What is the definition of an Artisan?

@ barryarmstrong. 4 posts. Every one of them grossly negative.

Great start.

According to a dictionary I looked at its definition is of artisan is "a worker in a skilled trade, especially one that involves making things by hand". Because the term "Artisan" is intangible there is nothing rock solid and it is up to the interpretation of the one using the term. For instance, it appears that Will from B&M, John from Los Angeles Shaving Soap Company, Florian from Wiborg Brushes, etc are artisans. While the manufactures of DR Harris and Mark from Simpsons Brushes are not. SO the question is when does an artisan become a non artisan even though they continue to make the same product(s)? Is it automation? Is it hiring several employees?

You can also question is a soap maker an artisan? Their product may be new on the market but it is still soap. If they go from producing one new soap to a dozen different soaps are they still considered an artisan. Or does the term artisan better refer to the maker of a "one off" wooden chair? Does bespoke more clearly define an artisan? I am not trying to define the term, I'm merely asking a question.

Was Steve Jobs an artisan at first? Surely he was not at the time of his death.

You can also question is a soap maker an artisan?  Their product may be new on the market but it is still soap.  If they go from producing one new soap to a dozen different soaps are they still considered an artisan.  Or does the term artisan better refer to the maker of a "one off" wooden chair?  Does bespoke more clearly define an artisan?  I am not trying to define the term, I'm merely asking a question.

The maker of "one-off" chairs is still making furniture, the maker of a bespoke suit is still making clothes...I don't think it is the utility or uniqueness of the item being made but the fact that it is hand-crafted by someone with skill.   Making soap can be creative or uninspired, artistic or not, depending on the skill and intention of the artisan.  The person who makes a few batches from a recipe they've found in  book or online isn't an artisan; someone who has developed their own formula or techniques, and sells their products, is an artisan.

"Bespoke" refers to making something to order, so it might refer to something that an artisan makes as a one-off fragrance to a customer's specifications.  But it wouldn't refer to the artisan him/herself.

To save confusion we should refer to Artisan's as Soap Makers because that's all they are. No great skill involved

I wouldn't really agree with that. I wouldn't know where to begin with creating soap bases and mixing fragrances and essential oils to make scents.

To save confusion we should refer to Artisan's as Soap Makers because that's all they are. No great skill involved

I wouldn't really agree with that.  I wouldn't know where to begin with creating soap bases and mixing fragrances and essential oils to make scents.

I would have to agree with Andrew as some of the soap-makers, in my opinion, are true artisans as their product not only works brilliantly, it also smells wonderfully. There has to be skill(s) involved in accomplishing this.

I think after reading many of these replies it is my opinion that the term "Artisan" has many meanings depending on who is using the term. Think about this before anyone replies. I live in Los Angeles; this year we have had several weeks (yes I said weeks) where temperatures were in excess of 100º. To me the term "cold" means temperatures in the 40º range. My sister lives in Maine; to her cold means 10º or less. So in that situation the meaning of cold depends on who is using the term.

To me the term "Artisan" is meaningless. I just look at an individual who makes soaps and say "he makes an excellent product" I don't need to call him an artisan. This has nothing to do with this thread but try to explain to an individual what an orange tastes like if they have never had one.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

After reading quite a few of these 27 pages of posts on the "definition of an Artisan", I have come to the conclusion that there is no one single answer that anyone could agree upon to this question. Although there have been so many opinions and observations, I find that although I agree with many of them, I also disagree with the rest of them. I come from a different perspective than most here as I am/would be considered an "artisan" by many here. The best way for me to express my reaction to these posts is to quote myself from a thread here:

https://damnfineshave.com/thread-what-s-...ams?page=9

"As a maker of shaving cream and now shaving soap, permit me to respond to the original question here regarding “artisan” shaving soaps versus “artisan” shaving creams. Although I started out as an “artisan” soap maker, I knew that my approach to both of these products had to be more along the lines of cosmetic chemistry rather than soapmaking! The first difference is that cosmetic products are made with formulas that are based on 100%. It is much easier to work with all the individual ingredients and deal with their proper usage rates when using them in a formula. Soapmakers work with what they call “recipes” which often calculate the percentages of the oils/butters/fatty acids that are used then calculate the amount of bases required to saponify these ingredients then finally calculate the water need to create a certain lye solution strength based on the amount of bases (often hydroxides) to come up with their “recipe”. These don’t add up to 100% and adding other ingredients to this becomes difficult and often inaccurate.

