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The Difference Between Art and Craft and How That Affects Writers
Creating Art versus Learning A Craft
In 1938 author R.G. Collingwood released The Principles of Art, a book written to provide a practical bearing upon the current condition of art in England, and provide artists with clarity on the difference between art proper and other aesthetic theories of the day. In this book Collingwood starts by clarifying the difference between art and craft. A difference that I think is helpful to understand as we get into writing because if we are writing for the purpose of being artistic the process is different than writing as a craftsman. In a world where the two are constantly intertwined it can’t hurt to understand what makes them different.
Craft is always exercised upon something and aims at transformation of this into that. The craftsman understands what they want to make. The craftsman’s skill is their knowledge of the means that are used to transform something and the mastery of those means. A fabricator understands the machines and tools that are used to transform metal into a desired shape. A seamstress is master of a sewing machine or needle. Writers would be skilled in writing whether that be by hand, using a phone, or a keyboard. We typically think of trades like blacksmith when we think of craftsman. They are defined by the means they use.
