One of the great controversies that has entered into the woodturning world is the discussion over whether a piece of turnd work is art or craft. Consider the piece shown here. It is obvious, I trust, that this piece is not intended for utilitarian purposes. It is to be held, felt, looked at and pondered. On the other hand, it is equally obvious that this is not the first piece I ever turned. To blow my own horn, as it were, this piece demonstrates a fair amount of craftsmanship to keep it in one piece as it turned as well as to achieve the finish and form that the wood deserved. The question remains: is it
art or is it
craft?
4 comments:
Peter
This makes sense to me. My question would be, "At what point does an object change from ornament to art?" Much modern art does little for me even in the way of ornament, yet people regard it as "art" and expect me to appreciate it, whatever that means. If a piece provokes thought in one person and not another, does it fluctuate from art to craft, or is it neather and must be considered in an even more nebulous category?
Mike
I understand where you are coming from, but it only repeats the question, what makes it art? There are some people turning out half finished trash that they call art and somehow get it into the galleries, but generally fine art requires fine craft. While a utilitarian axe handle is a wonder to behold, especially on a hot day with a tree to come down, few would call it fine art. On the other hand, a Ming dynasty bowl is art whild a Walmart bowl may not even be craft. I can see the difference, but how to describe it? Then how to move it on to wood?
Ray
I like it, especially the Ellsworth comment. The question is how to get that repeatability in the art movements.
Hi Darrell, it's good to find you blogging! I'll be adding this to my blogroll.
I think this question is like asking whether grey is black or white. There is all sorts of middle ground, and of course black and white are just a subset of lots of other colours.
So I would also like to throw the word 'design' into the fray. This is kind of the science of art. A set of basic rules that help an 'artist' create something that will achieve whatever the designer wants to achieve. Another good word is 'aesthetics', and many of the rules of visual design are about creating something aesthetically pleasing. Most people would probably find this piece good to look at, so I think this means that it is well crafted and well designed.
It may also be useful to look at art and craft as the process rather than the result. Craft might be considered the process of making art, whatever the medium. The physical process of making a painting might perhaps be considered craft? The intellectual process is perhaps the the art? I don't think that every painting can be considered art.
Perhaps a fairer test would be to ask how you felt while you were making this piece, and how it's new owner feels whenever they look at it or hold it? If it touches hearts, then it's probably ok to label it art.
Keep blogging Darrell!
Post a Comment