Sunday, February 22, 2009

excerpt from Making a Slow Revolution

taking time: craft and the Slow Movement - Project Summary taken from Craftspace.co.uk

Slowness is also associated with craft skills: skill which is acquired over time, cannot be rushed and is intuitively learned. Many makers today aredeveloping critical positions in response to our consumer behaviour; questioning modes of production through new processes, looking at issues of stewardship and sustainability, as well ascollective making and reworking everyday objects.

Craftspace is collaborating with the maker and academic Helen Carnac to develop the research, exhibition and its related events programme.

Check the blog at makingaslowrevolution.wordpress.com to join in with the latest discussions about what SLOW means in current society. Also keep checking to see the latest podcasts from Russell Martin’s ‘Analogue’ project, which will explore people’s reactions to SLOW.

The slow movement is a cultural shift towards slowing down life’s pace. It is not organised and controlled by a singular organisation. A principal characteristic of the Slow Movement is that is propounded, and its momentum maintained, by individuals that constitute the expanding community of Slow.

http://www.craftspace.co.uk/page.asp?fn=2&id=57&stp=1&grp=2
http://makingaslowrevolution.wordpress.com

Excerpt

An Ongoing Conversation between Andy Horn and Helen Carnac

The review emphasises that the debate about the nature of production and of consumption continues to be central to the identity and discussion of craft. It is its very unresolved state that provides an opportunity to continue to debate its many arguments and positions, and in the context of our project and blog, enables us to provide a mirror to wider national and global concerns about the changing nature of society, consumerism, sustainability and the competition of cheap skilled production and design and to which the slow movement is one response. It is surprising how long the shadow of William Morris – referenced in the article – falls.

http://makingaslowrevolution.wordpress.com/2008/04/17/an-ongoing-conversation-between-andy-horn-and-helen-carnac/

2 comments:

  1. On viewing crafts writings at a distance this blog aims at no discourse, for the time being we are observers and we gather information. We do not use flags and are aware that this has to be a first world, developed countries attempt of speaking and that in third world or undeveloped countries the phenomenon is not looked, thought of, or lived in this way. We are not sure either revolution brings about real meaningful change. We see no real philosophy and no real identity in this called movement except of one trying to borrow from the exotic or the nostalgic memories or ideas of the far cultures that did not live through us. Our times are wonderful, challenging and we think a big mistake to try and polarize it so that we can make the world fit inside our ant brains. blogger

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  2. we make insignificant things and want to believe sometimes they are full of meanings and loaded with beliefs. Sometimes they are but nonetheless they perish and all the meanings and beliefs live in us mostly, not in themselves, that emotional load is us, giving life to things that will dissappear before or along with us and that probably we will be fine without them. But socially, academically or intellectually there is a need for validation.

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