Bridget Fairbanks' "It Ain't Easy" Radio Show

A 20-Something Guide to Crafts in Canada Tackles Survival

Nov 14, 2008 Simone Keiran

Comprehensive radio program teaches emerging artisans how to start and maintain successful careers, and creates a supportive dialogue about craftsmanship in Canada.

It Ain't Easy, a radio show produced by Bridget Fairbanks, is all about teaching Canadian artisans how to prosper. Craftspeople and artists in this country, especially those starting their careers and who live outside major urban hubs, have a rough time covering basic survival. Most abandon arts and crafts as a career. Fairbanks, who recently graduated from the ceramic program at the Kootenay School of Art produced the hour-long program, a combination of talk and music, to address a broad variety of issues. Topics range from the ephemeral process of imagination and creativity, to the technical skills of execution, to the pragmatic and often gritty reality of earning a living.

"I believe there is a large gap between the public and knowledge of craft," Fairbanks writes. " Without understanding or a glimmer of public interest, in any craft, there is a ever-narrowing market. I think public education and interest is vital to all craftspeople, but how can we bridge the gap?"

The Perception of Craft and Philosophical Elements of the Process

Fairbanks draws on arts-related literature and interviews to investigate:

whether Canada even has a culturally distinct style, tradition and infrastructure of technological innovation to distinguish its body of craft
how the industrial revolution, globalization, and multiculturalism influenced artisans to create a diversity of idioms and technical means of execution
how crafts media extend beyond their purpose as commodities

She investigates history: the evolution through various eras of civilization, when human societies shifted from nomadic hunting and gathering to agricultural production, until craftsmanship emerged in the present age. How do artisans deal with the anachronism of infusing functional implements with beauty, when the majority of our culture relies solely on mass-produced goods? She raises intriguing questions about creating a society that treasures its useful objects, elevating them through their beauty and superb production values over disposable and wasteful things which damage our planet.

Production and Process

This section of Fairbanks' program deals with such pragmatic concerns such as:

training and the decision of whether to pursue an education through an art institute, apprenticeship and mentoring, or through direct experience by diving into the workplace
balancing the expenses of everything that goes into art production, from education to materials, to more ephemeral values and how these determine the price tag
production deadlines
artist/client relations
establishing a standard of quality and a market niche
how to go about selling at craft shows, including booth design and alternative venues
developing professional relationships with galleries and dealers, including expectations and principles
referencing in craft; keeping in touch with the various movements and developments
creating dialogues with other artists, collectors and curators

Aesthetics and Conception: What Makes a Craft Art?

In this segment, Fairbanks addresses the distinguishing elements of beauty and culture:

the balance of form with function and its interplay in conceptual vs. functional work, of sculpture and implementation
various forms of modern craft
what distinguishes good art from unsuccessful art
moving away from art as "pedestal pieces" disconnected from usefulness.

This comprehensive series is a must-hear for those interested in art careers. Fairbanks hopes to generate a supportive dialogue which will stimulate new markets.

As to why someone would choose such a volatile and unpredictable career, Bridget reflected upon her decision, "The thoughts weren't coming from my higher cognitive regions. Those thoughts weren't governing my actions – rather, a place in my inner core that I actually still can't locate, a place of action, of joy, and passion, and contentedness, a place kind of like the idea of home."

Bridget Fairbanks, the producer of It Ain't Easy can be reached by email. It Ain't Easy can be heard on Kootenay Coop Radio (CJLY 93.5 FM and 96.5 FM) in Nelson, BC.

The copyright of the article Bridget Fairbanks' "It Ain't Easy" Radio Show in Art & Society is owned by Simone Keiran. Permission to republish Bridget Fairbanks' "It Ain't Easy" Radio Show in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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