What if craft?
The process of making crafts allows us to enhance our aesthetic skills. First of all, we need to use our brains and hands to create crafts that show that it are relevant to our lives (Saito and Yuriko 2022:203). For example, it’s my own experience. I went to my art teacher’s DIY shop to make a ring before. I love my ring so much that I keep it with me, it makes me feel like another item to add to the beauty of my life. I wear the ring on my hand every day and it has become a part of my life. I find the activity of making crafts not only relieves my stress but also allows me to focus on doing one thing. I have some crafts in my home such as paper cuttings and mugs. These crafts that I have made, or that my family has bought, can be used as decorations for our home and therefore make our home more beautiful. Whenever I see beautiful decorations in my home, my mood gets better. I think there is no standard of beauty in crafts because everyone has a different definition of beauty.
Then,I feel that craft can represent historical heritage and that their culture is more valuable than money. Crafts from different periods have different methods of production so we can learn from the crafts of the past about the culture that has been handed down to us. For instance, pottery is the oldest craft in the Solomon Islands because of the need to survive they made it their custom (Radclyffe and Charles 2023:20). This example shows that the skills of making pottery can be passed on to the next generation, and that previous techniques are a form to represent historical heritage. I believe that the work of each of those artists is unique, including our own crafts. I have a good understanding of the history of craft making, and it makes me feel in awe of crafts with a long history.
In addition, the process we take from making crafts is one that develops our creativity and imagination. For example, I have previously participated in a paper cutting activity where I learn to use scissors and paper to make shaped objects such as frogs, flowers and boxes.We can expand our horizons by thinking on our own or by watching tutorials on how to make crafts. (Nir and Alec 2023). I need to think about how to fold a piece of paper into the shape of a frog. Although it’s a little difficult to me, I used my creativity in making the paper frog to create a piece of my own. In this activity, I learn not just the simple and uncomplicated making of flowers, but patience, care and a dexterous pair of hands in the making process. This is how we are able to produce good work.
Thus,when we make different crafts we create them according to our own ideas so that each one has a unique meaning for us. Regardless of production and production method, it is more about the dedication and control of production process, and this done well, the success rate of the production will be relatively high.
Reference
Nir Eisikovits and Alec Stubbs(2023), ChatGPT, DALL-E 2 and the collapse of the creative process, The Conversation website, accessed 13 Jan 2023.
https://theconversation.com/chatgpt-dall-e-2-and-the-collapse-of-the-creative-process-196461
Radclyffe, Charles J. T. “Sereke Pua (’Pottery-Making’): History of a Dying Tradition on Lauru (Choiseul), Solomon Islands”, Taylor & Francis Online Journals Collection website, The Journal of Pacific history ahead-of-print.ahead-of-print (2023): 1–21. accessed 25 May 2022.
https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/10.1080/00223344.2022.2047622
Saito and Yuriko (2022) in The Role of Imperfection in Consumer Aesthetics,edited by Cheyne, Peter, Milton: Taylor & Francis Group, p203.
Post link
https://www.mediafactory.org.au/luyi-ye/2023/04/11/real-world_media_craftdoc_luyi_ye/
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