Podcasts about contemporary craft

Welcome to Art is Awesome, the show where we talk with an artist or art worker with a connection to the San Francisco Bay Area. This week on 'Art is Awesome,' host Emily Wilson chats with Stephanie Robison, a sculptor living in Oakland and the chair of City College of San Francisco's Art Department. The episode delves into Stephanie's background, from growing up in Oregon and being encouraged by a high school counselor to attend college, to falling in love with sculpture, particularly stone. Stephanie discusses her creative process, the resistance she enjoys from materials like marble, and how her grandmother inspired her love for making things. She also shares her experiences with exhibitions and her thoughts on teaching. About Artist Stephanie Robison:Originally from Oregon, Stephanie currently resides in California teaching sculpture and serving as Art Department Chair at the City College of San Francisco. Robison holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Marylhurst University and a Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture from the University of Oregon. Her work has been exhibited at Marrow Gallery, Marin Museum of Contemporary Art and Orange County Center for Contemporary Art in California, Robischon Gallery in Denver, Colorado, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Joseph A Cain Memorial Art Gallery and Greater Denton Arts Council in Texas, Yeiser Art Center in Kentucky, Site:Brooklyn Gallery in New York, Foster/White Gallery, Whatcom Museum and Tacoma Art Museum in Washington, and Peter Robertson Gallery in Alberta Canada.Stephanie is represented by Marrow Gallery in San Francisco, California and Foster/White Gallery in Seattle, Washington. Her work can also be found at Robischon Gallery in Denver, Colorado.The sculptures of Stephanie Robison plays with multiple oppositional relationships. Working with industrial fabrics and wood, she creates large-scale installations that examine relationships between culture, nature and the built environment. Her latest series of work combines traditional stone carving and the process of needle felting wool. By merging incongruous materials such as wool and marble, she works to synthesize and fuse: organic and geometric, natural and architectural, handmade and the uniform industrial. Focusing on materiality and color with this new work, Robison creates charming, often humorous or awkward forms referencing aspects of the body, relationships and the environment. Visit Stephanie's Website:  StephanieRobison.comFollow Stephanie on Instagram:  @SquishyStoneFor more about Stephanie's Exhibit, "Incantations for the Average Person" CLICK HERE. --About Podcast Host Emily Wilson:Emily a writer in San Francisco, with work in outlets including Hyperallergic, Artforum, 48 Hills, the Daily Beast, California Magazine, Latino USA, and Women's Media Center. She often writes about the arts. For years, she taught adults getting their high school diplomas at City College of San Francisco.Follow Emily on Instagram: @PureEWilFollow Art Is Awesome on Instagram: @ArtIsAwesome_Podcast--CREDITS:Art Is Awesome is Hosted, Created & Executive Produced by Emily Wilson. Theme Music "Loopster" Courtesy of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 LicenseThe Podcast is Co-Produced, Developed & Edited by Charlene Goto of @GoToProductions. For more info, visit Go-ToProductions.com

In this captivating episode of Sounds From the Studio, host Sydney Leslie delves into the rich tapestry of Contemporary Craft's 50-year legacy. Sydney engages in a heartfelt conversation with Kate Lydon, the former Director of Exhibitions, who reflects on her remarkable 35-year journey with the organization. Together, they explore the evolution of Contemporary Craft, from its humble beginnings to its current status as a beacon of innovation and tradition. Discover the intricacies of crafting an exhibition archive and the challenges and triumphs of curating a permanent collection that bridges past and present. Listeners will be transported through time as Kate recounts memorable exhibitions, including collaborations with iconic artists like Faith Ringgold, Lenore Tanya, and Nick Cave. She offers insights into the shifting landscape of craft, from the DIY movement to the contemporary blend of mixed media artistry. Join us for an episode that celebrates the vibrant history of Contemporary Craft and honors the visionary artists who have shaped its path. Follow Contemporary Craft on Instagram Visit the Contemporary Craft Website Spotify Playlist: Sounds From the Studio

In the 78th episode of Perceived Value, host Sarah Rachel Brown takes listeners to the Penland School of Craft, where she's participating in their Winter Residency. Leading up to the residency, Sarah had heard from a few fellow artists attending, but overall, she had no idea who she would cross paths with. To her delight, the residency allowed her to meet many artists she's admired from afar. Among them is the guest for this episode, Lauren Kalman, who has been on Sarah's interview wishlist for some time. After sharing a few meals, Sarah asked for an interview.The two women sat down to discuss how Lauren unexpectedly got her first teaching position, the art of negotiation and why it's a crucial skill, how to sell work when your work is challenging to sell, and how an artist's work is not always representative of their personality.OUR GUESTLauren Kalman is a visual artist based in Detroit whose practice is rooted in craft, sculpture, video, photography, and performance. She completed her PhD in Practice-led Research from the School of Art and Design at the Australian National University. She earned an MFA in Art and Technology from Ohio State University and a BFA with a focus in Metals from Massachusetts College of Art.Her work has been featured in exhibitions at the Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian Museum of American Art, Museum of Arts and Design, Museum of Contemporary Craft, Cranbrook Art Museum, Contemporary Art Museum Houston, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Mint Museum, World Art Museum in Beijing, and the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris among others. Her work is in the permanent collection of the Françoise van den Bosch Foundation at the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Smithsonian Museum of American Art, Detroit Institute of Art, Museum of Arts and Design, and the Korean Ceramics Foundation. In 2020 she received the Françoise van den Bosch Award for her career's impact on the jewelry field; in 2022, she received the Raphael Founders Prize in Glass from Contemporary for Craft; and in 2023 she was named a Kresge Arts in Detroit Fellow.She is a dedicated educator and is currently a Professor and the Chair of the Department of Art, Art History, and Design at Wayne State University in Detroit.www.laurenkalman.comInstagram: @laurenkalmanFacebook: @LaurenKalmanArtDon't forget to Rate AND Review us on iTunes!SUPPORT PERCEIVED VALUE!www.patreon.com/perceivedvalueMORE WAYS TO SUPPORTInstagram + Facebook: @perceivedvalueInstagram: @sarahrachelbrownThe music you hear on Perceived Value is by the Seattle group Song Sparrow Research.All You Need to Know off of their album Sympathetic Buzz.Find them on Spotify!

We kick off season 3 of Sounds from the Studio, with an exploration of Contemporary Craft's 50-year history. Host Sydney Leslie sits down with Janet McCall, former executive director of Contemporary Craft, to delve into the organization's rich past and its evolution within the Pittsburgh arts community. Janet shares her journey from an English and art history graduate to becoming a pivotal figure in the arts scene. From volunteering at the Carnegie Museum to leading Contemporary Craft through significant growth, Janet's story is one of passion and perseverance. Discover the challenges and triumphs of integrating craft into the fine arts realm and the impact of educational programs like the museum school partnership. Join us for an insightful conversation that not only celebrates the past but also looks forward to the future of Contemporary Craft.

Next season, we're diving deep into the newly formed archive at Contemporary Craft, revealing the treasures and stories that have shaped our organization since its inception. Join us as we introduce our new host for Season 3, Sydney Leslie, Archives and Creative Projects Manager, who will guide us through the rich history and exciting future of Contemporary Craft. In this episode, Rachel and Kahmeela pass the mic to Sydney, who shares her journey from Virginia to Pittsburgh, her educational background in art history and museum studies, and how she fell in love with the world of craft. Discover how Sydney has been meticulously organizing and preserving our extensive collection of exhibition catalogs, postcards, and other historical materials, and learn about some of the most intriguing finds she has uncovered, including a quirky soft sculpture shoe bed by artist Michelle Clifton. Join us on this fascinating journey through time as we explore the history of Contemporary Craft and how it informs our future. Follow Contemporary Craft on Instagram Visit the Contemporary Craft Website Spotify Playlist: Sounds From the Studio

On Tuesday's show: The Texas Medical Board has adopted new guidance for doctors regarding what qualifies as a "life-threatening" circumstance when it comes to abortions in the state, which are only legal in order to preserve a pregnant person's life or a major bodily function. We learn what the guidance says and discuss the legal implications of it.Also this hour: We learn what it's like to experience a hurricane from the air as we meet NOAA's Hurricane Hunters.Then, Houston writer Katherine Center talks about what makes a good romantic comedy, something she knows very well -- and is the subject of her latest novel, The Rom-Commers.And we continue our summer series visiting area museums and attractions with a visit to the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft.

In this unique episode of Sounds From the Studio, we break the mold by focusing on the profound themes of grief, mourning, and the celebration of life, as explored in Contemporary Craft's current exhibition, "Hereafter." Join hosts Rachel and Kahmeela as they sit down with Carrie McCann, an educator, death and grief companion, community herbalist, and wellness consultant, to delve into the intricate practices of navigating life's most significant transitions. Listen in as Carrie shares her journey into death work, the roles and rituals of a death doula, and the importance of creating meaningful, personalized end-of-life experiences. This episode is a poignant and enlightening conversation that encourages us to slow down, embrace our emotions, and find beauty and joy even in the most challenging moments of life. Carrie McCann on Instagram Carrie McCann's Website Spotify Playlist: Sounds From the Studio Contemporary Craft Website

These days it feels like so many of us are trying to find new and meaningful ways to connect with our customers. One of the themes that continues to play out during my conversations with other makers is their frustration with Instagram and what to do next.  Today I'm sitting down with Nicole Conklin and talking about her business, Arrok Jewelry. Nicole shares so many good things and during this interview she talks about how we need to understand that Pinterest is like a Google search engine that we can use to our advantage. By entering key words and phrases into your titles and descriptions it can literally drive traffic to your website or instagram.  Nicole also shares her journey with building Arrok Jewelry to the business it is today and how fine tuning your artistic voice and overall look and feel of your business can take your business to the next level. Bio... Arrok Jewelry is owned and operated by Nicole Conklin. Established in 2010, Nicole started her jewelry career after attending The Gemological Institute of America. Once she graduated from GIA she opened Arrok Jewelry and hasn't looked back! Nicole enjoys working with her hands, turning precious and semi precious metals into magical handmade works of art. Her main medium is Sterling Silver, but she also works with copper and brass as accent metals. Nicole's jewelry is bold and powerful, while also remaining subtly feminine. She creates jewelry that evokes emotion and makes the wearer feel empowered and beautiful. Life, Death and Rebirth influence much of Nicole's work, and is a theme often found in her jewelry. Using traditional tattoo flash aesthetic, bold lines and unique stones to help her weave intricate stories in metal, Nicole's designs intertwine juxtaposed imagery, often pairing the macabre with the ultra feminine to highlight the dark/light duality within each of us. Website: arrokjewelry.com Instagram: @arrokjewelry Pinterest: @arrokjewelry If this podcast means something to you and you would like to support it, please take a a moment to give it a few kinds word with a written review on your favorite podcast listening platform. This helps me share the podcast with others. You can also share a favorite episode or consider joining our Slowmade Podcast Patreon community. You support literally makes this podcast possible. Thank you so much! You can follow along or reach out to Christine on Instagram: @christinemighion or send her an email at: info@christinemighion.com

