Are you an artist or crafty?

[Sherry]

Based on the way these words are commonly used, do you consider dollhouses an art, or a craft? Don't cheat and look the words up in the dictionary, give me YOUR opinion!

Not telling what I think...but the next person who compares my dollhouse building to her mother who does paint by number pictures is gonna get slapped!

[uppitycats]

I'm pretty sure I fall into the "craft" description. I love what I do...and take care in doing it...but not to the extent that many many of the people here do! They please me, but I'm not sure they'd be anything someone other than me would want to own...

But dollhouse building when done properly, by those of you who take great care to build exactly, decorate appropriately, fill in all the cracks, seams...turn out dollhouses that I'd love to live in, build accessories that are exquisitely made..it certainly is an art. Even when the base materials come in a "kit" (I don't know how many folks I've had to correct when they'll say something like, "Oh...it's a KIT!!..." as if that made it any easier! I remind them that when someone goes out to build a house they don't usually start with cutting down the tree -- they buy the boards and put it together. Does that make the house a "kit", too????"

[minime]

I am an artsy crafter. I don't consider what I do with miniatures to be art, however, I do consider some of what I see done with miniatures to be art.

[havanaholly]

Based on the way these words are commonly used, do you consider dollhouses an art, or a craft?...give me YOUR opinion!...

You want my opinion of whether I consider miniatures an art or a craft? Or whether I consider myself to be an artist or a craftsman? I consider myself someone who uses art supplies to craft miniature houses and all the things that go into them for my own amusement and amazement. I admire other people's artistry & craftsmanship.

Without consulting a dictionary, I consider art to be the manifest way a person expresses an inner vision of their world, and craftsmanship to be the means by which they express that vision.

Did you ask the time & I just tell how to build a clock?

[DHGranny]

Well,I have always been artsy and crafty.A gazillion yrs ago I painted in oils...all he time,even a few portraits.None of which exist now. I used to make all kinds of things.Used to make birdhouses,soap and candles and sell them.

The craft part,I'm just learning.Wooden dollhouses are a whole new realm for me.A learning experience.I think they take craftiness to be able to build them,design them,BUT without the art,well,that's what brings them to life.

So,I guess I'm both as I figure all on here are.Everyone's work is far to good to be minus either element.

[Suzy]

I feel that something needs to come from inside you completely to be art, starting with someone else's premis is not art, in my opinion. But crafting something into your own vision of what it can be is just as impressive and meaningful. So I guess my answer is a crafted piece can be just as impressive as an artistically created piece, so maybe we shouldn't get hung up on the words.

[Roxxie]

I think I am a bit of both. The thing I like about creating miniautures is you can combine many of the craft and art skills all in one place. I have always painted, done needle work, built things etc. You can do all these in one place and have a beautiful piece of "art" when you are done!

Hey, why can't a dollhouse be considered art? If an "artist" can splash paint on a canvas and its sold as "art" then I think our dollhouses are way more artistic than that! In My Humble Opinion !

[Wolfie]

I don't feel that I am an artisan. I feel that when I make dollhouses, I am just making them to please myself, and I try to make them as realistic as I possibly can. My dollhouses however are taking over my home, and for some reason I feel I must make them as large as possible. Now that may be because I'm pushing 70 and perhaps have some vision problems, so if I make them big, I will still be able to see them when I'm pushing 80........

[Sherry]

Holly came pretty close to the correct answer. Art is your interpretation of the world around you, whether it is good, amazing, or stick figures. Your 'craft' is the way in which you interpret that world. For instance, if you do oil paintings, then that is your craft, the technique you use, improve, and eventually excel at using. A child may use a loom and fabric loops to make hotpads, while someone else uses tiny thread and hook to crochet mini afghans. They both are crafting items, although not at the same level of expertise. it infuriates me when people refer to something as a craft, meaning that it is not something an artist would do, but something you'd make at summer camp quality.

So when you build a dollhouse, you are using many techniques to 'craft' a piece of art.-your interpretation of a house. How's that?

So the next time someone tells you that you are 'soooo crafty', tell them 'Yes, I'm pretty clever and cunning, and a fine artist as well', because that is what 'crafty' actually means!

And that is my rant about the use of the English language for today! Off to spend money! (at the vet, nothing exciting!)

[wenlaine]

Sherry, I can't imagine anyone saying such a thing but we must forgive them their ignorance. There are just some people out there who enjoy being hurtful.

I don't consider myself an artist. I just enjoy working with my hands. I'm more the jack of all trades, master of none type of person.

