It has been suggested that craft be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Proposed since March 2012.

It has been suggested that tradesman be merged into this article or section. (Discuss) Proposed since March 2012.

An artist blacksmith and a striker working as one.

Wood carver in Bali.

An artisan (from Italian: artigiano) or craftsman (craftsperson)^[1] is a skilled manual worker who makes items that may be functional or strictly decorative, including furniture, clothing, jewelry, household items, and tools or even machines such as the handmade devices of a watchmaker. An artisan is therefore a person engaged in or occupied by the practice of a craft, who may through experience and talent reach the expressive levels of an art in their work and what they create.

The adjective "artisanal" is sometimes used in marketing and advertising as a buzz word to describe or imply some relation with the crafting of handmade food products, such as bread, tofu, beverages, and cheese. Many of these have traditionally been handmade, rural, or pastoral goods but are also now commonly made on a larger scale with automated mechanization in factories and other industrial areas.

Artisan origins[link]

Artisans were the dominant producers of consumer products prior to the Industrial Revolution. According to classical economics theory, the division of labour occurs with internal market development (Adam Smith). However, according to economist John Hicks, merchants and artisans originated as servants to the rulers, which occurred much earlier.

Medieval artisans[link]

During the Middle Ages, the term "artisan" was applied to those who made things or provided services. It did not apply to unskilled labourers. Artisans were divided into two distinct groups: those who operated their own business, and those who did not. Those who owned their businesses were called masters, while the latter were the journeymen and apprentices. One misunderstanding many people have about this social group is that they picture them as "workers" in the modern sense: employed by someone. The most influential group among the artisans were the masters, the business owners. The owners enjoyed a higher social status in their communities.^[2]

Gallery[link]

• 

  Carpenter, 1425

• 

  Tailor, 1425

• 

  Armourer, 1425

• 

  Dyer, 1433

• 

  Saddler, 1470

• 

  Tanner, 1473

• 

  Weaver, 1524

• 

  Nailsmith, 1529

• 

  Hatter, 1533

• 

  Shoemaker, 1535

• 

  Furrier, 1543

• 

  Goldsmith, 1543

• 

  Wheelwright, 1545

• 

  Stonemason, 1550

• 

  Bladesmith, 1564

• 

  Locksmith, 1600

• 

  Potter, 1605

• 

  Blacksmith, 1606

• 

  Cooper, 1608

• 

  Gunsmith, 1613

• 

  Ropemaker, 1616

See also[link]

• Artist
• Applied art
• Arts and Crafts movement
• Caste — Tarkhan
• Guild

References[link]

External links[link]

• The Wiktionary entry for artisan
• History of Artisans

Blind Fury is a 1989 samurai/action film written by Charles Robert Carner (of Gymkata fame) and directed by Phillip Noyce. It is a loosely based, modernized version of Zatoichi Challenged, the 17th film in the Japanese Zatoichi film series.^[2] The film stars Rutger Hauer as Nick Parker, a blind, sword-wielding Vietnam War veteran, who returns to the United States and befriends the son of an old friend. Parker decides to help the boy find his father, who has been kidnapped by a major crime syndicate.

Plot[link]

Rutger Hauer plays Nick Parker, an American soldier who is blinded while serving in the Vietnam War. Parker is blinded by a mortar explosion, but is soon after rescued by local villagers, who help him recover his health (though he remains blind). As part of his recovery, he is taught to be an expert swordsman by the local master.

Years later, having returned to the United States, he visits old army-buddy Frank Deveraux (Terry O'Quinn), only to find that Deveraux is missing. Parker then rescues Frank's son Billy (Brandon Call) from an attack in which Billy's mother (Meg Foster) is shot and killed by the henchmen of Frank's evil boss, MaCready (Noble Willingham). These men apparently want to kidnap Billy in order to use him as leverage over Frank.

Parker and Billy, chased by MaCready's men and lead villain (Randall "Tex" Cobb), make their way to Reno, Nevada, where Deveraux is being forced to make designer drugs, which MaCready plans to sell at his casino. Along the way, the two grow fond of each other after a rough start, and numerous attacks by the bad guys are foiled by Nick and his skills.

Impressed by Parker's martial-arts skill, MaCready hires a Master Ninja (Sho Kosugi) to defeat Parker once and for all. This leads to an epic sword-fight between the two in MaCready's penthouse, in which Nick eventually wins by submerging the room into darkness so that he has the advantage. With MaCready and his men dead, Billy is reunited with his father. A tearful Frank confesses to Parker that he has long blamed himself for the accident in Vietnam, and Frank is now able to forgive himself. Although now considered "Uncle Nick" to the young Billy, Parker leaves Frank and Billy to travel on his own.

Production[link]

Blind Fury marked the producing debut of actor Tim Matheson. Matheson produced the film having been a fan of the Zatoichi film series.^[3] Matheson and co-producer Daniel Grodnik, spent seven years trying to find a distributor for the film. In 1986, the producers landed a deal with film distributor Tri-Star Pictures. According to Grodnik, various writers and directors were attached to the project before Phillip Noyce were hired as the film's director.

Hauer calls Blind Fury one of his "most difficult jobs" because of the combination of swordplay with playing a blind man; and Hauer spent a month training with a blind man whose first words to him were "I don't get confused about what I see ...".^[4]

Filming took place around the Midwestern United States, where the cast and crew underwent humid weather conditions. Of the intense weather conditions, Matheson stated, "We shot in the Midwest and West, and it was incredibly hot. Everything was burning up. We ended up buying a three-foot pool for the cast and crew to wade through to cope with the heat."^[3] After principal photography was completed, a sequel to the film was planned, but never materialized.^[3]

Release[link]

Reception[link]

On their syndicated television program Siskel and Ebert and the Movies, film critics Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel gave the film "Two thumbs up".^[5]

Reviewer Ian Jane of DVD Talk wrote, "Hauer does a commendable job in the lead and is reasonably convincing as a blind man. Like its Japanese predecessors, there is some humor interjected into the storyline that is handled well without becoming overbearing or taking over the action sequences."^[6]

Based on only nine reviews, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that Blind Fury currently holds an 67% "Fresh" rating, with a rating average of 5.1 out of 10.^[7]

Censorship[link]

The UK version was trimmed when it was released on VHS. The dialogue "Gasoline mixed with detergent..." was taken out due to the BBFC's worries of imitations from audiences.^{[citation needed]}

References[link]

External links[link]

• Blind Fury at the Internet Movie Database
• Blind Fury at AllRovi

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