In 416 B.C.E., an Athenian poet named Agathon invited a collection of notable speakers to his house for a dinner party. After dinner, guests passed the evening making speeches dedicated to the god of love. Thankfully, the wit and scandal of that night was recorded by Plato in his Symposium.

Some 2,412 years later, what kind of Symposium might citizens of a new global community conduct? Symmetry originally occured as a craft exhibition, but it has a second life here as an open conversation about the status of manual knowledge in contemporary society. Compared to Agathon's dinner party, the host, venue and guests are quite abstract. The ancient and modern events do, however, focus on a major concern of human existence. Whereas the Greeks spoke of love, the topic here is the less serious component of life: work.

So imagine the task of making a guest list for today's symposium. Certain parameters are fixed. There is room for ten guests. Of these ten, five have already invited from each of the crafts: there is a ceramicist, a jeweller, a woodworker, a weaver and a glass blower. A partner must be found for each of these five. Ideally, this partner comes from a very different walk of life, yet has much to discuss with the craftsperson. Think, for example, what an actor and a lawyer might have to say to each other.

So who will the other five guests be?

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