You raise me up

An online community founded by and for women in lutherie has grown in leaps and bounds over the past three years. What are the benefits for the female contingent?

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Women are becoming an increasing force in violin making

LARISA GANCEA. LUTHIER: LISA HELLMICH

Women in Lutherie has a profoundly simple and sincere mission statement: ‘Empowering women and girls at the bench worldwide.’ Its founders, Jeemin Kim and Jennifer Creadick, were catalysed to action in February 2021 and, in the intervening months, Women in Lutherie blossomed into a thriving Facebook community of female makers, formalised via the website womeninlutherie.org. Last year it held its first online conference, by women for women, which covered a spectrum of diverse topics from bow finishing and workshop safety to mental health and the erasure of women from the history of lutherie.

Kim is keen to stress that Women in Lutherie is a community, not an industry association. ‘We’re all about peer support and raising each other up,’ she says. ‘Women from across the globe come together on our online platforms and through our programmes to socialise, see how others live and work, encourage each other through tough days, mentor each other and share resources and experiences. Raising visibility and widening access points to the bench for women and girls is another main aim. And with our very active Instagram account, we’re truly starting to smash the age-old, widespread stereotype of what a competent luthier is supposed to look like.’

Why is the community important in these times? ‘It has always been important!’ responds Creadick. ‘And it could not have developed at a more important time. I think that as luthiers, as artists, most of us are drawn to beauty and peace. Sadly, ugliness in all its forms is just very easy and close to us. Our community is a respite from that.’ Kim adds: ‘I think the pandemic has made a lot of women in our community, including myself, reach a tipping point. We’re losing women at the bench where it’s already incredibly rare to see them. I feel it’s more vital than ever to build a support infrastructure that takes intersectional equity issues into account. Workplaces are changing and our industry is also changing. As we continue to grapple with how we shape and live in the post-pandemic era, our private chats are filled with gender-specific issues magnified by the pandemic, such as women’s bench time being reduced because of the need to provide unpaid labour for their family or because they are solely responsible for the safety, hygiene and emotional labour around their predominantly male communal workplaces.’

‘Countless women have reached out to tell us we have literally changed their lives’ – Jeemin Kim, co-founder, Women in Lutherie

Data from the Luthier Income Survey, begun by a Women in Lutherie member as the first of its kind to build measurable labour and income data in the field, supports this. The survey, published at last year’s conference, showed that in the lutherie profession worldwide, men’s average annual income dropped 11 per cent during the pandemic year and then recovered to slightly higher than pre-pandemic levels (up 11.4 per cent from 2020 to 2021). Women’s average annual income from 2019 to 2021 dropped by 26 per cent and did not recover to pre-pandemic levels during 2021 (up 22.8 per cent from 2020 to 2021).

In the opinion of both women, the most important benefit for community members is the community itself: the realisation that they are not alone and can access a space that provides respect, support and kindness. And it’s not going to stand still ‘We’re an entirely grassroots, volunteer-based community platform and have several volunteer members who are working on numerous projects at any given time,’ says Kim. ‘One project I’ve started is the International Women in Lutherie Fellowship, an annual global mentorship match programme that includes in-person benchwork internships for emerging talents with up to seven years of bench experience. This year we will also launch our YouTube channel, another global volunteer project to raise visibility and provide more educational content.’

A quick glance at posts on the community’s social channels is enough to glean the importance it holds to its members. ‘As a founder I have received thanks and gratitude – but the energy comes from the whole community,’ stresses Creadick. ‘The women who have joined our private Facebook group are incredibly grateful to the community there and they pay it forward. Technical questions have been answered by some of the most knowledgeable and talented luthiers in the world. Women in very difficult relationship situations at work have received real, life-changing support from the group.’

‘One of the most rewarding things is the countless women who reach out to tell us we have literally changed their lives,’ agrees Kim. ‘I’ve heard from women who were contemplating leaving the field, those who have already left and those just starting out, as well as women who have been here for a very long time and yet never felt they belonged here their entire career. They tell me connecting with others has reignited their passion for lutherie and confidence in themselves.’

NEWS IN BRIEF

Violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing signs with Sony Classical bit.ly/3JV2Ul1 Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing has signed to Sony Classical, with an ew album expected in the autumn of 2022. She said, to my artistic mission.’ Hemsing ’The creative expression and global accessibility offered by recordings are hugely important performs on the 1707 Stradivari ‘Rivaz, Baron Gutmann’ violin, on loan from the Dextra Musica Foundation.

NIKOLAJ LUND

Musicians’ Union demands financial assistance for freelance musicians from Government bit.ly/3tff16zThe Musicians’ Union (MU) is calling on the UK government to account for the urgent needs of freelance musicians in the coming weeks, owing to the impact of the Omicron variant and the subsequent rise in Covid-19 cases. Early results of the MU’s latest research report that 86 per cent of musicians have had work cancelled due to the surge in cases, while 41 per cent of musicians said they expected to earn under 25 per cent of their usual income during the next two months.

New Royal College of Music campus open for business bit.ly/3qTCgQHThe Royal College of Music’s new facilities opened on 2 December. The facilities, which almost double the space in the South Kensington site, include two new performance spaces, a new home for the Royal College of Music Museum, practice rooms and a courtyard and café for students, staff and visitors. The redevelopment, created by More Music: Reimagining the Royal College of Music, was funded by a £40 million philanthropic campaign.