Garland magazine

Kevin Murray interviews one of the key instigators in Melbourne's street jewellery scene, Melissa Cameron. How did Part B evolve? What does the name mean? What were its other projects? What is its enduring influence? For more details and images, see https://garlandmag.com/loop/steal-this/.

Urmila Mohan is an anthropologist who established the Jugaad Project, an open platform for publishing articles on material culture. Here are some of the topics covered in our conversation: The meaning of jugaad as everyday innovation The need for an open global platform to share articles in material culture How published articles benefit their subjects Prayer beads as spiritual technology that is only partly replaced by fidget spinners Articles on bamboo weaving in Java and the infrastructure of Durga Puja in India The new book publication https://www.thejugaadproject.pub http://www.urmilamohan.com/ https://www.thejugaadproject.pub/home/likhai-wood-carving

We speak with the curator of the magnificent exhibition Sutr Santati, in celebration of the 75th anniversary of Indian independence. This exhibition consists of 100 textile works representing an impressive range of techniques including Kutch embroidery, patola, brocades, sequin work, applique, block printing, silk tapestry and ikat.

Hanne Brøbech Sønnichsen is the chairperson of Danish Crafts and Design. For the organisation's Formkraft publication, she recently wrote Greasy Fingers and Practical Research Help Craft Out of the Display Case which reflect on the student revolt against the lack of technical education in their craft program. "That the students see themselves more as practitioners of craft rather than craft artist (kunsthåndværkere) is perfectly fine. We must – and this also applies to us at DKoD (Danish Crafts & Design Association)- clear up the concepts and remember that ‘craft’ gives associations to handwork, whereas ‘kunsthåndværk’ signals that there is also a certain aesthetic ambition involved." "Artistic craft is something essential and valuable that we must pass on to the next generation. Otherwise, the basic know-how and foundation for Danish design will lose its shape." In this podcast, we learn of the background to this controversy, the specifically Danish understanding of craft, and also her opinions about craft education. Underlying this is her philosophy that "hand teaches hand" .

Our current issue, titled Know How: The Grammar of Making, features an article by Patrick Webb, titled Maker Mythologies Classical Origin Stories for the Crafts, which is a fascinating overview of the key role played by craft in the ancient understanding of the world as a divine creation. This is a taste of the rich offerings from his blog called Real Finishes, which I highly recommend. What intrigues me about Patrick is that he articulates this complex world knowledge not as a university professor in humanities, but as an exponent of his own craft, as a plasterer. Patrick offers a view of the world through the eyes (and hands) of a plasterer. For Patrick, plaster is part of the process by which humans were able to leave their caves and venture out into the world. Of course, the very word "ceiling" derives from the importance of plaster in rendering impermeable membranes for our shelter. Plaster is by nature a demanding substance. Beginning as a liquid, it quickly sets when exposed to air, which causes Patrick to believe that "the material is the master." When I ask Patrick whether craft could be considered a form of knowledge, he doesn't shy from its dimension as labour: "What I do requires a great bit of physical exertion. You build muscles, you sweat." Rather than drudgery, Patrick sees the physicality of plastering as good for both physical and mental health. Nonetheless, Patrick does advocate for a kind of knowledge that is revealed in the doing. When he reaches the limits of describing this in his writing, Patrick then turns to poetry to reflect this haptic understanding. Patrick offers a critique of Plato, particularly the way his academy required students to know geometry, yet would not admit artisans who he saw as a lower form of life. I was curious how Patrick gathers so much knowledge outside the modern academy of the university. For Patrick, the university is "a place of intellect and cognition" and therefore not a natural place for the "arts and crafts". Craft knowledge is embodied experience that is best taught through the apprenticeship system. I wonder if that is necessarily so, especially given Patrick's critique of Plato's academy for the exclusion of artisans. Finally, I brooch the issue of gender in Patrick's language, which frequently mentions "craftsman". Patrick says that he did ask some female students what they preferred to be called, and found "craftsman" the most popular. What I appreciate while listening to Patrick is his generosity of knowledge. He puts great effort into his various writings without the systemic rewards that are built into academic careers. It is a testament to knowledge as a currency that we can all share.

