Aug-Sep 2017

East London makers
Christine Preisig discovers
the art of globemaking at
Bellerby & Co
Photo: Stuart Freedman
There is a focused energy in the Stoke Newington
workshop where 17 people work in silence and
with full concentration on manufacturing the
finest globes one could imagine.
The team of artists, designers and cartographers
draw borders between countries, colour in
oceans, cut out lobe-shaped pieces of paper,
shade contours of continents and carefully
protect the precious ball with layers of varnish.
The process to make a globe sounds simple, but
wetting and stretching a piece of paper across
a sphere with the utmost precision is a tricky
business.
“All it wants to do is turn to mush under your
fingers and tear,” says Peter Bellerby, the
company’s founder.
One mistake can destroy weeks’ worth of
paintwork. A globemaker therefore needs to be
dexterous and very, very patient.
Patience, concentration and dexterity are the essential skills
of a Bellerby employee
Continued on next page...
Photo: Ana Santi
LOVEEAST AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2017 13