Join us on a profound journey through the artful blend of tradition and modernity with artist, furniture maker, and sculptor Adrien Segal. In this episode, we explore how her residency at Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh inspired a stunning exhibition that not only pays homage to the city's industrial past but also addresses the pressing issue of climate change through the lens of craft. https://www.adriensegal.com/ Facebook - Contemporary Craft Twitter - SCC Pittsburgh Instagram - SCC Pittsburgh Spotify Playlist - Sounds from the Studio

If there ever was an artist that wasn't scared to say what needed to be said, it's Dawn Williams Boyd. Whether it is issues of gun violence, abortion, or voting rights, she will make sure she shares her feelings about it in her wonderful cloth paintings. We talk to Dawn about her recent exhibition, Tip of the Iceberg at Fort Gavsenvoort in New York, and some of the issues she's covered in the show. We talk about how she makes her complex compositions, sources her fabrics, and the power of doing work that makes people uncomfortable sometimes. Her cloth paintings are powerful, and we talk all about it today on the Noize! Listen, subscribe, and share!Episode 170 topics include:using different mediumsdoing work about current eventssourcing fabrics and materialsThe Tip of the Iceberg show at Fort Gansevoort Gallerysaying things that need to be saidcontinuing to learn historythe process of putting together Dawn's work revising work in processthe necessity of saying somethingtackling new subjectsDawn Williams Boyd was born in 1952 in Neptune, New Jersey. She earned her BFA at Stephens College, Columbia, MO in 1974. She has exhibited her works at Wofford College, Spartanburg, SC; Southwest Art Center, Atlanta, GA; Hammonds House Museum, Atlanta, GA; Bulloch Hall, Roswell, GA; Agnes Scott College, Decatur, GA; Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, Atlanta, GA; and Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA. Her work is included in the collections of The Columbus Museum in Columbus, GA and the Richardson Family Art Museum at Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC.See more: www.dawnwilliamsboyd.com + https://www.fortgansevoort.com/artists/dawn-williams-boyd/selected-worksPresented by: Black Art In AmericaFollow us:StudioNoizePodcast.comIG: @studionoizepodcastJamaal Barber: @JBarberStudioSupport the podcast www.patreon.com/studionoizepodcast

"How do we get to the point where we feel seen and cared for and heard?" - matt lambert matt lambert is a non-binary, trans, multidisciplinary collaborator and co-conspirator working towards equity, inclusion, and reparation. On the Eve of their "Self" exhibition opening at Contemporary Craft, matt shares thoughts on craft, historiography, and better questions to ask at a party. http://www.mattlambertstudio.com/

