Over the last several years, I’ve shifted my focus from just organizing things to understanding their significance and value, historically and personally. This isn’t how every organizer works, but I hope more people think about it. A large portion of the US and Global population have amassed a HUGE amount of STUFF. Much of it will be shifting hands in the coming years. This has me wondering what will happen to it all.
What is a CRAFT Lens?
It’s not fancy eyewear or special camera gear. If you look it up, that’s probably what you will find. It is a framework with no single definition. Here’s how I apply a craft lens.
I am a designer and craft thinker, maker, and researcher. I learned this early in my career as a designer of handmade textiles. I could design a gorgeous concept, but if I didn’t interact with and get feedback from the craftspeople and technicians making it, it wouldn’t succeed. The same applies to organizing solutions. I can research historical documents/solutions for inspiration, but they have to work with present-day materials and makers. Slowing down and noticing what goes into things, looking closely to understand the interconnectedness of objects and makers, is foundational. It’s still how I approach every project.
My skills and knowledge are only part of what informs my process. I usually set my initial concept aside to look for other relevant information. My ideas shift to account for new input. The creative part of my process is integrating it all!
I think less about individual solutions and more about the larger systems that uphold old, broken, and outdated ideas. I seek to repair what is broken, care for what’s been forgotten, and find solutions that are better for everyone. Very optimistic, I know. I don’t always succeed. Craftsperson and activist Betsey Greer coined the term ‘craftivism’ and defines it as ‘a way of looking at life where voicing opinions through creativity makes your voice stronger, your compassion deeper’.
How does a craft lens apply to my work?
- Question-based research; learn to ask better Qs
- Object studies; slow & fast seeing, thinking & making
- Bringing the invisible into focus; looking for untold, under-appreciated or undocumented histories
- Drawing upon a range of research methodologies such as oral history, anthropology, & ethnographic studies
- Thinking, talking & writing about craft practices, methods, theory & history
- Being aware of extractive transactions; looking for partners who are not only interested in making money, but in telling stories & preserving histories
- Framework of living craft: our homes, gardens, food, & community-building all demonstrate craft
- Reciprocal teaching: we are all teachers & students
Craft is tradition; whose traditions do we uphold?
To understand traditions we have to zoom out to our families, communities, cultures. Traditions can be defined within each of these social contexts. In 2003, the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage defined Traditional Craftsmanship as follows in terms of makers, not just objects;
“Rather than focusing on preserving craft objects, safeguarding attempts should instead concentrate on encouraging artisans to continue to produce craft and to pass their skills and knowledge onto others, particularly within their own communities.
There are numerous expressions of traditional craftsmanship: tools; clothing and jewellery; costumes and props for festivals and performing arts; storage containers, objects used for storage, transport and shelter; decorative art and ritual objects; musical instruments and household utensils, and toys, both for amusement and education. Many of these objects are only intended to be used for a short time, such as those created for festival rites, while others may become heirloom that are passed from generation to generation. The skills involved in creating craft objects are as varied as the items themselves and range from delicate, detailed work such as producing paper votives to robust, rugged tasks like creating a sturdy basket or thick blanket.
Like other forms of intangible cultural heritage, globalization poses significant challenges to the survival of traditional forms of craftsmanship.”
I keep this definition present when considering preserving craft. I’m curious to find solutions to preserve traditions (not just objects). Does an object have the ability to teach someone something about making in the future? Is it historically, culturally or materialistically doing work to provide a better understanding of skills or living with objects? This is a cyclical process of conversing, reviewing, and refining. As a form of social engagement this invites others in, rather than being exclusive. It provides a framework to situate objects within culture, and the stories of the individuals that make them.
Which stuff should be saved and why?
I once heard a historian say that our collective history lives in the attics and basements of the average person’s home. NOT in museums. What will happen when we shift all this stuff from one generation to another? Will our history end up in landfills? Are the stories behind objects important to future generations? If not, why not? I have some theories about this. This is where the Craft Lens comes into my work.
I apply craft lens as framework to my work as an organizer, advisor and appraiser. I feel inclined to share stories behind objects and makers to help others understand how I integrate design, craft and organizing, to advising, and appraisal. This feels like the only way I can do this: by bringing all of myself into all my work.