As I’ve been busy making these butterflies I’ve been pondering whether it’s art or craft. I think it was when I started putting sequins and beads on them to decorate, then of all things, I used holographic glitter! Nothing quite says ‘craft project like sequins, beads and glitter!

Is it different when I use a lot of butterflies to create a larger work? Is there some point when it magically turns into art? 5 butterflies? 500 butterflies?, or do I need to make a cynical statement about art and pretty things? Or do I actually give a rat’s arse?

Sequins, beads and glitter - serious artist materials?

Actually nope, if something is calling me to make it, I’ll make it.

If it calls to me to make it, I’ll make it

I shouldn’t say ‘rat’s arse’ really, I quite like rats despite their bad reputation and the damage they can do to our native environment in NZ. After all they’re just living their ratty little lives, finding food, shelter and raising their families, not so different from us really.

We had a pet rat called Henry and he was quite the character, rescued from a box left on the bonnet of a car in a supermarket carpark. I’m assuming some kid got him given to him and Mum said, ‘no way in hell’.

Speaking about small pets, when I was a kid we had a pet hedgehog for 3 days also called Henry. Henry loved to curl up and sleep in the sun. On the third day when the flies started hanging around, we realized that perhaps Henry was perhaps not an avid sunworshipper and may in fact have been dead.

Anyway, back to the main story…..

The art/craft debate will, I imagine always be a thing along with discussions about good art, bad art, decorative art, and as many types of art as you can think of.

I do know that to get the most out of any art experience it’s important to have an open mind and not be judgy. Some of the most memorable art pictures I have in my head (yes, I have a gallery in my head that I visit!) are not ‘great’ art but art that connected and stuck.

I remember once when I was attending an opening, representing an art group at the time, and got into a discussion with a woman who seemed to think she knew a lot about the NZ art scene. She made a disparaging comment and kind if looked down her nose at me when I mentioned who I was representing.

‘Oh well, I suppose it’s good that people have somewhere to start’

I felt instantly defensive for all the hard-working artists I know, who create some amazing, genuine and heartfelt art. I know the art groups and societies in Dunedin are showing the whole mix from polished and professional to the just beginners and the range is impressive and exciting.

There is a new word in recent years that seems to have gained some traction, ‘Creative’, which I really like as it seems to cover people who make stuff, with no judgement on good/bad, art/craft.

It’s an exciting time to be alive for an artist, and anyone who makes stuff, with the availability of information and resources. You can find out how to do almost anything with online videos. And the resources, so many materials available! Even with different clays, there are so many different types of clays and modelling materials available at a reasonable price that it would be easy to get distracted and veer off into so many directions trying them out. I’m not sure if I’ll live long enough to try all I want to!

How many butterflies do I need for it to magically turn from craft to art?

Given the madness that seems to be dominating the world now, and our apparent inability to care for the planet and stop killing everyone and everything, it is the exact right time to be making all sorts of art to remind us of what it should mean to be human.

Art or Craft?

A million butterflies