Crafts Council Research Articles

Disrupting the craft canon: a Living Lab approach to measuring cultural value

To address structural omissions of the experiences of makers of colour from the cultural space of craft, Crafts Council initiated the project, Disrupting the craft canon: the cultural value of craft. Partnering with an interdisciplinary team of researchers from Glasgow Caledonian University London, the project was awarded a research grant in June 2022 as part of the first round of funding of the Centre for Cultural Value’s Collaborate programme. Collaborate supports innovative new partnerships between cultural sector practitioners and academics exploring under-explored questions around cultural value so as to deepen existing evidence or surface new evidence. Adopting a Living Lab approach, the team investigated the meanings and cultural value of craft and specifically the impacts of race, racism, immigration and migration on cultural production, making and value grounded in the reality of individuals’ and local communities’ lives. This Participatory Activist Research project helped develop and test research tools including vignettes and object-based stimuli in place-based craft making events with selected Black and Asian UK communities in London and Birmingham. Sinclair highlights the need for ‘research that identifies and recognises the value of the knowledge, experience and cultural heritage of makers of colour in professional, community or other crafts spaces’. This article reflects on the collaborative process, sharing the findings of our community-based research and thereby adding to our understanding of craft’s potential cultural value and the contributions craft can make to sustainable development.

The Role of the Regional National Crafts Council of East Nusa Tenggara Province in Empowering Woven Fabric Crafts Groups

This research aims to determine the role of the NTT Dekranasda in empowering woven fabric craft groups. This research uses a qualitative descriptive method with combined data collection techniques through interviews, observation, documentation and focus group discussions (FGD). The results of the research show that Dekranasda NTT has played a role in empowering woven fabric craft groups, including Dekranasda NTT acting as a motivator in human development and institutional development, a communicator in business development and institutional development, and a dynamist in business development and institutional development. However, in carrying out its role, Dekranasda NTT experienced several obstacles, including limited capital to carry out woven fabric craft development activities again and obstacles faced by craft groups, namely lack of capital and raw materials in the weaving process, resulting in delays in every activity. Craft groups still need to issue business permits and copyrights for each of their businesses and weavings; this could be a waste of money for anyone who is not responsible for plagiarizing the weaving that the craft group has weaved.

Influence of training, discipline, and innovation on the performance of members of the Regional National Crafts Council (Dekranasda) in Tanjungpinang City: A quantitative study

Purpose: This Purpose is The study examines the impact of innovation, discipline, and training on Tanjungpinang City members of the Regional National Crafts Council (Dekranasda) performance.
 Research methodology: The Methodology used a quantitative approach with a descriptive quantitative design and surveyed 130 Dekranasda members. The data was collected through questionnaires and analyzed using SEM-PLS and path analysis.
 Results: The Result found that training has a significant influence on motivation, discipline, and performance. Discipline and innovation also have a significant influence on motivation and performance. The study also found that motivation has a significant influence on performance. The study concludes that training, discipline, and innovation are important factors in improving the performance of Dekranasda members.
 Limitations: Recognizing inherent limitations, this study acknowledges constraints related to sample size and potential biases in self-reported data. These limitations inform the boundaries of the generalizability of the findings.
 Contribution: This research contributes valuable empirical evidence to the field, shedding light on the nuanced interactions between training, discipline, and innovation within the specific context of Dekranasda. The findings offer practical implications for enhancing the performance of regional crafts councils.
 Implementation: The implementation is Training has a major impact on performance, discipline, and motivation. Motivation and performance are also greatly impacted by creativity and discipline. The study also discovered a strong correlation between motivation and performance. The study concludes that training, discipline, and innovation are important factors in improving the performance of Dekranasda members.

Make First: Exploring Methods to Deliver Anti‐Racist and Anti‐Ableist Craft Learning

AbstractIn 2021 the Crafts Council launched its national education programme, Craft School, alongside the pedagogical framework Make First. Both Craft School and Make First were a culmination of decades of learning, experience, and research from staff at the Crafts Council and are underpinned by anti‐racist and anti‐ableist learning methodologies. Through this we hoped to work towards methodologies for equal and equitable access to craft education, by considering flexible approaches to delivering and participating in craft activities across different key stages. This paper outlines the Make First approach and some indications of its impact on teachers and learners, as well as exploring some of the challenges and areas for further development as we continue to build anti‐racist and anti‐ableist approaches to craft education.