Why Make Podcast, Wendy Maruyama Episode Part II TranscriptTime Code00:00 Robb HelmkampHello and welcome to Why Make, where we talk to makers from different disciplines about what inspires them to make.With your hosts Robb Helmkamp and. Erik Wolken Erik Wolken. If you would like to learn more about the makers we interview on Why Make please go our website why-make.comRobb HelmkampAnd please help support the Why Make podcast and Why Make productions by making a tax refundable donation to us on Fractured Atlas.Erik WolkenFractured Atlas is our new non profit fiscal sponsor which allows us to access a wide range of funding possibilities including funding available only for non-profits Robb HelmkampVisit https://fundraising.fracturedatlas.org/the-why-make-project or go to the donate to Why Make page on Why-Make.com 01:03 Robb HelmkampWelcome to our first podcast of the 2023 season of Why Make. This episode is part two of our in depth conversation with the artist Wendy Maruyama.Erik Wolken Wendy Maruyama is a furniture maker, sculptor and retired educator who resides in San Diego California. Wendy's work has tackled a wide scope topics from traditional furniture forms to exploring her Japanese heritage and the imprisonment of Japanese Americans during WW2 to the issue of endangered speciesRobb HelmkampAs we discuss later in the podcast Wendy was born with significant hearing loss and cerebral palsy and at her request, to aid our listeners, we have included a full transcript of our conversation on our web page for this episode which can be found on the podcast page of why-make.com It can also be found in the episode notes on Apple podcastsErik WolkenPlease join us and take a listen to our wide ranging discussion with one of the more amazing artists in the woodworking field, Wendy Maruyama.02:06 Erik Wolken Moving along Wendy, let's talk about the next phase of your work. Because the next phase of your work use do start to tackle some of your identities in your bodies of work in Turning Japanese, Simple Pleasures and Indulgences & Men in Kimonos you do start to sort of not only address your heritage, but really start to use narrative in your work. What was what was behind all of that? I mean, what do you think was the inspiration behind that? The whole thing that started with Turning Japanese and Men in Kimonos exploring your cultural identity.02:42 Wendy MaruyamaI think the Turning Japanese series the Men in Kimono riff came from my first trip to Japan could be in '92 maybe I can't remember but I'd never been to Japan until the early 90's and like anybody else I was just amazed by what I was seeing over there especially the craft scene. There is such a strong craft heritage in Japan not only with woodworking, ceramics of different styles at the same time some of the fields like textiles really evolved into the modern times to use the unusual fibers and metal in weaving. And then of course, going to downtown Tokyo in the Shibuya District dominated with all this neon stuff, it was very much like Blade Runner if you've seen the movie Blade Runner? It was clearly based on Tokyo. And so there are these two very different aspects of Japan, the old and the very, very, very new high tech side of it. There is a little bit of conflict to you know, I'd be riding on the subway and you can see these Japanese business men reading these pornographic cartoons it was called Manga. I think it was it all these lady with big boobs, it's all cartoons. It was such a flurry of images and so I think some of that was mostly my personal response to what I saw in Japan and I realized that I didn't fit even though I was Japanese American. Japanese descent. I did not fit into that whole culture, I mean, even if I tried. I mean, I'm kind of proud of it from a distance but I realized I don't think like that. So, maybe that was kind of a mixture of sadness and relief in a way. It is a very patriarchal society so there was that and it was kinda just a response to my experiences going to Japan.05:44 Erik WolkenAnd the other interesting thing about that body of work is you begin to introduce using video and still images into it too. And you're really starting to truly experiment with your craft and and I thought that was absolutely wonderful. You know, you reached outside the box, which I think is what we all aim to do as artists. When you first started using video and still images? And where did that come from?06:11 Wendy MaruyamaI'm trying to think. Trying to remember if the Tasmanian Tiger piece was first, I think it was. But anyway, in the Turning Japanese series I started using photo's because I went to a flea market in Kyoto. It's one best thing about Japan! It's amazing what you can find at the flea market. Some love it. If you ever go to Japan, make sure that you go into a big flea market either in Kyoto or Tokyo. The stuff that you find is amazing, but anyway, I came across a box of old black and white photographs of Kabuki actors. And I found out later that in Kabuki theater, women were not allowed to perform. I don't know if that is the case now? But women were not allowed to perform in Kabuki and so the female characters in a Kabuki play were always played by men who were expert at mimicking the feminine movement of women in the story. So all these men I mean all these women in kimono were actually men and they were quite beautiful and alluring and I was just kind of fascinated by that, how these beautiful, these men were. And they were prettier than I was and I thought it be kinda fun to use some of these images. At the same time, I'm a big Japanese sci-fi fan I think that was because that was the first time I saw Japanese people in a movie. It was in a Godzilla movie where you see all these Japanese people running from Godzilla. In one of the Godzilla movies there's these twin fairies (the Shobijin). I don't know if you remember they were sidekicks to Mothra, who was another monster. So I wanted to create this sort of these twin geisha women in the image of this. Oh I don't know, it's amazing about Photoshop, I was taking Photoshop class, and it's amazing how you can make fantastical images using Photoshop. So that was an opportunity to experiment with different media. I tend to jump around from, you know, from subject to subject cause that's the way my life goes. I'm not one to stay with one idea for 40 years, I think I would be bored to death. So it's important for me to just kind of reflect my life through my work. And so hopefully you get an idea what I've been going through by seeing my work in a linear pattern.09:41 Erik Wolken Yes, you definitely see a progression of your work, because then the next body of work you move on to is Executive Order 9066. And the Tag Project. And of course this is referring to, and I'm going to use the correct terminology. This is referring to the incarceration and or imprisonment of the Japanese people on the West Coast of America during World War Two. Just to give you an idea of the scope of this project, and Wendy you can go on to talk about it more, but there were 120,000 Japanese, people of Japanese heritage, imprisoned during EO 9066. And the Tag Project, you printed out a replica of the original tags, these people wore as they were sent to their prison camps. 120,000 tags, that is a mind boggling number.10:38 Wendy MaruyamaThat's a lot of tags. I started this the body of work when I was an artist in residency at SUNY New York, SUNY Purchase that is State University of New York Purchase. I knew that I needed to do this work, but I wasn't really ready until then. I mean it's a really hard topic because my mother's side of the family was deeply impacted by Executive Order 9066 because they were in Los Angeles at the time when Pearl Harbor was bombed and all that happen. But what struck me and kind of made me sort of angry was I was really surprised at how many people didn't even know about this episode in American history, especially on the East Coast and in the south and even now sometimes you run into people who don't even know about it. I think people know, more people know about it now. But even 15 years ago, when I started this project I was running across a lot of people who didn't know, they kind of knew but they didn't really know. And when you tell them how many people were sent away to these prison camps but it's daunting to think about. And so I also thought a lot about the Holocaust too. It doesn't hold a candle to what happened here, but still the fact that Executive Order 9066 happened in this country, this country of freedom and all that. I just really wanted to bring that to the forefront with my work. And I also wanted to get to know more of the Japanese American community. And so one of the first things I did was that I reached out to the local San Diego Japanese American historical society to learn more about Executive Order 9066. And I started talking to a lot of other people who were sent to prison in Poston, which was in Arizona. Most people from San Diego were sent to prison camp in Arizona. And that's when I started to make it into a community project and I would host these tag writing parties we would have different chores people would stamp tags, they would write the names, they would tie, tie them together, there were a lot of processes in for each tag and the only way I was going to be able to do 120,000 tags was to make it a community project. But hopefully make it an educational project, but also social advocacy project. So that people can learn about what happened. And I would show a slide show before we would start working on the tags. I was going to temples and churches and high school classrooms, and college classes, and galleries and museums. So it was kind of a broad outreach and it took 4 years but we did manage to finish all the tags in time for the 70th anniversary of Executive Order 9066.Erik WolkenThat was a massive undertaking, what led you I mean, what led you at the beginning to first think of producing these 120,000 tags?14:54 Wendy Maruyama I must have been crazy, you know. I started out by making just a few tags of people that my family knew. And I was incorporating them into cabinet pieces and for instance this one cabinet had the image of a young Japanese American girl in the back. And the tags were all showed they were under the age of 10 and were sent to camp in 1942. But then a friend of mine, Christine Lee came to visit me in NY and she said, you know, it would be amazing if you could do all 120,000 tags. Now, Christine, kind of, she does this kind of work, you know that that very labor intensive. And at first I thought she was crazy. but then, you know, I thought about it and the impact it would have would be so much more powerful than just seeing a couple of tags here and there. And um I like the idea of art reaching in... You know, I am kind of a shy person and so it is really hard for me to like reach out to strangers and just interact. I think it has a lot to do with my hearing disability,, it kind of forced me to do that. 16:44 Erik Wolken Right. And, and I mean, we'll have pictures of all this up on our website. But um just to paint a picture. So there's two pieces to the Tag Project in EO 9066. So there is the Tag Project, which represents all 120,000 people that were imprisoned, and then... Robb HelmkampIn 10 camps I correct?17:03 Erik WolkenRight. Memorializes, the 10 camps that were mostly over the Southwest, and just amazing images of these places where people were housed for three, four years, and it's an equally intense part of the piece. You know, I would I would encourage people to look into it further. And also there is a great website called www.densho.org, which will help better inform you about the incarceration and imprisonment of people of Japanese, Japanese Americans remember these were Americans, Japanese Americans during World War Two.Robb HelmkampAnd then there's also you've kept quite a blog about the process of the project on your website.17:50 Wendy MaruyamaI did and I feel bad that I haven't really kept it up to date, but it was really to follow the whole process of the tag project. At the same time I wanted to share relevant news articles that were not only about the Executive Order 9066, but just discrimination. I remember working on the tags and this whole outcry with a woman at the UCLA library posted a video of herself complaining about Asian students in the library and she was making fun of the way they talked, shing shong chi chong. But video went viral, and it kind of backfired on her. Discrimination on that level is still alive and well, most people know now. Erik Wolken So moving on to your next advocacy project, because this really is a phase of your life where you're taking on a very much the role of an advocate is the Wildlife Project. Do you want to describe the Wildlife Project a little bit?19:07 Wendy MaruyamaLike I have said before, and I think you know this, I love animals more than people, who are just awful. I started reading too many articles about the demise of the elephant in particular. Poaching for the ivory and it's not only just the elephants, but rhinoceros and tigers, all for the sake of being able to show off someone's wealth. The elephant population was really precariously dropping to the point the danger of becoming extinct. So I wanted to do a whole series of work, kind of highlight this issue. And at the same time, I meet somebody, Elizabeth Kozlowski, who was an independent curator and she wanted me to do an exhibition at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, which is where she was working at the time. And so that was the incentive to make a whole body of work about wildlife. Again, you know elephants are big and I wanted to be able make these huge pieces and I had to figure out a way to make them big without making them heavy and difficult to manage. At the time, I was working in a very small studio. And so I came up with the idea of making them out of very thin pieces of wood and sewing them together. When I was in high school, I loved to sew and the fabrication of making a dress or an article of clothing, is very three dimensional and it could be applied very easily to other materials like cardboard and wood and paper. I guess it's like a form of origami, creating volume with these very flat surfaces. So that was how that work came about and then it was accompanied with a bunch of other pieces.Erik WolkenThe other thing that fascinated me about that show is that the other pieces were in different mediums. You did a huge rhinoceros in plaster and then you did a pangolin which I'm not really familiar with what a pangolin is, in rattan It was you still continue to experiment and I just find that wonderful.22:06 Wendy Maruyama It's fun, you know like I said I think wood working just doing woodworking would really bore me to death. Just some materials they have a different capacity to express a different idea. The thing about glass is that I was able to, I was offered a residency at Pilchuck so it is kind of funny how these opportunities come together and make it possible to integrate projects and so I was able to spend I think it was two weeks or three weeks at Pilchuck and I was given two amazing glass blowers to help me make these tusks and I mean obviously glass was the perfect medium. And it was kind of tricky because you know William Morris, William Morris was a hot glass blower, he's still blowing glass he became known for the very large blown primitive forms. But he also did elephant tusks but it was a different context. He presented them a just large sculptures of beautiful tusks and I wanted to portray the tusks as being bloody and taken from a living animal. So the glassblowers and I had a conversation about that you know I said I don't want to do it if you feel like it treads too closely to other glass blowers work. But my message is completely different and they agreed that it would work with kind of presentation that I was using. The tusks were created through the help of Dan Friday and Nancy Callan who are amazing glass blowers in the Seattle area.Erik Wolken Right and then of course there's the life size and burlap rhinoceros!Wendy MaruyamaWhat was I thinking, right um.24:38 Robb Helmkamp You were thinking about that old desk that you made a long long time ago with chicken wire and Paper Mache?Wendy MaruyamaI learned a lot from that Paper Mache piece, you know I thought about that Paper Mache piece when I was doing the plaster rhino. It's kind of funny how that comes around again. The rhino was necessary to make because I wanted to have I wanted to have that scale and I wanted it be made out of plaster because it was white and fragile and it was like a ghost. But now I need to find someone who needs a plaster rhino, so if you know anybody that wants it, and if you can pay for shipping you're welcome to have it.Erik Wolken I would take the plaster Rhino. But Robb will have to pay for the shipping!25:31 Robb HelmkampWe might be able to work something out. I mean, I could put it behind me here in my office but...Wendy MaruyamaIt's the size of the small Volkswagen bug that's how big it is. Robb HelmkampAll right, we're coming out to San Diego to get that.25:41 Erik Wolken Well speaking of the Wildlife Project one of the pictures will post on the website is a wonderful picture of Robb and I and Tommy Simpson in front of one of the elephant masks when we were filming the Tommy Simpson documentary and we didn't end up using it in the documentary but it's it was it was just a wonderfully sweet moment of talking about, about your piece Wendy with Tommy Simpson. As we were as we were filming for the Tommy Simpson documentary.Wendy MaruyamaTommy Simpson, like I said, you know he was a huge inspiration back in 1970-71. I still have the very first book that he did that got torn up from years of flipping through it and sharing with my students.Robb HelmkampIts well loved and well used.Wendy MaruyamaThat really makes me happyErik Wolken The was the book was published I think...Wendy MaruyamaI would never have known that I would cross paths with Tommy Simpson back then. I mean he was like a movie star back then in the 70's and then we he came to visit San Diego one year. Oh ahhhh He stayed at my house!27:06 Erik WolkenSo let's talk about your most recent bodies of work the Color Field pieces and Memory because you're sort of leaving advocacy and going back to your roots in color. I love the Color Field pieces there, you know you're just really exploring the basics of color which is I just find incredibly appealing and almost a 2D sense as opposed to a three dimensional sense although there's texture.27:34 Wendy MaruyamaI um, you know, after doing Executive Order 9066 and the Elephant Project I was kind of beat up emotionally. It was really tough working on those pieces and it was even tougher for me to talk about those pieces after being asked to give talks during shows, it was kind of difficult to hold myself together. but anyway I'm getting better at it now. I can start talking about these things without breaking out in tears, but I needed to do something that was not heavy I needed to go back to using color again in a very pleasant way. It was an invitation to show that got me started on the Color Field pieces. Somebody in Colorado was having an exhibition of Bauhaus inspired furniture. because I think it was like 100th anniversary of Bauhaus and there is a Bauhaus Institute in Aspen so they wanted to do an exhibition of furniture but the problem was I hated Bauhaus furniture it wasn't really my thing. all that metal tubing and whatever. But I loved Annie Albers, who was a weaver with the Bauhaus movement, and she had a wonderful use of color and so I modeled my work after Annie Albers. It was kind of down my alley in terms of exploring color again. That's why they became two dimensional because of the weavings they were inspired by.29:41 Robb Helmkamp Were the pieces that you created where they kind of modeled after tambours? Like on a piece of furniture...Wendy MaruyamaYeah that's true I forgot that... I'm glad you mentioned that because tambour pieces were one of my favorite things to make actually. I've made a lot of carcass pieces that have tambours and I love the textural qualities of tambours. Yeah, for sure that was an inspiration.Robb Helmkamp Your use of more muted colors. From the Bauhaus movement I guess Annie's kind of take on it is really nice. It's nice to see that side of Bauhaus.30:26 Wendy MaruyamaI usually like punch colors but I wanted to experiment with a different tone of colors.Robb HelmkampVery beautiful. So let's talk about a little bit about Memory, one of the last bodies of work that you've, you've completed. 30:43 Wendy MaruyamaLets see in 2018 my uncle died... I have an aunt and uncle I am very close to they were kind of like second mom and dad and my uncle had severe dementia and he finally passed. I think it was 2018. I'm trying to remember but so my aunt was living alone and turned out that she had dementia as well. She was such a brilliant women and was such a role model for me it was really tough to see her decline. So we made the decision at the end of 2019 put her into a memory care facility, and so... and then of course Covid hit so right after we put her there we weren't even able to visit her for about 6 months. There was a lot of guilt and concern and so that was kind of tough. Like I said your getting older and you go through these phases and then go through things with your parents. Some of your friends may die. You know some of this stuff that you're going through at my age anyway. So the memory series was first about her loosing her memory but it's also about memories that people keep and I think it's a very powerful thing. Memories kind of get reused in a way there kind of special after a while, you start thinking about dreams that you've had and they're very similar to many different things that are kind of not intangible things that you think about. In short the work of trying to make these intangible things tangible, relatable in a very tactile way. So the memory piece I did about my aunt has a black lacquered mirror that goes from completely reflective to becomes very distorted at the very end to where you don't recognize yourself anymore, and the case that it is in has a kind of Asian aesthetic to it, being Japanese American. But there is a dysfunctional door on the left side it moves but it really doesn't function to any degree. That was referencing lack of memory, her inability to solve problems. I think that black mirrors have a lot of meaning, you know the iPhone is a black mirror, a black mirror to technology. And in Japan, this is interesting because I think I need a black mirror, the geisha woman in Japan as they aged began to use black lacquer as a mirror because the black lacquer kind of made your wrinkles go away. So you couldn't see your wrinkles so the process of aging is sort of disguised in a black mirror. Yeah, anyway, so the whole black mirror series is about conveying depth. So deep looking into that black lacquer. It looks like you're looking into a deep dark hole. Well you're looking at a reflection. It's been a lot of fun working with you with the black lacquer and I've been really lucky, because um... I don't know if you know Greg Johnson? He's a finisher in upstate New York he has been doing the black lacquer mirrors for me and he does such a beautiful job.35:11Erik Wolken The Black Mirror is just an incredible metaphor. That's just incredibly powerful.35:16 Wendy MaruyamaIt's so rich you know it's interesting how the many things you think about when you look at it. Plus I love the TV series I've seen the Black Mirror. I love that TV show.Robb Helmkamp Isn't it great? I've watched it through and through. It makes you think!Erik Wolken So and starting to wrap this up, Wendy. What are you working on now? What's your what's your what's your next body of work or what are you what are you moving forward with now?35:48 Wendy MaruyamaI am still finishing up the Black Mirror (Memory) series and wrapping up that little chair (Matador) I was telling you about earlier. But I don't really know now what I am going to be making next but hopefully I have been talking to Tom Loeser about doing something together. We were talking about maybe showing together again? No, we haven't looked at the details yet. But it is always kind of fun to show with a good old friend.Erik Wolken Well, Wendy, I just want to wrap this up because this has been an absolutely wonderful conversation with you.Wendy MaruyamaOh, good. I'm glad I hope you can get at least 10 minutes out of it.Robb HelmkampOh, I think we can at least do 15. No Wendy it's been an absolute pleasure talking with youErik Wolken Right and we always end… by saying Why MakeRobb HelmkampWhy Make36:47 Wendy MaruyamaThank you very much. Why Make

