Liveryman Stuart King receives the Turners Company Gold Medal from the Master

Liveryman Stuart King received the Company Gold Medal at the Court Lunch on 23rd March. "Thank you, dear turners, for this recognition / It will surely elevate my egoic condition / And did I hear the ghost of Dick Whittington once more exclaim? / Turn again, turn again, turn again" Stuart King

Bursary Awards Request for Applications 2017

For 2017, The Turners’ Company is offering one or more Bursaries, worth up to a combined value of £10,000, to assist talented woodturners to develop their craft skills and to move to a higher level of achievement. The deadline for applications is now closed. Winners will be announced soon.

The Turners Company Livery Dinner 2016

The Company welcomed the Rt Hon the Lord Mayor, Alderman Dr Andrew Parmley and the Sheriffs of the City of London to their Livery Dinner held at Skinners’ Hall. The Master Turner presented the Lord Mayor with a turned laburnham vessel by one of the greatest past Turners, the late Bert Marsh.

Cockpit Arts Summer Open Studios

Meet 170 makers at Cockpit Arts Holborn or Deptford in June. Visitors can see behind the scenes in the studios and buy work direct from Cockpit Arts’ master craftspeople and artist-makers, past and present. Wizardry in Wood 2016 exhibitor, Eleanor Lakelin will be in residence.

Handmade at Kew 2017

This four-day international contemporary craft event offers you the opportunity to meet and buy directly from over 200 extraordinary designer-makers, including Turners Company Bursary Award Winner, Sally Burnett. The event is at Kew Gardens, 12 - 15 October.

Annual Wren Talk 2017: Dr Anya Matthews

Dr Anya Matthews will discuss the Painted Hall, Greenwich (1707-26) at the annual Wren Talk in St Bride's Fleet Street on Wednesday 28th June. Dr Matthews is Research Curator for the Painted Hall conservation project at the Old Royal Naval College.

Members only event

Learn to turn with the Max Carey Trust

Max Carey was a proficient woodturner for 70 years, providing encouragement and advice to would be turners. The Events Committee are pleased to announce that they have arranged another turning weekend at the Max Carey Trust turning workshop in Portishead, Bristol from 20th to 22nd October.

Members only event

Golden Hinde Private Tour

The Golden Hinde is famous for sailing the world from 1577 through 1580 under the command of Sir Francis Drake. The Events Committee has made a provisional booking for a private tour of the Golden Hinde followed by a short drinks reception on Thursday 14th September 2017.

Members only event

Dowgate Fire Station Visit – New Date to be arranged

A new date has been organised for the Company visit to the Dowgate Fire Station, the last remaining, fully operational, fire station in the City of London. There is a full programme of events followed by lunch. If you would like to go on the visit please register your interest with the office.

Company

One of the oldest Livery Companies in the City of London, the Turners’ Company was already a guild in the 12th Century. To this day the Company continues to celebrate and support the ‘art or mysterie’ of turning.

The Master’s Letter

Nicolas Somers was elected Master of the Worshipful Company of Turners on Ascension Day, 5th May 2016. In 2004 he was invited by Ray Key to the first Wizardry in Wood exhibition and then introduced to the Company by Penrose Halson, our first Lady Master. Read his Masters' Letter ...

Latest issue of The Turner

The latest issue of The Turner has just been published.

The Daniel Collection at Wizardry

Shirley Sinclair and Jonathon Cuff have created one of the UK’s largest private collections of modern woodturning. At Wizardry, Forty eight works formed a curated display of the skill, range and creativity of contemporary UK and international craftsmen.

View the Catalogue

"I trust that everyone who visits Wizardry in Wood leaves with a greater appreciation of turned wood and timbers than when they first arrived. Whatever your particular interests, I trust that you will enjoy your visit" Nic Somers, Master

Turning Competitions 2016 – The Results

There were over 200 entries to the Turners' Company's 2016 Competitions. See the results and winners.

London Turners and Woodwind Heritage

There was an explosion of secular music in the Renaissance Period. For almost two centuries, London woodwind instrument making was dominated by a network of over 140 London Turners. John Bridgeman explores the fascinating development of the English recorder from Henry VIII to the present day.

REME and The Turners’ Company

The Turners' Company has had a close relationship with REME since its formation in May 1942, in the middle of WWII. But the role of turners in supporting the army goes back to much earlier times, when mediaeval siege engines like the Trubuchet played a major role in warfare, explains John Bridgeman.

The Turners and the Navy

The turners' craft has had a huge influence on world events from the very earliest days of sail. Archimedes invented the compound pulley in about 250 BC. More recently, wooden bearings were used on the USS Nautilus, the first nuclear-powered submarine. John Bridgeman tells the story ...