[JaniceG]

I am a creative person, but I don't consider myself an artist (even though I'm involved in a lot of arts). Right or wrong, I tend to think of "artist" as a profession. As far as dollhouses, art versus craft would depend on the execution. I consider my dollhouses one of my crafty hobbies. There are people who look at crafts with derision - like it's a bunch of silly women trying to be Martha Stewart. Members of my family have said as much:( (Not my DH, though, he totally digs my minis:))

So dollhouses = craft AND art

[Rhonda from the Bluegrass]

Sherry, you pretty much summed up how I feel about the casual use of the word "crafty". It really rankles me when I've worked over 100 hours on an intricate piece of beadwork (one of which won 1st place in a Fine Arts Competition), and someone says how "crafty" I am, as if they are bestowing a not-quite deserved compliment upon me. I feel the same about a dollhouse I have worked really hard on. Of course, I try to take it with a grain of salt . . . many of the people who say these things would never even make anything - most of the ones I have encountered spend most of their time watching t.v. (not like all of us who MAKE THINGS WHILE WE WATCH T.V.) or just "hanging out". I don't even actually like the term "crafty". It always carries negative connotations for me. In my case, that might be because both my maternal Grandmother and my elder Sister have been professional artists, and received recognition as such. One thing I can most assuredly say to you, Sherry, is that your work is always artisan level . . . NEVER just crafty!

[dollyhouselover]

It is def an art. We are all able to expand and use our imaginations just as those who have painted or built some of the most famous peices of art. Our medium is wood, plastic, plaster, metal, clay, paint etc like everyone else (and sometimes quite different all together). My own family and friends tell me they would never be able to make the things that I do or have the patience to do what I do. It is NOT "paint by number" garbage (although they are fun).

[dollyhouselover]

I don't feel that I am an artisan. I feel that when I make dollhouses, I am just making them to please myself, and I try to make them as realistic as I possibly can. My dollhouses however are taking over my home, and for some reason I feel I must make them as large as possible. Now that may be because I'm pushing 70 and perhaps have some vision problems, so if I make them big, I will still be able to see them when I'm pushing 80........

You are your own personal artisan

[JaniceG]

many of the people who say these things would never even make anything - most of the ones I have encountered spend most of their time watching t.v. (not like all of us who MAKE THINGS WHILE WE WATCH T.V.)

LOL. I don't mind being called crafty, though when I was 20 I wouldn't have so much as stepped inside a Michael's craft store. I bought my art supplies at ART stores and rolled my eyes at the moms dragging their toddlers into the craft stores to buy foamies and glitter. Ha ha - I was really stuck up about it - Now I can appreciate all types of creativity - even that which involves glitter.

Oh, but I can see why being called crafty would rankle you -

[Rhonda from the Bluegrass]

LOL. I don't mind being called crafty, though when I was 20 I wouldn't have so much as stepped inside a Michael's craft store. I bought my art supplies at ART stores and rolled my eyes at the moms dragging their toddlers into the craft stores to buy foamies and glitter. Ha ha - I was really stuck up about it - Now I can appreciate all types of creativity - even that which involves glitter.

Aha! I got a big grin out of this one . . . I don't think it matters WHERE you buy your supplies (by the way, glitter can be used very artistically) . . . just how the artisan or crafter USES it. Isn't this a great debate? There are so many ways to look at this topic!

[Merry]

Yes, I am an artist in many ways.

I am a retired professional pianist. Playing a piece of music requires such feeling and passion...being willing to expose your feelings to those who are listening. I don't think many people will understand when I say that I was born with a certain kind of sensitivity that comes out in my music.

I can also draw...not great but pretty well. I think I've done a good job on my dollhouse without being a professional builder.

I promise that I had already saved this on my computer, and I will share it with you:

“The work of art must seize upon you, wrap you up in itself and carry you away. It is the means by which the artist conveys his passion. It is the current which he puts forth, which sweeps you along in his passion” - Pierre-Auguste Renoir

So, to answer your question, yes, I am an arteeeeest.

[Sherry]

I think most of you are letting the opinions of the 'uneducated about art' people influence your opinion of yourself.

Each of you takes a pile of wood, glue, paint, and paper, and create your interpretation of what a modern, victorian, elf, fairy, or historic house should look like. You are taking the vision in your mind and making it into a tangible object..so you are by definition, an artist. Few of us are professionals, but that doesn't mean that the vision in your mind is lesser somehow. It just means you haven't sold anything-yet!

[havanaholly]

...There are just some people out there who enjoy being hurtful...I don't consider myself an artist. I just enjoy working with my hands. I'm more the jack of all trades, master of none type of person.

People who don't develop their talent don't can't really appreciate the work of those who do' they just don't get it.

I'm with you, Wendy. I've been doing "crafts" since I started drawing at age 3 (according to DM, sho had saved some "birds" I colored with crayons on paper and cut out to play with; I remember that they did have recognizable beaks, wings & bird-feet!

