Living National Treasures

BBC Radio 4 LW

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BBC Radio 4 FM

BBC Radio 4 is a radio channel that started transmitting on the 30th September 1967. It replaced BBC Home Service.

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Living National Treasures: Episode 2

Episode 2

BBC Radio 4 - Living National Treasures, Episode 2

A combination of slow radio and the personal stories of practitioners of unusual crafts.

A combination of slow radio, artisanal craft and poignant personal stories, getting under the skin of practitioners to learn why they've decided to practise rare and unusual crafts.

We have become divorced from physicality. Technology detaches us from touch and provenance. This, in part, has contributed to the boom in artisanal crafts. It's a call back to more tactile experiences. We're learning to craft, to forage, to paint, to build; gravitating towards skills which can replace some of the sensory connections from which we've disengaged. We want to literally get our hands dirty!

Living National Treasures seeks to represent this societal shift. This series is about celebrating existing ability and drawing attention to our own Living National Treasures.

Victoria Hall lives in Norfolk. Victoria is a paper marbler and has been doing it all her working life. She works out of a workshop near Fakenham in Norfolk where she replicates historic marbled papers to help restore antique books. The marbled papers are made by floating watercolours on a slightly viscous liquid prepared from seaweed called carrageen moss and then laying the paper on it to transfer the design. There are only a handful of people working professionally in this field.

While the Living National Treasure tradition began in Japan - where they also commend buildings and monuments as 'National Treasures' - the celebratory trend has now been adopted by France, Thailand, South Korea and Romania. Living National Treasures are defined as people who possess a high degree of knowledge and skill in a culturally significant craft.

Living National Treasures is a combination of slow radio, artisanal craft and poignant personal stories. We get under the skin of practitioners, learning why they've chosen rare and unusual crafts.

Produced by Kate Bissell

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

Factual: Arts, Culture & the Media

A combination of slow radio, artisanal craft and poignant personal stories, getting under the skin of practitioners to learn why they've decided to practise rare and unusual crafts

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