The Industrial Revolution: The Arts And Crafts Movement

Arts and crafts are often thought of today as something that only children partake in. They can easily be done with your hands and are small hobbies. To people in the late 19th century, arts and crafts were about connecting to your surroundings rather than just filling the time. The arts and crafts movement began a revolution of people who sought to use their hands rather than big machinery to create something. Through meaningful interactions with their materials, people who partook in these activities gained meaningful insights. This movement also was a leading cause that helped form occupational therapy as we know it today.
The arts and crafts movement began in the 1880 's and lasted until 1910. It was led in England by John Ruskin and William Morris. Both came from a creative background. Ruskin was an author, poet, artist, and art critic, while Morris was known for his poetry, designing abilities, and as a socialist reformer (O 'Brien, Hussey, & Sabonis-Chafee, 2012). Prior to this movement was the Industrial Revolution. During this time, products that were commonly made by hand were then mass produced in factories ("The Industrial Revolution", n.d.). Mass producing products allowed for elaborate designs that were for decoration (Baldwin & Floyd, 2016). Ruskin and Morris greatly opposed the production of products made by machines. They believed that it distanced people from nature and their own creativity (O 'Brien et al., 2012). Ruskin also stated that machines were