the maker’s work set in an art or social context; or a listing of samples; or a volume of poetry; or an artwork in its own right. In each case the maker, researcher or curator has taken a very particular care to record specific objects in the collection, or has used the collection as a basis for original creative work. The exhibition reveals academic integrity, private thoughts, creative struggles and romantic reflection on the past. Research and creative writing are placed in the public domain, often after long periods of study.

The exhibition includes lengths by Barron and Larcher, relating these to the new book commissioned by Christopher Farr Cloth and the publisher ACC Art Books Ltd, as well as volumes of poetry by Jane Weir. The archive and finished works of furniture by Alan Peters is related to his instructional book Cabinetmaking: the professional approach. Edmund de Waal’s The White Road is linked with the porcelain vessels he has generously gifted to the Crafts Study Centre. Other makers in the exhibition include Edward Wates, Rita Beales, Thomas Ingmire, Susan Bosence and Bernard Leach.