resources
I have included below only a few video clips out of many that are available. Each one of these tells a story, even when there are no spoken words: a story of love and care for the product that is gradually coming into shape, of delicate attention to every small details, and perhaps most importantly, of self-dignity. The materials they use are usually taken from the nature, and the products are not only pleasant to the eye and soothing to the heart, they also last generations, to be passed down from father to son and mother to daughter. If we do not appreciate their work and support them, if we do not delight in the beauty of their crafts, then it will not be long before the last traces of these crafters will be gone forever. That loss will not be theirs but of the whole of humanity. – M. R.
Persian traditional bookbinding (5 min)
When you hold a book like this in your hands, it’s more than just paper and ink, and the touch of your hands will connect you to the story itself. – M. R.
Dignity of labor in working and building with one’s own hands (10 min)
“When you make something, when you go through the process – all the steps – and at the end you have a finished product that you made out of your own hands, out of your own mind, [and] that is your own design, it’s a reflection of your own soul.” – Hollenbeck
Persian traditional handmade glazed ceramic tiles. Incredible craftsmanship. (5 min)
Beautiful boxwood comb by Japanese crafter . (6 min)
Persian traditional handmade glazed ceramic tiles. Incredible craftsmanship. (13 min)
Beautiful chair by Japanese woodworker. (14 min)
Korean pottery teapot: hands and fingers gracefully at work. (13 min)
This may be a clay tea pot, but the time you finish watching the entire process and the final product, you would think it should cost a thousand dollars.
Paper Marbling by English Craftsman (13 min). This craft comes from traditional Turkish art called Ebru which creates elegant patterns of flowers, foliage, and other types of ornamentations by sprinkling and brushing color pigments on a pan of oily water and then translifting it to paper.
“Why do I do the marbling? Simply, color. I am passionate about color. I love it. It’s wonderful. It’s all around us, let’s enjoy it. Why books? I love books […] Why conservation? Because of the future. If we don’t look after it now, if we don’t protect things, if we don’t preserve things, we have lost them forever.” – Chris Rowlatt
Handmade leather wallet by Japanese crafter (11 min), with amazing attention to details.
Handmade Zellige tiles from Fez (Morocco), with stunning hand skills. (8 min)
Persian metal fretwork, with mind-blowing works of fingers. (5 min)
Edward Wohl and his incredible woodworking (10 min)
“We’ve had a wonderful time as a family working together. When my two kids grew up, the shop was their playhouse. They were welcome, we helped them on projects. My daughter Mikayla has done many, many things in the shop and my son Jonathan is a terrific woodworker […] I really like being in the country – I like the quiet, the peace. The view from the shop in all directions is wonderful. So, I really don’t think I’d be building the same pieces in the same way if my shop was in the city.” – Wohl
Handwoven Persian Rugs. (6 min)
So much skills, labor, and attention to details is needed that a single Persian rug can take years, and sometimes even decades to create. And each rug is regarded as a piece of art that reflects Persian history and culture.
The shoemaker who decided to use his hands to make a livelihood rather than begging. (5 min)
“I thank God, I cater for my family with this job”.