Futuring Craft Conference: The Value of Craft
3 - 6 September 2024, Curtin University, Perth
The IOTA24 Futuring Craft conference took place at Curtin University's School of Design & the Built Environment in Perth.
IOTA’s flagship conference was an invitation to gather, share, and together begin to shape the future of contemporary craft in our region.
The four-day program included free opening celebrations and featured presentations from over 50 leading thinkers and practitioners. Audiences enjoyed insights into traditional, current and future craft practice alongside discussions, workshops, artist talks and exhibition tours.
Download the proceedings and view the pre-recorded presentations on IOTA's Vimeo Channel.
PDF document: 59 MB
| Opening Day: keynote & cultural celebration - FREE; bookings essential | 4-7.30pm, Tuesday, 3 September |
| Exhibition Opening: Stitch As Code, Curtin DBE Exhibition Space | 6-7pm, Tuesday, 3 September |
| Presentations, demonstrations, panel discussions and more - Ticketed; bookings essential | 9am – 3pm, 4, 5, 6 September |
| IOTA24 complementary events: tours, talks, films | 4pm onwards, 4, 5, 6 September |
Image credit: Asim Waqif, collaborative project, লয় [Loy], Kolkata, 2019. Photo: Vivian Sarky. © Asim Waqif, shared with permission.
3-6 September 2024 School of Design and the Built Environment Curtin University Perth, Western Australia
What is the value of craft in the big picture?
In the progress narrative, human capacity is advanced by the invention of technologies that overcome our bodily limits. By contrast with this linear view, making things by hand is seen as backward. The challenge for those in the crafts is to demonstrate the wide range of ways in which it is still relevant, even vital, today and in the future.
Craft has many practical benefits, such as personal wellbeing, aesthetic capacity, also positive economic and environmental impact, and ethical uses that support marginalised peoples.
What is the thread that links all the values of craft together?
Keynote Speaker
ASIM WAQIF
Concerns of ecology and anthropology weave through Waqif’s work, which crosses architecture, art and design. Known for creating temporary forms that necessitate painstaking manual processes and collaborative teams, his work highlights the politics of occupying, intervening, and using public spaces.
View more about Asim Waqif, লয় [Loy] and his other projects.
লয় [Loy]
Presented at the Arjunpur Amra Sabai Club, Kolkata, 2019. Bamboo, cane, cloth and rope structure embedded with an interactive electronic and acoustic system.
Asim Waqif in collaboration with Ashhar Farooqui, Anpu Varkey, Harry Samson, Hoang Quyet, Shantanu Heisnam, Nadeem Waqif, Pradeep Patra and Khokon Da and his team of bamboo and cane craftsmen.
Photos: Vivian Sarky. © Asim Waqif, shared with permission.
Futuring Craft 24: Booking & Fees
Booking is essential. The booking fees cover:
- Admission to the conference sessions, workshops, keynote presentations.
- Morning tea/coffee and lunch (in-person registrants)
- Invitations to other IOTA events during conference period
- Keynote & Opening celebration
- [IT support for presenters.]
| Keynote & Opening Celebration 3 Sep | FREE of charge |
| Full package 3-6 September | AUD $330 |
| Full package (student concession) | AUD $198 |
| Day rate / day rate concession | AUD $132 / $82.50 |
The registration fees do not include:
- Travel expenses
- Accommodation
Press passes are limited, available on application.
International Visitors
Conference Partners
Accommodation Partners & Offers
- Mercure Perth, Irwin St
- Ibis Perth, Murray Street
- Novotel Perth, Murray
- Novotel Perth, Langley
READ & WATCH LATER?
Enquiries
Image credit: YEE I-LANN, Detail of Harunan Motol (Boat's Ladder), 2021. Woven by Omadal Island Bajau Sama DiLaut weavers Kak Budi, Kak CT Aturdaya, Adik Darwisa, Kak Kinnuhong, Adik Koddil, Kak Roziah, Kak Sanah and Kak Norbaya.
Photo: Sue-Lyn Moyle, John Curtin Gallery.