“Artist’s work is not good, craftsmanship is good. And craftsman’s work is not great, but their art is good.” — Thomas More in The Utopia of Plato.
There are two types of artists. There are the craftsmen and the artist. Each group has its own skill and way of doing things. However, there are some similarities between them as well and these kinds of artisans. This blog will show that the skill of a craftsmanship includes the art of painting or building while the art of an artisan would include creating something out of nothing. In my opinion, this would make us wonder if maybe they were somehow similar, but they are so different. To illustrate this point, let us look at how they did their jobs: artist vs craftsman.
Artist
This person is known as an artist. For example, when we talk about painters, it would be a painter, sculptor, writer or director who does that kind of thing. He or she would use his own talent to create their creations. They might also call themselves a poet, architect, musician or painter, even though they don’t really have any skills or knowledge. The best example of them being one of the most popular artists around today is Pablo Picasso. If you ask lots of people who is famous for painting, then chances are he would probably be the top choice. As far as sculptors go, he was famous for sculpting people and sculptures as well.
The arts are often compared to a child’s play. They are fun and creative. But what if a child creates an artwork? When I look at your paintings and sculptures, I do wonder how much time would just pass by while thinking of it. The answer is pretty minimal because you would have to sit down and think of it for hours before finally producing something to show it to others. It isn’t so simple.
Nowadays, these kinds of artists are more appreciated than ever because they can produce amazing works, with all the passion they need. But for their age, they are still the least experienced one around, meaning what they say comes true. With time, though, they may become better at what they do. Some of the masters of past ages are now becoming very old. So yes, sometimes, I can’t help but wonder if my parents would have done anything like that. Maybe my mom would have been a very different artist.
Craftsmanship
Craftsmanship is a word used to describe someone who works on a particular job. In other words, it is someone who knows the exact steps to complete something to perfection. A craftsman could know how to paint perfectly, like a professional artist. Or he could be able to build perfectly fine houses or buildings. No matter which field you come from, the definition of the term craftsmanship is simple — the creator works to perfect work. Even though it takes time and effort, many people believe crafting is more important than just building or designing. On the contrary, I believe the industry where we live should focus on our craftsmanship instead of simply working on buildings or making paintings. That would mean we get a quality product instead of something that fits the market’s demand.
The history of the term craftsmanship is connected to the middle Ages. People believed the profession needed a master craftsman to provide them with expertise in a certain field. These days, it is hard to find one nowadays. Most of the people nowadays just need to put up their hands. You cannot teach a kid how to code or design a house. Yes, you can be a successful engineer or designer, but you cannot just make a house without knowing how to build it first. That should be our hobby. My mother always told me I didn’t want to become a craftsmanship, but maybe for her this concept doesn’t seem such a bad habit. I don’t know, of course, I cannot judge whether my moms want to keep our house clean or beautiful. In general, a craftsmen only cares about his or her job. He or she does everything correctly. Therefore, they could spend quite a lot of time planning and organizing before starting the actual work.
As I mentioned earlier, we see the art of building and design in the real world every day. We see those craftsmen who try to make something perfectly finished and beautiful, like the architects of a city. Many people are busy trying to figure how to become better at building and designing, even though they need more training before actually doing it. I believe the only thing we need is to decide that we want to do something better than just the existing products. A craftsman tries to improve himself with time and patience. By studying and learning everything, the craftsman becomes better than what he used to be. The modern world gives all of us the right to do whatever we want, even to have passions, even though some people find their hobbies very hard to pursue. Nowadays everyone keeps striving for a perfect job.
In conclusion, nowadays, we can tell which occupation is better than another. At last, it all depends on our interest, purpose and ambition to become better than the previous generation. The artisans will need a lot of patience before doing something right. Someone else needs to be patient too. It really depends on ourselves, what craft will you choose?