Personal expression and intellect produces cultural, symbolic, and informational value. This truth is the core of creative labor. The history of creative work spans as long as humanity does , beginning through oral tradition and rock art, refining through fiber-craft, evolving through the invention of writing and the printing press, and expanding into modern digital and global media landscapes.
Around the 18th century, the patronage model formed. This is where artists and makers worked under wealthy patrons or institutions that used creative output to build personal prestige (examples include Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Leonardo da Vinci). The Industrial Revolution separated conception from execution, turning many skilled makers into factory machine operators.
Labor Day, an annual day of celebration of the labour movement and of the social and economic achievements of workers, only became a US and Canadian holiday in 1894. The Arts and Craft movement led by people such as William Morris in 1880s, had artists rebelling again mass production and advocating for handcrafted utility, honest materials and a return to thoughtful design.
In the 20th Century, sectors like print media, advertising, industrial design and actors formed unions (examples include Screen Actors Guild and International Typographical Union). Corporations embraced “creativity” to spur production innovation through the use of brainstorming and R&D labs. The 21st Century popularized the idea of a modern creative economy through his “Creative Class”. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Models are trained on generations of human writing, art, and code without compensation for the original creators.
The 2022 #EtsyStrike was sparked by their announcement of a 30% increase in transaction fees and other policy changes alongside $2.7 billion in revenue amid national Covid-19 shutdowns. Creative workers continue to resist extortion of their personal expression and intellect to power platforms they don’t run or govern, and extraction of their time and energy through high costs and few generative benefits of selling for someone else.
This Labor Day Artisans’ wishes you rest, creative inspiration, appreciation and economic independence.