Ajay Kumar at 17:16, 24 August 2023

2023-08-24T17:16:43Z

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{{Short description|Item production made completely by hand or with simple tools}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2022}}


[[File:Women Making Batik, Ketelan crop.jpg|thumb|260px|upright|[[Batik]] craftswomen in [[Java]], [[Indonesia]] drawing batik]]
[[File:Savisiipi (01).jpg|thumb|260px|Savisiipi handicrafts store in [[Pori]], [[Finland]]]]
[[File:Iranian Handicraft.JPG|right|thumb|260px|A handicraft Selling-Factory shop, [[Isfahan]]-[[Iran]]]]

A '''handicraft''', sometimes more precisely expressed as '''artisanal handicraft''' or '''handmade''', is any of a wide variety of types of work where useful and decorative objects are made completely by one's hand or by using only simple, non-automated related tools like [[scissors]], carving implements, or [[hook]]s. It is a traditional main sector of [[craft]] making and applies to a wide range of creative and [[design]] activities that are related to making things with one's hands and skill, including work with [[Textile|textiles]], moldable and rigid materials, paper, plant fibers, clay, etc. One of the oldest handicraft is [[Dhokra]]; this is a sort of metal casting that has been used in India for over 4,000 years and is still used. In [[Sistan and Baluchestan Province|Iranian Baluchistan]], women still make red ware hand-made pottery with dotted ornaments, much similar to the 5000-year-old pottery tradition of Kalpurgan, an archaeological site near the village. Usually, the term is applied to traditional techniques of creating items (whether for personal use or as products) that are both practical and aesthetic. Handicraft industries are those that produce things with hands to meet the needs of the people in their locality without using machines.<ref>{{Cite news |title=On State Street, "Maker" Movement Arrives |url=http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/make_haven/id_46594 |date=April 30, 2012 |author=Thomas MacMillan |work=New Haven Independent |access-date=November 23, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gaiacollection.com/ |title=Gaia Handicraft |access-date=November 23, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161026083037/http://www.gaiacollection.com/ |archive-date=October 26, 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Invent To Learn|last=Martinez|first=Sylvia|publisher=Constructing Modern Knowledge|year=2013|isbn=978-0-9891511-0-8|location=Torrance, CA|pages=32–35}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Dugang |first1=Lilia |title=Handicraft |url=https://handicraftsmv.weebly.com/types-of-handicrafts.html |website=Vocabulary}}</ref>

Collective terms for handicrafts include '''artisanry''', '''crafting''', and '''handcrafting'''. The term '''arts and crafts''' is also applied, especially in the United States and mostly to hobbyists' and children's output rather than items crafted for daily use, but this distinction is not formal, and the term is easily confused with the [[Arts and Crafts]] design movement, which is in fact as practical as it is aesthetic.

Handicraft has its roots in the [[rural crafts]]—the material-goods necessities—of ancient civilizations, and many specific crafts have been practiced for centuries, while others are modern inventions or popularizations of crafts which were originally practiced in a limited geographic area.

Many handcrafters use natural, even entirely indigenous, materials while others may prefer modern, non-traditional materials, and even [[Upcycling|upcycle]] industrial materials. The individual [[artisan]]ship of a handcrafted item is the paramount criterion; those made by [[mass production]] or machines are not handicraft goods.

Seen as developing the skills and creative interests of students, generally and sometimes towards a particular craft or trade, handicrafts are often integrated into educational systems, both informally and formally. Most crafts require the development of skill and the application of patience but can be learned by virtually anyone.

Like [[folk art]], handicraft output often has cultural and/or religious significance, and increasingly may have a political message as well, as in [[craftivism]]. Many crafts become very popular for brief periods of time (a few months, or a few years), spreading rapidly among the crafting population as everyone emulates the first examples, then their popularity wanes until a later resurgence.

==The Arts and Crafts movement in the West==
{{Main|Arts and Crafts}}
The [[Arts and Crafts]] movement originated as late 19th-century design reform and social movement principally in Europe, North America and Australia, and continues today. Its proponents are motivated by the ideals of movement founders such as [[William Morris]] and [[John Ruskin]], who proposed that in pre-industrial societies, such as the European [[Middle Ages]], people had achieved [[Catharsis|fulfillment]] through the creative process of handicrafts. This was held up in contrast to what was perceived to be the alienating effects of industrial labor.

