Patrick Webb ✿ A generous coat of craft thinking

Ngozi Omeje is a ceramicist who teaches at the Department of Fine and Applied Arts at University of Nigeria, Nsukka. She has been directly influenced by the work of El Anatsui. She has exhibited overseas in exhibitions such as the Cheongju Craft Biennale, but continues to live in Nsukka. In our conversation, Ngozi discussed a particular method she uses to string ceramic shards from the ceiling to create larger forms. She sees this as a way to transcend the kiln’s size limits and deal with the regular threat of breakage that afflicts ceramics’ transport. The idea came to her when she watched people fishing. The result is quite emotional. Ngozi talks about the sensation of hugging one of her ceiling works as if picking up a baby and it smiling back to you. She describes the individual shards as like “leaves.” Each has been imprinted with the palm of her hand. The palm print resembles the veins on a leaf. For Ngozi, there is no audience to sustain her work in Nigeria. But rather than constantly waiting to be recognised internationally, she decided to make work for the love of it. “It calms my spirit”. Finally, she talks about the work of making traditional ceramic hives for bees that open up easily so that honey can be extracted without disturbing the colony. Follow @ngozichukwukaomeje See: https://garlandmag.com/ngozi-omeje/

Kevin Murray interviews one of the key instigators in Melbourne's street jewellery scene, Melissa Cameron. How did Part B evolve? What does the name mean? What were its other projects? What is its enduring influence? For more details and images, see https://garlandmag.com/loop/steal-this/.

Pam Hall has extended her practice as an artist in Newfoundland to create an Encyclopedia of Local Knowledge. The three chapters written so far feature the living crafts of Northern Penninsula and Bonn Bay, Fargo and Change Islands and Miawpukek Middle River. We invited Pam to share the story of his epic project. Read more: https://garlandmag.com/loop/pam-hall-the-encyclopedia-of-local-knowledge/ https://encyclopediaoflocalknowledge.com/ https://pamhall.ca/

Urmila Mohan is an anthropologist who established the Jugaad Project, an open platform for publishing articles on material culture. Here are some of the topics covered in our conversation: The meaning of jugaad as everyday innovation The need for an open global platform to share articles in material culture How published articles benefit their subjects Prayer beads as spiritual technology that is only partly replaced by fidget spinners Articles on bamboo weaving in Java and the infrastructure of Durga Puja in India The new book publication https://www.thejugaadproject.pub http://www.urmilamohan.com/ https://www.thejugaadproject.pub/home/likhai-wood-carving

We speak with Jennifer-Navva Milliken, director of the Museum of Art and Wood about a fascinating project inspired by the iconic lattice wooden screen of the Islamic world.

We speak with the curator of the magnificent exhibition Sutr Santati, in celebration of the 75th anniversary of Indian independence. This exhibition consists of 100 textile works representing an impressive range of techniques including Kutch embroidery, patola, brocades, sequin work, applique, block printing, silk tapestry and ikat.

Co-Obradoiro Galego is a collaborative project by three basketmakers and designer Paula Camiña, looking at biotechniques to help regenerate and revive Galician craft heritage. We speak with Paula about the origins of this project and how it stems from her own roots in the region. We learn about the impact of foresty monoculture and its impact on basketmakers. The use of a biopolymer fibre produced from seafood waste offers a circular path to help promote this traditional craft.

Hanne Brøbech Sønnichsen is the chairperson of Danish Crafts and Design. For the organisation's Formkraft publication, she recently wrote Greasy Fingers and Practical Research Help Craft Out of the Display Case which reflect on the student revolt against the lack of technical education in their craft program. "That the students see themselves more as practitioners of craft rather than craft artist (kunsthåndværkere) is perfectly fine. We must – and this also applies to us at DKoD (Danish Crafts & Design Association)- clear up the concepts and remember that ‘craft’ gives associations to handwork, whereas ‘kunsthåndværk’ signals that there is also a certain aesthetic ambition involved." "Artistic craft is something essential and valuable that we must pass on to the next generation. Otherwise, the basic know-how and foundation for Danish design will lose its shape." In this podcast, we learn of the background to this controversy, the specifically Danish understanding of craft, and also her opinions about craft education. Underlying this is her philosophy that "hand teaches hand" .

We speak with Hillevi Skoglund about a Swedish project involving thousands of participants who each plant and process a plot of linen. See our website for more information. 

Our current issue, titled Know How: The Grammar of Making, features an article by Patrick Webb, titled Maker Mythologies Classical Origin Stories for the Crafts, which is a fascinating overview of the key role played by craft in the ancient understanding of the world as a divine creation. This is a taste of the rich offerings from his blog called Real Finishes, which I highly recommend. What intrigues me about Patrick is that he articulates this complex world knowledge not as a university professor in humanities, but as an exponent of his own craft, as a plasterer. Patrick offers a view of the world through the eyes (and hands) of a plasterer. For Patrick, plaster is part of the process by which humans were able to leave their caves and venture out into the world. Of course, the very word "ceiling" derives from the importance of plaster in rendering impermeable membranes for our shelter. Plaster is by nature a demanding substance. Beginning as a liquid, it quickly sets when exposed to air, which causes Patrick to believe that "the material is the master." When I ask Patrick whether craft could be considered a form of knowledge, he doesn't shy from its dimension as labour: "What I do requires a great bit of physical exertion. You build muscles, you sweat." Rather than drudgery, Patrick sees the physicality of plastering as good for both physical and mental health. Nonetheless, Patrick does advocate for a kind of knowledge that is revealed in the doing. When he reaches the limits of describing this in his writing, Patrick then turns to poetry to reflect this haptic understanding. Patrick offers a critique of Plato, particularly the way his academy required students to know geometry, yet would not admit artisans who he saw as a lower form of life. I was curious how Patrick gathers so much knowledge outside the modern academy of the university. For Patrick, the university is "a place of intellect and cognition" and therefore not a natural place for the "arts and crafts". Craft knowledge is embodied experience that is best taught through the apprenticeship system. I wonder if that is necessarily so, especially given Patrick's critique of Plato's academy for the exclusion of artisans. Finally, I brooch the issue of gender in Patrick's language, which frequently mentions "craftsman". Patrick says that he did ask some female students what they preferred to be called, and found "craftsman" the most popular. What I appreciate while listening to Patrick is his generosity of knowledge. He puts great effort into his various writings without the systemic rewards that are built into academic careers. It is a testament to knowledge as a currency that we can all share.