‘Masters of the Future. Crafts and Design in Europe’ is an event taking place at Castillo de San Jorge in Seville from 22 March to 30 June 2023, presented by Seville City Office and coordinated by the Contemporary Association of Arts and Crafts, with the support of BeCraft and the Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship.

The exhibition is part of a larger movement celebrating craftsmanship, a movement that began in Venice in 2022 with ‘Homo Faber: Crafting a more human future’, specifically with the exhibition called ‘Next of Europe’. Since then, the Michelangelo Foundation co-created with BeCraft a Belgium-based event called ‘Creative Nature’, and is now in Seville for ‘Masters of the Future’.

With the exhibition ‘Masters of the Future’ there is a desire to promote a re-awakening of arts and crafts in Spain in the creative context of today's world. The craft workshops of the 21st century are laboratories of sustainability and creativity, and the master artisans, young and old, work with patience, intelligence and knowledge. It is essential to support their development and growth in order to save the know-how acquired over centuries and safeguard it for the future.

The exhibition is curated by Jean Blanchaert, gallery owner, art critic, writer and illustrator who was involved with the curation of ‘Next of Europe’, along with Irina Eschenazi (assistant curator) and Ramón Vergara (assistant curator for Spain). ‘Masters of the Future’ showcases a total of 50 works that explore and exemplify contemporary master craftsmanship. The excellence of Sevillian and Andalusian savoir-faire is represented by a selection of international and Spanish artisans.

Seville is an opulent incubator of craftsmanship that has understood the potential of contemporary crafts and is strongly committed to it. The city and the region more broadly have positioned themselves at the forefront of religious and cultural traditions which produce a unique quality and aesthetic in sacred embroideries, saddlery, textiles and millinery, gold and silver work, woodcarving, and guitar making.

This Sevillian hub has allowed the mastery and knowledge in these crafts and others to continue to grow to this day. The challenge is futureproofing the skills, talent, needs and artisans for tomorrow. Come to discover the creative applications and contemporary considerations of European artisans in our changing society at ‘Masters of the Future’ in an exhibition space designed by architect and designer Pablo Millán.