Crafty Tuesday: This Again?
Feb. 23rd, 2016 09:40 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
puppetmakerI thought it was just me but I have had a couple of friends confirm that I wasn’t just seeing things.
It’s that age old argument about who belongs in artist alley and who belongs in the dealers room. Or, more simply, art vs. craft.
At many conventions there is the dealers room and the artist alley. Artist Alley is usual set up near or around the art show or it is the art show. It is seen more at anime and comic book conventions but a lot of conventions have an artist alley or an artist section within the dealers room.
In many cases a table in artist alley is lower than the cost of a table in the dealer’s room.
A number of these shows are saying flat out no 3-D art for sale at the table. Original art and prints only. Part of it does come from some abuse of the system for a cheaper table but that is not that rampant. It more seems to be a commentary on what is art and what isn’t.
Years ago I went through the hoops that an art show I wanted to participate in and was informed that I was not going to be included because my work (the puppets) was craft not art and this was an art show. An art show where I had displayed and sold a number of my puppets in just the previous year. I was not happy with the decision and pulled together a number of articles about puppets being exhibited at museums and about the center for puppetry arts museum of puppetry. I also gathered some articles including from art journals and the like about the art of puppetry. I presented all this to the art show committee and the con chair. I got my space in the art show.
I know someone who made the most beautiful decoupage jewelry boxes. She gets the boxes at the local Michael’s craft store and the images from materials she has collected. The art is in how she puts these together where they are visual pleasing to the eye. She stopping making them a number of years ago and now only does them for friends and the like. One of the reasons is that she couldn’t get any table space in many art shows because it was considered crafty not art. These were not mass-produced. One never matched the other. They were unique pieces of art. Her eye for color and what might go together was amazing. I have seen other people copy the idea but they paled in comparison to what she did.
Most art show directors like what I bring to the table. My work is rather unique; it is rare that there are any other puppets in the art show. I may not be a top seller but I amuse the patrons and people do come to the art show to see my work both pluses for art shows.
Now with 3-D printers and the like, there can be more cookie cutter art or 3-D rendering of 2-D images. Now where is the line?
If the artist makes everything that they sell that is one thing but what is the difference between ordering prints of an original piece and using a company to produce copies of an original stuff thingamajig? Do those artists who have nothing but prints be in the dealer’s room? What about art books of their art?
It should be on a case-by-case basis and they should also look at the 2-D artist as well to make sure that the same level of scrutiny as the 3-D artists both in the artist alley and the art shows. Then it has nothing to do with the dimension of the art but the art itself.
Craft is art and art is a craft. Let’s stop trying to separate the two.
I am grateful I have been able to change minds over the years about puppets as Art.
It’s that age old argument about who belongs in artist alley and who belongs in the dealers room. Or, more simply, art vs. craft.
At many conventions there is the dealers room and the artist alley. Artist Alley is usual set up near or around the art show or it is the art show. It is seen more at anime and comic book conventions but a lot of conventions have an artist alley or an artist section within the dealers room.
In many cases a table in artist alley is lower than the cost of a table in the dealer’s room.
A number of these shows are saying flat out no 3-D art for sale at the table. Original art and prints only. Part of it does come from some abuse of the system for a cheaper table but that is not that rampant. It more seems to be a commentary on what is art and what isn’t.
Years ago I went through the hoops that an art show I wanted to participate in and was informed that I was not going to be included because my work (the puppets) was craft not art and this was an art show. An art show where I had displayed and sold a number of my puppets in just the previous year. I was not happy with the decision and pulled together a number of articles about puppets being exhibited at museums and about the center for puppetry arts museum of puppetry. I also gathered some articles including from art journals and the like about the art of puppetry. I presented all this to the art show committee and the con chair. I got my space in the art show.
I know someone who made the most beautiful decoupage jewelry boxes. She gets the boxes at the local Michael’s craft store and the images from materials she has collected. The art is in how she puts these together where they are visual pleasing to the eye. She stopping making them a number of years ago and now only does them for friends and the like. One of the reasons is that she couldn’t get any table space in many art shows because it was considered crafty not art. These were not mass-produced. One never matched the other. They were unique pieces of art. Her eye for color and what might go together was amazing. I have seen other people copy the idea but they paled in comparison to what she did.
Most art show directors like what I bring to the table. My work is rather unique; it is rare that there are any other puppets in the art show. I may not be a top seller but I amuse the patrons and people do come to the art show to see my work both pluses for art shows.
Now with 3-D printers and the like, there can be more cookie cutter art or 3-D rendering of 2-D images. Now where is the line?
If the artist makes everything that they sell that is one thing but what is the difference between ordering prints of an original piece and using a company to produce copies of an original stuff thingamajig? Do those artists who have nothing but prints be in the dealer’s room? What about art books of their art?
It should be on a case-by-case basis and they should also look at the 2-D artist as well to make sure that the same level of scrutiny as the 3-D artists both in the artist alley and the art shows. Then it has nothing to do with the dimension of the art but the art itself.
Craft is art and art is a craft. Let’s stop trying to separate the two.
I am grateful I have been able to change minds over the years about puppets as Art.
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no subject
Date: 2016-02-23 04:07 pm (UTC)They had an art room at the Vogue Knitting conference I go to every year. It had 3-D yarn sculptures.
But even more undefined, I did a sweater last year that was an abstract mosaic design. I designed it myself and chose which color would be used for every single stitch. There is only one of that sweater in the world. There will never be another like it. It is remarkable for the design, not the form (i.e., how it is shaped and how well it fits). So, is it art or a craft? The actual knitting was as simple as it could be. The visual design was everything.
An intricately designed piece of metal work might be a craft and it might be art.
I don't think you can write a rule that says what is and isn't art.
no subject
Date: 2016-02-24 02:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-02-25 03:55 pm (UTC)Art, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder.
no subject
Date: 2016-02-23 08:43 pm (UTC)2.) The official Santa Claus for Toledo, Ohio is a personal friend of mine. His wife does prize-winning embroidery. He has a 'Santa shirt' embroidered with scenes of the North Pole, the workshop, the elves, the reindeer, the stable, etc. There's over 400+ hours of work on this thing and it's actually insured for $7,000. Gonna call it 'craft' because it's just a shirt???
no subject
Date: 2016-02-24 02:15 pm (UTC)