Martin Frost trained as a theatre designer and used to paint sets for Glyndebourne opera house. Whilst there, an artist colleague introduced him to fore-edge painting – the skill of painting a watercolour on the fanned page edges of a book. Frost’s work was quickly in demand from antiquarian book dealers looking to enhance the saleability of their books. It was the start of a long career in which he has now created more than 2,500 fore-edge paintings for dealers, collectors and individuals who are entranced by his ‘vanishing’ paintings. Over the years he has expanded his business to include bookbinding, gilding and miniature portraits, but he remains one of only two professional fore-edge painters in the UK.

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Martin decorated the fore-edge of this book with a watercolour scene of three men preparing to hunt with falcons. The painting can only be seen when the book is fanned, then disappear under the gilded edge of the book when it is closed.

Falconry and Coursing

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Martin decorated the fore-edge of this 1820 edition of the Book of Common Prayer with a watercolour landscape, showing a city in the background. The painting can only be seen when the pages are fanned, then disappear under the gilded edge of the book when it is closed.

Book of Common Prayer, 1820

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Martin decorated the fore-edge of this 1811 edition of James Thomson's The Seasons with two watercolour landscapes, one summer harvest scene and one snowy winter scene. The painting can only be seen when the pages are fanned, then disappear under the gilded edge of the book when it is closed.

The Seasons, 1811

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Artist Clare Brooksbank was in her early 20s when her work at the time – miniature oil paintings on a doll’s house scale – was spotted by a prominent antiquarian book dealer who thought she had the delicate touch necessary to become a fore-edge painter. As someone who loved books and had “an obsession with painting detail”, this historic English tradition suited Clare, and over the years she has created more than 2,000 of these ‘hidden’ watercolours painted on the fanned front edge of gilded antique books. Now one of only two commercial fore-edge painters in the UK, she combines her artistic work with teaching yoga.

Brooksbank, Clare

Continuing a hidden craft

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In the cosiness of her home studio, Naomi Kendall creates her colourful pieces. She discovered her craft only later in life. First, she completed a Foundation Course at Cheltenham School of Art, then pursued her interest in history of art, taking a degree at Leicester University and a postgraduate diploma at Manchester University in gallery and museum studies. Only after a career working in galleries and running community arts projects, did she return to making her own work. Fifteen years ago, she decided to open a studio in her home in Taunton, United Kingdom, and since then, she has been working on commissions and collaborating with different artists. She specialises in paper weaving, using simple tools and techniques that she has developed.

Kendall, Naomi

The paper weaver

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Kate Colin is fascinated by three dimensional geometric forms. Through a process of intricate hand scoring and paper folding she explores how light, colour and geometry interact, resulting in creative and innovative lampshades and wall art. She taught herself to paper fold after her father gave her a book on the subject, and she has never looked back. Support from the Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Trust allowed her to further her education by training with masters in the field and Kate is now hoping to branch out into the critically endangered craft of fan making.

Colin, Kate

Geometry and precision in paper

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Italian-born Manuel Mazzotti is a bookbinder, designer and trained engineer who creates limited edition books, prints, stationery and installations. Not one to do things by halves, Manuel went to Switzerland to learn from some of the best bookbinders in Europe at the Centro del Bel Libro. He studied the folded, origami-like structures of Hedi Kyle under school director Suzanne Schmollgruber. Then, in 2015, he received a QEST Scholarship to study with two masters, Kathy Abbott and Tracey Rowledge, who specialise in fine binding and gold tooling respectively. Today, his work can be found in the permanent collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Tate, the British Library, the London College of Fashion and the National Poetry Library.

Mazzotti, Manuel

The engineer of bookbinding

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Your authorizations

Developed in partnership with Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte and made possible by the support of Cartier, Homo Faber in Città gives you a rare chance to visit over 70 artisan workshops. The project is developed in collaboration with Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Confartigianato Imprese Venezia, CNA Venezia, Consorzio Promovetro Murano, The Venice Glass Week and Venezia da Vivere.

Our Partners

Step inside the workshops and ateliers to learn the secrets of local master artisans and manufacturers

Try your hand at different crafts with an authentic experience

Marvel at examples of fine craftsmanship by doing our itineraries

This september, the second edition of Homo Faber in Città invites visitors to step off the beaten track and discover the artisanal addresses where Venetian craftspeople create objects of exquisite beauty. A rare opportunity to witness Venice’s master artisans and young talents demonstrating their crafts and presenting the tools, materials and skills involved in contemporary Venetian craftsmanship.

Enrich your experience beyond Homo Faber 2024: The Journey of Life

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Homo Faber Guide is an online portal dedicated to contemporary craftsmanship, showcasing artisans, ateliers, museums, galleries, shops and experiences. Create your user account for access to exclusive features on Homo Faber Guide: save your preferred pages, hear about hot topics first, leave recommendations for your favourite artisans and much more.

