Intelligent Hands: Why making is a skill for life

Recent years have seen a decline in craft and creative education in schools and a shift from practical to theoretical learning models in higher education. Young people are leaving school with no idea that craft-based careers are even possible, and graduates of craft-based degree courses are entering the workplace with so few hand skills that their employers must train them from scratch. Where did the idea come from that white-collar work should be rewarded more with money and status than that of a blue-collar worker? Intelligent Hands looks at this phenomenon, the historical precedents that led us here and why hand skills are crucial in education and for lifelong learning. The authors are on a mission to enlighten the uninitiated and persuade the nay-sayers who dismiss craft as no more than a nice hobby or believe that doing things with your hands is for those who can't use their heads. And for the converted, we offer more grist to your mills, ammunition for funding applications, inspiration for those who plan school curricula and further reading for your speciality. Intelligent Hands brings existing research and information together in an accessible format for those for those who don't have time to trawl through all the information that is already out there. With a brief look at the history of practical education, we have collated some of the research that has been done in disparate fields to show that combining physical ways of learning with the conceptual in education is the way forward. We include the personal stories of ten people who have discovered that working with their hands has improved their quality of life. Through the three sections of the book, we look at how physical labouring became separated from academic study, how we became divorced from the materials that surround us and the important role that the crafts and creativity have to play in education, not just for the lower streams, but for everyone. In short, how making is a skill for life.

About the Author :
Foreword by Jay Blades MBE: Jay is dyslexic and, after leaving school at 15 with no qualifications, he eventually managed to get back on track studying for a degree in criminology and philosophy at Buckinghamshire New University (BNU). He then found his true vocation in restoration and supporting young and vulnerable people to find their own access to work. Known across the UK as the host of BBC One's extraordinarily successful 'The Repair Shop', it is perhaps no coincidence that his belief in the restoration of objects stems from a belief that humans too can be repaired, fixed and rejuvenated. He is the living embodiment of that. His restoration company, Jay & Co, aims to 'save the world' through craft. Working with recycled, reclaimed and reused materials, accessories, furniture, and fabric, they create pieces that are as good as new, and help develop a more holistic approach to interiors. Authors Charlotte Abrahams is a writer and curator specialising in design and the applied arts. She trained at Central St Martin's and since then has written regularly for the national and international press, including Guardian Weekend, Saturday Telegraph Magazine, Times LUXX, Financial Times How to Spend It, CRAFTS, Homes & Antiques, The Journal, Design Anthology UK, EFFECT and The Design Edit. She is the author of four books - Love Pattern & Colour, The Essential Guide; Hygge, a Celebration of Simple Pleasures: Living the Danish Way; Wallpaper: The Ultimate Guide and Wallpaper a Book of Modern Prints. Her latest book, Love Pattern & Colour (Frances Lincoln) is out now. Katy Bevan is a writer and educator specialising in craft and mother of a disabled child. She is the editor of many books on craft and writes for textile and craft magazines such as Selvedge. Previously at the Crafts Council she founded the publishing company Quickthorn Ltd in 2022. She blogs at The Crafter , runs workshops in darning, crochet and knitting and is mostly to be found knitting.

Review :
'Intelligent Hands is an intelligent book that carefully, clearly and definitively describes and advocates for the value of making skills at all stages of life, and swiftly unpicks the barriers to engagement with evidence from those already immersed in making. Embracing mental health and wellbeing, creative career and education choices and long held ambitions the book gives compelling context and signposting for anyone seeking to enter the craft world and needing to more deeply understand its depth, breadth and value. Intelligent Hands is a vital and unique addition to the bookshelves and activities of anyone wishing to add to their knowledge and understanding of crafting and making. It is a handbook for the future and its timely messages must go far and wide.' Lesley Butterworth, Past General Secretary, NSEAD 'Making can be cherished solo or as a community making together. Hand skills are like an alphabet of making that forms a language of communication. I was lucky enough to have been educated with wood, metal, clay, textiles printing and art as a child at Henbury Comprehensive school in the 1970s, every child had the opportunity to experience this as part of the standard national curriculum. As a result of these formative years my life has been full and fruitful. Where has this aspect of the curriculum gone? We are letting our young people down to not educate them with hand skills in conjunction with other subjects. Congratulations to writers and publishers for bringing to light this essential subject.' Kate Malone is a co-founder of FiredUp4 'If you are interested in applied creativity, skills, competencies, imagination, problem solving and cultural expression, get your hands on this book. Intelligent Hands explores and celebrates embodied intelligence and humanity, which are so critical to all our futures.' Daniel Charny MBE, Founder Director at Forth Together CIC and Professor of Design at Kingston School of Art