Persuasive speech 2009

Art is not just craft

One the first day, as President Abraham Lincoln entered to give his
inaugural address, just in the middle, one man stood up. He was a
rich aristocrat. He said,”Mr. Lincoln, you should not forget that your
father used to make shoes for my family”. And the whole senate
erupted in laughter; they thought they had made a fool of Abraham
Lincoln.
But Lincoln – and that type of men are made of completely different
mettle, Lincoln looked at the man and said, “Sir I know that my
father used to make shoes in your house for your family, and there
will be many others here... because the way he made shoes; nobody
else could. He was a creator. His shoes were not just shoes; he
poured his whole soul into it. I want to ask you, do you have any
complaint? Because I know how to make shoes myself; if you have
any complaint I can make another pair of shoes. But as far as I know,
nobody has ever complained about my father‟s shoes. He was a
genius, a great creator and I am proud of my father.
The whole Senate was struck dumb. They could not understand
what kind of man Abraham Lincoln was. He had made shoe making
an art, a creativity. And he was proud because his father did the job
so well that not even a single complaint had ever been heard.
It doesn‟t matter what you do. What matters is how you do it – of
our own accord, with your own vision, with your own love. Then
whatever you touch becomes gold.
So, ladies and gentleman, how do we differentiate art from craft? Art
and craft are inter-related and one is incomplete without another.
Craft - is a job done...while Art is a brilliant piece of work done
masterfully. Craft is something that is learnt in short term whereas

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 Persuasive speech 2009

art requires skill which is acquired over a period of time after

tremendous efforts. There's not a lot of room for variation in craft.
Art is a work that transcends its humble materials to create an
original statement or expression in a meaningful and enduring way.
It is something that is unique and original. It is the essence of that
originality and the power of the end result that produces world-class
art products. The art resides in the design, and the craft resides in
the execution and hence it is rightly said that art requires a vision. It
is said that artists already create the finished product even before it
can be seen, execution is a merely formality for them. You can be
sure that art is running in the blood of the creator for without it you
cannot create a masterpiece!
Art has a lot attached to it then can be seen with the naked eye.
Fathom this - those Nike shoes that you are wearing, this piece of
mobile phone, this lcd tv, that brilliant piece of music you deeply
admire are stunning pieces of art. The very campus we are in right
now is nothing but a brilliant piece of art brought into reality. Your
art can vary from music to cooking to painting to shoe making!
What matters is how you take it to another level. Designing a play is
an art which should have solid ideas and concepts in play which are
executed with a sufficient level of craftsmanship.
Great creators like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and
Shakespeare etc created immortal pieces of art and not just craft
because they were highly skilled and intellectual beings and
understood the value of art.

I would like to conclude by saying that art is something beyond

craft. One requires immense dedication and years of practise to
create a „perfect‟ piece of art, for art involves high level of
craftsmanship and intellect. I‟d like to quote what Michelangelo said
– “You paint with your brains and not with your hands”.

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