MADreads

Annie, get your (glue) gun

October 6th, 2008 Rebecca - Monroe Street

Grab your glue guns and seam rippers because craft is back! In Handmade Nation: The Rise of DIY, Art, Craft, and Design artists Faythe Levine and Courtney Heimerl chronicle the boom of the modern independent craft movement. The book is the first taste of Levine’s documentary film of the same name, set for release in early 2009.

So what exactly is the DIY- or “do it yourself” ethos? Levine traces influences to traditional handiwork, modern aesthetics, politics, feminism, and art. Handmade Nation showcases artists ranging from screen printers to clothing designers—even an R-rated latch hook rug maker. The uniting factor here is that all of these artists make their products by hand, and their influence on the mainstream marketplace is growing. Take, for instance, Rob Walker’s inclusion of Levine and “the punk of craft” in his recent book, Buying In: The Secret Dialogue Between What We Buy and Who We Are. Consumers are driving the craft boom through local fairs—Chicago’s Renegade Craft Fair, Milwaukee’s Art vs. Craft, and Madison’s Craftacular, to name a few, and building an online presence at marketplaces like Etsy.com.

But movement building aside, the real fun here is the collection of interviews and photographs from crafters across the country. If you’re a crafter, it’s part inspirational and part enviable—I need a giant sewing room with color-coordinated fabric shelves! Madison’s own Emily Kircher, a “recycling artist” who makes rugs, picture frames, and jewelry, takes center stage.  And I had to laugh when Sublime Stitching’s Jenny Hart credited embroidery—yes, embroidery—to being better for the nerves than “drugs, alcohol, therapy—anything I had ever tried.” So the next time you reach for a six-pack, consider an embroidery hoop instead?

Entry Filed under: Nonfiction