Glenn Adamson speaks about the new publication project, Material Intelligence. He reflects on how this project evolved from his return to the Chipstone Foundation in Milwaukee. Adamson describes the need in craft writing to keep in mind the publication as an object, in this case, a PDF which will become a book. In terms of readership, he aims to engage with a scientific community who are practically working with materials. We discuss the nature of "material intelligence": how thinking might have a craft-base and its relationship to the modernist principle of "truth in material".  Finally, Adamson offers a book recommendation by technology writer, John Markoff: Machines of Loving Grace: The Quest for Common Ground Between Humans and Robots.

We interview Richard Ocejo, author of Masters of Craft: New Jobs in the Old Economy (2017). This intriguing book described a trend among white middle-class men in taking on manual trades. These included bartender, barber, butcher and distiller. We explore how this differentiates from the hipster figure as an ironic consumer and the complications of the term "master". Then we turn to the impact of the pandemic on these gentrified trades. Their dependence on an audience means the lockdown did have a negative effect on their work.  Ocejo ends with a powerful tale of a local potter who teaches his craft who told him:  "The world doesn't need more plates. The world doesn't need more cups. That's not what we're doing here. We're trying to connect people here with an ancient practice and that's what makes us who we are." 

Hamza El Fasiki is a geometer, brass smith, bookbinder, Andalusian Oud musician, and founder of a Morocco arts studio. He offers an important perspective as a young person who has embraced the world of Moroccan traditional crafts. This gives him particular insight into the differences between modern and traditional worlds. Read more here. 

We talk to Malika Verma about the origins of Border&Fall and the values that underpin the Śilpa series profiling Indian artisans. See Kanta Kadse ✿ Khajur ki pattiyo

Our first podcast of 2021 features one of the most innovative forces in Indian craft, reflecting Ahmedabad’s status as a unique cultural centre. We speak to Jay Thakkar on the eve of the legendary kite festival in Ahmedabad, and we begin by learning what the city is like during this spectacular event and how COVID has affected the themes of kite design. We discuss his ambitious project on vernacular furniture, which was told previously in our story by Mitraja Bais. We also hear about the five-year-long exchange with a Kutch village Guniyali which culminated recently in the launch of a virtual exhibition with the support of the British Council. Jay shares with us his thoughts on craft education in India and proposes a “fourth wave” in which designers seek learning from the villagers themselves in location. Finally, we learn some of the deeper values that underpin is work, and a saying of his father’s that money is like wheat. Listen and learn why this is so. Jay Thakkar is an Associate Professor, Head of Exhibition at CEPT University and Co-founder and Executive Director at Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC) at CRDF, Ahmedabad, India. You visit the virtual exhibition Celebrating Gundiyali here.

We talk to Dylan Rogers about his discovery of the true significance of the garlands that feature in Pompeii murals. Pompeii offers a snapshot of Roman life in 79AD. It reveals the prevalence of murals, not just as decoration, but as instructions for living. As part of his investigation of "lived religion" in Roman times, archeologist Dylan Rogers uncovered the real purpose of these garlands. The inclusion of painted garlands on walls is an enduring reminder to individuals and the community that garland-giving is a vital part of the veneration of the deities depicted in that space. This discovery emphasises the true meaning of garlands as "living" objects that help maintain cultural order. This is a challenge for our understanding of art as made of fixed objects that live separate from life in galleries and museums. Visit this world of ancient Rome with Dylan Rogers. Reference: Rogers, Dylan. 2020. “The Hanging Garlands of Pompeii: Mimetic Acts of Ancient Lived Religion.” Arts & Health 9 (2): 65.

Ashoke Chatterjee is an Indian craft leader. He was executive director of National Institute of Design (NID) from 1975-85, Senior Faculty Advisor for Design Management and Communication from 1985 to 1995, and Distinguished Fellow at NID from 1995 until retirement in 2001. In 1975, NID was invited to be involved with the Rural University, a new concept in education and rural development initiated by Professor Ravi Matthai, first director of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad. Ashoke Chatterjee became part of the Rural University team that worked with people of the Jawaja block, which included about 200 villages with a population of approximately 80,000 people in a drought prone district of Rajasthan. Ashoke Chatterjee shares his journey and reflects on the secret behind the success of the Jawaja project. He concludes with a rousing call to heed the message of Gandhiji in protecting the poor who have been betrayed by the lure of urbanisation and now face a long and hard journey back to their village and possible starvation.  You can read his Garland article here.