How to successfully digitalize craft skills

On October 21, this year, the Latgale Planning Region, together with cooperation partners from the Daugavpils City Council’s “Vienības nams” (LV), Krāslava Municipality (LV), the Anykščiai Arts Incubator – Art Gallery (LT), and the Panevėžys District Municipality Administration (LT), met at the Panevėžys District Municipality Administration, the Upīte Traditional Crafts Center, and the Anykščiai Arts Incubator – Art Gallery to develop a unified digital tourism product as part of the “Digital Tourism in Crafts” project (acronym D-Tour). This project aims to create a cross-border tourism route called “Digital Craft Skills,” generate creative ideas for exhibitions, and successfully digitalize craft skills.

How to pass on traditional pottery skills, what is the journey of flax from seed to finished woven products, and how to preserve the playing of traditional musical instruments? How to embrace creative ideas and, inspired by traditional culture, create an interesting offering for the Latvia-Lithuania cross-border route “Digital Craft Skills”?

Answers to these numerous questions were sought by partners from the “Digital Tourism in Crafts” project, including representatives from the Daugavpils City Council’s “Vienības nams,” Krāslava Municipality, the Anykščiai Arts Incubator – Art Gallery, and the Panevėžys District Municipality Administration during their visit to the Panevėžys District Municipality Administration, the Upīte Traditional Crafts Center, and the Anykščiai Arts Incubator – Art Gallery on October 21, 2024.

During the visit, they gained excellent insights into various methods of preserving and passing on traditional crafts and discovered new ideas for their digitalization. Digitalization will allow this heritage to be preserved for future generations even in the fast-paced information age.

As the project manager Sarmīte Teivāne notes, by combining traditional craft skills with modern technologies, it is possible to create new, functional, and competitive products. Interactive materials, animations, and videos can stimulate young people’s interest in traditional crafts, fostering understanding of their significance and inspiring them to learn and apply these skills.

Various craft fields will be included in five digital exhibitions: “The Universe of Traditional Crafts in Latgale” in Daugavpils, a virtual exhibition on woodworking, specific wooden architecture in Krāslava, an exhibition on ceramics in Anykščiai, and two craft exhibitions in the Panevėžys region—on traditional linen weaving in the Aukštaitija region and on traditional folk musical instruments in the Panevėžys region.

The project “Digital crafts tourism” (acronym D-tour; No LL-00100) is co-funded by the European Union. The project is implemented within the Interreg VI-A Latvia-Lithuania Programme 2021-2027.

The total project budget is EUR 697 275.  The project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund with EUR 557 820.

Interreg VI-A Latvia–Lithuania Programme 2021–2027 aims to enhance the sustainable and cohesive socioeconomic development of its regions by fostering competitiveness and attractiveness for residents, students, workers, and visitors alike, thereby creating environments conducive to living, studying, working, and visiting.

Programme website: http://www.latlit.eu. About the project: latlit.eu/theprojects/d-tour/.

This publication has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of the Latgale Planning Region and does not necessarily represent the official position of the European Parliament.

Project manager: Sarmīte Teivāne, +371 65423801, e-mail: sarmite.teivane@lpr.gov.lv, Latgale Planning Region.

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