The Crafts Report: Public Opinion

Should Show Promoters Require Artists to Label Their Work to Indicate Where it is Made?

What’s your opinion?

Each month, The Crafts Report invites readers to respond to the Public Opinion question. Responses are published in the magazine.

This month’s question is: What is the most stressful aspect of being a crafts professional?

Please respond by Nov. 8. Responses to this question will appear in the January 2004 issue.

E-mail: publicopinion@craftsreport.com; or answer online here.

Send responses to: “Public Opinion,” The Crafts Report, Box 1992, Wilmington, DE 19899; fax: (302) 656-4894.

Anonymous responses will not be published.

It shouldn’t be a requirement unless the promoter is making promises to the buyers. Then, the artists should be called on to label their work so the buyers know that the promoter has been honest in what they billed the show to be.

In general, I think that this only becomes an issue when country of origin labels are removed to mislead the public into thinking that the work was made here when it wasn’t. Too many retail shows that I’ve been to allow this behavior, even though they say that they don’t. It’s hard to enforce, but it needs to be done.

I really don’t see a problem with this. I know that the majority of my clients find it very interesting to learn about any history the design they purchased has.

Absolutely! Many galleries advertise that the work they represent is either American-made or made in other countries. I personally would feel that I was misrepresenting the work if I found out that parts were manufactured overseas and then assembled here in the U.S.

Promoters should require artists to label their work, however, there is no proof that by simply labeling a slide or photo that the goods or products produced by an artist or crafter are handcrafted. A stronger effort to validate an artist’s or crafter’s work needs to be established as a standard practice by promoters and organizers

Yes. Many of the public are interested in buying only Made in America products to show their loyalty.

Yes! Some artists have contracted out their designs to other countries and thus sell at a lower price than if produced in the U.S.

No matter where it has been made, consumers should be more interested in knowing that the work is 100 percent handmade.
The place of origin doesn’t impact the fact that someone’s blood, sweat and tears went into making the craft — unless you make it a political thing, which would be a shame. Handmade is handmade, no matter where it came from.

Require? no. I do think we as artists would want to label/promote where we make our products.

Absolutely, but show promoters should be careful of what they wish for. If they make artists label their work “Made in America,” will they lose exhibitors whose work doesn’t qualify? For sure.

Foreign parts make up so much of the craft materials we all use. So hardly anyone can qualify their work as 100 percent American made. Show promoters would need to devise an alternative labeling system or make clearer what they will and will not accept in their shows.