Artisanal Production

Artisanal production may, as suggested by Walter E. Little, be broadly defined as the economic activity consisting of making something for self-consumption and for the market. Historically, the production process has been labor intensive, and this type of production has tended to use low or specialized technology controlled by the producer. Artisanal production has, however, often been characterized by its knowledge intensity as well as its creativity, in spite of often being labor intensive and low-technology focused, since the producer is also usually responsible for the design and innovation of the produced goods. The producer has tended to control the knowledge necessary for maintaining and developing production, either alone or as a member of an association of producers. A related and additional feature of some ...