----- Original Message ----- From: "Marilyn" <marilyn@xxxxxxxxxxx> To: "List for Photo/Imaging Educators - Professionals - Students" <photoforum@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> Sent: Sunday, February 06, 2005 8:56 Subject: Re: PF Galleries on 05 FEB 05 : Craft (not art) now on display at : > http://www.rit.edu/~andpph/gallery.html includes: : : : I'm just curious and I've often wondered (I'm sure this has been discussed : on Photoforum before, but I've got to ask). How do you differentiate : between art and crafts, Bob? There seems to be a very fine line for : separating the two and now that I'm involved in visual arts other than : photography (sculpture, painting, etc.) it is often times very difficult to : decide which item is art and which is a craft item. : : I'd really appreciate hearing from other members how they divide the two : areas. oh, oh, me! <holds hand high> craft is a NOUN, a process undertaken in a skilled, careful manner and is synonymous with art and skill. 'the art of candlestick making - the candles being crafted with care' 'the art of photography - the skilful use of the camera' TO use one's skills is to craft, or, the artist uses his skills in creating - same thing. The creator is an artisan or a craftsman working their skills to produce something which may or may not be called a work of art depending on the cultural conditioning of the viewer/recipient. I have been led to believe that in Japanese culture there is no delineation of art and other worldly things, that all things undertaken by man involve art - that the process of even something so small (or great) as living one's life is seen as art. Folding a towel is an art, the opening an umbrella an art. mebbe therein lies a bit of a difference, craft is the process of crafting, of making something (a picture, a print, a chair) while art is the DOING - which may or may not result in a tangible final product. the artist performing a song (what's left when the final reverberations are gone?), the artist hitting the target with a bullet (the art of shooting), the art of sculpting, the art of lock picking or the art of manuring a garden. Art as a final product is a strange concept. Almost as though it were a product of the artist trying to inflate the value of their wares beyond the obvious. Is it a pretty picture? yes, is it desirable? maybe. Can I make it MORE desirable - possibly, if I attach some sort of exclusivity to it.. What artist, what craftsman, what person producing or doing *anything* would not take pride in their work - unless pride is still viewed as a mortal sin. Pride is deserved and ensures the craftsman/artist continues to strive for improvement. Do the craftsmen, artisans/artists, skilled persons of this world want more recognition or wealth for themselves - frequently they do and if an avenue is available for them to take to achieve this then why not take it? lets call it 'art' then and ask more $$. Let one artist (an architect) use other artists (builders) to make his work for him, but to ensure HE is seen as they greatest of the creators, let him refer to the builders as 'artisans' or better yet 'craftsmen' - thus he has used a fabricated cultural hierarchy to elevate his stature. Same with photographers like Bresson who used a few select printers who worked magic with his negatives to produce exquisite prints - Bresson was no printer, and the magic that made his prints so desirable was left to the hands of the few he found could do the best job - OK, it was Bressons camera work, but the images we know were mere latent images until another person stepped in to make the magic come alive. They are relegated to the category of craftsmen for their efforts yet no one can tell me that a skilled darkroom worker is less an artist than a photographer. Often they are the greater artist, pulling an image from the muddy negs of photographers who know little about the technologies behind their medium. What of the artist who creates the film emulsions? Few know that the emulsion makers are single individuals within film companies - a solitary man or woman who has the finesse, the flair, the intrinsic intuition to create and concoct that 'perfect' blend. That is their art - and their art allows us to perform our art. They in turn are supported by chemists and engineers who possess their own artistic skills. cooking is an art - who sits down to a magnificent meal and arises afterwards proclaiming 'that was the BEST art I've eaten in ages!' ? One of the US art galleries has in it I believe a Polaroid SX70 and a Duka colour darkroom lamp. Both the products of artists I might add. Does this fit in with peoples preconceptions about Bresson, Monet or DaVinci? dunno. I call the product of my art 'pictures'. k
