Reinventing tradition: Exploring the creation of new meaning through innovations involving craft‐based design

Many studies in the field of innovation focus on novelty and technology, but recent literature and contemporary design practices have proposed an alternative view. Innovation has instead been suggested to bring about new meanings, often driven by design, and lately the role of tradition has been highlighted as a source of innovation rather than an obstacle. However, research has thus far not explained how tradition is actually used in innovation practice. By exploring design elements from craft‐based design practice, the overall aim of this study is to identify and explore how craft‐based design leads to new meaning and Innovation Through Tradition (ITT). To gain further insights into craft‐based design for ITT, the Research Through Design method in combination with narrative writing was used, investigating innovation from inside design practice. The empirical design work highlights the innovation potential when craft‐based design and production processes deliberately use tradition, not only by embracing the value of tradition itself, but also by creating new meaning through its unexpected combination with novel components. Finally, a visualization of key elements that can be reinvented is outlined to highlight tensions between different design elements that have the potential to produce new and valuable product meanings.