The image of the craftsman as a Geppetto figure is an outdated caricature. The artisan of the future is tech-savvy, prefers to call himself a “maker”, and by combining tradition and technology can bring innovation to made in Italy.
The transformation of craftsmanship is happening through technology and "makers" — an English word meaning creators — new figures of digital artisans who combine manual making with the latest technologies. Giving new value to craft skills through technology in order to activate original growth dynamics: this is one of the bets on the future of the Italian economy championed by Stefano Micelli, professor of business economics and management at the Ca' Foscari University of Venice, in his 2014 book Futuro artigiano, a major publishing success now in its third edition.
The book sets out the theory that craftsmanship is the key to Italian growth. Micelli proposes a virtuous cross-pollination between craft work and the global economy, and the need for a "technical osmosis" — that is, blending artisanal skills with industrial expertise for sustainable economic development in the future. For many years, craftsmanship and manual trades were regarded as relics of the past, and it was believed that only technological research could lead us to shape the future. In reality, it is the union — rather than the opposition — of the two worlds that can act as a powerful accelerator of innovation, the keystone of a change of course.
Beyond representing a great resource, the craft trade is, according to the author, also a fulfilling life choice that deserves to be valued.
Producing, repairing and recycling objects is part of the makers' philosophy. Since 2012, this movement of artisans using the latest technologies — a phenomenon that has developed across many industrialised countries — has made its appearance in Milan during Design Week, in multiple locations and with a wide range of proposals from groups and associations seeking to give concrete form to this growing reality. "Italy is already the home of makers," says Micelli, "the problem is that we haven't realised it. The artisan innovates through the tools of his trade, new materials and new ways of working. Craft work is not about uncritically preserving the past, but about renewing itself over time and accepting the challenge of technology. To say that we are already a country of makers means betting on the internet and on new technologies in general. It means saying that our artisans are the protagonists of a new industrial revolution centred on a different idea of work and value."
Combining high quality and artisanal manufacturing capability with knowledge — or "know-how" — of industrial technologies and production processes is also in the DNA of our small and medium-sized enterprises, those typical "factories" that created the phenomenon of Italian design, so admired around the world.
"The immense heritage of practices and culture that characterises our manufacturing must be rehabilitated and considered as an essential part of our economic future," Micelli adds. "Today, Italian success smiles on the industries of material culture — those that draw on our ancient knowledge and our taste. In this sense, Italy is a mine of opportunities, provided we know how to tell the world what we are capable of. There are great opportunities for those who can bring together Italian know-how and innovative communication, above all thanks to new technologies."
The path of good craft practices as a potential lever for economic development is not exclusively Italian. Experimental projects and concrete experiences under way around the world confirm that the evolution of traditional craft know-how through contemporary technological tools is a shared strategy that can take many different forms, but always passes through the artisan's awareness that knowledge of new digital tools is today indispensable for continuing to carry out one's work.
In the experience of collaboration between designers and artisans, the contribution of project and communication professionals is to provide the impetus for the renewal of products and, above all, for the ways of communicating and selling, giving craft products media visibility. One example is Hands on design, which works with Italian and Japanese artisans and designers. "Artisans today either reinvent themselves, learning to use the internet and to read computer drawings while continuing to make the products they have always made, or they disappear," say Kaori Shiina and Riccardo Nardi, the designers who founded the project. "The Japanese artisans we work with have understood this — it would be impossible for us to collaborate at a distance otherwise. The Italian ones are drawing closer to new technologies, but some are afraid of betraying their tradition and losing their identity."
Leggi anche: Hands on design, oggetti che durano in eterno
The pilot project Creative Mediterranean aims to contribute to the inclusive and sustainable growth of the regions of the southern Mediterranean — namely Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Egypt, Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan — by developing a series of "smart handicrafts", that is, intelligent and high-performance handmade objects, together with the Marrakech-based startup Ebf, and with the partnership of bodies such as the European Union, the Union pour la Méditerranée, the Agenzia italiana per la cooperazione allo sviluppo and Unido, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization.
Leggi anche: Creative mediterranean, creando resilienza attraverso la creatività di artigiani di 7 paesi
The result is the creation of hybrid objects made using the techniques and materials of Moroccan tradition but incorporating technological elements. Among these, for example, are terracotta garden pots called "active garden" fitted with sensors that, depending on the type of plant in the pot, signal when it is thirsty or needs fertilising, and traditional digital baskets for charging phones (such as the one in the photo above). Produced by hand in Egypt, meanwhile, are luminous wool fabrics with LED lights woven into the fabric that can be switched on remotely, and fluorescent fabrics that recharge in sunlight.
