Definition of Craft
To each his own opinion. Artisans will talk lovingly of materials and process. Hobbyists may talk of intellectual matters like challenges - problem solving, solutions. Creators will say they need to make things. Dabblers will say they love to try things.
I think we all start from Dabbler status. An interest is piqued. Something is tried. If we like it, we carry on and grow and develop. If we don't like it, we may try something (or many things) else. So called failures are just part of the learning process.
All the while, we gather skills and they somehow magically and mysteriously gel into some inner resource that gives us ideas how to achieve the creative goal we are after.
I think we make things because of the extreme sense of satisfaction we achieve. Satisfaction of knowing we made it ( Gee, I'm clever!), of nice comments often received from others ( Gee, they think I'm clever!), the industriousness of it - not sitting around doing nothing - we're getting something tangible out of it. (Gee, how clever! - or is that just a way of justifying doing our own thing?)
If our immediate survival needs are met - roof, food etc, our cultural side steps in and we want to decorate or create things on an individual level either for ourselves or something that means something to us - like a group or idea. We want to make something special or unique - or something that is different.
Then there's that thing - that when you are in the midst of something you enjoy, you kind of get lost. It is a respite of sorts. The benefits are twofold: you get a rest from woes - and I believe it is also a good time for the subconscious to work on an unsolved problem. Some people say their work kind of becomes automatic - mindless even. They can do their craft without really thinking about it. It gets them into a happy, calm head space. They're at one with it.
So go ahead and try it - feel good and solve a problem at the same time - go make something! :)
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240361 - 2023-07-18 04:58:34