[closed] Call for abstracts - Space in the New Professions and in the Neo-Craft

Call for abstracts Fuori Luogo special issue - Space in the new professions and in the neo-craft

 

Call for abstracts

Space in the new professions and in the neo-craft

Guest Editors:

Guido Borelli (University Iuav of Venice) - gborelli@iuav.it

Sarah Kettley (Edinburgh College of Art) – sarah.kettley@ed.ac.uk

Roberto Paladini (University Iuav of Venice) - rpaladini@iuav.it

This issue aims to analyze how new professions and businesses in the new craftsmanship sector are contributing to transforming spaces and territorial dynamics, exploring their impact on workplaces and tools, as well as on collaborative dynamics and local development. If, as Henri Lefebvre wrote fifty years ago in The Production of Space (1974): "every epoch (mode of production) has produced its own space," then some of today's modes of work/production - which take on the most varied and contradictory forms (for example, combining vintage with super-advanced) - seem to produce hybrid and eclectic spaces, significantly different from the classic offices and production sites typical of the last century. In addition to these dynamics, the rise of digital professions, such as data scientists, blockchain developers, and cybersecurity experts, is reshaping both virtual and physical workspaces. As Manuel Castells (1996) noted, "space is the expression of society," and in this digital age, new professional environments, from coworking spaces to entirely virtual offices, are increasingly becoming the norm, influencing how individuals collaborate, share knowledge, and innovate. Numerous recent studies have highlighted the importance of the phenomenon of collaborative spaces, as well as a growing interest and a global trend towards a return to artisanal work and traditional crafts in the new century (Jakob, 2013; Gandini and Gerosa, 2023). This has mainly concerned the creativity and cultural industries, where artisanal work is understood as a form of creative or non-market activity, along with a countercultural practice aimed at "pragmatically resisting" capital accumulation (Banks, 2014; Luckmann, 2015). Inspired by the work of Richard Sennett (2008), who conceives of craftsmanship as synonymous with good work, the revival of artisanal work has also been facilitated by digital innovation and changes in consumer tastes. On the one hand, e-commerce platforms like Etsy.com have enabled artisanal producers to sell their handcrafted items online, allowing for new ways of matching supply and demand (Krugh, 2014); on the other hand, social media has facilitated the gathering of global artisanal communities of practice, engaging in discussions and exchanging tips (Naudin & Patel, 2019), often sharing workspaces and organizational functions. To describe this trend, a new term has been coined: "neo-craft/neo-artisanal industries/jobs" (Bell, Mangia, Taylor, & Toraldo, 2018; Terra, 2018), aimed at identifying forms of artisanal work—understood as the skillful creation of high-quality products—in which environmental sustainability and innovation are combined in both the product and the process (Land, 2018). This concept promises a form of work that is less alienated and more rewarding and sustainable compared to industrial work and precarious, underpaid, or unsatisfactory jobs that have emerged with the knowledge and creative economy. However, research on neo-craft is still in its early stages, and its specific contours remain uncertain both with regard to the peculiar characteristics that distinguish it from typical work in the traditional artistic craftsmanship sector and concerning the methods and guarantees by which it represents a "less alienated" and innovative form of work, as well as the impact it can generate in the spaces and places where it is established, and in local development.

The call proposes an in-depth reflection on the various facets of neo-crafts and, more generally, on new professions, aiming to deepen the understanding of the world of neo-craftsmanship and contributing to an enhanced comprehension of the relationship between tradition and innovation in contemporary craftsmanship. In particular, contributions that deepen the knowledge regarding:

1. a) The relationships between these neo-craft activities and the different types of spaces they utilize and occupy (such as homes, personal studios, shared spaces, traditional workshops, etc.);
2. b) The methods through which new artisans communicate with each other to collaborate, share knowledge and resources, and expand their sales opportunities;
3. c) The relationships that new artisans establish with local production sites and resources (including efforts to enhance and protect them), particularly focusing on the use of locally sourced materials;
4. d) The integration of cultural and historical elements typical of the locale into the work of the neo-artisans;
5. e) The professions in the digital space and their influence on places and production dynamics.

Papers may concern, among other issues:

• The life stories of new artisans;
• The professions in the digital spaces;
• The work spaces;
• the devices of work;
• The points of contact between design and neo-craft
• the lines between formal and informal work;
• innovative/conservative trends in modes of production;
• Relational dynamics with trade associations and/or other associative/collaborative forms;
• the nature and type of new professions and their relationship with the local economy;
• Use and design of collaborative spaces;
• Relationships between physical space and creative process;
• Integration of environmental and cultural dimensions;
• Impact of geographical location on production and market dynamics.

 The main acceptance criteria include innovativeness, originality, method and applicability. Therefore, all papers which get accepted for publication are original research papers. Each article is assigned a digital object identifier (DOI) number.

Submission

All abstracts, written in English, should be sent exclusively via mail to newprofessions@fuoriluogo.info

Key Dates                                                                                                              

• Abstract submission (in English, about 500 words length, with 5 keywords, bibliography not required) by March 30, 2025.
• Notification of acceptance/ Rejection by April 15, 2025.
• Paper submission by July 31, 2025.
• Announcement of the decision of the peer review by October 15, 2025.
• Final paper submission by November 17, 2025.
• Notification of final acceptance/rejection by December 1, 2025.
• Issue expected by February 2026.

 

Requests for additional information should be addressed to the guest editors through: redazione@fuoriluogo.info

 

Editor-in-Chief of Fuori Luogo

Fabio Corbisiero - direttore@fuoriluogo.info

Editorial Manager of Fuori Luogo

Carmine Urciuoli - caporedattore@fuoriluogo.info