Born and raised on her family's 7-acre ranch in Auburn, Washington, African American sculptor Marita Dingus has been exhibiting her artwork locally and internationally for over 30 years. Working almost exclusively with found objects of every possible variety, Dingus's work is a commentary on the enslavement of African people, recycling, and the politics of poverty. Her signature African-inflected figures of all sizes have become a familiar sight in the region, having been shown at galleries, museums, outdoor installations, and even on the walls of Town Hall Seattle, where her piece “Woman as the Creator” can be viewed on the 1st Floor. Gary Faigin talks with her about her long career and where she plans to go from here. Marita Dingus attended Tyler School of Art at Temple University in Philadelphia (BFA, 1980) and San Jose State University (MFA, 1985). She has received a Visual Art Fellowship from Artist Trust (1994), a John S. Guggenheim Fellowship (1999), and the Morrie and Joan Alhadeff PONCHO Artist of the Year Award (2005). Dingus has had solo shows at Henie Onstad Kunstsenter and The Stenersen Museum, both in Norway (2002, 2006), as well as the Museum of Glass in Tacoma, WA (2005 – 2006). Her work has been included in Nature/Culture organized by The Society for Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh (2006 – 2008), Outwin Boochever Portrait Competition at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, DC (2006 – 2007) and 21st Century American Women Artists at the Residence of the United States Ambassador to NATO in Brussels, Belgium (2006 – 2010). Her work is in many regional museums and corporate collections. Dingus currently lives and works in the state of Washington and is represented by Traver Gallery in Seattle. Painter, critic, and author Gary Faigin is cofounder and Artistic Director of Gage Academy of Art in Seattle, as well as the school's Still Life Atelier instructor. Faigin also serves as a Lecturer in the Department of Computer Science & Engineering at the University of Washington, where he teaches facial expressions to graduate animation students and works on a research team studying the human perception of stylized facial expressions. He has taught in art schools across the country including the National Academy of Design and the Parsons School of Design. In 2001, Faigin published his first book, The Artist's Complete Guide to Facial Expression, which has since been translated into seven languages and reprinted sixteen times. Presented by Town Hall Seattle and the Gage Academy of Art.

Ellie Richards is a furniture designer and sculptor interested in the role the furniture and domestic objects play in creating opportunities for a deeper connection between people and their sense of place. Ellie looks to the tradition of both woodworking and the readymade to create eclectic assemblage, installation, and objects exploring intersections of labor, leisure, community, and culture. She has traveled extensively to investigate the role play and improvisation have on the artistic process. Her work, both furniture and sculpture, has been included in exhibitions at the Mint Museum; Center for Craft, Creativity, and Design; SOFA Chicago; and the Society of Contemporary Craft. Most recently Richards was awarded Windgate residencies at the Center for Art in Wood, and in the wood/furniture design programs at San Diego State University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Additionally, she maintains an active teaching schedule sharing the fundamentals of woodworking and artistic practice with a breadth of audience including appointments at Yestermorrow Design/Build School, Appalachian Center for Craft, and Haystack Mountain School of Craft.  She is currently a resident artist at Penland School of Craft 2020-2023. You may follow along with Ellie on Instagram and her website. Follow along with the Podcast on Instagram.

Step into the remarkable journey of Tereneh Idia, a visionary artist and designer whose work is a tapestry of sustainability, history, and global craft. In this episode of Sounds From the Studio, we explore Tereneh's residency at Contemporary Craft, where she's crafting a breathtaking collection that spans a millennium of Black Pittsburgh history through the lens of clothing. Her project, "Cloth, Culture, and Community," weaves together 15 stories, each represented by a meticulously designed outfit that honors individuals from the 1500s in West Africa to the year 3000 in Pittsburgh.   Join us as Tereneh shares her creative process, the emotional resonance of her historical research, and her adventures in learning new crafts. Her narrative is not just about the art of fashion but also about the power of light, both literal and metaphorical, in communities across the world. For a glimpse into the soul of an artist who is redefining the boundaries of design, craft, and social impact, tune in to this inspiring conversation. Tereneh Idia Instagram Contemporary Craft Website Spotify Playlist: Sounds From the Studio https://www.idiadega.com/

Jen Hewett is a printmaker, textile designer, author, and more. Alicia returns as a guest host to get the inside scoop on how Jen found her way to art after working in a variety of other industries. They talk about practical tips for staying on top of finances as a business owner and the importance of finding community when you're creative, as well as the stories behind both of Jen's incredible books.  https://jenhewett.com/ https://www.instagram.com/jenhewett/

Ep.114 features Dawn Williams Boyd, She was born in 1952 in Neptune, New Jersey. She earned her BFA at Stephens College in Columbia, MO in 1974. The artist's self-described “cloth paintings” masterfully reinterpret the traditional craft of quilt-making in a contemporary context. Working on a monumental scale, Boyd employs a collage-like technique, stitching together scraps of fabric into intricate compositions. Utilizing art historical references, current events, and religious tropes as narrative frameworks, her cloth paintings chronicle seminal moments in African American history and quotidian scenes of Black American life. Inventively combining textures and patterns, Boyd's compositions weave together history and allegory to create multivalent meanings from disparate sources. Boyd's work is included in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, NY; Equal Justice Initiative in Montgomery, AL; Birmingham Museum of Art in Birmingham, AL; Columbus Museum in Columbus, GA; Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse, NY; and the Richardson Family Art Museum at Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC. Her art has been exhibited at Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC; Southwest Art Center in Atlanta, GA; Hammonds House Museum in Atlanta, GA; Bulloch Hall in Roswell, GA; Agnes Scott College in Decatur, GA; Callanwolde Fine Arts Center in Atlanta, GA; and Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh, PA. A multi-venue solo exhibition of the artist's work, Dawn Williams Boyd: Woe, was recently on view at the Lamar Dodd School of Art's Dodd Galleries, at the University of Georgia and at the Everson Museum in Syracuse, NY and will be on view at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY in September 2022. Photo Credit: Ron Witherspoon Artist https://www.dawnwilliamsboyd.com/ Fort Gansevoort Gallery https://www.fortgansevoort.com/ Sarah Lawrence https://www.sarahlawrence.edu/news-events/galleries/heimbold-gallery/on-exhibit.html Everson Museum of Art https://everson.org/connect/virtual-talk-with-dawn-williams-boyd-ben-green/ Daily Orange https://dailyorange.com/2022/02/dawn-williams-boyds-exhibit-woe-crafts-fiber-art-timeless-historical-portrayals/ Atlanta Magazine https://www.atlantamagazine.com/news-culture-articles/dawn-williams-boyds-cloth-paintings-tell-stories-of-black-life-in-america/ Ocula https://ocula.com/artists/dawn-williams-boyd/exhibitions/ Metal Magazine https://metalmagazine.eu/en/post/interview/dawn-williams-boyd Elephant Art https://elephant.art/dawn-williams-boyd-faith-ringgold-inspired-me-to-change-my-art/

Katie and Dixie speak with Professor Megan Hildebrandt whose unique life journey, which conjoined her artistic development with serious unexpected health issues, led her to become an "arts in healthcare advocate." Her experiential learning class, the Aesthetics of Health, won a Texas Tower award in 2021 and is a proving ground for the beneficial effects of artmaking in healthcare spaces. Thanks for joining us on The Other Side of Campus! ABOUT THE GUEST https://apps.jsg.utexas.edu/profiles/files/photos/megan_hildebrandt_thumb.jpg Megan Hildebrandt received her BFA from the Stamps School of Art & Design in 2006, and her MFA in Studio Art from the University of South Florida in 2012. Hildebrandt has exhibited widely, including: The Painting Center, New American Paintings, The Baltimore Museum of Art, The Museum of Contemporary Craft, Arlington Arts Center, Detroit Contemporary, Johns Hopkins Medical Center, the LIVESTRONG Foundation, Hyde Park Art Center, The Torpedo Factory, and The Painters Room. Hildebrandt has also recently had her writing on arts pedagogy during the pandemic published in Art Education, The Journal of the National Art Education Association. In 2018, Hildebrandt received an Art Works grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for the Aesthetics of Health Course she developed for Interlochen Arts Academy. An artist, educator, and arts-in-health advocate, Hildebrandt currently lives and works in Austin, Texas, where she is the Director of the First-Year Core Program in the Department of Art and Art History at The University of Texas. PRODUCER'S NOTE: This episode was recorded on October 8th, 2021 via Zoom. CREDITS Assistant Producers/Hosts: Dixie Stanforth and Katie Dawson (Intro theme features the following faculty in order: Jen Moon, Daron Shaw, Rich Reddick, Diane McDaniel Rhodes, Siobhan McCusker, Moriba Jah, and Stephanie Seidel Holmsten) Music by Charlie Harper (www.charlieharpermusic.com) Additional Background music by Charlie Harper, Scott Holmes, Ketsa, and Blue Dot Sessions Produced by Michelle S. Daniel Creator: Mary C. Neuburger Connect with us! Facebook: /texasptf Twitter: @TexasPTF Website: https://texasptf.org DISCLAIMER: The Other Side of Campus is a member of the Texas Podcast Network, brought to you by The University of Texas at Austin. Podcasts are produced by faculty members and staffers at UT Austin who work with University Communications to craft content that adheres to journalistic best practices. The University of Texas at Austin offers these podcasts at no charge. Podcasts appearing on the network and this webpage represent the views of the hosts, not of The University of Texas at Austin. https://files.fireside.fm/file/fireside-uploads/images/1/1ed1b736-a1fa-4ae4-b346-90d58dfbc8a4/4GSxOOOU.png Special Guest: Megan Hildebrandt.

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://thecitylife.org/2022/05/10/this-present-moment-crafting-a-better-world-examines-the-state-of-contemporary-craft-in-america-today/ --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/citylifeorg/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/citylifeorg/support

In this podcast episode, I speak with contemporary artists|makers, Zoe Wilson and Daniel Freyne who will both be showcasing their works at Collect, the Leading International Fair for Contemporary Craft and Design.  Daniel Freyne is not your traditional blacksmith, he goes against the norms to create beautiful, unconventional craft forms using steel. Zoë Wilson is another artist to keep your eyes on. For almost 12 years she has been a stone carver, creating bespoke hand-carved geometric stone artwork using a traditional mallet and chisel. It is fascinating to hear Zoe and Daniel discuss their craft journey. We gain a deep insight into their world of craft, looking at the materials they use, their relationship with these materials, their skills, and much much more. What was so interesting to note was that both makers placed great emphasis on the process that the materials undergo before they are transformed into the final piece. 