German Craft Culture in Saint Petersburg: Characteristics of Development in the First Half of the 19th Century

The handicraft industry remained an integral part of the mixed economy of the Russian Empire. Foreign artisans, primarily those of German descent, played a significant role in the capital cities from the 18th century onward. Most of these craftsmen relocated to Russia in response to an invitation from the Tsarist government. Around the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries, German artisans began forming professional communities (workshops) in St. Petersburg, falling under the jurisdiction of the German Craft Council. Initially, they were exempt from compulsory registration with the workshops and the payment of state and other taxes. The homogenization policy adopted by Emperor Nicholas I contributed to the formal integration of German craftsmen into the urban economy, gradually diminishing the existing disparities between them and Russian artisans.
 This research aims to examine the characteristics of life and work of German artisans in St. Petersburg during the first half of the 19th century. It places particular emphasis on the analysis of the evolution of their legal status, as well as the evaluation of their professional, demographic, and social development. Special attention is paid to the practices of both vertical and horizontal mobility.
 The foundation of this study rests on published statutes, regulations, and archival materials from the collections of the State Archive of the Russian Federation and the Central State Historical Archive of St. Petersburg. Many of these materials are being introduced into scientific discourse for the first time. The article is intended for specialists studying ethnic and professional groups within the urban population of the Russian Empire.

The Use of Augmented Reality to Promote Public Awareness for Deaf Workers

Technological innovations have been specifically built for people who are disabled. The technological development tools were designed to make human work more manageable. Augmented Reality is one of the technologies discussed in this study. This study will focus on solving the problems encountered in the SMEs assisted by Regional Nation Craft Council (Dekranasda) Nusa Tenggara Timur, Café Inklusi (Kopisaa), where disabled workers experience communication problems. Most visitors are not aware of the presence of deaf workers, as well as sign language. This research process uses descriptive qualitative research methods, and Design Thinking as an analysis tool is deemed necessary for the characteristics of the problems that arise. After the analysis, a solution was proposed to help the disabled worker in Café Inklusi (Kopisaa) communicate more effectively using Augmented Reality technology in social media filters. The solution focuses on how AR technology can play a role in helping overcome deaf workers’ communication problems, increase awareness of deaf workers and sign language, and help promote the cafe where they work.

Tinjauan Hukum Pasal 302 UU MD3 Mengenai Rangkap Jabatan dan Penggunaan Anggaran Kelembagaan Oleh Anggota DPD RI yang Berstatus Ketua PKK dan DEKRANASDA di Daerah

The purpose of this research is to examine the dual position and budget used of the Regional Representative Council of Indonesia toward the status of position as Chairperson of the Family Welfare Movement and the Chairperson of the National Craft Council in an area based on the provisions of the law. This study was carried out in Kota Kupang for 6 (six) months, from January to July 2019. This study was included in the case study classification. The subjects used were legal references and expert opinions. The type of data used is secondary data with documentation techniques. Analysis of the data obtained was done descriptively. The result of the analysis about concurrent of positions and budget used for DPD RI members in accordance with Article 302 paragraph (1) and paragraph (2) in Law in MD3 are not valid if someone other than being a DPD RI member is also as Chairperson of the Family Welfare Movement, and Chairperson of the National Craft Council.

Processed Product Innovations Made from Rusip on Bangka Island [Inovasi Produk Olahan Berbahan Dasar Rusip di Pulau Bangka

