Handmade is not Homely

Fast Company blogger Michael Cannell reports from the Milan Furniture Fair in "The Hand Strikes Back":

"But in the absence of a driving design movement, visitors will see a conspicuous increase in stitching, embroidery and other hand-crafted items as designers react against mass-market globalism and tune into a new appreciation for homespun virtues."

I say yes to the stitching, embroidery and handcraft, and a resounding yuck to his description of these things as "homespun virtues." For one thing, the images he includes look neither homespun nor virtuous -- they look like well-crafted, sophisticated pieces made with skill and an eye for color and carefully edited elaboration.

Homespun is loaded with negative baggage - even Merriam-Webster defines it as simple and homely. These objects (including the modular sofa below by Spanish designer Patricia Urquiola) appear to integrate textile traditions in beautiful ways, and are linked to artisan communities in what we hope is an ethical, non-exploitative production model.

If we separate the clearly visible trend from the blogger's description, it's good news, but I'm rejecting, obviously, his condescension about things handmade, because it trivializes what looks like a positive trend -- and not, incidentally, one that just showed up yesterday. So can we dispense with the homespun virtues garbage? These are serious international designers taking craft and artisanry seriously.

Okay. I feel better now. On to the yoga mat, and maybe a little extra caffeine this morning.

Oh, wait. One more thing. Maybe this new appreciation of handcrafted objects, stitching and embroidery, and all that it implies, IS a driving design movement.

Comments

[K-eM]

I've found it interesting that design/art trends have approximately a 100 year cycle. About this time in the 20th century the Arts and Crafts movement was going on in North America and Europe and it was about returning to home made.

So we're due for our own "arts and crafts" movement. What are we going to call it this round?

[jude]

yes maybe it is.