Indie Craft

…the fantastic art and craft work being produced by artists and makers using traditional craft techniques but with a completely modern, alternative and subversive style, context and subject matter.

The alternative craft scene is thriving and flourishing, especially since the advent of the internet…

Its roots are in the DIY punk scenes that came out of the United States in the early 1990s. Hence, alternative craft is often called DIY Craft, also to distinguish it from its traditional and twee-er forebear. Other names for DIY and Indie Craft are New Wave Craft, Subversive Craft and Craftivism (Craft + Activism- usually when the work contains more political or socially conscious subject matter).

…artists who have taken craft techniques to a new level and have blurred or completely broken through the line between art and craft.

Indie/DIY craft can be viewed as a response to the homogenous mass production and mass consumption that is synonymous with the modern world. The scene’s continued rise in popularity can also be attributed to the current economic and environmental crises we face. As Magda Sayeg of Knitta Please puts it:

I’m part of the DIY craft movement that emphasises handmade artistry as a reaction to the mass-produced culture we’re immersed in.

If you make handmade items, whether for practical reasons (clothing or home wares) for decorative reasons, or as gifts, you are turning your back on the mass-produced items found on most high streets or in shopping malls. You are creating something unique, personal and special. A lot of indie crafters/artists use recycled or vintage materials, and making something yourself by hand from recycled materials obviously has less impact on the environment.

Textile-based crafting has traditionally been seen as a domestic, female-dominated (if not exclusively female) hobby or pastime and usually not as an art form in its own right. Several Indie Crafts artists are striving to change that perception. As embroidery artist Jenny Hart explains:

Embroidery serves no function, and is almost always secondary to a functional object (a pillowcase; a tea cosy). As an artist, one of my considerations is to make this type of needlework embellishment the substance of the subject and the object itself.

Any feminists who have bemoaned the current rise of craft shouldn’t worry, as both men and women are partaking in the new wave. Indie Craft isn’t about keeping women busy, as it may have been in previous centuries, and it isn’t purely decorative art. Today’s craft is also about empowerment: feeling a sense of achievement when making something with your own hands. It’s about taking a stand or making a statement against this modern, digital, disposable age of mass production and consumption that is leading the world into environmental and economical ruin. It’s about creating something you might not have ‘needed’ to make yourself- you could have gone to any shop and bought, for instance, an (unfeasibly, unsustainably) cheap, mass-machine-made scarf or jumper- but that gave you the sense of achievement and empowerment that comes from learning and perfecting a skill, making a unique item by yourself, for yourself or for a gift, and in many cases making a small, independent business out of your creations.

-extracts from the introduction to 'Indie Craft' by Jo Waterhouse, 2010. 

Monty the cat (below) was created based on photos and videos sent to me by his owner.

Apparently Piglet was feeling left out...

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Side Project: Animal 'Cuddlies'

I very much enjoyed an exercise we did earlier this year where we were asked to bring in various bits and bobs (recylcling, textiles, random useful found materials) and were then given a short time to make animals out of them.

First I made my crocodile. For the structure of his body and jaw i used pieces of a plastic bottle, joining them together with wire. The tail is made from pieces of egg box which i sewed loosely together so it can move around. I wrapped wool around the body and attached split pins for the lumpy scales. The jaw is covered in scraps of green fabric. The eyes are made from a piece of egg box, glued on with a glue gun. The teeth are made from a beer can, also attached with a glue gun. The legs were made from the same wire i used for the structuring. We were advised to use as little glue as possible, instead relying on wrapping/tying/stitching/fastening in other ways, but it became necessary because of the time constraint.


I posted this on my facebook and was particularly flattered when a fellow student on my course compared it to a Quentin Blake illustration!

For my reindeer I relied more on the textiles. I used a plastic bottle again for the main body, but i detached the narrow end of the bottle and tilted it downwards so that the head of the deer dips forward (secured with wire). I wrapped bits of canvas material around the body to conceal the plastic, followed by some brown wool which i wrapped around to help tuck in the fabric and maintain the shape. I added a piece of texted knitting on the top for the thicker coat of the reindeer. His antlers and legs are made from my favourite trusty wire. I cut out thin strips of brown fabric and glued them to the bottle head one by one to keep the shape, and attached a piece of egg box for the muzzle with split pins, which became the eyes. I glued on a piece of scrunched up red fabric for the 'rudolf the red-nosed reindeer' nose. The ears are just cut out pieces of brown fabric, along with the lacy piece around the head (I'm not sure why i needed this bit, it could be a lighter piece of the reindeer's coat or just decoration). And I finished him off with a scarf.


