Modes in Art & Craft

Modes/Method in Art & Craft 

“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” 

Pablo Picasso

Modes of art and craft are ways or methods to express and communicate ideas, feelings, and skills. Their practice helps individuals reshape their capabilities and personalities enhancing initiative, perseverance, sensibility, and self-reliance.

Dictionaries tell us, a mode is a way or manner in which something occurs or is expressed, or done. A mode is also an option allowing a change in the method of operation of a device, esp. camera: “a camcorder in automatic mode”. In general speaking, modes are methods, styles, approaches, ways, forms etc. They cannot be separated from innovation and creativity so .

They are the modes of creativity in the real sense. They could be divided into many categories and sub-categories further yet, in the following unit we will only touch: 

1) Paperwork (Paper Art); 

2) Stenciling; 

3) Calligraphy;

4) Masks and puppets; 

5) Drawing and Painting; as modes of art and craft

1) Paperwork (Paper Art)

Paperwork refers to the use of paper in business and offices for writing and printing. But it’s only one aspect of paperwork. The paper also can be used for drawing, painting, stenciling, making toys by folding it, and for decorative purposes. People have been using paper for expressing their creativity and enhancing the beauty of their surroundings for hundreds of years. Decorative papers can be divided into several categories, including endpaper, lining paper, wallpaper, wrapping paper, and paper handicrafts.

Here we concern only with paper art that involves making different objects with paper using clean hands and simple tools. Art of paper quilling, Paper Mache and paper flowers etc. are appreciated by the classes and the masses. The famous art of cutting in folded pieces of paper was developed by both the Chinese and the Japanese. The Japanese art of folding uncut sheets of paper to make objects is called origami.

Paper Art is the art of paper folding. The Word is Japanese, literally meaning to fold (oru) paper (kami). Origami pronounced our uh GAH mee, is the art of folding paper into decorative objects. The term is the Japanese word for folded paper. There are about 100 traditional origami figures, most depicting such natural forms as birds, flowers, and fish. An abstract, ceremonial form of origami, called a noshi, is a pleated paper ornament attached to gifts. Most origami is folded from an uncut square of paper. The most common sizes of squares are 15 centimeters and 25 centimeters (6 and 10 inches). The preferred paper is thin Japanese paper called washi, but foil-backed wrapping paper and heavy art paper are also used. 

Origami, like paper, originated in China. But art flourished in Japan. Since the 1940s, it has reached new levels of complexity and realism. Origami is a form of visual/sculptural representation that is defined primarily by the folding of the medium (usually paper).

It is strongly recommended to search for good books and try paper art. Instructions are available on the internet and videos could be watched to learn and practice origami online.

2) Stenciling

A stencil is a thin piece of paper, plastic, or metal that has letters or a design cut out of it. The letters or designs are then painted on another surface through the holes in the stencil. The best thing about a stencil is that you can use it, again and again, to quickly make the same letters or designs. A stencil is also the name for the design that it makes. The context in which the word stencil is used makes it clear what it means.

To stencil also means to use a stenciling technique to decorate something or a place. It has been used for hundreds of years to print on screens. A stencil and fine cloth or screen are needed for screen printing. The design to be printed is on the stencil. Ink is pushed onto the surface to be printed through the parts of the screen that are not covered by the stencil. Paper can be used to make the stencil. Or, you can draw a design directly on the screen and use glue or lacquer to cover up the parts that won't be printed. You can also make a stencil by putting a light-sensitive coating on the screen and putting the design on it with a camera or a laser. Screen printing can be used to print on paper, glass, fabric, wood, and almost anything else. It can print on things of many different sizes and shapes, like curtains, bottles, toys, and furniture. Presses that work automatically or by hand can be used for screen printing. Silk-screen printing and serigraphy are other names for screen printing.

History of Stenciling

Before the invention of rubber stamps, printing presses, or photocopiers, stencils were used to teach youngsters their ABCs. Politicians also used stencils of their signatures to get through their mountains of official correspondence and to make surfaces appear more costly and beautiful. Stencil patterns were common in the homes, churches, and public buildings of the Europeans who invaded America, and they transported these customs over to the New World. As soon as individuals in early America had the time and resources to spruce up their surroundings, they began applying stencil designs to their walls and even their floors. Stencils were frequently utilized on various surfaces throughout the late 18th and early 19th centuries as well. They comprised domestic items such as tin and wooden trays, boxes, and trunks as well as fabrics, particularly bed and tablecloths, furniture, and textiles.

Early stencils were often constructed out of strong, oiled paper or, less frequently, leather. Eventually, tin and carefully treated linen was used to create stencils. Although flexible, sturdy plastic is the most popular current stencil material, all of these materials are still in use. A multi-color design often needed a different stencil for each color (three colors, three stencils)

It is strongly recommended to search for websites related to stencil art. Instructions are available on the internet and videos could be watched to learn and practice how to make stencils online.