Katarina Botwid (Lund University)

The use of the concept creativity is broad and open. In archaeology it sometimes seems as if creativity is considered equal to what usually is denoted as artisanal skill.

I argue that creativity is the ability to think in new ways and to think outside the box. It is not impossible for an artisan to be creative, but it is not a requirement.

Conversely, the skilled person is not necessarily creative. To illustrate my arguments I will use my position as an active ceramic artist in the field of contemporary arts and crafts and my phd-studies of artisanal levels of skill in ancient ceramic material. I am going to show examples to reveal what separates creativity from skill.