Since then I've been happy to carry on making similar creations in my spare time.
At the moment I am making friends and family their favourite animals. 

Taz the turtle

I made this for a friend for their birthday. This one took me about a day to finish.

Monty the moggie cat.

Currently working on this. It has taken me a few weeks of on/off work, as there has been a lot of knitting and sewing involved to get the pattern and features as accurate as i can.

Arthur Rackham

Here is an illustration that has clearly been influenced by the painting 'Hylas and the Nymphs' by Waterhouse.


The suggestion of water is simplistic- there is minimal use of line here that is very effective and looks elegant. Like in Waterhouse's pencil study (see earlier post), the wavy lines of the water link visually to the women's hair; the hair flows seamlessly into the ripples of the water, like they are a part of it.


Stylistically it is very reminiscent of Japanese illustration and ink drawings (before modern manga/anime etc); it brought the work of Katsushika Hokusai to mind.

Katsushika Hokusai’s 'The Great Wave Off Kanagawa', circa 1831, Hakone Museum (Japan).

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Dirty Car Art

Stumbled across this today when I was browsing illustrations inspired by 'Hylas and the Nymphs'.

'Meet Scott Wade – a talented artist, who like every creative  and curious person can’t resist a dirty rear car window. We suspect that Scott started off with clever sayings, like, “wash me”, however his later works became much more sophisticated.

He lives on a mile and a half of dirt road – caliche, as the locals call it, road-base: a blend of limestone and gravel clay. Driving over this surface results in a fine, white dust that billows up behind any vehicle driven faster than a galloping turtle, coating the rear window. Being an experienced artist it wasn’t long before Scott started experimenting with techniques to achieve these amazingly detailed and shaded drawings.'

[http://www.boredpanda.com/dirty-car-art-by-scott-wade/]

More examples can be found on his website: http://www.dirtycarart.com/

study for 'Hylas and the Nymphs', John William Waterhouse, circa 1896


There's something about classical studies like this that really appeals to me. The sensitive pencil work is perfectly fitting for the ambient, dreamy atmosphere of the scene in the story.


In fact, I believe that sketches like this are often far superior to the painstakingly painted visions that they precede. There is a massive difference, visually, between the paintings and the sketches. In this example, the subtle shading of the women's faces contrasts with the wavy, gestural pencil lines, details which are lost in the final paintings which appear bland and airbrushed in comparison.


As a fan of inky, sketchy styles of illustration, I suppose it does make sense that the sketches are more interesting to me (not to say that I am not amazed by Waterhouse's painting talent!). In the studies we see the freedom of the artists' hand movement; the pencil moves more swiftly, spontaneously. The dark lines which overlap some of the softer detail demonstrate this freedom. In a painting they would seem out of place, but when this drawing is viewed as more of an illustrative piece, the lines add to it, as though the hair of the women has become fluid/blown about in a breeze, and the waviness of the marks looks like a suggestion of the water and water plants around them.

Fond memories of 'Jason and the Argonauts'

Film still, Jason and the Argonauts, directed by Ray Harryhausen, 1963.


I have always considered the 'old school' stop motion special effects the most impressive! Far more life-like than the CGI that is used so often today.

Re-familiarising with the story behind 'Hylas and the Nymphs'

Last night I decided to dig out the old VHS player, and raided the old tape collection to find some old treasures to watch. I picked out a recorded tape of James and the Giant Peach. In my laziness, I left the tape playing in the hope that it would reach the end and rewind itself, but as chance would have it (after some interesting, verging on vintage adverts) Jason and the Argonauts started playing! This is perfect research and has helped me get into the story behind Hylas's quest, and find out a little more about his character/personality. 


In the film he is portrayed as the crew member with 'brains' rather than 'braun', as demonstrated when he confidently challenges Hercules at a discus throw. Hercules manages to throw the discus straight to a rock far off the coast, confident that Hylas (comparatively small and non-muscular) will not be able to beat him and win a place on the Argo. However, Hylas cleverly skims the discuss on the sea, hitting the rock with the discus which then flies clear of the rock. 


Considering his apparent intelligence (as portrayed in the film), it only highlights the power of the Nymphs. Although Hylas's cause of death in the film is not made explicit, his sensible character is still made evident; someone intelligent would surely be less vulnerable to the cunning charms of the women in the lake, yet even he can't resist them.

Summer Brief: Exchange and Re-Interpret

THE BRIEF

Part 1- Initial Meeting

Before you leave today, get into groups of 2. You are then to arrange and meet together at an Art Gallery.