What you'll learn in this episode: How Cindi helped the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston secure one of the country's most important art jewelry collections  Why jewelry is a hybrid of craft and art that doesn't fit just in one category Why the art world began to question the value of craft in the 80s, and why that perspective is changing now Why museum and gallery visitors shouldn't ask themselves, “Would I wear this?” when looking at art jewelry About Cindi Strauss Cindi Strauss is the Sara and Bill Morgan Curator of Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design and Assistant Director, Programming at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH). She received her BA with honors in art history from Hamilton College and her MA in the history of decorative arts from the Cooper-Hewitt/Parsons School of Design. At the MFAH, Cindi is responsible for the acquisition, research, publication, and exhibition of post-1900 decorative arts, design, and craft. Jewelry is a mainstay of Cindi's curatorial practice. In addition to regularly curating permanent collection installations that include contemporary jewelry from the museum's collection, she has organized several exhibitions that are either devoted solely to jewelry or include jewelry in them. These include: Beyond Ornament: Contemporary Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection (2003–2004); Ornament as Art: Avant-Garde Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection (2007); Liquid Lines: Exploring the Language of Contemporary Metal (2011); and Beyond Craft: Decorative Arts from the Leatrice S. and Melvin B. Eagle Collection (2014). Cindi has authored or contributed to catalogs and journals on jewelry, craft, and design topics, and has been a frequent lecturer at museums nationwide. She also serves on the editorial advisory committee for Metalsmith magazine. Additional Resources: Museum of Fine Arts Houston Transcript: For the uninitiated, jewelry, art and craft may seem like three distinct (and perhaps, unfortunately, hierarchical) entities. But Cindi Strauss, Curator of Decorative Arts, Crafts and Design at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas, wants us to break down these barriers and appreciate the value of jewelry as an art in its own right. She joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about how she helped MFA Houston establish one of the largest art jewelry collections at an American museum; why jewelry artists should be proud of their studio craft roots; and why wearability shouldn't be the first consideration when looking at art jewelry. Read the episode transcript here.      Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. This is a two-part Jewelry Journey Podcast. Please make sure you subscribe so you can hear part two as soon as it comes out later this week.    Today, our guest is Cindi Strauss, the Sara and Bill Morgan Curator of Decorative Arts, Crafts and Design at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, Texas, where she's been responsible for a number of exhibits and has written extensively. She coauthored the recent book “Influx: American Jewelry and the Counterculture.” In addition, she's on the Board of Directors of Art Jewelry Forum. We'll hear more about her jewelry journey today. Cindi, welcome to the program.   Cindi: Thank you, Sharon. I'm delighted to be here.   Sharon: So glad to have you. Tell us about your jewelry journey. Did you like jewelry, or did you come to it through decorative arts? How did that work?   Cindi: Well, the story has been heard. I have told it before, about how I was introduced to art jewelry through Helen Drutt through a serendipitous meeting with her. Prior to that, we only had one piece of art jewelry in the museum's collection, a terrific Art Smith necklace from 1948. Personally, I come from a family who loves jewelry, but I have not been as much of a lover of it. I have always worn very minimal jewelry myself, so it's sort of ironic that I am the curator of this phenomenal jewelry collection, the foundation of which is the acquisition in 2002 of Helen Drutt's private collection. At that time, we acquired a little over 800 pieces, including sketchbooks and some drawings of international art jewelry dating from about 1963 to, at that point, the early 2000s. Helen continued to add to that collection up through 2006, when we were in the final preparation for the Ornamentist art exhibition and catalogue. That opened in 2007 in Houston and traveled to Washington, D.C., to Charlotte, North Carolina, and then to Tacoma, Washington. That is, from a publications point, a great point of demarcation in terms of art jewelry collections. Since then, not only has Helen continued to add pieces to the museum, but we have worked with a lot of national and local collectors, and our jewelry collection continues to grow through acquisitions and gifts.    I would say that in graduate school, I had the barest introduction to jewelry, and it was really historical jewelry as part of a larger decorative arts education, in terms of looking at styles and how they reflected themselves in historical jewelry. At the time I was in graduate school at the Cooper Hewitt, there was not a seminar on contemporary art jewelry or art jewelry in general, so my knowledge of it has really been built and continues to be built based on our collection, our commitment to it going forward, and trying to keep up with the bare minimum of what's been happening in the field. I have to say Art Jewelry Forum is an amazing way for me to do that through their website, through the articles, through the artist awards, through the artist maker pages. It's a very easy snapshot of what's happening in the field, and then I can take that research and interest into other directions.   Sharon: I can't imagine being an aficionado, whether it's to study or just being a jewelry lover, and not being involved in Art Jewelry Forum. There's no other place like it.    Cindi: There isn't. Honestly, nine times out of 10, if I am interested in learning more about an artist and I plug in the artist's name in Google, the first search that comes up is always Art Jewelry Forum. It's either an interview or an article or something. For me, it has always been a one-stop initial research location.   Sharon: How did you come to study decorative arts? How did you become a professional in the area? Was that something you had always wanted to do? What was your training?   Cindi: It really happened, I would say, serendipitously. I grew up in a family where my father was in the design field, particularly in textiles. My parents' preferred style was that of Scandinavia and Italian modern. I grew up in a contemporary house, so there was a certain amount of osmosis with this field. I grew up in Connecticut, which is more oriented towards colonial architecture and traditional interiors, and I knew our house was different and it kind of stuck out. I remember asking my parents when I was young why our house didn't look like everybody else's, and their answer was very simple: because this is what we like, and this is why we like it.   I went off to college and thought I was going to be an English major. I took an intro to art history survey and found I loved it, but it wasn't until my senior year in college that a survey of the history of decorative arts was offered, and that completely ignited my fire. As much as I loved art history, I wanted to be able to touch paintings, which I can't do. I was interested in the tactile qualities of art and texture and being able to feel and understand value. This introduction to the history of decorative arts was my gateway. That ignited a passion not only for the decorative arts, but when I was going to the museums and such during that time, I started to pay attention to decorative arts galleries more than I had in my museum billing previously. I thought, “This is what I want to do; this is where I want to be. I want to be in a museum and I want to be doing decorative arts.”   My first year out of college, I had an academic year fellowship at the Met. It was in a subset of the registrar's office called the cataloguing department, and that gave me a bird's eye, in-depth view of what was happening at the Met. At that time, I knew I was going to have go to graduate school, and I learned about Cooper Hewitt's program in the history of decorative arts. At that point, I chose Cooper Hewitt. There was no graduate center yet, and I knew I didn't want to do early American decorative arts. I wanted to have a broader art education, so I went to Cooper Hewitt. Interestingly, my thesis and a large chunk of my classes were on 18th-century European art, particularly porcelain, and I thought I would spend my career there because that's where all the research was happening. With the exception of design museums or modern art museums like MOMA, a lot of the big, encyclopedic institutions were not really paying attention to decorative arts beyond the Arts and Crafts movement. But I took as many classes as I could in 20th-century design and took decorative arts because that was what my personal passion was.   I got lucky, because my first position after graduate school was curatorial assistant here in Houston. I was split between two departments, the decorative arts department and our not-yet-opened house museum, Rienzi. It was the perfect job for me because Rienzi was all about the 18th century, whereas the decorative arts department was just starting to move past the Arts and Crafts movement into modern and contemporary. Ultimately, I was able to determine the pathway for that and create a separate department, and I made my way out of the 18th century to focus completely on the 20th and 21st centuries. So, it was a pathway of following my heart and my curiosity within this larger field.   Sharon: What were your thoughts when you were presented with this 800+ piece collection by Helen Drutt and they said, “O.K., put this exhibit together”?   Cindi: First of all, it was completely daunting. Anyone who knows Helen knows her knowledge is so vast, and she is so generous with it, but at the beginning, it's all brand new. So, it's rather intimidating, and you're doing so much looking and listening. In my initial conversations with Helen about the possibility of this acquisition, it was focused on the “Jewelry of Our Time” catalogue that she had cowritten, which featured a lot of the collection. There was a lot of study of that, trying to get myself up to speed to even make the presentations for the acquisition to not only my director, but our trustees.    It's funny; I have my initial notebooks from my first visit to Philadelphia with Helen, where I spent a number of days just sitting next to her as she held up different pieces, talked about different people, gave insight. Because I didn't know anything about the field—all the artists' names are spelled phonetically—there are a lot of notes to myself saying, “What does this really mean?” or a question mark with “follow up” or something like that, and I was drawing. I think I had a cell phone, but there was no cell phone camera. I didn't have an iPhone or iPad. I don't even know if they existed in 2002, but I would draw little pictures next to something she was talking about. Anyone who knows me knows I am quite possibly the world's worst draftsperson, so the pictures are hilarious. But I go back to those notebooks periodically, and you can see how I am intent on wrapping my head around this and trying to understand which countries, who were the major players, where things had gone.   We built a library at the museum with Helen's help. She seeded our library intending to send books. We were ordering catalogues nonstop, and I spent the better part of four years immersing myself in art jewelry and talking to artists. At that point, it was all done through these forms we would mail to artists. I tried to meet artists, and Helen's archives with all the correspondence were an incredible resource. There were interviews with artists and things like that. I would travel to the American Craft Council to see their incredible library and artist archive. I would do all of this plus travel to meet artists. I did a number of trips to Europe and across the U.S., trying to get my head around this field as seen through Helen's collection. The collection represents not only her eye and experiences and viewpoint, but truly the birth and development of the field over decades, not just in America, but globally as well.   Sharon: What's her connection to Houston? How is it she came to your museum?   Cindi: She didn't have any real connection to Houston. At the time, her son, Matthew, was the Chief Curator of the Manil Collection, which is a terrific, incredible museum here in Houston. She also had a very close and longstanding friendship with our then-photography curator, Anne Tucker. They met in a cute way over a slide table at Moore College of Art in the 70s, when they were both teaching there.    We have a festival every other year in Houston called FotoFest. It's one of the U.S.'s largest photography festivals, and all the institutions do exhibitions for FotoFest and their popup shows and galleries. The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft was only a year old at that point, but through connections, they met Helen. She curated a small show of photo-based, image-based jewelry for FotoFest, so of course she came down, and that's where I met her.    I met her at the opening. We had coffee separately during her visit. I was really ramping up our craft collection in terms of acquisitions and representation. As I said, we only had this one piece of art jewelry. I knew enough about what I didn't know to say to Helen at the time, “This is a field I'm interested in starting to acquire works from. Would you guide me?” She pointed me towards the “Jewelry of Our Time” catalogue and said, “Well, you know I have a collection.” I, of course, said, “Well, yes, it's famous, and it's in Philadelphia. It's so lucky they're going to get it.” She said, “Not necessarily. Nothing's been done. There's nothing in writing.” I seized on that and said, “Well, will you provide me with more information, and may I speak to my director about this?” She said, “Sure.”    It was, at the time, sort of a lark. I thought, “I don't know whether this will happen,” because it was not a field we were familiar with and certainly my director, Peter Marzio, was not familiar with it. I showed him the book. I talked to him with my little knowledge. He was intrigued, because he saw in it what he referred to as a “visual index” of modern and contemporary art in small scale. He saw all the connections and the creativity, and he said, “I'd like to learn more.” I arranged for him to go to Philadelphia, where he spent half a day with Helen and they talked and looked at pieces. He came back and said to me, “I want to figure this out. I want to do this,” and the rest is history.   Sharon: Wow! It's funny; when you were saying you were spelling things phonetically, I thought of Gijs Bakker. That's the name that came to mind. For people listening, it's G-i-l-s-b—   Cindi: G-i-j-s B-a-k-k-er. Gijs is one of the most important Dutch jewelry artists. He, along with his late wife, Emmy van Leersum, completely turned the idea of art jewelry on its head in the 60s. He and a number of other Dutch artists in the 60s and 70s revolutionized the field. Helen was such a great supporter, and he's one of her dearest friends. We have something like 34 or 35 of his pieces in the collection, not just from Helen, but from a couple of others that we've added along the way. I think outside of the Netherlands, we have the largest collection of Gijs' work.   Sharon: Wow! My first Art Jewelry Forum trip was to Amsterdam. I had just come to art jewelry myself, and his studio and his house were the first stop. When I think about it now, I think, “Oh, my god!” I had no idea. At the time, I didn't know which way was up when it came to art jewelry.   Cindi: I think that is a lot of people's first experience. It's visually compelling, and then you start to learn more. Quite often, you realize after the fact you met one of these super-important people, or you were in their studio or what have you.    Sharon: Yeah, it really is. I'm backing up a little. When you were studying, were there museums studies? Did you expect to be working in a museum or to be a curator? Was that part of your career field?    Cindi: Yeah, I always wanted to work in a museum, and I wanted to work in a curatorial capacity. The Cooper Hewitt's program at that time was geared towards museum curatorial careers. Also, a lot of people went into education. It was not geared towards working in the commercial sector. There were a handful of people who might have gone to an auction house or to a gallery, but it was focused on developing museum curators. That was something I knew I wanted and was really important to me in terms of being at the Cooper Hewitt. The program is embedded in the museum physically and has a lot of faculty from the museum and also, during my time, a lot of faculty from the Met, from the Brooklyn Museum. We had people teaching from MFA Boston, from Winterthur.    It was very much a program equally based on not only research and history and study, but on connoisseurship. Connoisseurship is essential to being a museum curator. You need to be able to delineate and understand the differences between different objects made by the same designer as well as within any larger aspect of the field. Cooper Hewitt was very much geared towards that, which was perfect for me. Because we were in the museum and we had faculty from other New York area museums, it was also possible to have internships with prominent curators from the various museums, again, moving you through this curatorial path.    The trick is always getting a job, and for me that was a lot of luck, I think. When I was in my second year, my last year of graduate school, I was working as an intern for one of the premier curators at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, particularly in late 19th-century ceramics and glass but also furniture. Her co-curator on an upcoming exhibition was my future boss at Houston. There was a job opening. Katherine Howe sent a fax, at that time, of the job description, and she handed it to me and said, “I know you still have a semester to go, but here, take a look at it.” I thought, “Well, I need to get a résumé in order. I need to start thinking about this.” I applied not thinking anything other than this is good exercise, and it obviously worked out for me.    I think in my graduating class from Cooper Hewitt—I think there were about 15 of us—there were only three of us who actually got museum jobs. A lot of it is timing because positions come open so rarely. I'm pretty sure I'm the only one from my graduating class left in a museum. It's not for everybody, and there aren't always jobs, but it was all I ever wanted to do. I also only wanted to work in a big institution, so Houston fit the bill for me. I love doing what I do within an encyclopedic institution, being able to contextualize, in this case, art jewelry, whether it's historical works of art, the idea of adornment, showing it within a particular geographical context. We exhibit the jewelry not only on its own and with other contemporary craft and design, but we exhibit it next to painting, sculpture, photography, works on paper. We embed it, and that is something my colleagues are very much used to and see it as being a vital art form.   Sharon: This is a two-part Jewelry Journey podcast. Please make sure you subscribe so you can hear part two as soon as it comes out later this week.