Bangka Island itself has special foods, including brain-brain, pineapple cake, sting, trigger, kemplang, pantiaw, tahukok, rusip. Among the typical foods of Bangka Island there is one unique type of food that is rusip. Rusip is a traditional food for the people of Bangka Island. At first glance, there is nothing interesting about the typical Bangka cuisine. Rusip is a chili sauce made from anchovy or bilis. The color is cloudy, the smell is pungent, and the flesh of the fish is smooth. Rusip is made from fermented bilis fish (Clupeoides borneensis) After the fish is fermented and emits an acidic odor, then it is processed with onions, chili with brown sugar, rice crust water, salt, and also key oranges. "Rusip can be eaten in the morning, afternoon and night. Rusip is also considered to be a side dish at meals or commonly eaten with cassava leaves, kangkung leaves and also dipped with cucumbers and eggplants or other vegetables. Almost all regions in Bangka produce rusip. small or home industry In general, rusip products have the appearance of whole fish that starts to crumble, cloudy and runny with gray and brown color, salty and sour taste, and fishy and sour aroma which is a characteristic of fermented products. rusip that cannot last for a long time, it is necessary to process innovations based on rusip to bring up new processed products, besides that the rusip can be easily accepted by many people. Based on this, there is a need for community service that emphasizes innovation processed products made from russip-based products, while the participants in the community service activities were women P KK who are members of the National Crafts Council of the Bangka Province with a total of 30 people. From the results of counseling, discussions, and demonstrations carried out for PKK mothers, it can be concluded that the importance of understanding the scope of culinary tourism and the importance of culinary tourism in the development of tourism in an area can improve people's income, culinary can preserve regional specialties. Thus the community will feel ownership and feel proud of the local cuisine that exists.

Batik Dengan Pewarna Alami Upaya Meraih Pasar Wisatawan Mancanegara

Batik Indonesia has been confirmed by Unesco as a world cultural heritage and Yogyakarta was crowned as World Batik City by World Craft Council (WCC), on the 50th anniversary of the organization in Dongyang, Zhejiang Province, China, on October 18-23, 2014 This indicates that batik is worldwide. Batikpun usage rate is very high, not only the people of Indonesia but also many foreign tourists who buy batik for souvenirs even batik also has become an export product. Yogyakarta Special Region (DIY) is a tourist visiting area that relies on batik as main souvenir. Production of batik in Yogyakarta is high enough to cause environmental problems, especially in the disposal of waste. The process of making this batik will harm or disrupt the natural environment around, such as plants and animals and even livestock. Environmental disturbances are based on substances or chemicals released at the end of the batik making process. By looking at these conditions began to be thought by the batik craftsmen to develop environmentally friendly batik by using natural dyes. The use of natural dyes is not so popular and still at the stage of testing, but Mrs. Rini Kartikasari and Mrs. Tanti Syarif have started introducing this product to the market. The main issue of course relates to the marketing and governance of the development of this natural dye batik. With this PPPE program can make batik natural dyes as export products or can be marketed in the areas of foreign tourists visit. At the present stage, several activities have been conducted, such as: partners and their communities have received tourism management training, upgraded showroom, and assistance for exhibition, website design and equipment introduction. In this year also generated output in the form of: standardization of product quality, website, and various equipment to support batik production process with natural dye. From these activities bring significant benefits for both partners, they are able to increase sales turnover and can market products in the area of †foreign tourists. Keywords: batik, natural dye, Sleman.

Introduction: Fashion in Utopia, Utopia in Fashion

Editorial paper for the guest-edited special issue Utopia and Fashion “Utopia and Fashion” comes at a time when the fashion industry faces a self-inflicted crisis that forces it to fundamentally rethink its own future. The desire to address the wrongs of the status quo and imagine alternatives and future possibilities has always been the driving force behind utopian thinking. The production of this special issue, “Utopia and Fashion,” at a time when the future of our relationship with fashion is being so widely discussed is not motivated by a wish to find “a stick with which to beat contemporary fashion,” which, according to fashion historian Aileen Ribeiro, has often been the case in utopian writing.19 On the contrary, this special issue is intended to be an initial contribution to what we hope could become a long-term dialogue regarding both the role of fashion in utopian thinking and the potential of utopian thinking to reimagine and inspire better futures for fashion. Included in this issue are three articles with a historical focus; two of these examine the role of fashion in selected utopian and dystopian texts, while the third explores more radical early twentieth-century visions of nudity as liberation from the oppression of dress. The other contributions engage with the critical issues surrounding fashion production and consumption. In addition to the essays in the “Articles” section, we include contributions from contemporary artists and designers whose practices, in different ways, challenge how fashion and clothing are currently used, experienced,and appreciated. By including the “Artist Statements” section, we aimed to bridge the often unhelpful gap between theoretical discussion and practical implementation and so complement some of the discussion in this issue with tangible examples of how fashion and our relationship with clothes can be rethought through art and design practice.

