Theses and Dissertations at Montana State University (MSU)
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Item In pursuit of value(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Arts & Architecture, 2020) Gathje, Samuel Gehring; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Jim ZimpelWhat follows is an exploration of the bounds of Material Intelligence in contemporary forms of making. While the physical work is autobiographical, and this research is broken up by anecdotal vignettes of my lived experience, the questions presented here are urgent and present. What is craft and where can it be most useful today? What objects hold stories, and how can we become more connected to these objects? In a world filled with the mass produced, I aim in this writing to showcase a different way of approaching material and making. A regard for old ways of seeing, and for a mindfulness when it comes to objects, stories, and spaces. This writing is my journey in pursuit of value. Through my own life, through various mentors, teachers, and lessons, I have learned to look to an object's origin to understand its value. Folk art (art of the people), the handmade, and traditional craft all ground us to place, time, experience or culture. I am not arguing that things must be done one way because it is tradition. Instead, I look at what these traditions provide beyond the object, which is often a communal experience of growth, appreciation, and learning. Craft can connect people across distance and time. To borrow a phrase from Glenn Adamson, I hope through this research to uncover a world of 'Fewer, Better Things'.Item Manual disengagement(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Arts & Architecture, 2016) Fitch, Matthew Martin; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Bryan S. PetersenDysfunction is defined as abnormal or impaired function. To understand this we must first know the definition of function. To function is to work in a specified manner I order to accomplish a task. From here forward, utility will be used in place of function. With this prerequisite knowledge, dysfunction can occur, allowing an item to exist within the context of alteration and beauty prescribe for it. Tools are supremely relevant when considered with the framework characterized by use, which allows me to alter and manipulate them in ways that question the meaning of function and utility. Through the alteration of function and utility, I strive to let the viewer into my realm of modified tools that speak of work days past, labor at hand, and the value of a tool in today's society.