Heading towards the European Crafts Days from April 2 to 7

Focus on the program for this 18th edition of the European Crafts Days which will be held from April 2 to 7, a free event in favor of better recognition of the crafts sector.

This 18th edition of the European Crafts Days (JEMA) promises to be exciting! Last year, the event attracted 2.3 million visitors, half of whom came with family. This event, organized by the Institute for French Know-how, celebrates the know-how of professionals in the arts and living heritage, as underlined by its director, Anne-Sophie Duroyon-Chavanne.

“We participate in the influence of French know-how, at the national and international level. We are lucky to have 281 professions which are recognized as artistic professions, it is a very large ecosystem. No, the craftsmanship of “art is not dead, it still exists, and it is solid. And JEMA is strengthening itself on the youth axis.”

“On the fingertips”, this is the theme chosen this year. The emphasis is placed on transmission to young audiences. Children and teenagers will experiment with the material! Or when novice hands meet expert hands. And in particular, those of the engravers from the Paris Mint, who will explain how, with the PARIS 2024 Olympic Games approaching, they make the Olympic medals. The “Make your Olympic medal” workshops allow young people to experiment with the techniques of engraving, in direct size and on metal.

The opportunity to also get to know the lacquerer profession ! These artisans decorate supports using different ancestral application, sanding and polishing techniques. Based in Saint-Ouen in Seine-Saint-Denis, lacquer artist Blandine Hamon studied at the Kyoto University of the Arts, where she learned ancestral Japanese know-how. During workshops dedicated to families, she explains what vegetable lacquer consists of, and introduces participants to the techniques and gestures of polishing and buffing on an object inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

In Vic-Fezensac in the Gers, blacksmith Cécile Bouisset invites 6-12 year olds to her workshop called “Les Frappantes”. This knife maker specializes in forging knives and tools. Hammer and file in hand, children will forge their own little butter knife.

IN PRACTICE

European Crafts Days, from April 2 to 7, 2024.