[[File:Crafts class with Federal Arts Project instruction Works Progress Administration USA 1935.gif|thumb|Works Progress Administration, Crafts Class, 1935]]
These activities were called ''[[craft]]s'' because originally many of them were professions under the [[guild]] system. Adolescents were apprenticed to a master craftsman and refined their skills over a period of years in exchange for low wages. By the time their training was complete, they were well equipped to set up in trade for themselves, earning their living with the skill that could be traded directly within the community, often for goods and services. The [[Industrial Revolution]] and the increasing mechanization of production processes gradually reduced or eliminated many of the roles professional craftspeople played, and today many handicrafts are increasingly seen, especially when no longer the mainstay of a [[Tradesman|formal vocational trade]], as a form of [[hobby]], [[folk art]] and sometimes even [[fine art]].

The term ''handicrafts'' can also refer to the products themselves of such artisanal efforts, that require specialized knowledge, maybe highly technical in their execution, require specialized equipment and/or facilities to produce, involve [[manual labor]] or a [[blue-collar]] work ethic, are accessible to the general public, and are constructed from materials with histories that exceed the boundaries of Western "fine art" tradition, such as [[ceramic]]s, [[glass]], [[textiles]], [[metal]] and [[wood]]. These products are produced within a specific [[community of practice]], and while they mostly differ from the products produced within the communities of art and design, the boundaries often overlap, resulting in hybrid objects. Additionally, as the interpretation and validation of art is frequently a matter of context, an audience may perceive handcrafted objects as art objects when these objects are viewed within an art context, such as in a museum or in a position of prominence in one's home.

==In modern education==
[[File: Buell Childrens Museum Art Room by David Shankbone.jpg|thumb|250px|At the [[Buell Children's Museum]] in [[Pueblo, Colorado]], children and their guardians partake in "arts and crafts" (i.e. handicrafts)]]
[[File:Bat-Trang-Ceramic-Village6.jpg|thumb|250px|Draw and color [[Bat Trang Porcelain|Bat-Trang-Ceramic]]]]
Simple "arts and crafts" projects are a common elementary and middle school activity in both mainstream and alternative education systems around the world.

In some of the [[Scandinavia]]n or Nordic countries, more advanced handicrafts form part of the formal, compulsory school curriculum, and are collectively referred to as ''[[sloyd|slöjd]]'' in Swedish, and ''käsityö'' in Finnish. Students learn how to work mainly with metal, textile and wood, not for professional training purposes as in American [[vocational education|vocational–technical schools]], but with the aim to develop children's and teens' practical skills, such as everyday problem-solving ability, tool use, and understanding of the materials that surround us for economical, cultural and environmental purposes.

Secondary schools and college and university art departments increasingly provide elective options for more handicraft-based arts, in addition to formal "[[fine art]]s", a distinction that continues to fade throughout the years, especially with the rise of [[studio craft]], i.e. the use of traditional handicrafts techniques by professional fine artists.

Many [[community center]]s and schools run evening or day classes and workshops, for adults and children, offering to teach basic craft skills in a short period of time.

[[File: Handcrafted Shoes.jpg|thumb|Handcrafted shoes from bamboo made by artists of West Bengal, India, at a fair in Kolkata]]

[[File: Hand made sofa set.jpg|thumb|A hand made sofa set made from fibers extracted from bamboo at a fair in Kolkata. Made by artists of West Bengal, India.]]
[[File:Making conical hats - Hue countryside.jpg|thumb|Making conical hats ([[nón lá]]) in [[Huế]] countryside, Vietnam]]
[[File:Banaue Philippines Handmade-brooms-01.jpg|thumb|Typical Filipino handmade brooms in a restaurant of Banaue Municipal Town]]

==Handicraft production==
Handicraft production is a [[Production (economics)|small–scale]] production of [[Widget (economics)|products]] using manual labor. It was especially common in the [[Middle Ages]], during the era of the [[Industrial Revolution]] it was mainly supplanted by [[mass production]], however, it still exists for the production of goods such as [[luxury goods]].<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://www.booksite.ru/fulltext/1/001/008/067/812.htm|title=Handicraft Production|website=Great Soviet Encyclopedia}}</ref>

The handicraft method of production has been used by people since ancient times. Initially, people engaged in handicraft production aimed to satisfy the needs of their own economy, however, with the development of [[Market economy|commodity–money relations]], an increasing number of [[goods]] produced by them began to be supplied to the [[Market (economics)|market]]. Mostly these were household products: dishes, furniture, jewelry, souvenirs, clothes, shoes. However, over time, other goods, such as [[Improvised weapon|weapons]], began to go on sale.<ref name=":1">{{cite web|url=http://www.ref-history.ru/hard/ref-kustarnaya-promishlennost.htm|title=Handicraft Production|website=History of the Russian Empire}}</ref>

