Even though craft and design is a powerful source of national identity, there is not a lot of literature directly talking about this topic, which makes it an exciting area to look at. Along with collecting primary data, I also looked at some secondary data and hope to continue to look for more as I find more sources.
In this blog, I am sharing findings from the article, Developing Cultural Products to Promote Local Culture: A Marketing Design for the Former Tainan State Magistrate Residence, Mapping craft in contemporary india: Dilli Haat and Dastkari Haat samiti’s Crafts Maps, and Sustaining crafts and livelihoods: Handmade in India.
The first article talks about how cultural products can help represent a region’s culture and market a place as a tourist destination which can further contribute to that region’s representation. Cultural features are “embedded” into products and can help “retain regional images” and showcase their history. The article refers to cultural products as “cultural ambassadors” (Chang et al., 2). Culture can partially be communicated through products. Cultural products are cultural, emotional, as well as commercial tools that possess the ability of storytelling. The article also shares UNESCO’s definition of the term “cultural products” which is as follows:
“The specificity of cultural goods and services, which, as vectors of identity, values, and meaning, must not be treated as mere commodities or consumer goods” (UNESCO, 2011) [Chang et al., 3].
In the development of emotional connection with regional culture, designing a creative cultural product has become popular in allowing people to connect to their regional identity. A cultural product that depicts a region’s identity also provides a marketing channel for the regional culture to communicate with people who want to explore their identity in that manner. The article talks about certain Taiwanese cultural products such as the Dong-Cha amulet, the clock tower and certain toy Figures that depict the historical event of the site successfully transform cultural symbolism and represent an integral part of the history of Tainan City. Thus, a cultural product can serve as “a vehicle for sharing, experiencing, learning, and recording culture” in an accessible manner (Chang et al., 9).
The other two articles talk about craft in India. Over the last century, industrial production has replaced traditional handmade production in India and countries of the like. This has led to a loss of traditional markets for artisans and craftspeople, who struggle to compete against the efficiencies of high-technology manufacturing. However, recently there has been a shift creating demand for handmade and cultural products, creating an emerging market for craftsmen. According to this article, craft is the second largest employer of people living in rural areas after agriculture in India. The crafts sector employs millions of people, whose income and livelihoods depend on selling their craft (89 – 90, Wood). As a result of this emerging market, examples like the Dilli Haat have arisen. Dilli Haat is a market in Delhi in India, also categorized as a fictitious village which displays crafts. The purpose of this village to exist is to “create a cultural ambience familiar to rural craftspeople”, giving individuals the opportunity and ambience required to produce traditional and local goods “to counter an increasingly interconnected world” in order to retain India’s cultural authenticity (Sethi).
Works Cited
Chang, T.-Y., Chen, K.-H., & Hunag, K.-L. (n.d.). Developing Cultural Products to Promote Local Culture: A Marketing Design for the Former Tainan State Magistrate Residence.
Sethi, C.M.K. (2013) “Mapping craft in contemporary india: Dilli Haat and Dastkari Haat samiti’s crafts maps,” The Journal of Modern Craft, 6(1), pp. 49–77. Available at: https://doi.org/10.2752/174967813×13535106841449.
“Sustaining crafts and livelihoods: Handmade in India,” craft + design enquiry [Preprint], (03). Available at: https://doi.org/10.22459/cde.03.2011.07.