Craft vs Art: Turning Gelli Prints into Paintings

Mixed Media and Art vs Craft

There is a prevailing discussion out there about what constitutes art and what constitutes craft. I recently visited an exhibition at the Craft Contemporary Museum in Los Angeles. The show was called: “Craft, Commodity and Capitalism”. For me this is where the boundaries got blurred. Craft was definitely employed in an artful way to convey a powerful socio-political message and yes, it could definitely fall into the category of mixed media. I mused over this idea while I was working on some gelli plate printing in the art studio the other day. I was thinking how judgmental it felt making these distinctions. Somehow craft is considered a “lower” form of art.

Back to my Gelli Plate Prints!

While working on my gelli plate, I did notice how easily one could make prints with stencils that would be more “crafty” and how I could work in a more painterly way to create more artsy prints. So I played with them and came up with some gorgeous papers that I think could be used in my next mixed media collage. Take a look at the video and tell me what you think.

And don’t pay too much attention to the Craft vs Art discussion! If you’re enjoying yourself and finding materials that help you express yourself, go ahead. No one is judging except YOU!

Watch the video for fun ways to make “artsy” papers