In [[Russian Empire|pre–revolutionary Russia]], handicraft production was quite widespread: about 30% of all manufactured products were produced by handicraft methods. Products were sold at [[fair]]s, and [[Barter|barter exchange]] was widespread.<ref name=":1"/> With the beginning of [[industrialisation]] and [[Collectivization in the Soviet Union|collectivization]] of the Soviet Union, the handicraft mode of production was declared "the highest degree of oppression of the working people" and ceased to exist in almost all spheres of the [[Economy of the Soviet Union|Soviet economy]] except on an informal basis.<ref name=":3">{{cite web|url=https://euroasia-science.ru/istoricheskie-nauki/промыслы-и-кустарное-производство-ир|title=Crafts and Handicraft Production of the Irkutsk Province in the Late 19th – First Third of the 20th Century: Conceptual Specificity|website=Eurasian Union of Scientists}}</ref>

Some state economies, such as [[Economy of Vietnam|that of Vietnam]], are largely based on handicraft production. For example, in the [[1950s|50s]] in [[North Vietnam]], there were more than one hundred thousand handicraft enterprises. In the early [[1970s|70s]], even before the end of the [[Vietnam War|war]], handicraft production provided about half of all the products of the local industry and almost a third of the total industrial production of the republic. By [[1977]], after the reunification of Vietnam, there were 700,000 handicraftsmen in [[South Vietnam]].<ref>{{cite book|author=Evgeny Glazunov|chapter=Chapter 3. The Policy of the Party in Relation to the National and Petty Bourgeoisie During the Transition to the Construction of Socialism. Socialist Transformations of Private Industry and Trade|title=Reforming Private Industry and Commerce in Vietnam|location=Moscow|publisher=Publishing House "[[Nauka (publisher)|Science]]", Main Editorial Office of Oriental Literature|year=1981|pages=134, 173}}</ref>

Handicraft production in [[Nepal]] withstands competition with industrial production and foreign goods, which is explained not only by economic and natural–geographical factors, but also by the support and encouragement of the handicraft industry from the state.<ref>{{cite book|author=Gleriy Shirokov|chapter=Nepal|title=Industrialization of Central Asian Countries|agency=[[Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences|Institute of Oriental Studies]] ([[Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union]])|publisher=Publishing House "[[Nauka (publisher)|Science]]", Main Editorial Office of Oriental Literature|year=1988|page=23}}</ref>

==List of common handicrafts==
There are almost as many variations on the theme of handicrafts as there are crafters with time on their hands, but they can be broken down into a number of categories:
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
===Using textiles or leather===
*[[Bagh print]]s
*[[Banner-making]]
*[[Batik]]
*[[Calligraphy]]
*[[Carpet]]
*[[Canvas work]]
*[[Cross-stitch]]
*[[Crochet]]
*[[Darning]]
*[[Dyeing]] yarns
*[[Embossing (leather)|Embossing]] leather
*[[Embroidery]]
*[[Felting]]
*[[Knitting]]
*[[Lace-making]]
*[[Leather crafting]]
*[[Lucet]]
*[[Macrame]]
*[[Hat making|Millinery]] (hat making)
*[[Needlepoint]]
*[[Needlework]] generally
*[[Patchwork]]
*[[Quilting]]
*[[Ribbon embroidery]]
*[[Rug making]]
*[[Saddle]] making
*[[Sewing]] generally
*[[Shoe making]] (cordwainning)
*[[Silkscreen]]ing
*[[Spinning (textiles)]]
*[[String art]]
*[[Tapestry]]
*[[Tatting]]
*[[T-shirt|T-shirt art]]
*[[Tunisian Crochet]]
*[[Weaving]]
*[[Bagru Print]]
*[[Handmade Bags]]

===Using wood, metal, clay, bone, horn, glass, or stone===
*[[Bead work]]
*[[Bone carving]] (buffalo, camel, etc., as well as horn and
*[[Brass broidered coconut shell craft of Kerala]]
*[[Carpentry]]
*[[Ceramic art]] generally
*[[Chip carving]]
*[[Copper arts]]
*[[Dollhouse]] construction and furnishing
*[[Doll making]]
*[[Vitreous enamel|Enameling and Grisaille]]
*[[Fretwork]]
*Glass [[etching]]
*[[Glassblowing]]
*[[Jewelry design]]
*[[Joining (woodworking)]]
*[[Lapidary]]
*[[Lath art]]
*[[Marquetry]]
*[[Metalwork]]
*[[Mosaic]]s
*[[Pottery]]
*[[Puppetry|Puppet making]]
*[[Repoussé and chasing]] (embossing metal)
*[[Scale model]]ing
*[[Sculpture]]
*[[Silversmithing]]
*[[Stained glass]]
*[[Toy making]]
*[[Wood burning]] (pyrography)
*[[Wood carving]]
*[[Wood turning]]
*[[Woodworking]] generally

