Craft-Based Design: On Practical Knowledge and Manual Creativity

Interest in the practice of various forms of craftsmanship has grown in recent times. Yet, a detailed picture of the know-how connected to the manual trades is lacking. Through direct dialogue with active designers and craftspeople, this publication addresses the question of how knowledge of craftsmanship can find a place in the living and working environments of the 21st century. People are at the heart of this volume – people who on a small scale design, produce and sell goods and make a living from it. These people include creative tradesmen, artisans, designer-makers and a new delevoping group of self-made entrepreneurs, who, with many different educational backgrounds, combine creative work with technology and production to develop unique and economically viable ways of living and working. Through visual representations of the products, workplaces and people and through text based on interviews, the works of the selected craftspeople are presented as manifestations of highly original creative processes.