Conclusions & Recommendations
Travelling to Japan for such a period was a significant undertaking and one I am very proud of doing as a Churchill Fellow. I saw and experienced so much that it is tough to put it all down on paper (screen!)
Summary of Fellowship
I found my trip extremely rewarding and learnt so much. I am creating a body of work next to explore some of the techniques I’ve learned in Japan and express some of the ideas I knew about. I think my studio work will be forever changed with the subtle shifts I have made since my trip.
I split the subject into four areas to ensure my research was rigorous, and I pushed myself to look at areas I wasn’t as knowledgeable in. I didn’t want to only rely on workshop practices as that is where I am most comfortable, and, given the new and potentially daunting country and culture, I wanted to ensure I gave time and energies to all areas.
The four areas were:
Birth - For my purposes, this covered the making of tools, from an adaptation of existing tools to the making of new ones.
Life - The use of tools by artisans, Intangible cultural heritage assets…. Factory Festival
Death - the end of life of the tools,
Afterlife - Tsukumogami thinking in the C21st
Summary of recommendations
The Factory Festival was an exhilarating experience: sharing behind-the-scenes in workshops to build more significant connections with the general public. Visiting the craftspeople, I was interested in the conversations around me, of people’s amazement at the skill and time that goes into some of the everyday items they might overlook. I think we have a lot we could learn from this in the UK, and this is a crucial area for me to explore with The Tool Appreciation Society. Something like the factory festival could work well in the UK, but the regional identities in Japan do a lot of the heavy lifting in terms of context. To mark a region as ‘x’, the capital of ‘x’ in the UK, would help establish this thinking.
Historically, in the UK, we had regional characteristics lots stemming from the industrial revolution; Nottingham is famous for lace, Sheffield is the steel city, Northamptonshire is the ‘Shoemaking capital of the world’ Welsh lamb is world-famous, as is Scottish whisky. But now, these are single items rather than regional identities. What would it be like if we cultivated stronger regional identities in terms of manufacturing? Can the market for certain goods be boosted by regional identities built and nurtured to support these business endeavours? The following steps are to consult with Heritage Crafts Association and Craft Council to share findings.
Skills are held in a place in Japan by their multi-generational use. This flow of information is preserved by creating systems that support artists to pass down knowledge (National Living Treasure status, maintenance of traditional buildings as heritage assets).
Next Steps
My work is as an artist, so the changes will come through my work and my teaching first, which is already happening. What was very strange for me was having all these new experiences while away, but I did not have a space to work and think with my hands. I think through materials and so coming back to my studio now is almost the second phase of my research trip – to put the thinking into action. I am dedicating this next year to cementing my thinking and new skills in the studio and am looking forward to where this will take me.
This heightened appreciation for sharing craft skills has led me to develop a Metal Club in the UK, a space where people can come together and learn various metalworking techniques. I have worked as a metalworker for over 20yrs (from Jeweller’s apprentice right through to now as an artist and educator) and would like to share those skills outside of higher education.
They are opening up opportunities for a more significant connection between artisans and the general public. In the UK, there is an understanding of artists ‘Open Studios’ events and, in some places (like Bristol), an ‘Open Doors’ weekend where members of the public can see behind the scenes of a theatre, for example. The Factory Festival is somewhere in between these things. There is a participatory aspect that engages and focuses upon skill and mastery, which creates an atmosphere of respect and exchange. This helps with communicating the skill of the artisans and the safety of the event. As an artist who takes part in some Open Studios, I find establishing the tone is important for everyone to be able to enjoy it. In certain situations, the art is secondary, and a ‘fun day out with cake’ is the focus. This can be dangerous with people running around near tools but also makes for a strange imbalance between audience and artist. Cockpit Arts in London seems to have this balance well executed for artist studios. The event is well attended, there are interesting, fun things to do and see, but it is also respectful of the artist and craftspeople’s skills. A factory festival in the UK could be a positive move in claiming the skills and heritage present here and giving opportunity for it to thrive once again.
