My first encounter with Handmade Nation was at Haystack Mountain School of Craft in 2007. As part of our discussion on the process of creation, and how this process has evolved for the new millennium, Ayumi Horie showed our group a trailer for the Handmade Nation film. I was blown away by the talented artists featured in this small clip and came home wanting to learn more. However, at that time the film was still in production, and so I kept an ear out for any news of it’s release date.
Fast forward to this past January…my husband and I were browsing in a local bookshop, and I happened upon the recently published companion book Handmade Nation…The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design. I brought the book home and read it cover to cover! This fantastic book discusses such issues as craftivism (craft + activism,) craft as religion, and the myriad roles the internet has played in the renewed interest in all things handmade (including the role of Etsy in this revolution.) Not only does the book include wonderful interviews and bios for some of the best and brightest stars of the indie craft world, it is also a terrific resource for forward thinking crafters, listing websites, community connections, shows, and organizations. Thank you to authors and film-makers Faythe Levine and Cortney Heimerl for giving voice to this hip new generation of crafters!
The book is available at Amazon.com, and the movie is out in limited release across the country…read it, watch it, be a part of it!
Tags: Ayumi Horie, church of craft, cortney heimerl, craftivism, DIY, etsy, faythe levine, handmade nation, indie craft
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It is exciting to see people take art and craft to a new level and a renewed appreciation for crafts. I will have to check this book out. I am more in the art world but have always loved crafts, doing them and buying them, so you could say I am a bit of an old timer when it comes to buying handmade.
all the best
corrine
ps. I forgot to mention. I have seen your work before, you have a great website and your work is exquisite.
Hi Corrine! Thanks for stopping by, and thank you for leaving such nice compliments about my work and my site (though the credit goes to Tracey for the work on the site.) I love your work as well, and I hope you noticed that I have a link to your work on my blog links. I have always felt like I sort of had one foot in the arts and one foot in crafts, so I would definitely like to see more of a merging of the two disciplines. However, it is really exciting to see such a resurgence of interest in making things by hand…even if it is due in part to a struggling economy.
Hmm – I forgot about Handmade Nation – thanks for the reminder!
How are you? Like the handcut paper collage you have posted on other page….
Hi Cynthia! It is so good to hear from you, and thank you for the lovely compliments on my new collage work. Thanks too for sticking it out with me! I know it has been quite a while since I posted on a regular basis…it was a long winter for me. I have left clay behind for the time being, but I am so very excited about this new work.