Crafted reactions to the war in Ukraine

Abstract

The crisis caused by the war in Ukraine and the crafting it triggered in Finland are the focus of this study. As Finland is a neighbouring country to Russia and has a history of gaining independence from Russia through wars, the war in Ukraine has revived the collective memory of the Finns and disturbed their feeling of peace and security. Many Finns have responded by crafting for Ukraine. The focus of this research was to find the meanings attached to their crafting during this crisis. An open call for writings on ‘Craftwork in the time of crisis’ was launched on the platform created in collaboration with the Craft Museum of Finland. This research analysed 40 writings openly uploaded to the platform ‘Craftwork in the time of crisis’ by 13 March 2023. The qualitative data were analysed by thematic analysis, and four main themes for crafting were identified: (1) practical aid, (2) symbolic influence, (3) coping and (4) reminiscence. The findings provide insights into the complex ways in which crafting can be used as a means of coping with anxiety and other challenging emotions, confirming the findings of previous studies on the importance of crafting in times of crisis. Crisis crafting is both a strategy to distance oneself from difficult situations and a mechanism to take part in such situations. Thus, crafting for war can also be a way to normalize the war.