Craftsmanship and popular art

Craftsmanship is the capacity we humans have to produce objects with our hands or with the help of tools and simple machines. Craftspeople can also mass produce but, in contrast to industrial items, craft items are produced by hand, one by one, which makes each one unique. Only a few decades ago there were artisans everywhere, in every branch of production. But industrialisation and the spread of the consumer society have made their modus vivendi unviable. These days they are striving to keep their crafts alive and earn a living.

Some crafts have gone beyond the traditional workshop and become collective phenomena. So we are seeing more and more meetings and sessions where people can learn skills such as those of lacemakers and basket weavers.

Popular art also requires manual dexterity when it comes to making things. In this case, though, we do not talk about producing an "object" but a "work". Artworks can be individual or collective, permanent or ephemeral. Popular art takes the form of street decorations, nativity scenes, carpets of flowers, things that are related to the annual cycle.

Categories of craftsmanship and popular art