ANST - Merchanting, A&S Autocrat, and the Arts

[I. Marc Carlson]

<"C.L. Ward" <gunnora at bga.com>>
>The questions were asked whether it was proper that:
>>1) Merchants that enter their wares in A&S competitions.
>Firstly, why should there be any problem with a merchant entering their
>wares in an A&S competition?...

I don't know if this has been covered before, and my apologies if it
has, but I can think of three unrelated reasons why some people might look
askance at someone entering an item that they are also selling in a
competition.  (Please note that I am not *endorsing* any of these as valid
reasons, or not.  I am just pointing these possibilities out)

The first is that there may be a modicum of "professional vs amateur" unease, 
a sense that "My work isn't good enough to compete against someone who sells 
theirs professionally".  This can perhaps stem from competitions such as the
Olympics, where the contestants are *supposed* to be amateurs.  Since the 
SCA bars (unofficially) the Laurelate from competitions with non-Laurels,
the implication is that the competitions are amateur.

A second possibility is that some people may see the artisan as seeking "free
advertizing".

A third possibility is the dichotomy between academe and commerce.  If you make
items for research, practice, gifts, whatever, that's one thing.  If you make
them for resale, this is somehow selling out and cheapening the knowledge.

Personally, I have a personal problem with this from a different angle, which 
is tied into why I have trouble selling my work or taking commissions. I was
raised with programming that says "Gentlemen don't engage in Trade" (I've
overcome this when it comes to other people, but am still working on getting
past that block regarding myself :) )  It's alright for them to Make Stuff,
just not sell it (or enter it in competitions).

Academics have a similar bit of programming that says "Scholars don't engage
in Trade - Knowledge can't be bought or sold.  To make a buck on Scholarship
is to engage in prostitution."  Now, as anyone who's ever spent a lot of time
in Academia can tell you, this is crap - it happens, but usually in the shadows,
where no one has to be exposed to it.

(You may recall the discussion recently on Medieval-Leather regarding 
Archeologists v. Treasure Hunters.  Same thing.)

>As long as the merchant made the item, and
>documents it to the standards of the competition, why should it matter if
>the item is for sale or not?...

Objectively, it doesn't.

Marc/Diarmaid
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