On Wednesday, Canberra based furniture and product designer Tom Skeehan was named the recipient of the$25,000 Patrón 60 Hands – Pay It Forward craftsmanship grant.
Tom is a Canberra-based craftsman and the designer behind studio SKEEHAN. Trained as a furniture maker, Skeehan then studied industrial design, and in his work, strives to create meaningful projects that add value to the community – something that resonated strongly with Patrón, as sustainability and giving back to the community sit at the core of the premium tequila brand.
Tom intends to put the $25,000 grant towards further project development and support manufacturers and other craft practitioners in his industry. He and his team are currently exploring ways to keep hand-blown glass manufacturing facilities and craft processes alive and viable in Australia, and hope to support this sector by developing projects that further evolve this craft and its legacy.
Skeehan caught a bus to Sydney from Canberra so that he could partake in the tasty Patrón margaritas, palomas and añejo old fashioneds that were generously served up with lunch at Chiswick in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs.
Patrón 60 Hands judge, design and architecture connoisseur and comedian, Tim Ross presented Skeehan with the award. He said, “It’s been wonderful to engage with the work and ethos of all the applicants, and I think it is great that Tom wants to share the grant in an area beyond his expertise.”
Runners up for the grant were Kenny Son (NSW), an object maker and designer specialising in metal craft, and Ben Devlin (NSW), the chef and owner of award-winning Pottsville restaurant, Pipit. Both showcased a great craftsmanship in their respective fields. Finalists included Keiko Matsui (VIC), Raffaele Persichetti (QLD), Zachary Hanna (NSW), Adrian Kaleel (NSW), Shari Lowndes (VIC) and Kate Caicedo (NSW).
Most of the finalists for the grant were able to attend the lunch along with media and staff from Patrón’s parent company, Bacardi. Drinks Trade had the pleasure of sitting opposite ceramicist Keiko Matsuri, fresh from lockdown in Melbourne, who had driven up for the event. She crafts incredibly delicate pieces of porcelain to make beautiful vessels and lamented that during Lockdown 2.0 she could not get to her studio to produce her work.
The concept for the grant emerged following Patrón’s Covid support effort for bartender’s stuck at home. Earlier this year, Patrón supplied them with sculpting kits with which to craft drinking and serving vessels for Patrón.
The idea grew from there and the grant concept was designed as a gesture of goodwill to ‘pay it forward’ to grassroots and community craftspeople in the Australian creative community and help them grow their craft, especially this year of any.
Patrón 60 Hands was open nationally to those in the handmade fields of design, fashion and hospitality industries, intended to honour and nurture talent and support them in honing their abilities.
The concept is aligned with the very way in which Patrón is made: it is handmade, and passes through 60 hands as it is crafted into what we know as Patrón Tequila.
“Patrón itself is a refined handcrafted spirit, so there is a great synergy between the craftsmanship of our tequila and these makers. We’re thrilled have Tom as the grant recipient and look forward to seeing him use this opportunity to also pay it forward to handcrafted industries,” said Stephanie Sarantakos, Patrón Tequila Australia’s Brand Manager.
The initiative received hundreds of applications from across Australia, and with an extremely high calibre of craftspeople in the running for the grant. No word as yet as to whether the grant will be run again next year.
Though Patrón Tequila has grown to become one of the most recognised and respected luxury spirits in the world, it is still exclusively produced in the Highlands of Jalisco, Mexico, in the same small batches and with the same commitment to quality and craftsmanship.
Pictures of the lunch are by Christian Gilles.
