The Mississippi Craft Center sits in a beautiful, contemporary building in rural Mississippi, a state in the Deep South of the US. It serves as the modern home for a very old idea: a special place for exhibits, classes, sales, and demonstrations of handcrafts of the South. These include quilting, basket making, wood carving, and many others. But how is a craft center different from an arts center? And how are crafts different from art?

What is a craft? Generally, a craft is a special artistic skill which may be handed down from generation to generation. Or it’s a special skill requiring “sensitive hands” for making practical items – furniture, clothing, dishes – that only some people are able to do well…

The whole article: Art or Craft? (pdf)

Bridge March 2010