Art vs. Craft

Bookbinding used to be a trade. I convinced myself at one time, that if it used to be a trade, then it is a craft. If it has always been art, then it is art. Thus the distinction might also be made that a craft results in an object that has some functional purpose (a journal to write in, a rug to wipe your feet on, etc.) whereas art is art is art is art…to behold rather than use.

So bookbinding, weaving, woodworking, ceramics, etc would be craft. Whereas fine arts such as painting, drawing, sculpture, etc are art. But of course, you can paint on your ceramics, and use bookbinding techniques to creature sculpture…so the distinction becomes all blurry again.

Red Stripes Leather Journal by
Rhonda Miller, bookbinder
So now I have been thinking that maybe it depends on the creator of the piece. If the creator calls himself an artist, then his work is art. Obviously, someone who considers himself to be an artist is intentionally creating stuff that should be called artwork; however, if the creator does not call himself an artist, then he probably doesn’t think of his work as artwork. I, for example, call myself a bookbinder and consider my creations to be “books…” not artwork. So I suppose, for me, bookbinding is a craft. Melissa Jay Craig, on the other hand, calls herself a book artist and her books are certainly not just books, they are definitely works of art.

(S)edition Prototypes by
Melissa Jay Craig, book artist
Whenever I think that I'm getting a little closer to an understanding, something else always comes along to change my mind. But I'll go with this for now.

This post was submitted to Blog Carnival over at the Trans Canada Etsy Team blog.