“Now in its 18th year: Collect, The Leading International Fair for Contemporary Craft and Design, produced by the UK Crafts Council, is returning in 2022 as a hybrid fair. The fair will be physically at Somerset House in London from 25-27th February and, in partnership with Artsy.net, online from 23rd February – 6th March. Tickets are now available to buy at: https://www.craftscouncil.org.uk/collect-art-fair”

After Dinner Mints - Episode 28 - 21.12.01Interview with Perry PriceArt Blocks home website: www.artblocks.ioJoin us on discord: discord.gg/artblocksSubscribe to our weekly newsletter: https://artblocksinc.eo.page/subscribePerry Price is the Executive Director of Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. To learn more about the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, visit https://crafthouston.org/or on Social Media at @crafthouston

When you close your eyes, do you see images?  Maybe it's a face, a memory, an idea or even a scene. [audio mp3="https://media.radiocms.net/uploads/2021/11/26115401/MarkNewmanAphantasia_2611.mp3"][/audio] For Mark Newman, he doesn't see anything. Mark has a condition known as aphantasia, which means that he has no ‘visual imagination' and cannot create mental images in his mind. However, Mark is also an award-winning goldsmith, and makes stunning works of art from hand.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by ᴹᵃʳᵏ ᴺᵉʷᵐᵃⁿ (@marknewmanjewellery) Speaking to Dermot and Dave, Mark explained how he came upon his diagnosis, and how he uses algorithms and theory to create his beautiful pieces. You can catch Mark's chat by clicking play above. Mark will be at ‘Gifted', the Contemporary Craft and Design Fair, which is taking place in Dublin's RDS from December 1st-5th.

Continuing our theme with Season 2 that focuses on the Westmoreland Museum of American Art, we spoke with the artist Gavin Benjamin about his recent artist residency at the museum and his own practice. Tune in to a great conversation between Gavin, Leah, and Tereneh! Gavin Benjamin is a multifaceted artist who combines original analog photography and appropriated images with collage, paint, and varnish to create rich and luxurious works that call back to baroque traditions while incorporating elements of current culture to provoke, critique, and explore. Born in Guyana, South America and raised in Brooklyn, New York, Benjamin received his BFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. During this time, he worked as an interned for the legendary portrait photographer, Arnold Newman. Benjamin also worked as black and white and color printer at LTI and Baboo color labs. From there, he went on to work at Edge Reps and Exposure NY, agencies representing commercial and advertising photographers, prop stylists, and hair and makeup artists. After Exposure NY, he worked as a freelance production coordinator/photo editor with stints at Kenneth Cole productions, Esquire Magazine, Hachette Filipacchi Media, and Good Housekeeping magazine. “I am very inspired by the work of artists during the 15th to 17th centuries, especially the Dutch and Italian masters. There is something very romantic, dark, mysterious, and brooding about these works. I find this period fascinating because of the deep, luxurious colors and intense light and dark shadows. I am drawn to the juxtaposition of objects and compositions that come together to tell a story” Benjamin investigates the intersection of culture, media, politics, fashion, and design, addressing questions that (continue to) confront a men of color in America today. “My work reflects everything that I'm thinking – it includes everything that I love and everything that I'm challenged by. It's honest and curious and bright and thoughtful. And sometimes a little dark. It's all of the things that made me want to be a professional artist in the first place.” His work has appeared at the Slick Paris, Sotheby's NY, Architectural Digest Home Design Show, Art Hampton, Affordable Art Fair, Scope Miami, Palm Beach Modern, Context Miami, Context NY, Art Silicon Valley, and the LA Art Fair. Links: Website: https://www.gavinbenjamin.com Mentions in episode: Penguin Court: https://www.brandywine.org/conservancy/preserves/penguin-court-thomas-road-farm Polaroids: https://mymodernmet.com/history-of-polaroid/ Haltson Netflix Series: https://www.netflix.com/title/80245103 Upcoming Exhibitions: Mattress Factory: https://mattress.org/upcoming-artists/ Contemporary Craft: https://contemporarycraft.org/exhibition/food-justice/ --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/otherborderwall/message