Sherry, you pretty much summed up how I feel about the casual use of the word "crafty". It really rankles me when I've worked over 100 hours on an intricate piece of beadwork (one of which won 1st place in a Fine Arts Competition), and someone says how "crafty" I am, as if they are bestowing a not-quite deserved compliment upon me. I feel the same about a dollhouse I have worked really hard on. Of course, I try to take it with a grain of salt . . . many of the people who say these things would never even make anything - most of the ones I have encountered spend most of their time watching t.v. (not like all of us who MAKE THINGS WHILE WE WATCH T.V.) or just "hanging out". I don't even actually like the term "crafty". It always carries negative connotations for me. In my case, that might be because both my maternal Grandmother and my elder Sister have been professional artists, and received recognition as such. One thing I can most assuredly say to you, Sherry, is that your work is always artisan level . . . NEVER just crafty

Art, like all beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. Some people don't "get" Jackson Pollock, either (but I'll bet it's fun to hurl paint like that!)

I find a better selection of basswood, particularly millwork, at Utrecht's (an art supply store) than what our Hobbytown USA carries. I also buy my polyclay by the pound there, and most of my acrylic paint tubes, because it's generally cheaper (unless I have a HL coupon and happen to be where one is). My best fabric source is still thrift stores!

[Rhonda from the Bluegrass]

Art, like all beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. Some people don't "get" Jackson Pollock, either (but I'll bet it's fun to hurl paint like that!)

I bet it is fun! And, if I could command the prices that a Jackson Pollock piece can, I think I would enjoy the selling aspect a lot more than I do!

[DonnasDollhouse]

But dollhouse building when done properly, by those of you who take great care to build exactly, decorate appropriately, fill in all the cracks, seams...turn out dollhouses that I'd love to live in, build accessories that are exquisitely made..it certainly is an art. Even when the base materials come in a "kit"

[CheckMouse]

I think art is definitely a big part of miniatures. An artist, of any kind, envisions things others don't see (drawing, building, painting, music). Just sit down to dinner in a restaurant: the miniaturists sees delightful little garbage cans, just paint them silver or brown and set them beside a desk -- everybody else at the table sees cream containers for their coffee. Painter-type artists pick up a blank canvas and envision a tropical island in a storm. The miniature-type artists picks up the pieces of a "kit", slabs and sticks of wood, and envisions a cabin in the mountains or a funeral parlor or ... ad infinitum. (Just check out any contest and see the artistic visions)

But it also takes skilled craftsmanship to bring that vision into reality. I used to sew a lot and I would show my DH a beautiful piece of fabric and ask him if he'd like a shirt out of that. He only saw cloth -- could NOT envision a shirt out of it. He finally told me to quit asking him; he always like what I crafted/created from the fabric.

So I think it takes both -- the vision of the artist and the skill of the craftsman.

But leave "crafty" out -- that's a different word entirely. It means sneaky, sly like a fox; con men are crafty.

[Momof2Moos]

I say several of us are: BOTH

Wouldn't you all? Though, there are definitely several members that would lean one way or the other. I think everyone here is an artist in their own right and some are certainly "crafty."

[Muriel]

I use crafts and craftsmans skills to create a dollhouse. Howerver as soon as something is created I think it becomes a form of art

I also think I'm crafty sometimes too in the way that I can sneakily create something usual out of something unusual.

[MerriMagic]

I give up on what other people think. More and more people are just becoming buyers, not doers. It's a consumer brainwash the retailers are putting over on us...and I for one am not going to buy into it. While I will buy some things, like house kits..that doesn't mean I don't artfully use that kit to produce something spectacular.

As Sherry mentioned, most of the people who lay trite little phrases on us after looking at what we do, dont' do much in the way of either artsy OR crafty work. They sit in front of the tv eating, which has become their interpretation of 'doing'. If the trend keeps up, the human race is going to go downhill fast.

Did anyone know that anthropologists who study the human brain, say it's actually decreasing in size? Yup, modern man's brain is getting smaller, and scientists are theorizing it's because so much stuff is now done for us. We have no incentive to be creative, so a large proportion of the human population has stopped trying. They just buy mass produced items and let it go at that. This means that our species is effectively being 'dumbed down'. Even our language is suffering. I have a brother in law who criticize me if I use words of more than two syllables..he says I'm 'showing off'. What is really going on, is that he can't bother to involve himself in language..he'd rather just be lazy and not take the effort to learn, or use, more complex language and all it's subtle nuances.

As short a time ago as a hundred years, if people wanted pretty, clever things most of them had to make them, themselves. They couldn't afford the prices the rich paid for items so they had to punt, and make their own beauty.

That's how beautiful quilts came to be, or lovely pottery, or beautiful carved furniture. We made it ourselves..but nowdays most people wouldn't have a clue as to what to do with a hammer and nails, much less a router or a rasp.

Yes, sometimes we might shortcut with a dollhouse kit..but that's because in our own circumstances we either can't, or can't afford, to own the tools to make such large complex items. But turn us loose on a dollhouse kit, and we make art...pure and simple. Beautiful things.

That's why I'm so delighted as to have found this forum, full of people with like minds. You all inspire me to reach and stretch, to produce something better than something that will 'just do'.

So when we say "I have this..or that" we're not just going out and buying something ready made..and showing it off as though we had a part in it's creation....instead, we own pieces of art, and we are the artisans who made that art come to life.

That's much nicer, don't you think?

Jeanne