Artisans‘ work being weaned out due to subdividing their work to less expensive and unskilled labourers is the biggest travesty we have made in the modern age. Where factories mass producing materials to meet the increasing demand for faster results pushed aside all beauty of the industrial world. We will never get buildings like the Notre-Dame de Reims, or St. Vitus Cathedral, or even the Burgos Cathedral because we no longer pay people for their skills. We no longer the beauty of creativity, such as the art of staining-glass to then create beautiful window art that would hang high and filter through sunlight in the most colourful glorious way for further generations to come to also stand in awe and admire the intricate pictures made from glass. Or even stone masons, who have the ability to create life within an inanimate object with intricate designs, to forever line marbled walls. We have lost the beauty and art of gothic structures to high rise buildings and basic 4-walled houses made of plaster and fibre-glass because we no longer value art as well as an individual‘s skills. I’m mad.
I completely agree! and I’d add that this shift away from valuing skilled artisans is about more than just aesthetics—it reflects a broader cultural change in how we view labor and creativity. historically, artisans were not just workers; they were damn storytellers, showing traditions and cultural identities through their craft. the Notre-Dame de Reims and St. Vitus Cathedral are not just architectural feats and fucking awesome; they embody the spirit, faith, and craftsmanship of like an entire era. when u think of gothic architecture in France, you think of Notre-Dame!
By prioritizing efficiency and cost-cutting, we're risking losing that deeper connection to human expression and history. the mass production and assembly lines may fulfill material needs, but they lack the soul and intention behind handcrafted works. the buildings u bring up weren’t just buildings; they were designed to inspire awe, to lift people’s gazes upward, connecting them to something greater than themselves, like literal God.
It feels like we’ve traded enduring beauty for temporary convenience. this says so much about us as a society. look at the stupid micro trends and fast fashion we cook up. look at how we consume social media. look at the legacy are we leaving for future generations.
was at an art museum today just totally lost in thought about how alive everything was and how hundreds of ancient hands touched the things i was seeing and being someone who makes things myself i reflected both on how hard it was but also how we’ve been doing things like ceramics the same way for lifetimes now. art is so alive because of all the hands it took to make it and because of its very human purpose. i comb my hair and someone also combed their hair and drank and fought and loved it’s just their objects are on display for antiquities purpose and mine aren’t. we’re all just little walking museums full of interiority and maybe one day these words will be indecipherable to someone. empires rise and fall but we are all still combing hair and building things making with our hands. humanity is really so beautiful when we aren’t killing eachother.
My father is a wood, stone, reclaimed materials, and xeriscape artist and resents that he‘s subjected to the gaze of an audience if anything. I know with absolute certainty that he would feel compelled to create beautiful things even if he were the last man on earth, even if there were nothing left to build with. it’s the way he interfaces with the world! I think that’s very common among the most humble working artists who really do it for their craft and it’s why they’re able to be so prolific. Many of these artists don’t become known until after their deaths, if ever.
we don’t make jewellery like we used to!! where did the whimsy go!! the uniqueness!! the daintiness!! the literal ethereal feeling that this watch brings!!!! I CANNOT FIND IT ANYWHEREEEEEE