What you'll learn in this episode: The characteristics that define contemporary American jewelry What narrative art jewelry is, and why it was so prevalent in the 1960s and 70s What defines American counterculture, and why so many 60s and 70s jewelers were a part of it Who the most notable American jewelry artists are and why we need to capture their stories How Susan and Cindi developed their book, and why they hope other people will build on their research About Susan Cummins Susan Cummins has been involved in numerous ways in the visual arts world over the last 35 years, from working in a pottery studio, doing street fairs, running a retail shop called the Firework in Mill Valley and developing the Susan Cummins Gallery into a nationally recognized venue for regional art and contemporary art jewelry. Now she spends most of her time working with a private family foundation called Rotasa and as a board member of both Art Jewelry Forum and California College of the Arts. About Cindi Strauss Cindi Strauss is the Sara and Bill Morgan Curator of Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design and Assistant Director, Programming at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH). She received her BA with honors in art history from Hamilton College and her MA in the history of decorative arts from the Cooper-Hewitt/Parsons School of Design. At the MFAH, Cindi is responsible for the acquisition, research, publication, and exhibition of post-1900 decorative arts, design, and craft. Jewelry is a mainstay of Cindi's curatorial practice. In addition to regularly curating permanent collection installations that include contemporary jewelry from the museum's collection, she has organized several exhibitions that are either devoted solely to jewelry or include jewelry in them. These include: Beyond Ornament: Contemporary Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection (2003–2004); Ornament as Art: Avant-Garde Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection (2007); Liquid Lines: Exploring the Language of Contemporary Metal (2011); and Beyond Craft: Decorative Arts from the Leatrice S. and Melvin B. Eagle Collection (2014). Cindi has authored or contributed to catalogs and journals on jewelry, craft, and design topics, and has been a frequent lecturer at museums nationwide. She also serves on the editorial advisory committee for Metalsmith magazine. Additional Resources:  Museum of Fine Arts Houston Art Jewelry Forum  Photos: Police State Badge 1969/ 2007 sterling silver, 14k gold 2 7/8 x 2 15/16 x 3 15/16 inches Museum of Arts and Design, New York City, 2012.20 Diane Kuhn, 2012 PHOTO: John Bigelow Taylor, 2008 Portrait of William Clark in a bubble_2 1971                        photographer: Unknown Necklace for the American Taxpayer 1971 Brass with silver chain  17 " long (for the chain)  and 6.25 x 1.25 " wide for the hanging brass pendant. Collection unknown Dad's Payday 1968 sterling, photograph, fabric, found object 4 ½ x 4 x ¼ inches Merrily Tompkins Estate, Ellensburg Photo: Lynn Thompson Title: "Slow Boat" Pendant (Portrait of Ken Cory) Date: 1976 Medium: Enamel, sterling silver, wood, copper, brass, painted stone, pencil, ballpoint pen spring, waxed lacing, Tiger Balm tin, domino Dimensions: 16 3/4 × 4 1/8 × 1 in. (42.5 × 10.4 × 2.5 cm) Helen Williams Drutt Family Collection, USA Snatch Purse 1975 Copper, Enamel, Leather, Beaver Fur, Ermine Tails, Coin Purse 4 ½ x 4 x 3/8” Merrily Tompkins Estate, Ellensburg The Good Guys 1966 Walnut, steel, copper, plastic, sterling silver, found objects 101.6 mm diameter Museum of Arts and Design, NYC, 1977.2.102'                        PHOTO: John Bigelow Taylor, 2008 Fetish Pendant 1966 wood, brass, copper, glass, steel, paper, silver 3 ½ x 3 ½ x 5/8 inches Detroit Institute of Art, Founders Society Purchase with funds from the Modern Decorative Arts Group, Andrew L. and Gayle Shaw Camden Contemporary and Decorative Arts Fund, Jean Sosin, Dr. and Mrs. Roger S. Robinson, Mr. and Mrs. Marvin Danto, Dorothy and Byron Gerson, and Dr. and Mrs. Robert J. Miller / Bridgeman Images November 22, 1963 12:30 p.m. 1967 copper, silver, brass, gold leaf, newspaper photo, walnut, velvet, glass 6 ¼ x 5 x 7/8 inches Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Rose Mary Wadman, 1991.57.1 Front and back covers Pages from the book Transcript: What makes American jewelry American? As Susan Cummins and Cindi Strauss discovered while researching their book, In Flux: American Jewelry and the Counterculture, contemporary American jewelry isn't defined by style or materials, but by an attitude of independence and rebellion. Susan, who founded Art Jewelry Forum, and Cindi, who is Curator of Decorative Arts, Crafts and Design at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston, joined the Jewelry Journey Podcast to talk about what it was like to interview some of the most influential American artists; why they hope their book will inspire additional research in this field; and why narrative jewelry artists were part of the counterculture, even if they didn't consider themselves to be. Read the episode transcript here.  Sharon: Hello, everyone. Welcome to the Jewelry Journey Podcast. Today, my guests are Susan Cummins and Cindi Strauss, who, along with Damian Skinner, are the co-authors of In Flux: American Jewelry and the Counterculture. Susan is the founder of Art Jewelry Forum and for several decades drove the organization. Cindi Strauss is the Curator of Decorative Arts, Crafts and Design at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. Susan and Cindi, welcome to the program. Susan: Thank you. Cindi: Thank you for having us, Sharon. Sharon: So glad to have you. Can you each give us a brief outline of your jewelry journey? Susan, do you want to start? Susan: Sure. My journey started in the 80s. I had a gallery in Mill Valley, California. I was showing various crafts, ceramics mostly, and a bit of glass, fiber, a whole grouping, and then I decided I should show jewelry. I don't really know why, because I didn't wear jewelry, but it sounded like a good idea. I started showing it, and I was very impressed with how smart and incredibly skilled the artists were. I continued to show that, and the gallery became known for showing jewelry. In 1997, I still had the gallery, and I decided along with numerous other craft groups that we should start an organization that represented the collectors of jewelry. I started Art Jewelry Forum with the help of several other people, of course. That has continued onto today, surprisingly enough, and it now includes not only collectors, curators and gallerists, but also artists and everybody who's interested in contemporary art jewelry. Sharon: It's an international organization. Susan: Yes, it's an international organization. It has a website with a lot of articles. We plan all kinds of things like trips to encourage people to get to know more about the field. I also was part of a funding organization, shall we say, a small private fund called Rotasa, and years ago we funded exhibitions and catalogues. That switched into funding specific things that I was working on instead of accepting things from other people. I've been very interested in publishing and doing research about this field because I feel that will give it more value and legitimacy. It needs to be researched. So, that's one of the reasons why this book came into being as well as Flocks' book. It really talks about the beginnings of American contemporary jewelry in the 60s and 70s. That's my beginning to current interest in jewelry. Sharon: I just wanted to say that people can find a lot more if they visit the Art Jewelry Forum website. We'll have links to everything we talk about on the show. Cindi? Cindi: Sure. My jewelry journey was surprising and happened all at once. The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, had no contemporary jewelry in its collection until 2000, when we acquired an Art Smith necklace from 1948. That was my first real knowledge of post-Arts and Crafts jewelry and post-Mid-Century, people like Harry Bertoia. That led me to Toni Greenbaum's Messengers of Modernism catalogue, a fantastic resource for American jewelry from the 30s through the 50s. It opened a whole new field for me, and I started to think about how we should focus on some modern jewelry from that period to expand on the Art Smith necklace, because that Mid-Century design was a specialty of the institution.  Truly, I would say my life changed in respect to jewelry for the better in every way I could explain. When the museum acquired, in 2002, Helen Williams Drutt's private collection of artist-made contemporary jewelry, dating from 1963 to 2002 at the time of the acquisition, in one fell swoop, we acquired 804 pieces of international jewelry as well as sketchbooks and drawings and research materials. We began to build an extensive library. Helen opened her archives and we had recordings of artist interviews. It was just going from zero to sixty in three seconds and it was extraordinary. It was a field I knew really nothing about, so I was on a very steep learning curve. So many people in the field, from the artists to other curators to collectors—this is how I met Susan—were so generous to me in terms of being resources. The story about how the acquisition happened is familiar to probably many of your audience, so I'll keep it brief, which is to say that there was an exhibition of Gijs Bakker's jewelry that Helen organized for the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. Sharon: Cindi, I'm going to interrupt you for a minute because a lot of people listening will not have heard of Gijs Bakker. Cindi: Sure. Gijs Bakker, one of the most prominent Dutch artists, began his career in the 1960s, along with wife, Emmy van Leersum, and was part of the group of Dutch jewelry artists who revolutionized the concept of contemporary jewelry using alter-native materials. They created a lot of photo-based work challenging the value system of jewelry and also challenging wearability. It was his photo-based work that was shown in a small exhibition at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft in March 2002 as part of a citywide festival called Photofest, which is all photography-based work. It was through that exhibition, at the opening weekend—that's how I met Helen. I said to her, “This is something I don't know anything about. I'm interested in exploring it. I'm starting to build a collection for the museum. Could we meet and have coffee and talk?” So we met, and I peppered her with a lot of questions and said, “Could I call on you for advice in terms of building a collection?” Of course, at this time she had the gallery, and she said, “Well, you know, I have a collection,” and I said, “Yes, I know, and I understand it's going to the Philadelphia Museum of Art,” her hometown museum. She said, “Not necessarily. We haven't had any formal talks about that.” So, one thing led to another, and six months later, we signed papers to acquire the collection. That set me off on my initial five-year journey, which resulted in the exhibition and catalogue “Ornament as Art: Contemporary Jewelry from the Helen Williams Drutt Collection” that opened in Houston and traveled to Washington, D.C., to Charlotte, North Carolina, and to Tacoma, Washington. After that point, I felt that I was really steeped in the field. I have, since that point, been adding works to the collection. It was always going to be a long-term commitment and journey for the museum. We have works installed all over the museum in relationship to other contemporary art, whether it's photography, prints and drawings, sculpture, painting. We also have a robust presentation of jewelry in our departments' galleries. It is an ongoing journey, just like with Susan. It's a journey that never ends, happily. There are always new artists to discover and new ideas. Part of that is our meeting of the mind, if you will, and then with Damian, is what resulted in this book. Sharon: How did you come to write the book? Susan, you started to mention it. The research in this is jaw-dropping. How did you decide to write the book? Why this particular period, the two of you? Susan: We decided to write the book because I was wondering what's American about American jewelry. Europeans have done a lot of research and writing about their beginnings, but I didn't see a document or a book that really talked about the American origins. As Cindi mentioned, Gijs Bakker started in the 60s. So did American contemporary jewelry, but it's a very different story than the European one. We wanted to talk to the people who are still alive now, so we did tons of interviews for the book. We specifically concentrated on the pioneers who were responding to the political and social events of the time. In other words, we were investigating those artists who were considered narrative artists, because that was the defining feature of American art to those out of the country. We wanted to discover who was making this work and what were they saying in their narrative, so really answering “What was American about American jewelry?” We did tons of research through old documents of the American Crafts Library. We went all over the country and interviewed, and it was about a five-year-long process to get this point. The book is incredibly condensed. You can feel that there's a lot there, but it took a lot to condense it down to that.  Really, what we hope is that it's an easy-to-read story about the stories that jewelers were telling at the time, which was the origin of all that's come down to us now. It was the beginning of the development of university programs in the country. They just were in the process of expanding them, and people were learning how to make things. Nobody had a lot of skills in this country, so everybody had to learn how to make things. There were a lot of alternative ways of passing around information. The counterculture, we regarded that not as hippies per se, although hippies were part of it, but also a lot about the political and social issues of the time and how people responded to them. The ethos of the time, the values that people developed really became part of the craft counterculture itself. The craft field is based on a lot of those ways of working in the world, a sort of hope and trying to create a new society that had more values than the 50s had aspired to for each individual. People were trying to find ways to have valuable lives, and doing something like making something yourself and selling it at a craft fair became a wonderful alternative for many people who had the skill to do that. That was a very different way of having a life, shall we say, and that's how American jewelry developed: with those values and skills. I still see remnants of it in the current field. That's my focus. Cindi, do you have some things you want to add to that? Cindi: Yeah, the larger public's ideas and thoughts about American jewelry from that period were rooted in a history and an aesthetic that emerged largely on the East Coast, but certainly spread, as Susan said, with the development of university programs. That was an aesthetic that was largely rooted in the organic modernism of Scandinavian influence, as well as what had come before in America in terms of modernist studio jewelry. There's a history there in the narrative, and that narrative played out in early exhibitions. It played out in the first SNAG exhibition in 1970 in St. Paul, which is considered one of those milestones of the early American studio jewelry movement.  Now, we knew that there were artists like Fred Woell, Don Tompkins, Ken Cory, Merrily Tompkins, who were on the West Coast and working in a different vein, as Susan said, a narrative vein, and who were often working with assemblage techniques and found materials and were making commentary on issues of the day. Within the accepted history of that period, they were a minority, with the exception of Fred Woell and really Ken Cory. Their work was not as widely known, as widely collected, as widely understood. Damian and Susan and I started after we thought, as Susan said, “What is American about American jewelry?”  Fred Woell was an artist who immediately came to mind as embodying a certain type of Americanness. We had an extraordinary trip to visit with Fred's widow, Pat Wheeler, and to the see the studio and go through some of his papers. When we went, we thought we would be doing a monograph on Fred Woell. It was on that trip that we understood that it was a much larger project, and it was one that would encompass many more artists. As part of our research, there were certain artists who were known to us, and our hope was that we would rediscover artists who were working intently during that period who had been lost to history for whatever reason. There were also artists whose work we were able to reframe for the reasons that Susan mentioned: because of their lifestyle, their belief system, the way they addressed or responded to major issues during the day. So, we started developing these list of artists. I think what readers will find in the book is looking at some of the well-known artists, perhaps more in depth and in a new frame of analysis, but also learning about a plethora of other artists. For us, it was five years of intense work. There's a tremendous amount of research that has gone into this book, and from what we've been hearing, it has enlightened people about a period. It's not an alternative history, but it is an additional history. We hope it will inspire people to pick up the mantle and go forth because, of course, one has constraints in terms of word counts for publishing. At a certain point, you have to get down to the business of writing and stop the research, but there are so many threads that we hope other scholars, curators, students, interested parties will pick up and carry forth. In some ways we were able to go in depth, and in other ways we were able to just scratch the surface of what has been a fascinating topic for all of us. Sharon: I have a lot of questions, but first, I just wanted to mention that SNAG is the Society of North American Goldsmiths, in case people don't know. Can you explain, Susan or Cindi, what narrative jewelry is? Cindi: There's no one definition. Everybody would describe it a little bit differently, but I think a basic definition is jewelry that tells a story, that uses pictorial elements to tell a story. Whatever that story is can range from the personal to the public, to, in our case, responding to things like the Vietnam War, politics, etc. Susan, do you want to add to that? Susan: It's a very difficult thing to do when you think about. Narratives usually have a storyline from this point to that point to the next point. Here's a jeweler trying to put a storyline into one object, one piece. It is tricky to bring enough imagery that's accessible to the viewer together into one piece to allow the viewer to make up the story that this is about or the comment it's trying to make. You have to be very skilled and smart to make really good narrative jewelry. Sharon: It sounds like it would be, yes. When you realized what this book was going to entail—it sounds like you didn't start out thinking this was going to be such a deep dive—were you excited, or were you more like, “I think I'd probably rather run in the other direction and say, ‘Forget it; I can't do it'”? Susan: I don't think at any point did we stop and think, “Oh, this is a gigantic project.” We just thought, “Let's see. This person's interesting; O.K., let's talk to this person. Oh, gosh, they said these about this other person. Let's talk to them.” You just go step by step. I don't think, at any point, did any of us realize how vast a project this was until the end, probably. Cindi: Yeah, I would say because it happened incrementally, deep dive led to another and another. We would have regular meetings not only over Skype, but we would get together in person, the three of us, for these intense days in which we would talk about—we each had different areas we were focusing on. We'd bring our research together and that would lead to questions: “Should we explore this avenue?” Then someone would go and explore this avenue and come back, and we would think, “Maybe that wasn't as interesting as we thought it was going to be,” or maybe it was far more interesting than we thought, so it spun out a number of different avenues of research.  At a certain point, we started looking at the most important threads that were coming out and we were able to organize them as umbrellas, and then look at subthemes and think about the artists. It became like a puzzle. We had pockets of deep research, whether it was the in-person artist interviews or whether it was the archival research that was done, whether it was the general research. Damian and I were not alive during this time. Susan was, which was fantastic because I learned a lot about this in history class and school. Damian is a New Zealander, so he was coming at it from an international perspective. There was a lot of reading he did about American history, but Susan was the one gave us all the first-person accounts in addition to the artists. She participated in the American Craft Council Craft Fairs and was able to balance the sometimes emotionless history books with the first-person experiences that made it come alive. I think that's what you see throughout the book. It was important to us that the book would be readable, but it was also important to us that it would have a flavor of the times. When you do oral history interviews, there are many different kinds of questions that can be asked. We set out to talk not only about the jewelry that artists were making, but their lives, what was important to them, how they felt. The richness of experiences and emotions that came out in those interviews really inflected the book with feeling like you were there and a part of what these artists were thinking. This is a 2 part episode please subscribe so you can get part 2 as soon as its released later this week. 

