Access and diversity in South African craft and design: the work of craft intermediaries in Cape Town

TY - JOUR

T1 - Access and diversity in South African craft and design

T2 - the work of craft intermediaries in Cape Town

AU - Comunian, Roberta

AU - England, Lauren

N1 - Funding Information: The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The authors would like to acknowledge the AHRC (Arts and Humanities Research Council) funded international research network “UNDERSTANDING AND SUPPORTING CREATIVE ECONOMIES IN AFRICA” (AH/P005950/1). Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage).

PY - 2022/12

Y1 - 2022/12

N2 - Creative intermediaries are increasingly recognised for their role in facilitating the growth and development of creative entrepreneurs and creative and cultural industries. There is also a growing interest in the role of creative and cultural industries in developing economies, for economic development but also cultural engagement and social change. In this article, we bring a Global South perspective to the study of creative intermediaries in the craft sector by exploring how they engage with makers and markets for craft products in Cape Town, South Africa and beyond. Using qualitative interviews with key players from four intermediary organisations working at the community level through to luxury export, we present their different business models and approaches to supporting the development of the craft sector and makers. We reflect on the role they play in addressing inequalities, especially in opportunities to access craft careers and develop sustainable livelihoods for disadvantaged communities. We also consider some of the key challenges these intermediaries face in relation to policy, infrastructure, finance and global competition. The article argues for the value of adopting an ecological perspective in studying the role of craft intermediaries to recognise their role in addressing inequalities in accessing craft careers and the importance of support for makers at different stages in their professional development.

AB - Creative intermediaries are increasingly recognised for their role in facilitating the growth and development of creative entrepreneurs and creative and cultural industries. There is also a growing interest in the role of creative and cultural industries in developing economies, for economic development but also cultural engagement and social change. In this article, we bring a Global South perspective to the study of creative intermediaries in the craft sector by exploring how they engage with makers and markets for craft products in Cape Town, South Africa and beyond. Using qualitative interviews with key players from four intermediary organisations working at the community level through to luxury export, we present their different business models and approaches to supporting the development of the craft sector and makers. We reflect on the role they play in addressing inequalities, especially in opportunities to access craft careers and develop sustainable livelihoods for disadvantaged communities. We also consider some of the key challenges these intermediaries face in relation to policy, infrastructure, finance and global competition. The article argues for the value of adopting an ecological perspective in studying the role of craft intermediaries to recognise their role in addressing inequalities in accessing craft careers and the importance of support for makers at different stages in their professional development.

KW - Cape Town

KW - craft careers

KW - craft intermediaries

KW - creative and cultural industries

KW - creative economy

KW - creative entrepreneurs

KW - diversity

KW - inequalities

KW - South Africa

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/85143618945

U2 - 10.1177/13675494221136611

DO - 10.1177/13675494221136611

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85143618945

SN - 1367-5494

VL - 25

SP - 1597

EP - 1616

JO - European Journal of Cultural Studies

JF - European Journal of Cultural Studies

IS - 6

ER -