Am I making art, a craft, or something in between? There isn’t always an easy answer. There are a few ways to address the age old question of whether something is an art or a craft, intent or function. Not matter which way you come at the question, both of those criteria seem to have shades of gray.

Intent – If you’re evaluating a piece you could be guessing at the artists intent based on your life experiences and your interpretation of their work, which opens up the possibility of there not being a deeper meaning or feeling intended. You may see a vibrant crimson stroke across a pale green canvas and infer a passion, anger or hope in that bold stroke. On the other hand, maybe the person producing the work had a happy mishap that was ascetically pleasing, perhaps a cat bumped their arm and caused a random red streak across a jade background. Are they an artist for having found the effect appealing and considering the cat collaboration worthy of display? Is it art at all without the intent behind the stroke?

If the intent is to create something beautiful that speaks to the artist and expresses their feelings, views, or speaks volumes from their soul, but that piece was made using a series of planning, programming, and technology as tools to produce their vision. Is that art because the intention was there? I’ve seen people argue that it is a craft because it uses machines instead of a more traditional hands on approach. If I drew a three denominational drawing with a stylist on a tablet, in a computer program, sent the file to a machine that produced my design in three dimension then painted the result by hand, is it art? Did it somehow become craft because it used technology in the space between the hands on parts? Am I somehow less responsible for what I created from nothing because every step wasn’t by hand?

If I do a collage of imagery from my childhood and feel the result explores my loneliness and hope for the future, is it art? Is it any less art if I used craft supplies? What if I created a design using craft sticks? At some point does it become tramp art, which the name seems to suggest is art?!

Function – The argument for this criteria is whether or not the end result is functional or aesthetic. What happens if it’s both? A beautiful piece of furniture comes to mind, proportions and curves lovingly planned and hand carved over months. Would that craftsperson be an artist? What if all of those things apply, but it’s for a wall hanging, entirely aesthetic, do they transform into an artist because no one can use it for dining or storage?

What about jewelry? Ornate and decorative, but body ornamentation can also serve a function within society. It can signal a connection in a relationship, to a religion, to a society, or a culture. How about Pottery? It often can fall across both sides of the divide.

I’ve decided that I’m going to err on the side of art. If I take the time to create something that evokes an emotion in myself or others, whether useful or purely decorative, I’m going to consider it art. I am an artist because I’m creating something original and putting a piece of me into the work. I don’t care if I’ve used my fingers, tools, craft sticks, or technology. I art.