When is the last time you sat down for a good cup of coffee at a Shakespearean love sonnet or hung your coat on Dante's Inferno? When is the last time you put your clean socks in a Steve Martin movie or slid your dishes into a Greek tragedy? When is the last time you stored your books in a Beethoven symphony or reached to silence your alarm on the Song of Solomon? When is the last time you relaxed to watch TV on the History of the World by H.G.Wells, or played poker on a ballet, or put your feet up on a good model of the universe?
No, not recently. These nine absurd suggestions encompass the nine Greek Muses of the arts and are meant to point out a chasm. In order, they are Erato, Muse of lyric and love poetry; Calliope, Muse of heroic or epic poetry; Thalia, Muse of comedy; Melpomene, Muse of tragedy; Euterpe, Muse of music; Polyhymnia, Muse of sacred poetry; Clio, the Muse of history; Terpsichore, the Muse of dance and finally something that we typically don't, but probably should, consider an art: Urania, Muse of astronomy. The list juxtaposes these arts to nine common articles of furniture, all of which I have made numerous times, not infrequently with the image of myself as an artist. Yes, it's nice, thinking a of oneself as an artist, a certain elevation and sophistication of life ensues, but in truth a wide chasm separates furniture making and artistic creation.
In a nod to my Greek heritage, I think the original Muses still provide a decent measure of what constitutes art. I distill the matter into a simple question: “Is it useful?” The word furnish itself means to supply with what is useful or necessary, to fit out, provide, equip. Furniture existed in ancient Greece, even in ancient Egypt, and yet the Greeks assigned no Muse to its creation. In my opinion if an object is useful, no matter how intricately decorated, no matter what the skill level required, no matter how beautiful, it is craft, of the finest order perhaps, but still craft. These Muses inspired works with no utilitarian purpose or use. My creations as a furniture-maker were quite the opposite.
Back in the day I was often a participant, organizer and/or juror of a show held at the Coconino Center for the Arts in Flagstaff, Arizona with the simple and unpretentious title of “Useful Objects.” It was later renamed as a list of materials, but its purpose was to showcase the local area's best weavers, blacksmiths, potters, beadmakers, carvers, quilters, metalworkers, woodworkers, jewelry makers, etc. Now all these crafts are similar to furniture making insofar as the use or purpose, even if that be personal adornment, is the essential defining element. Rarely a piece, say wood marquetry or fabric, would have no other destiny than to be hung on a wall much as a Salvador Dali print would be. The arts of painting, photography, sculpture, drawing and printmaking were not part of this show. It was a craft show.
To help further clarify my distinction between art and craft I introduce the concept of the “blank canvas,” which I use as shorthand for other blanks, whether they be blank paper, unexposed film, block of marble, music staff paper, digital void, etc. I never entered my shop, no not once, though I guess I could have, to face a "blank canvas." I always knew exactly the purpose to which my piece would be put, though there might a thousand ways to approach it. The essential element was use or purpose, which predetermined most of what followed. I could have proceeded to make, for instance, a table six feet tall, but then it would have been sculpture, heh? A jeweler, likewise, does not make an earring with no means of attachment. A potter does not make a plate with mountainous terrain on it.
I could not help but inquire of my friendly AI companion what it had to say on the distinction between art and craft, and it turns out it concurs with the Greeks. Here you go:
Art is an expression and application of imagination and creative skill. It is a form of communication that is intended to evoke an emotional response from the viewer. The purpose of creating a work of art is to make something that can be appreciated for its aesthetic beauty. The creative visual arts are traditionally painting, sculpture, photography, or drawing. The performing arts include theater, dance, music, opera, musical theater, magic, puppetry, comedy, circus and improvisation. (Filmmaking was treated separately from performing arts.)
Craft, on the other hand, involves the creation of functional or decorative items, often requiring a specific set of skills and following a predetermined plan or pattern. Crafts can include weaving, carving, pottery, embroidery, macrame, beading, sewing, quilting, and many other forms. The purpose of creating a craft is to make something that is useful or decorative. Crafts may sometimes be called decorative arts.
There is great joy to the craftsperson in creating a piece of fine workmanship. Theirs is a life of considerable pleasure, fascination and absorption. Nonetheless, I daresay nearly every craftsperson has entertained the question as to whether or not they were an "artist." I for one, after many years of thinking myself an artist, now make a clear distinction between the creative process involved in art and the creative process involved in craft, which is so front weighted by utility and function. Alas, I would like too, but I cannot say furniture making is one of the arts, and neither do the ancient Greeks nor Microsoft.
