Event Details

Dr Innan Sasaki from Warwick Business presents work on the value of 'technically obsolete' skills with a focus on UK traditional artisanal skills.

Research in management seems to assume that as technological change periodically upgrades our capacity to perform given tasks, skill obsolescence is inevitable. Yet, researchers have recognized that some skills may be valuable in themselves because of the cultural traditions they embody and/or the symbolic function they perform – even after the task they perform or the objects they produce have largely lost their practical purposes. In order to improve our understanding of how technically obsolete skills can survive, we conducted a study of so-called ‘heritage craft’ in the United Kingdom – a varied collection of traditional artisanal skills, ranging from basketry to clay pipe making, from silver spinning to coachbuilding, from dry stone walling to sail making. Our study examines how as technology develops and cheaper alternatives emerge, some traditional skills may survive (or be revived) as their products are re-located away from a purely commercial domain into a space where technical and cultural considerations intertwine to determine the value of a product or service.

All welcome - registration required - NB: Due to rail strikes, Innan will not be able to join us in person, and so the event will be online only (please ignore the location given on this page, it's not possible to edit it). If you have previously registered to attend in person, you should have received an email with the link to the meeting (please email pentlandcentre@lancaster.ac.uk if you haven't received an update).

NB: This event has taken place and registration is no longer possible.



[Image at top of page copyright Mark Anderson, cropped from original, and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.]