Many craft activities once reserved for hobbyists are undergoing a small revolution – with traditionally-made products moving into the fashion quarters of cities around New Zealand.
Leather work, tapestry, ceramics, wood carving, hand-built jewellery and many other crafts have moved from ‘hobbies’ to respected ‘art-form’ status.
At MAHY, we are thrilled to see the resurgence of these fine forms of creation as we are passionate about craftmanship and making things the good old-fashioned way.
These days the world is brimming with technology and everyone is buried in their devices, but there is an undercurrent of desire to have something tangible to hold, something mindful to work on or something handmade to treasure. This is where these classic art forms are finding their fuel to grow into new industries.
Some experts are even calling this movement “a backlash against technology”. It’s the same concept as reading a real book, as opposed to one on a kindle. You have a real-life, tactile experience that is uniquely yours.
Ceramics in particular over the past five years has seen a huge boom. Locally-made leather goods are also becoming very popular as consumers push back against “fast fashion”. People are widening their view of products to encompass the full picture of where items come from and how they have been made. More than ever, we are invested in the story behind our things – the energy they carry – and we only want to be carrying around the good stuff!