Hello and hi to anyone who might be reading. This is my new blog, “Useful Work”, lovingly named after the socialist manifesto Useful Work Versus Useless Toil written by textile designer, aristocratic shit stirrer, and Arts and Craft movement champion William Morris in 1884.
It is the intention of this journal (can we call it that?) to help record, mainly for myself, but also for anyone else who might find it….useful….. my search for cultures of sustainability via the practice and production of craft across time and space.
Originally trained as a glass artist, I have recently finished a Graduate Diploma in Sustainable Design from the University of South Australia, and have embarked on a research degree examining the historical relationship between craft practice in non-industrial cultures and environmental, social, and cultural sustainability.
It is my belief, shared by experts in the field of sustainability thinking, that sustainability cannot be achieved through the unquestioned advancement of technology, economic growth, or any other system which continues to operate independently within the rules of anthropocentric and capitalistic worldviews. Change must in fact begin at the cultural level in which our values are fundamentally reconnected to a symbiosis with nature, other people, and other cultures in the spirit of preservation of well-being for all. Within the practice of craft, I believe a universal framework for this remodeling has existed for some time.
So, anyways, that’s my little manifesto, and welcome to my journey. In my search I will meander across the fields of design, culture, art, and ecology among others to examine their relationships to craft and how we can use the lessons of these exchanges to illuminate healthier and more realistic perspectives of life. If you have any questions or insights into the matters at hand, please feel free to email or leave a comment, and I will absolutely respond . Learning and sharing is what this is all about.
Useful Work 