Topic Outlines
1. Geography and social context
‘The craftsman is engaged in his material, and by inference, in the surrounding culture.’
(Metcalf, 1987).
What is the impact of interactional elements and relationship to place on the maker and the created object? Explore how the craft-making process, as a physical and emotional intent, is influenced by a web of factors – taking into account the geopolitical location within a socio-cultural framework, as reflected in the context of the object and its aesthetic value, including functional properties. This topic opposes the postcolonial contexts which align craft-making with aid and economic development and, subsequently, neglect its local context and its essence as ‘an object of belief’ (Fry, 2011, p.140).
Sub-topics include but are not limited to:
- Craft making in the Indian Ocean region, in the context of post-coloniality
- The politics of ethnicity and religion in the Indian Ocean countries
- Local yet global contextualisation of craft making
- Craft and regional conflicts
2. Education as art, design, and community of practice:
‘The term ‘craft’ seems to be one of the most debated terms in the art and design world in the 20th and 21st centuries, which is nearly always defined by what it is not rather than by what it is.’
(Niedderer, 2014, p.626).
What is the strength of futuring craft education? Common practice sees continued debates concerning the position of craft as supplemental to art and/or to design, with education providing an incubation field for these debates to take place. Dominating assertions emphasise a lack of intellectual requirements for craft making which influences the inferior status of the crafts, when compared to the arts. Similarly, the lack of use of technology, mass-production, and the economic value of crafts are major factors strengthening the position of design over craft (Niedderer, 2014).
Sub-topics include but are not limited to:
- The social engagement and utopian aspirations and characteristics of the crafts
- Self-reliance and creativity
- Making process a social narrative
- How do terminologies define, redefine or change education practices?
3. Materiality, consumption, lifestyle, and sustainability
Craft making plays a significant role, as an empowering agent, in social sustainability, based on effective practices concerning ‘social equality, social innovation, and socially embedded practices including social entrepreneurialism’.
(Brown, not dated).
How can we broaden engagement with craft as an object outside its aesthetic, functional and emotional considerations, to encompass its broader environmental and physical scopes?
The physicality of the nature of craft making offers an efficient response to environmental sustainability, concerning (1) the utilisation of local material resources, (2) the demonstration of creative practices to re-use and sustain local sources of material, (3) the effective utilisation of human power in the production of resources and available production techniques, and (4) ethical trade and consumption.
Sub-topics include but are not limited to:
- How do artists, working in a variety of media, make sense of people’s significant mix of ethnicity, religion, identity, etc., past and present?
- What do global warming and the effects of rising water in the Indian Ocean have on the craft sector?
- Questioning the authenticity of craft in the context of prevailing notions of primitive fakeness.
4. Digital media and production
How can communities and the craft sector better utilise technology (social media and digital production) to enhance the future transformation of the crafts, in terms of contexts, practices, and the making of crafts while retaining authenticity?
The growth of the craft sector will rely on craft makers gradually adopting digital technologies in their practices to enhance the production and promotion of their products, to fulfil expanded consumer demands and to enhance their own financial benefits. This topic offers a platform to argue and question the role of digital media and its alignment with craft in terms of contexts, aesthetics, production practices, ethics, authenticity and sustainability.
Sub-topics include but are not limited to:
- The authenticity of ethics and tourist arts
- Technology-integrated craft
- Interactional experience and the crafts
- What is authenticity in the current global market?
5. During and post COVID-19
How can we leverage the relevant factors and knowledge of current social practices to help maintain and develop the craft sector in the post COVID-19 era?
COVID-19 triggered a global revitalisation for craft practices, enforced by the regulations imposed by the pandemic and in response to personal demands; mentally, physically, and financially. The current situation attests to the studies that confirm the significance of practices that support human mental and physical health. We are witnessing an era of boom demand for the development of practices and for more learning of craft-making, as it occurs inside local communities. Digital media supports the essential need for fulfilling these demands, relating to skills development in the production and material availability of crafts, and enhance communication between the newly established social innovation groups.