Making Civic Crafts

Erscheinungsjahr 2026
ISBN: 978-1-956313-50-5
Verlag: Boydell & Brewer Ltd.

Buch, Englisch, 150 Seiten, Print PDF, Format (B × H): 127 mm x 178 mm

A book about coming together through making, and how small, shared acts of craft can quietly build community, one bench at a time.

We build society together. Craft is so much more than a Do-It-Yourself activity. It is a superpower for people to act together. With simple hand tools, we can construct community by building belonging, one bench at the time. This is a book about constructing community, about a world we build, hands-on, with each other. Civics is a craft, and like most activities, it is best done together.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Busch, Otto von

Hallberg, Karl

Hansson, Helena

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politische Kultur Staatsbürgerkunde, Staatsbürgerschaft, Zivilgesellschaft
• Geisteswissenschaften Kunst Kunst, allgemein Kunsttechniken & Prinzipien
• Sozialwissenschaften Soziologie | Soziale Arbeit Soziale Gruppen/Soziale Themen

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Contents
Chapter 1. Introduction
The Snow Fort Thing
Making as a Civic Activity
Tangible Civics

Chapter 2. Making Methods
Materials, Breaks, and Cooking
The First Coffee
Community Cooking
Building Community
Carrying and Communitas
Arranging Things

Chapter 3. Tools
Thinking with Tools
Occam's Sloyd Knife
Material Discussions
Making Tools
Tools for Togetherness

Chapter 4. Togetherness
Craft in Lonely Times
The Virtue of Many Hammers
Crafting Togetherness
Social Needs and Social Craft

Chapter 5. Civics
Crafting Civics
Playing for Civics
Crafting Civic Processes
Sharing Values

Chapter 6. Conclusion
Afterword
Appendix: Summary of Co-Craft Methods

Über Autor(innen)

Hallberg, Karl
Karl Hallberg is an artist, crafter, and Associate Researcher at the University of Gothenburg, affiliated with the Design and Crafts unit at Steneby. His material-led practice explores craft and sloyd as social tools for collaboration, community-building, and civic engagement, using making as a way to develop local capabilities and collective agency.

Busch, Otto von
Otto von Busch is Professor of Integrated Design at Parsons School of Design, The New School (New York). He holds a PhD in design from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, and his research explores how design, craft, and making practices can foster civic engagement, collective agency, and social change. His work examines craft as a tool for participation, empowerment, and democratic practice.

Hansson, Helena
Helena Hansson was a designer, researcher, and lecturer at HDK-Valand - Academy of Art and Design, University of Gothenburg, where she also held a PhD in design. Her research and practice focused on participatory design, co-crafting, and frugal design, exploring how craft and sloyd can function as inclusive, community-building methods in diverse social and cultural contexts, including long-term collaborations between Sweden and Kenya.