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Although the Michelangelo Foundation researches the talents for its projects autonomously, collaboration with our ambassadors is fundamental. Over 120 associations, schools and institutions allow us to map the continents for craftsmanship and to have partners in each country who share our vision and goals. In addition, we have asked well-known personalities in the craft, design and art world to be our ambassadors in the cities where they live, so that their recommendations can offer a unique insight into craftsmanship in the major cities of Europe and beyond.

Who are our ambassadors?

Download our free Homo Faber Guide app (iOS and Android) to discover artisans, museums, galleries, shops, and experiences by location. Search Homo Faber on the App store on your mobile device.

Find craftsmanship destinations on the go

Discover the addresses of esteemed manufacturers, well known for producing high quality objects across a wide variety of crafts. Read their stories and find out where you can shop their contemporary pieces, see their archive collections and even in some cases visit their workshops. Find exceptional ateliers where artisans collaborate creatively to create fine pieces of craftsmanship. Reach out to them to commission something special.

Ateliers & Manufacturers

All the artisans and small workshops featured in Homo Faber Guide have been carefully researched and selected. They are presented and narrated through a selection of images and an interview, which allows readers to immerse themselves in the universe of these makers who exemplify excellence in their individual fields or are promising talents of the future. Find masters and rising stars who share the same passion and determination, and whose workshops are ready to share their secrets with visitors.

A selection of the best artisans

Are you eager to discover a city through craftsmanship? Do you wish to spend a few hours visiting an applied arts museum or attending a course on a craft with one of the masters featured in Homo Faber Guide? Browse the section dedicated to experiences and find your next adventure.

Experiences

An expert artisan is an accomplished artisan who has been in activity for more than ten years. He or she may also be engaged in passing on their knowledge to the next generations, but they have been doing so for less than seven years. Beyond this, they will become a Master artisan.

Who is an Expert artisan?

Homo Faber Guide provides you with a selection of the best addresses across Europe and further afield, where you will be able to discover and purchase exceptional objects, some of which are created by artisans featured in Homo Faber Guide.

Galleries

Homo Faber Guide is an online platform dedicated to craftsmanship that allows you to discover artisans and their masterpieces; explore museums, visit galleries and shops selling unique objects; enjoy experiences in cities across Europe and beyond.

Homo Faber Guide is a signature project developed by the Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship, an international non-profit organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, which was set up in 2016 thanks to the intuition of Franco Cologni and Johann Rupert. The Michelangelo Foundation’s mission is to celebrate and preserve master craftsmanship, and for this reason it has created a map of the most significant representatives in this field, with the aim of connecting all its protagonists: artisans, designers, gallery owners, art curators, collectors and enthusiasts of high-quality handmade pieces.

About the Guide

Are you an artisan, atelier or manufacturer? Would you like to be featured in Homo Faber Guide? The Michelangelo Foundation encourages self-assessment initiatives and is pleased to evaluate new members to appear on the Guide or in other projects. Thanks to the Master’s Touch Evaluation Tool, every artisan can send their application: register and access a questionnaire to see if you fulfill the 11 criteria for excellence that stand behind all the activities of the Michelangelo Foundation. If your answers reach the minimum requirement, your application will be brought to our attention; if, on the contrary, you should score below the minimum requirement, we will give you some points for improvement, in the hope that you may participate in future initiatives of the Michelangelo Foundation.

Join the Homo Faber Guide!

Our artisan labels

A master artisan is an accomplished artisan who has been in activity for more than ten years, and who has also been engaged in passing on his or her expertise to the younger generations for more than seven years. This is in keeping with one of the key values of the Michelangelo Foundation: the transmission of knowledge in craftsmanship.

Who is a Master artisan?

Find museums handpicked for their links to contemporary craftsmanship and the exquisite collections they have on display. In each city, discover a museum of interest and organise your visit. From Italian museums displaying coral collections, glass pieces and ceramics to decorative art museums in Russia and Greece, marvel at the variety of museums exhibiting masterpieces, showcasing techniques and recounting histories.

Museums

A rising star is an artisan who has been active for less than ten years, and who is capable of expressing his or her craft with competence, creativity and originality. Whether self-taught or trained, the rising star represents the future of craftsmanship, in creativity, concerns and approaches.

Who is a Rising star?

The artisans featured in Homo Faber Guide have been selected through a meticulous assessment process based on the 11 criteria for excellence, identified by Alberto Cavalli, Executive Director of the Michelangelo Foundation, in the volume The Master’s Touch, written with researchers Giuditta Comerci and Giovanna Marchello. The members of the Michelangelo Foundation’s network who have been invited to participate in sourcing artisans for the Guide use an evaluation tool based on these criteria. In this way, they can identify the most suitable artisans to include in the project.

Simple rules for a transparent selection

In which city does the artisan work?

In which country does the artisan practise?

What craft does the artisan practise?

What is the artisan’s Instagram page?

What is the name of the artisan you are recommending?

Does the artisan have a website?

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