Crafting the Future: Craft as Knowledge, Material Intelligence, and Community
The chapter 'Crafting the Future' from Designboom redefines craft as an evolving practice that merges traditional handwork with technology, ecology, and community involvement. Featured contributors include Kengo Kuma, Alberto Cavalli, and Fernando Laposse. The Visteria Foundation supports emerging artisans. Teresa van Dongen, OXMAN, and Nienke Hoogvliet delve into living materials. The GUNIA Project and Karl Monies offer a fresh perspective on heritage through an exhibition focused on Japanese craft. Key transformations are presented by Ben Tuna, Jacques Monneraud, Eva Jospin, and Lilla Tabasso. The importance of hand intelligence is emphasized by Sophie Lou Jacobsen, Miwa Ito, and Lewis Prosser. Laposse, GUNIA's network, and the Visteria Foundation underscore community making. The chapter concludes with a focus on the values of attentiveness, collaboration, and stewardship in craft.
Key facts
- Craft is repositioned as a way of thinking through present challenges, not just preserving tradition.
- Kengo Kuma spoke on craftsmanship connecting architecture and place.
- Alberto Cavalli reflected on the intelligence of the hand for imagining the future.
- Fernando Laposse described craft as rooted in community relationships.
- Visteria Foundation nurtures new generations of makers.
- Teresa van Dongen explores design through living organisms.
- OXMAN works with bacterial pigmentation as alternative to synthetic dyes.
- Nienke Hoogvliet reconsiders overlooked materials and waste.
- GUNIA Project draws on Ukrainian material traditions in contemporary context.
- Exhibition explores Japanese craft and technology evolving through digital tools.
- Karl Monies combines inherited craftsmanship with fungi and natural materials.
- Ben Tuna combines salvaged stained glass and burned automobiles.
- Jacques Monneraud blurs distinction between cardboard and ceramics.
- Eva Jospin constructs architectural landscapes from cardboard.
- Lilla Tabasso preserves decaying flowers in Murano glass.
- Sophie Lou Jacobsen celebrates subtle variations in blown glass with artisans.
- Miwa Ito transforms molten glass into food-inspired forms.
- Lewis Prosser approaches basket making with humor and experimentation.
- Solar Protocol proposes digital infrastructure shaped by sunlight availability.
- Craft is defined as an approach valuing attentiveness, collaboration, and stewardship.
- The chapter includes over 150 craftspeople in GUNIA's network across Ukraine.
Entities
Artists
- Kengo Kuma
- Alberto Cavalli
- Fernando Laposse
- Teresa van Dongen
- Nienke Hoogvliet
- Ben Tuna
- Jacques Monneraud
- Eva Jospin
- Lilla Tabasso
- Sophie Lou Jacobsen
- Miwa Ito
- Lewis Prosser
- Laila Gohar
- Cecilia Vicuña
- Lucia Pietroiusti
- Filipa Ramos
- Karl Monies
Institutions
- Visteria Foundation
- OXMAN
- GUNIA Project
- Solar Protocol
- Etage Projects
- Jan van Eyck Academie
- designboom
Locations
- Ukraine
- Japan
- Copenhagen
- Denmark