Saturday, February 2, 2008

Crafts

The term “craft” refers to a set of activities that involve skill, innovation and dedication of the apprentice to produce a desired object. Craft is a combination of ideas and their practical viability to bring out an art piece. On various occasions, term craft is used to explain the artistic practices that are related to decorative arts. An artifact has to have either utilitarian value or decorative value or both. The principle media for applying various crafts are wood, stone, clay, glass, textiles, metal and paper. Crafts can be classified in to two basic categories- handicrafts or the traditional crafts and the other crafts. Traditional crafts are those which are done in old ways- their methods, tools and the techniques have been in application for centuries. Some crafts are modern inventions; they are done with new tools, technique and media. The target recipients of these crafts are also different. Some crafts are yet of a different nature. These are the popularized crafts, which were originally done by a very small population and within small geographical area.

The term “Studio Craft” has been in limelight for some time. This term is used for the art practiced by independent artists working alone or in small groups. Studio crafts may include studio pottery, metal work, weaving, wood turning, glass blowing and glass art.

Most of the crafts require from apprentices, a combination of skill, speed and patience. These qualities help in making masterpieces of certain crafts. Artificers are wise and innovative, these qualities helps them to remain in the hunt for better offers and more worthy applause.

There are as many varieties of craft as their practitioners. Various sub- categories are derived from the principle medium. For example, the crafts involving textile as medium include Banner-Making, Calligraphy, Canvas Work, Cross-Stitch, Crocheting, Curve Stitching, Embroidery, Knitting, Lace Making, Lucet, Macramé, Millinery, Needle Point, Patchwork, Quilting, Ribbon-Embroidery, Rug Making, Sewing, Shoemaking, Spinning, Spirelli, String Art, Tapestry, Tatting And Weaving. Similarly, the crafts in wood, metal and clay as medium include Metalworking, Jewelry, Pottery, Sculpture, Wood Working, Cabinet Making, Chip Carving, Marquetry, Wood Burning and Wood Turning.


For more information on various crafts, please visit http://www.india-crafts.com/art-craft/

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Great blog. Thanks for the insight about arts and its various forms. Earlier there were only a few takers for art but now the scene has changed, people are giving more importance to art. You can check out this link for Decorative Arts collectibles.