There are so many types of shaving creams it is difficult to compare them to one another without first taking a look at their ingredients lists. When first doing my research to make shaving cream, I looked at the ingredients used in the major brands of what were typically “British” creams and went from there. I searched for old soapmaking books as well as cosmetic chemistry books and many of the resources that are available. I also had the benefit of knowing some cosmetic chemists personally and would go to them with my queries and questions. I put aside everything I knew about making handcrafted, cold-process soap, ignored what I had observed in what is known as “cream soapmaking” whose techniques and ingredients did not apply to the type of shaving cream I was making and I went from researching the ingredients, available documentation, process and procedures and I then began experimentation. The more research I did and the more experimentation I did the closer I got to the type of formula I wanted to make. The ingredients for these creams are pretty much the same from product to product so that made things easier and it also made it easier for me to compare my results with what was out there which was what I had used as a shaver myself for so many years! During the experimentation I took copious notes and have 130 pages documenting my research, observations, experimentation and development of this product. The actual production of shaving cream is not difficult and had been no problem to produce in my 800 square foot work room in our completely renovated building/retail store. The most amount of time is spent weighing out the ingredients and bringing them up to temperature and the actual manufacturing process is quite short! I found if I did the weighing one day that I could manufacture about five large batches the next day!

My recent shaving soap project took a few months beginning with more research which led me away from the usual hot-process soap that is typically being made now to actually using the cold process method with procedures that I created for this particular process. I started off with about six different formula directions then out of these I picked the third one I had made because it offered the best results out of the six! I was very surprised that I ended up with this path as it was totally based on my shaving cream formulation which I ended up turning into a shaving soap formula. To the best of my knowledge, no one else has done this in this particular way. The results speak for themselves and I am enjoying using it every day myself which is pretty amazing as I was originally a shaving cream guy!

Anyway, because of all of my lengthy and varied research, I found that there was a great deal more usable information available to me for formulating shaving creams than for formulating shaving soaps! I have observed since I began working in this area in 1998 that the only way to achieve the best results is to do as much research and experimentation as possible and to “think outside the box”! If artisan soapmakers limit themselves to only available current online blogs and boards, they limit their possibilities! This may be why you are seeing more shaving soaps than shaving creams! I got where I am because of thinking outside the box and not following what was being done out there in Online Soapland!"

So, as you can see although some may consider my "handcrafted soaps" as the product of an artisan, my approach to making "shaving cream" and "shaving soap" was that of a cosmetic chemist and my product models were the "British Shaving Creams" that many might consider a "commercial" type of product. So, in that respect I wouldn't fit into their definition of an "artisan"! Currently, I am working on a new formulation for my shaving cream so that I can put out the best product possible! I have been working for the last four months on this project, doing a ton of research, writing and making sample formulations and now have a document over 450 pages long with copious notes and observations. When it is complete will it be an "artisan" shaving cream? I don't really care what you call it as long as it sells and makes people happy!

To me in the shaving world, Artisan just means a small operation that makes it's own stuff. Does not imply good or bad quality, just size.

Twenty-seven pages trying to figure out the definition of a word found in every English dictionary? OK, that must be some sort of record.

What is the definition of Silly?

I have no idea why anyone stresses over or cares about whether someone is an artisan or not. if they make a product you like and it works for you, buy it! if not, then don't!!!