Conference Review

Abstract Craft Meets Science: A review of Make: Shift 2016, Biannual Crafts Council conference, Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester, 10–11 November 2016

PENDAMPINGAN PENYUSUNAN MASTERPLAN SENTRA BATIK DI DUSUN PLALANGAN PENDOWOHARJO SLEMAN

Special Region of Yogyakarta as a city of Education on October 23, 2014 has been named the World Batik City, by the World Crafts Council (World Craft Council / WCC), in Dongyang, Zhejiang Province, China. This coronation as well as an award will admit it as a work of traditional Indonesian batik, which has become an integral part of a Yogyakarta high artistic value. Besides, the establishment of the World Batik Yogyakarta as the City by the World Crafts Council raised hopes for batik artisans in a number of centers in Yogyakarta batik craft to increasingly develop their region into a tourist village-based craft of batik. The development is expected to boost the economy during this batik artisans who rely only income from the sale of batik. Dusun Plalangan Pendowoharjo Village is one of the District of Sleman batik artisans Sinom Parijotho locations in Sleman with the number reaching 20 batik artisans artisans belonging to groups Ayu Arielle batik. Determination of Hamlet Plalangan as batik center in Sleman make a problem for the group. These problems result from 1). unpreparedness crafters to have a regional or batik showrooms integrated, 2). The inability of artisans in developing regional master plan, 3). Potential inability of artisans in mapping and planning the development of the region. Therefore people need assistance through a program of strengthening human resources, and strengthening the potential exploration area

Play, Precarity and Survival

Abstract Review of Play, Precarity and Survival, curated by Sigrid Dahle, organized by the Manitoba Craft Council, exhibited at aceart inc., Winnipeg, 30 July–22 August 2015.

Firing up craft capital: the renaissance of craft and craft policy in the United Kingdom

Crafts have recently been experiencing a renaissance. This revitalization sees craft increasingly recognised as a growing industrial sector with benefits linked to educational, cultural and economic development policy agendas. This paper engages with policy debates around the place of craft in the United Kingdom from 2010. Drawing on craft sector perspectives and UK government policy initiatives it situates the disciplines and practices of craft within their institutional support networks, organizational contexts and draws attention to the role of individuals in driving agendas. The paper focuses on the national facing crafts development organizations, the UK Crafts Council and the UK Heritage Crafts Association, alongside recent policy discussion emerging from the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Recognizing that the legacies of past practice often inform contemporary agendas, the paper explores how the advocacy of craft in the recent past has shaped the place and positioning of craft in contemporary UK politics.

Hobbyists, artisans and entrepreneurs

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide an insight into the goals and values of craft practitioners in Ireland, and assesses the validity of the business support provided to Dublin based craft practitioners. This research aimed to identify entrepreneurial traits in craft businesses and to challenge the objectives of public business support programs. This research enquires into what support practitioners have participated in and the perceived relevance to their professional needs and goals. Indeed, does demand or policy shape business support programs for craft in Dublin? Design/methodology/approach – This paper is based on a mix of quantitative and qualitative research using surveys and interviews. Findings – The research provides new insights into the goals and values of craft practitioners in Ireland. It identifies discrepancies between the needs of these businesses and the support programs available in Dublin. This study also highlighted three profiles of craft practitioners with distinct goals and values: the hobbyist, the artisan and the entrepreneur. Research limitations/implications – This study was limited to members registered with the Craft Council of Ireland in Dublin. It therefore excluded any professional craft business non-registered with the agency. Practical implications – This paper provides valuable insights on craft practitioners goals and values and offers useful recommendation on business support for craft micro-businesses in Ireland. Originality/value – This paper offers empirical data entirely new for Ireland and highlights the similarities between craft businesses and other micro-businesses, questioning business support rationale for the whole of this sector.

