The first month back at university is now over, we have had a tutorial, in which I was told to define the different components of my question, which at the moment stands at:
How can traditional crafting skills survive in the digital age?
Through the tutorial, the peer-to-peer feedback and my research I have looked at the possibility of changing my question to:
How can an appreciation of craft skills become the new social network?
I feel the importance of community, interaction, learning and gaining confidence has meant my question has evolved again. I want my kits to encourage this kind of interaction between families and friends. I want to take advantage of the current climate, the trend towards being thrifty, creative, need for personal face-to--face interaction. I have also been thinking about recycling and re-using, and how this element can be incorporated into my project.
I will need to research consumer needs and wants to really produce a kit that resonates with people.
During our Wednesday evenings we have also explored 'Brand Me vs. the Reflective Practitioner'. My thoughts are that life is about changes, you have to change, get feedback and evolve to survive. I feel it is very important to be authentic and understand what your core values are. This MADS journey is re-confirming these beliefs.
My core values have led me to push my question towards bringing families and friends together in a creative way, in a hope that they utilise the age-old practice of storytelling. Through the workshops I have attended and the designers I have met researching for my MADS question I have experienced first-hand wonderful stories about how and why people have got involved in different pursuits and what they have learnt.
We have been asked to consider where this mastery will position us at the conclusion of the course. This needs to be totally aligned and in sync with our core values to ensure our project take us where we want to be. Below is a graphical representation of my 'IF'.
My research this month has looked into the words that people associate with crafts and I hope that my project will create like, exclusive, valuable, desirable. From a craft council research paper I noted some key motivations of buying craft:
"Beautiful objects appeal to me"
"Craft makes a unique gift"
"I admire the human skill involved"
"I want to keep craft alive"
"I like to have beautiful objects in my home"
"It means I own something nobody else has"
I would like people to feel that they too can create items that they feel this way about. The same report also discussed the increasing priorities for consumers. Firstly reducing wasteful consumption, this is something I am also very passionate about, and through this month I have been thinking more about how I can incorporate it into my project. Therefore I hope that I can use the re-use and recycle element in my project by including getting people to use things around the house they no longer need. I was thinking the 'kits' I design could include a list of things to scavenger, instructions and then a few elements, probably the newer materials, and that the combination of these can lead groups to communicate and create together.
The second priority for consumers is that they are looking for more personal, unique and ethical routes for consuming objects. This obviously aligns with my make-it-yourself and customise it ideas.
Practical skills give consumers a sense of control, achievement and resourcefulness, and this will encourage a trend for participating in craft. There has been an increase in the popularity of craft activities at festivals, workshops and make-your-kits developed by designer makers. This ties in with my project in that my first idea, the LED light was designed to be used at festivals and parties, allowing people to make with friends, encourage people to come together, and customise.
So at the end of this month I see my project being about a variety of crafting skills, survival (passing down information, relationships and communication), and the environment (reuse, recycle).
