Art and design have always been traced back to traditional crafts and artisanal means. Even now, in the 21st century, it has become an increasingly rising trend to return to our roots – handmaking and crafting – when our world now has always been dependent on technology. And so when the norm of crafting was challenged by machineries back when industrialisation began, artisans were worried. What would their skills be considered as then?
There were various responses to the industrial revolution, but what may be the starting point would be from William Morris (1834 – 1896), a designer and social activist that started out an anti-industrial reform in the year of 1861 in what would have been named as ‘The Arts and Crafts’ movement. Setting up his own company called ‘Morris & Co.’, his main beliefs were in having the “right kind of labour” and believing in “art for all”.
Another response would be in the collaboration between art and industrialisation, in which it was first known from the ‘Wiener Werkstätte’ movement. A group of artists from Austria called ‘Vienna Secession’ led the move in 1903 where key members accepted and combined arts and industrialism; and made a manufacturing and marketing enterprise for the crafts. There was no distinction between fine and applied arts, and together they worked with industrialists and machines.
So, what exactly is the stand of Art versus Industrialisation? Industrialisation may have dehumanised the skills of artisans, but it has indeed created various new means for the people. At the end of the day, I believe we should keep pondering about this question for this debate of arts versus industrialisation: Who exactly is the arts and crafts for – the people or the industrial?
Amienah Simangoon 