Living Craft - Episode One - Patrick Diette
"Living Craft" is a film series about the small handful of people that make their sole living with their hands. It's a discussion and very personal insight into what it takes to live this lifestyle. It’s the beginning of a new project that I’ve been planning since I started carving and earning a living as a craftsman or Slöjder almost ten years ago.
As you know I’ve been a photographer most of my life, and throughout that time I’ve made a handful of small films documenting various things, but mainly handcraft related themes. Four years ago after losing all of my gear and belongings in a house fire, this dream took a back seat. - The first film in the series is about a talented spoon carver named Patrick Diette or as we know him on the internet as @klipnockywoods
The film is an honest and at times blunt discussion on what it really takes to make your sole living off of your handcraft. There are a lot of hobbyist carvers out there that make and sell the occasional spoon, often using it as supplementary income, or have a spouse that takes care of the bills. Which in no means is to discredit what they are doing, as the more spoon carvers the merrier! But I'm interested in telling the story of the souls that take the hard road to live their dream and do what they love. But I don't really hear a lot of “real talk” when it comes to this craft, which is a nice change from the typical marketing you see on social media. We now live in a world of face smoothing, body slimming filters, everything is great/follow-like-subscribe silliness.
Often content on social media lacks actual authenticity in fears of being honest and showing vulnerability. I travel a lot and meet people that have so many questions and assumptions about this ever growing and now popular craft. But what I hear is often not what I hear from the actual full time makers behind the closed doors when the audience is not listening. This discussion is something that’s actually authentic, not just a marketing hashtag, and you'll see that Pat is just a humble carver, trying to live a simple life in a complicated world. It’s not an easy job, you won’t make a lot of money selling spoons, and the jet set life doesn’t exist if you live with an axe in your hand. Life is not perfect, it has it’s ups and downs. But a common thread with people who are daily practitioners of handcraft, enjoy making for it’s calming mindfulness, a simple lifestyle, and the fulfillment of creating something from very simple raw and natural materials. A connection to your natural surroundings and your soul. What I'm finding more and more are the medicinal benefits which I have been calling “Spoon Medicine” for a long time now.
If you like the film please leave me some feedback or comments. It's very intense to gather up all this expensive gear, take three weeks off to film, edit, and build a proper relationship with these quiet crafts people. I may need some help producing these films as each one actually costs me a lot of time and money to make it happen. Some have suggested Patreon or Kickstarter so I’d love to hear your comments about the film, and any ideas which may help me make this a smoother operation.
Please send me an email - alex@alexanderyerks.com if you'd like to get involved by supporting the cause. I have a lot more to say but will save it for the next entry. The film, visuals, art, and music were created by me ©️ AlexanderYerks 2019 except for some portions of music inspired by the songs and playing style of Nick Drake. Follow my daily journey into craft on Instagram - @alex_yerks Patrick's work can be found at his website - https://www.klipnockywoods.com/