• select and agree on a piece of work that you see
• read the information about the piece and understand its' context
• what is it about?
• what was happening in the world at this time? Record artist and date.
• Discuss the work and observe what it is that interests you about it.
• Buy a postcard of the image, photograph it or find it in a book so that you can refer back to it.

Part 2-The Project

• buy a sketchbook
• independently respond to/re-work the image
• identify a theme within the work to focus on
• what is it that you find stimulating?
• if it is not apparent at first-let it emerge (as Picasso did!)
• your connections can be obvious or abstract. You may home in on a tiny background detail, or focus on a purely aesthetic quality e.g. shapes or colour. You may ask what is happening in the picture and build your own narrative or trace what has influenced this piece of work. The piece may lead you to think about a social or political concern. Let yourself go on a journey. It doesn’t matter where it ends up. The A-Z is what is important. Record your thought process and engage with something that you find genuine interest in. Post musings/observations on your blog.

Part 3-Pairing

From the work you have created individually, agree a date to exchange your work with your other half either by post, email or physically.

Work intuitively to either respond to or interact with the piece of work. You should make 6 exchanges together. It is entirely up to your pairing whether you develop the same piece of work that you started with or you begin to have a range of images that derived from the original choice.

There are no limitations on size, format and media. Surprise us.

This is the first time we have been asked to do a serious collaborative project, and the thought of mixing with and working from the imagination of my class-mates is exciting and I'm really looking forward to seeing what evolves from our exchanges.

After being briefed, I grouped together with Bryony and Hannah (we have confirmed with our tutor that it is ok to work in a three). 

'Hylas and the Nymphs' by John William Waterhouse, 1896, Manchester City Gallery

We visited Manchester City Gallery, where we explored the art work and decided on a classical piece, ‘Hylas and the Nymphs’ by John William Waterhouse. It is based on the Greek legend Jason and the Argonauts.

 ‘Waterhouse's Hylas and the Nymphs brings to life a version of the Greek myth, Jason and the Argonauts, as told by William Morris in The Life and Death of Jason. In Morris' version, Hercules is left on the island of Lemnos after his companion, the handsome Hylas, wanders away from the ship. Hylas comes across a group of sea-nymphs who, enchanted by his beauty, seduce him into loving them, eventually dragging him into the sea water with them. The Argo leaves Hercules and Hylas behind on the island, and Hylas is never found.’ –

['

John William Waterhouse's eroticized Hylas and the Nymphs’, Meaghan Kelly '05.5, English and History of Art 151, Brown University, 2004, (http://www.victorianweb.org/painting/jww/paintings/kelly11.html)]

This is quite a large, visually rich painting, with lots of detail. It draws the viewer into the story; the moment that has been captured seems very intense, making it captivating. The main focus of the painting is the gaze held between Hylas and the Nymph who is holding his arm. He appears hypnotised, held there by the seemingly magical hold she has over him. According to the story, the nymphs thereafter drag him down into the water with them, never to be seen again, so there is a strong sense of foreboding. From his body language, it could be inferred that Hylas is fighting his own sense of caution. His stance is vulnerable, he is surrendering his will as he leans towards the Nymph, almost like her gaze itself is pulling him forward physically, yet his left arm is held back, leaning his body partly away from her. He appears unconsciously aware that he shouldn’t give in to their seduction; he has to move on with his quest.

There is so much to read into and analyse when looking at this picture. The main theme that arises is the female allure; the nymphs’ role as femme fatales.

It is interesting to consider how they appear. At the time this was painted (1896), Victorian pornography was getting considerably raunchy, and in comparison, this image which is famously portraying the nymphs as sexual beings, is quite tame.

So far, in my attempted studies of the painting, I’ve discovered the major difficulty is recreating the look of the gaze. The eye contact between Hylas and the Nymphs is what makes the image so powerful; getting the eyes right makes or breaks the picture in terms of the mood they create.

I also find it interesting how the expression and general demeanor of the nymphs does not immediately suggest that they are ‘femme fatale’ in an obvious, predatory sense. They are not making an apparent effort to lure him in in a sexual way. In fact, the women appear overtly pure, and deceptively innocent; most look slightly shy and tentative in Hylas’s presence. This is enforced visually by their pale skin, which seems to make them glow ethereally; they light up the dark water around them, like beacons that he cannot avoid. Their danger is arguably increased by their seemingly harmless nature. Their surroundings, the dark depths of the mysterious water around them, is what makes the scene so ominous. Their appearance as beautiful, lovely females is what enables them to pull him into their enchanting imprisonment.