AnnaLiebmannBasketry

Anna was drawn to basketmaking whilst her children were tiny and she lived and worked at a small land-focussed housing co-operative, Talamh, set in 50 acres of farmland in Lanarkshire, SW Scotland.  A want for beautiful toy baskets coupled with the unsuitability of metal work (her previous passion) around toddlers and an abundance of natural materials on the land led her to thinking that making her own baskets would be a good idea. A lot of willow had been planted at the co-operative for habitat creation, wind shelter, and craft use. Anna became aware of the versatility of willow and was inspired by its zero carbon footprint. She loved the fact that she could create a basket with the use of no fossil fuels bar those involved in the production of the secateurs and the chocolate she ate during the harvesting!

Other basketmakers, ludicrous perfectionism, and a fear of making unsturdy products, have greatly helped Anna on her way. She moved to Edinburgh 9 years ago and started selling her products at the Portobello farmer's market, and teaching locally. She finds passing on skills and knowledge to fascinated people hugely rewarding and now teaches extensively in the city and beyond. She still attends craft markets around the city and sells her work in a few galleries and shops across Scotland.

She offers private tuition and classes from her own workshop, and teaches short courses elsewhere pandemic allowing! She has also been the basketry teacher at Poldrate Arts and Crafts Centre, East Lothian for about 5 years, one of the only progressive basketry classes in the UK.
 
Anna also enjoys working on repair and restoration work, commissions both traditional and modern, and larger scale installations. She is a member of the Scottish Basketmaker's Circle, the Basketmakers Association, Heritage Crafts Association and Scottish Working Woods.