Krásná práce Atelier of Product Design, D3

The renewal of craftsmanship and the updating of the tradition of the past are themes that inevitably resonate in contemporary design. The need for a return to centuries-old practices and handicraft is a response to the ever-accelerating consumerism and the digitalization of all spheres of human life, calling for a necessary slowdown and awareness of the unsustainability of contemporary practices and their impact on society and the planet. The rehabilitation of craft became the starting point of the student project Beautiful Work, which originated from the collaboration of the D3 Studio of Product Design at Prague UMPRUM with the initiative of the same name by a team of art historians, ethnographers, and designers implemented under the auspices of the Cooperative Labour Foundation. During the semester work, students explored different possible approaches to handmade traditions through current perspectives of product design. In doing so, they reflected both the nature and principles of honest work based on local folk culture and market conditions that result in functional products that are a meaningful alternative to the many factors of a failing supply. As well as designing, reflecting on the future of traditional crafts and design itself became an important part of the work, which inevitably involves reflection on one's work and position. The question of craft, which is nowadays either neglected or overlooked as an anachronism alongside the achievements of technology, was opened up by students on different levels, which may ultimately become an opportunity to preserve or transform it for future generations.

EXHIBITORS Sofia Artemeva, Tereza Bláhová, Miloslav Chytil, Ivo Jedlička, Sara Kučerová, Adam Kvaček, Jan Lechner, Mikuláš Procházka, Karolína Vintrová CURATOR, PRODUCTION AND INSTALLATION DESIGN Adam Kvaček, Ivo Jedlička, Jan Lechner PEDAGOGICAL GUIDANCE Michal Froněk and Jan Němeček (studio manager), Michal Malášek (assistant professor) TEXT Veronika Soukupová PRODUCTION Michaela Kaplánková GRAPHIC DESIGN Oskar Koutn