Mariska Karasz’s Creative Embroidery

This essay briefly discusses Mariska Karasz’s early career as a fashion designer and her shift after the Second World War to the creation of embroidered wall hangings. The essay focuses on the few years surrounding 1957, when she produced Transcendence, a prime example of her large-scale abstract work. During this period, Karasz’s stature as an artist and craftsman grew quickly, as she exhibited regularly with the Bertha Schaefer Gallery in New York City, revised her influential needlework book Adventures in Stitches, and was active with the American Craft Council. She received extensive favorable press and was poised for continued success with her singular craft path when she died in 1960. The Museum of Contemporary Crafts in New York City presented a retrospective of her work the following year and her form of stitchery remained popular for about a decade. Although overlooked for many years as newer forms of fiber art dominated the scene, there is renewed interest in her work as historians reconsider the range of artists who shaped the history of craft.

What Is Luxury?: Curating Connections between the Hand-crafted and Global Industry

ABSTRACTThis article presents research undertaken by one of the co-curators of What Is Luxury?, an exhibition taking place at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London from April 25 to September 27, 2015. The exhibition, which has been organized with the Crafts Council, interrogates general ideas about luxury, its production and future. It scrutinizes relationships of luxury to context, conventions, and change predominantly through the work of contemporary designers, makers, and artists. This article provides an account of the historical context which informs the exhibition's approach to the subject, including the global growth of the luxury goods sector, the pervasiveness of branded content, and the distorting impact of its messaging, through which a fundamental relationship between luxury and craft is promoted. It will also indicate how the exhibition positions itself in relation to this context in order to investigate the complex interface between craft skills and industrialized global economies, and explore some of the moral and ethical implications for the industry as well as independent makers and consumers.

Exhibition review

Abstract Conceptual approaches to pattern cutting: A review of ‘Block Party: Contemporary craft inspired by the art of the tailor’ A Crafts Council Touring Exhibition, Orleans House, Twickenham, Surrey, UK, 27 July 2013–29 September 2013 (UK tour dates: 14 January 2012–24 January 2014)

Selling Rhinebeck: Confrontation, Profit, and the “Mass-Anxiety Attack” of the Northeast Craft Fair

In 1966, the American Craft Council's Northeast Assembly exulted in the success of its “Confrontation Craft Fair” in Stowe, Vermont, reporting sales of about $17,000. At its successor event, the 1981 Northeast Craft Fair at Rhinebeck, however, sales reached nearly $5,000,000 and the Fair was hailed as a triumph of craft marketing.The unprecedented success of “the Rhinebeck Fair,” as it became known in the 1970s, was the catalyst for a broader transformation—the creation of a mass market for American studio craft. There was (and still is) widespread ambivalence about these changes. Some craftspeople, gallerists, retailers, and collectors welcomed the increased accessibility and profitability of craft, whereas others regretted the end of the “hippy days.”The transformation of the Northeast Craft Fair from a countercultural attraction to a multi-million-dollar trade market put new and unique pressures on the aesthetic and social values of craftspeople and their supporters. Because of its compounding success, the community of artisans and their supporters experienced acute growing pains that forced them to evaluate their ideals. As a group, 1960s craftspeople identified themselves largely with the counterculture, but with the growing profitability of craft markets, they were increasingly compelled to engage with both mainstream commerce and the social elite. In this we can also observe a broader transformation—that of the youth counterculture movement of the 1960s and 70s into the boom-economy entrepreneurial ethos of the Reagan years.

Aileen Osborn Webb and the Origins of Craft's Infrastructure

In 1939, Aileen Osborn (Mrs Vanderbilt) Webb was looking for a way to sell country crafts in New York City. Webb had already for some years been marketing country craft to tourists through her upstate New York tearoom to help alleviate local poverty. The struggle between the goals of the American Handicraft Council and Webb's consortium of rural craft organizations would result in today's American Craft Council. This article examines the development of these goals as a function of the forces that shaped Webb's work, plus the nature of organizations that influenced her ideas. Crafts marketing was paramount in Webb's plans. Other elements of craft's infrastructure that also claim her as their creator— American Craft magazine, the Museum of Arts and Design, the School for American Crafts, the World Crafts Council—were handmaidens to her overarching goal of creating a viable market for craft artists. Today, craft is a major international industry, the early success of which originated in many individuals' desire to help craft workers find better markets and improve their designs. Others before Webb had set the story in motion, but she was the one who saw the opportunity to promote craft on a national stage and had the money to do so.