To make is to be human

Prof. Stephen Quilley’s project ‘Embodied Technics in an Age of Automation: Craft Practice, Skill, and the Transformation of Work’ has received funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC).

Building on a decade of work investigating the culture of ‘Makers’ and their significance for low-overhead forms of local production and consumption, the new project is designed to chart the world of artisan craftwork from the inside. Hand-eye craft work, intergenerational skills, and a social life mediated by making are as old as fire and flint knapping. The question at the heart of Dr. Quilley’s research relates to the future of hands-on craftwork in a world increasingly dominated by A.I., the 4th industrial revolution, the ‘Internet of Things’ and technologies such as 3D Printing. The research will centre on the process of making an acoustic guitar from scratch whilst charting every step along the way – specifically, intensive training (with master luthier Sergei de Jonge in Quebec), the organization of a workshop, the detail of individual craft procedures, decisions, skills, the jigs constructed etc.

Alongside this quite subjective exploration of the meaning of modern artisanal craft, he will also be mapping the myriad local and global supply chains involved. This will involve charting the flow of materials and a diverse range of tools – some vintage 19th century heirlooms, some home-made and others high-tech items produced in southern China. He will also document the flows of information (email, online courses, social media fora, YouTube, Facebook, etc.).

And finally, to bring together what anthropologists refer to as the ‘emic’ (internal) and ‘etic’ (external) dimensions of the process, Dr Quilley will be conducting interviews with luthiers and other players. Where appropriate and with the permission of the individuals involved, segments of interviews will be included on a public project website and YouTube channel.

Find out more about the research at Prof. Quilley's website luthiometry.com. It's a digital diary documenting the craft of artisanal lutherie and its relevance in a world dominated by A.I. and increasingly autonomous production.