Paints, palettes and long wax candles are strewn across tables as excited participants chat over glasses of wine at a brewery nestled in Houston’s second ward. This is Craft Club HTX, a themed monthly meetup for anyone who wants to dive into art without the pressure of a traditional class. Andrea Fernandez (@CraftClubHTX) created the event with a friend after a search for art classes in Houston proved too expensive. “There was a gap between people wanting to be in the community and making things together and then actual accessibility for people to be able to do that on a regular basis.”
The demographic seen at the event points to an interesting trend that is reflected online as well. TikTok and Instagram are full of content from artists both professional and amateur, sharing their artwork, whether in fiber arts or ceramics, or less time-consuming arts like collage or zine-making. The fiber arts community, especially, has witnessed a renaissance, with crochet and knitting–something previously associated with grandmothers and cat ladies–becoming a popular pastime for millennials and Gen Z. Andrea says the difficulty in making friends as an adult is a big factor in drawing the crowd of 20 to 30-somethings she sees at her meetups.
During the pandemic, as TikTok was just becoming popular, people were looking for pastimes again. As they discovered new things to keep them occupied, often from other family members, they shared their experiences online. This created an entirely new subgenre of the internet, for amateur crafters and artists to share projects and advice on their creative journeys. John Elliot (@johnelliotknits), a fiber artist from Michigan, first learned about knitting from their grandmother. For the past 8 years, they have been sharing their art on Instagram. “It’s been fun to see a lot more young people be involved,” John says. As a member of Gen Z, it makes them feel seen.
John also reflects on the traditionally feminine nature of fiber arts. Usually associated with “grandmas”, these handicrafts have a long history of being devalued. Social media has allowed crafters to reclaim feminine pursuits and redefine what is thought of as a “grandma hobby.” The internet exposed John to designers who were making complex and modern pieces of art. “I was like oh wait, I can do this in a way that I think is cool and it doesn’t have to always be a granny square.”
There is also a push online to reclaim critical and creative thinking as AI-generated art becomes commonplace. To Ramona Brady, the owner of Texas Art Asylum, there is value in making things by hand, “There’s something kind of miraculous about the process that I think people who are making things for the first time just marvel at.” Creativity is at the heart of the crafting renaissance, and Andrea relates. She recalls giving her coworkers oil pastel drawings of their Slack profile pictures as a Christmas present last year. One coworker was taken aback, telling her, “I actually just realized through you giving me this gift that I can make something for my loved ones for Christmas.” For a generation that was raised on the internet, seeing “content” become tangible can be revolutionary.
As more of the internet turns to art as a hobby, things are changing for retail too. Ramona says 40% of her customers are now under 30 years old. Social media trends drive sudden demand for specific art supplies, like crochet hooks and scrapbooking materials. Although the business has an Etsy storefront, only 10% of their sales are online. People still prefer to come in person. Although it is not a typical art supply store–they sell reusable art materials donated by the community–Texas Art Asylum has a wide demographic. Everyone from high schoolers to grandmothers visit the shop looking for inspiration, Ramona says. They are not a conglomerate that is trying to sell you products, they are an art store that might spark creativity from any corner. John has a similar view of the creative process. When musing on the endless options artists have today in terms of materials and formats, they tell me: “I make my best art when I have limitations.”
AI-generated art is more of an annoyance than a threat in the crafting community. Many creators are recreating AI “slop” with traditional crafting materials, with results just as unreal as any AI-generated image. Other creators include a disclaimer on their work that says it was not created by AI. To John, art is a way to communicate a message or a feeling. That is not something that artificial intelligence can offer just yet. Hands-on art is connected to the real world, according to John, and that’s why it feels genuine in a way that digital art does not. Art does not have to be based in skill or merit to be considered good art, and while John’s crochet plushies may at first be dismissed as unremarkable, they are deeply meaningful. “I’m making art for my past self,” they say. They want their queer audience to feel represented. “I want people to feel like their love and the way that they experience their body and themselves is important and worthy of celebrating.” That is the true power and appeal of hands-on crafts, Andrea agrees. “It’s healing.”
