Disrupting the craft canon: a Living Lab approach to measuring cultural value

Abstract

To address structural omissions of the experiences of makers of colour from the cultural space of craft, Crafts Council initiated the project, Disrupting the craft canon: the cultural value of craft. Partnering with an interdisciplinary team of researchers from Glasgow Caledonian University London, the project was awarded a research grant in June 2022 as part of the first round of funding of the Centre for Cultural Value’s Collaborate programme. Collaborate supports innovative new partnerships between cultural sector practitioners and academics exploring under-explored questions around cultural value so as to deepen existing evidence or surface new evidence. Adopting a Living Lab approach, the team investigated the meanings and cultural value of craft and specifically the impacts of race, racism, immigration and migration on cultural production, making and value grounded in the reality of individuals’ and local communities’ lives. This Participatory Activist Research project helped develop and test research tools including vignettes and object-based stimuli in place-based craft making events with selected Black and Asian UK communities in London and Birmingham. Sinclair highlights the need for ‘research that identifies and recognises the value of the knowledge, experience and cultural heritage of makers of colour in professional, community or other crafts spaces’. This article reflects on the collaborative process, sharing the findings of our community-based research and thereby adding to our understanding of craft’s potential cultural value and the contributions craft can make to sustainable development.