===Using paper or canvas===
*[[Altered book]]s
*[[Artist trading cards]]
*[[Assemblage (art)|Assemblage]], collage in three dimensions
*[[Book binding|Bookbinding]]
*[[Cardmaking]]
*[[Collage]]
*[[Décollage]]
*[[Decoupage]]
*[[Embossing (paper)|Embossing]] paper
*[[Iris folding]]
*[[Origami]] or paper folding
*[[Paper craft]] generally
*[[Paper making]]
*[[Paper marbling]]
*[[Paper model]]ing, paper craft or card modeling
*[[Papier-mâché]]
*[[Parchment craft]]
*[[Pop-up book]]s
*[[Quilling]] or paper filigree
*[[Rubber stamp|Rubber/acrylic stamping]]
*[[Scrapbooking]]

===Using plants other than wood===
*[[Basket weaving]]
*[[Corn dolly|Corn dolly making]]
*[[Floral design]]
*[[Pressed flower craft]]
*[[Soapmaking]]
*[[Straw marquetry]]

===Other===
*[[Balloon animal]]s
*[[Cake decorating]]
*[[Candlemaking]]
*[[Egg decorating]]
{{div col end}}
[[File:Women dress.jpg|thumb|Women's dress]]
[[File:Handmade Dolls in Traditional Attire - Women of Hope Handicrafts Booth - Kabul AgriFair - May 2009 - cropped.jpg|thumb|Handmade dolls featuring [[Afghan clothing|traditional attire]] in [[Afghanistan]]]]
[[File:In front of Rangaswamy Temple.jpg|thumb|Handicrafts for sale in [[Mysore]], India. ]]

==Sales venues==
Handicrafts are often made for home use and decor.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2011/sep/18/handicrafts-sewing-baking-alex-clark | title=The hell of handicrafts | newspaper=The Guardian | date=18 September 2011 | access-date=22 May 2014 | author=Clark, Alex}}</ref> If sold, they are sold in [[direct sales]],<ref>{{cite web | url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2011-11-07/news/30369475_1_artisans-handicrafts-vrindavan | title=Handicraft business: Weaving a career out of handicrafts and empowering the Indian artisans | publisher=Economic Times of India | date=Nov 7, 2011 | access-date=22 May 2014 | author=Kumar, Amit}}</ref> [[gift shop]]s,<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.theafricareport.com/North-Africa/africas-village-crafts-with-big-ambitions.html | title=Africa's village crafts with big ambitions | publisher=Africa Report | date=13 June 2013 | access-date=22 May 2014 | author=Filou, Emilie}}</ref> [[Marketplaces#Types|public market]]s,<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2011/dec/08/milan-christmas-shopping-food-festivals | title=Sant' Ambrogio's street festival | newspaper=The Guardian | date=8 December 2011 | access-date=22 May 2014 | author=Dziadek, Francesca}}</ref> and [[online shopping]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.npr.org/2012/12/13/167080018/etsy-crafts-a-strategy-for-staying-handmade-and-profitable | title=Etsy Crafts A Strategy For Staying Handmade And Profitable | publisher=NPR | date=Dec 13, 2012 | access-date=22 May 2014 | author=Blair, Elizabeth}}</ref> In developing countries, handicrafts are sold to locals and as [[souvenir]]s to tourists.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-02-22/news/47581710_1_handicrafts-narendra-modi-khushbu-gujarat-ki | title=Handicraft industry needs to adopt technology | publisher=Economic Times of India | date=Feb 22, 2014 | access-date=22 May 2014}}</ref> Sellers tend to speak at least a few words of common tourist languages.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://R.Lang1234.com | title=Retail Sales: Tourists, Travelers | date=2013-04-25 | access-date=22 May 2014}}</ref> There are also specialty markets such as:
*[[Pike Place Market|Pike Place Public Market of Seattle]]
*[[Etsy|Etsy, The Largest Marketplace for Handmade and Craft Supplies]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Asim |first=Muhammad |date=2023-05-10 |title=Craft (Handmade) Industry Statistics for 2023 |url=https://thepakcrafts.com/craft-handmade-stats/ |access-date=2023-08-15 |website=The Pak Crafts |language=en-US}}</ref>
*[[Street Artists Program of San Francisco]]
*[[Ann Arbor Art Fairs]]
*[[International Art and Craft Fair, Ouagadougou]]

[[File:Handmade_frame_work.jpg|thumb|A craft done by using twilling papers]]
==See also==
*[[Bagh Print]]
*[[Maker culture]]
*[[Screw pine craft of Kerala]]
*[[Sloyd]]
*[[Fully feathered basket]]
*[[Artisan]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Commons}}
{{Wiktionary}}

{{Decorative arts}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Handicrafts| ]]
[[Category:Decorative arts]]
[[Category:Visual arts]]

Handicraft - Revision history

Ajay Kumar at 17:16, 24 August 2023