Leisure
Joy in Labour: The Politicization of Craft from the Arts and Crafts Movement to Etsy
This text describes the evolution of contemporary notions of craft, beginning with the Arts and Crafts movement that emerged in the UK in the late 1800s with figures like William Morris. Krugh describes the ideology of the movement, which was committed to the idea that craft workshops could be sites of fulfilling cooperative labour, unlike the increasingly mechanised and dehumanizing factory spaces that had emerged during the Industrial Revolution. She also explores the limits of the movement: communal shops required a conventional division of labour that emphasised the master’s vision over that of the labourer; many of the items produced were only accessible to the wealthy; and finally, despite the ideal of enrichment through craft, the work often verged on "sweated labour “(287). Nonetheless, the movement had a lasting impact on Western society’s view of craft as an activity that provides meaningful work, provides pleasurable leisure opportunities, and integrates labour and lifestyle in positive ways. Krugh compares the ideology of Arts and Crafts to home-based Etsy business, run largely by women who are seeking creative fulfillment as well as an income stream. She notes that crafters often begin an online business as a hobby that they increasingly want to monetize. Like the Arts and Crafts generation before them, they must often adapt their handicrafts for a degree of mass production if they want to earn a sustainable income. Krugh’s article illustrates the ways that craft can be liberatory, by allowing individuals to find joy in manual work, and she also identifies the market pressures that make such work difficult to sustain in the longer term.
Krugh, Michele. 2014. “Joy in Labour: The Politicization of Craft from the Arts and Crafts Movement to Etsy.” Canadian Review of American Studies 44 (2): 281–301. https://doi.org/10.3138/CRAS.2014.S06.
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