Woven Communities: the warp and the weft of Scottish vernacular basketry

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Woven Communities: the Warp and the Weft aims to draw on practical basketry as an important tool for enhancing public engagement with museum collections and as a means of extending reminiscence work within museums and promoting design thinking. We will work with the Scottish Basketmakers Circle (SBC), our partners from an earlier project, and 5 new partners: National Museums of Rural Life, the Highland Folk Museum, the Scottish Fisheries Museum, Shetland Museum, and An Lanntair, a multi-arts centre on Lewis. The project has four key aims. First, we will carry out a series of public engagement activities in museums linked to their basketry collections with the aim of eliciting life histories and social memories, and thus increasing audience engagement. We have found that making and demonstrating craft activities such as basketry are very productive in reminiscence sessions. Yet while artefacts are often employed as important reference points for eliciting social memories, the actual practice of making such artefacts is only now being considered. Secondly, we will draw on the technical benefit of basket-makers working with museum curators to enhance knowledge of early 20th century Scottish basketry collections. Thirdly, we aim to explore the significance of basketry for design thinking. Because basketry is not replicable by machine, many design processes such as planning, problem-solving and innovation are embedded in the practical act of basket-work. This has led us to consider the value of thinking-in-practice and dynamic problem-solving attendant on basketry, as an important aspect of design thinking. In discussion with CraftScotland and the Craft Council, we will develop a paper for informing craft policy on this theme. Finally, the interactive nature of our website has led to us being approached by An Lanntair, Lewis, which has requested we contribute to their bi-lingual (Gaelic/English) dementia project, drawing on our practical basketry skills for eliciting hand-memories with elders with dementia on LewisTo achieve these aims we will conduct practical reminiscent events focussed around workshops and replica making in each venue. These will range from making Easter straw bonnets, fishing creels and sculls, to Traveller basketry, exploring the whole process from gathering raw materials (such as heather) to finished product, and involving all generations. Through the regionally specific nature of these events, it may even be possible to link artefacts in collections with descendants of former users or producers. We will invite a Masters student from Museum Studies in St Andrews to document and upload the data as part of their dissertation project. We will video record practitioners making key basket forms to further document memories and discussion linked to the events. This will also enable us to extend our capacity for conveying skills, and provide legacy material for use by museums. Outcomes will include increased public engagement with museum collections, and therefore enhanced impact, as more regional public contribute to knowledge about their own social history through practical engagement. This will lead to new and accessible insights to the social history of collections. Through working with makers, curators will gain improved documentation of collections. There will be greater understanding of the benefits of handwork for working with people with dementia; and of the value of handwork for design thinking through our policy document for craft and design education. Several of our partners have agreed to host study days tailored to their collections, which will further extend impact and public engagement, as will the international symposium which will form the culmination of the project. Several of our partners have also expressed a keen interest in developing a touring exhibition and catalogue following the project. We also aim to produce an illustrated and accessible book as further legacy of the project.