On October 2, Contemporary Craft celebrates its 50th Anniversary as part of RADical Days. Katie Brill talks with Contemporary Craft's Executive Director, Rachel Saul Rearick, about the activities planned for their 50th Anniversary Party, their Food Justice exhibition and other upcoming events. Rachel also reflects on the organization's success over the past 50 years.

This episode is also available as a blog post: https://thecitylife.org/2021/09/17/museum-of-arts-and-design-announces-finalists-for-2021-burke-prize-honoring-excellence-in-contemporary-craft/ --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/citylifeorg/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/citylifeorg/support

Joyce Lin is an artist and designer passionate about making furniture and sculptural objects that deconstruct material, form, and the ever-shifting relationship between humans and their environment. Joyce currently lives and works in Houston, TX and was a 2019 artist in residence at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. You can follow along with Joyce's work on Instagram and her Website.

Norwood Viviano: Understanding Our Place in Time Using tools of mapping and materials of industry Norwood Viviano makes installations and sculptures that consider various social and environmental factors leading to population changes in American cities. His most recent series, Re-Cast Cities, continues his exploration of the cross-sections of geography, cartography and history, merging urban landscapes with the symbols of industry that have fueled their booms, busts and builds.  Heller Gallery's March 2021 Re-Cast Cities exhibition documented the first eight pieces made in this series focusing on Detroit, Houston, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Portland, (OR), Toledo and White Mills, (PA). Curator and writer Sarah Darro called the project “a radical reconsideration of cartography that inflects Viviano's ongoing analysis of the rise and fall of American manufacturing with an experimental energy geared towards the future.”   Viviano received a BFA from Alfred University and an MFA in Sculpture from the Cranbrook Academy of Art. His work is represented in the collections of major museums in the US, Europe and Asia. His work has been shown at the Venice Architectural Biennale (2014), Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Houston, TX (2013); Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (2015), Frederik Meijer Gardens and Sculpture Park (2016), Bellevue Art Museum (2016), Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (2016), MOCA Jacksonville (2017), Boise Art Museum (2018) as well as at Stanze de Vetro in Venice, Italy (2020). Recent solo exhibitions include Grand Rapids Art Museum in Grand Rapids, MI (2015); Heller Gallery, New York, NY (2011, 2014, 2018 and 2021); Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk VA (2016) and Corning Museum of Glass (CMOG), Corning, NY (2017-18). Viviano is an associate professor and sculpture program coordinator at Grand Valley State University in Michigan. Awards and residencies include the 2019 Corning Museum of Glass, David Whitehouse Research Residency for Artists; visiting artist residencies in 2017 and 2010 at Museum of Glass, Tacoma, WA; inclusion in CMOG's New Glass Review #16, #22, #33, #36, and #38; a 2016 fellowship at Wheaton Arts and Cultural Center – Creative Glass Center of America, Millville, NJ; the 2014 Pilchuck Glass School John H. Hauberg Fellowship; the Venice Biennale, Best Exhibition Award, from Global Art Affairs Foundation; and the Center for Scholarly and Creative Excellence, GVSU, Catalyst Grant for Research and Creativity. The result of Viviano's 2017 Visiting Artist Residency at the Museum of Glass, Cities Underwater focused attention from population and cartographic shifts of the past to the future. The artist conceived the project to visualize the dramatic loss of land predicted to occur in the next 500 years in areas that some 127 million Americans call home. The adaptation needed to mitigate the impending changes that will affect our lives, history and culture is massive. The Cities Underwater work is aimed at keeping this conversation alive and not forgoing it for short-term convenience or gain. The installation was comprised of 16 sets of nesting glass cylinders, which represent 16 coastal cities in the United States. Using existing LiDAR data and scientific projections, Viviano showed the projected loss of land mass due to sea level rise in Boston, Galveston, Miami Beach, Miami, Mobile, New Orleans, Newark, New York, Norfolk, Philadelphia, Sacramento, San Francisco, Savannah, Seattle, St. Petersburg and Tacoma. Each set was accompanied by vinyl cut drawings and animation, which provided additional data. For Mining Industries, Viviano utilized digital 3D computer modeling and printing technology in tandem with glass blowing and casting processes to create work depicting population shifts tied to the dynamic between industry and community. By showing how landscapes and populations move and are modified as a result of industry, his work creates a 3D lens to view that which is invisible or forgotten. His use of blown glass forms and vinyl cut drawings are micro-models of macro changes at the regional, national, and international level.  Viviano says: “I find myself looking at the world as a surveyor – telling stories through objects. Stepping back and researching how pieces fit together gives me the opportunity to consider the impact of the component parts. Conversations with specialists in a range of disciplines — historians, urban planners, demographers, climate scientists and statisticians — deepen my engagement with the subject matter and the complexity of my work. My artistic intention is to better understand our place in time by focusing on land use through pictorial imagery and on industrial growth and decline through population studies that also ask questions about the present and future of communities. My installations and objects encourage individuals to make connections and ask questions about the interconnectivity between their and other communities.  He continues: “My material choice of glass is meant to demonstrate the fragility of populations. I hope my work asks people to examine their own histories of migration, from personal and communal standpoints, just as it continues to help me navigate and explore my own.”   Viviano will teach a one-week 3D printing and mold making workshop at Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Snowmass, CO, July 19-23, 2021. For more information andersonranch.org  

The jagoffs made the call to Contemporary Craft's Executive Director Janet McCall to chat n' at on location at CC about her retirement, as well as with developer extraordinaire, Michael Troiani, Doug Costa of the Wilson Group and social media influencer, Chancelor Humphrey. Thanks to the sounds of Alyssa Hankey to fuze it all together…thanks to Fuzion Entertainment.  SPONSOR: The lot looks a little different, the inventory a little thinner. But Honda has a warehouse of cars to suit your needs. And if we haven't mentioned enough, now is the time to trade in your car to get the best value for it, as well as a new or pre-owned gem of your own. Visit the showroom in Bloomfield and tell them the jagoffs sent you, there may be an incentive. As always visit Rohrich.com for all of your vehicle needs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Christian made his first duct tape wallet when he was 10, and it stuck. Great duct tape artists to follow on Instagram: Christian Carr (duh) @Ductology Leah Abucayan @HellaLeah Chance Foreman @ChanceForemanArt Christian’s favorite tape for art Christian’s favorite tape for fixing things Follow Christian on Twitter: @RoosterCarr Music for this episode is by the galaxy’s own Breakmaster Cylinder, with duct tape percussion by Ashton Paul Drake. Illustration by Kolin Pope.

According to a study by M-AAA, artists are one of the most educated populations amongst working sectors. However, degrees and/or institutional support has never been, nor should be, the deciding factor on whether or not someone is a legitimate/good/worthy artist. MFAs, ideally, should be programs that help an artist improve their craft, but others have interpreted the MFA as a necessity to be ‘taken seriously’ as an artist. Not to mention, the ‘institution’ can be a stifling & uniforming experience for artists. We will have two guests to offer their experiences as successful creatives who have or don’t have MFAs and can speak to the pros and cons of either decision.Grace Zuñiga is an artist, curator, and arts administrator originally form Sandia, Texas. In 2007, she received her BFA from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi, with a focus in photography and in 2012 received her MFA in studio art, with a focus in printmaking, from the University of Georgia, Lamar Dodd School of Art in Athens,Georgia. In May of 2014, Zuñiga completed a nine-month residency at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and currently holds the position of Creative Director at Sawyer Yards. In her role, Zuñiga strives to build bridges within Houston’s arts community by creating opportunities for local, national, and international artists and arts organizations.Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton is an internationally known writer, educator, activist, and Poet Laureate Emeritus of Houston, Texas. Formerly ranked the #2 Best Female Poet in the World, Her work has appeared in Houston Noir by Akashic Press (2019), Black Girl Magic by Haymarket Books (2019), Fjords Journal, Crab Orchard Review, and on such platforms as NPR, BBC, ABC, Apple News, Blavity, Upworthy, and across the TedX circuit. She serves as a contributing writer to Texas Monthly and Glamour. Her most recent poetry collection, Newsworthy, won honorable mention for the Summerlee Book Prize. A German translation, under the title "Berichtenswert," is set to be released in Fall 2021 by Elif Verlag.Music: "Ike is Gone" by Nick Gaitan.Support the show (https://fresharts.org/about-fresh-arts/friends-of-fresh-arts/)

In this episode we sit down with former Centrum resident, Megan Hildebrandt, who exudes humor, care, and generosity as she shares stories of the various shifts in her life and the ways that cancer and parenting have impacted her work over the years. Megan Hildebrandt received her BFA from the Stamps School of Art & Design in 2006, and her MFA in Studio Art from the University of South Florida in 2012. Hildebrandt has exhibited nationally and internationally, including: The Painting Center, New American Paintings, The Baltimore Museum of Art, The Museum of Contemporary Craft, Arlington Arts Center, Detroit Contemporary, HEREarts Center, Latitude 53, Johns Hopkins Medical Center, the LIVESTRONG Foundation, Hyde Park Art Center, The Torpedo Factory, and The Painter’s Room. In 2018, Hildebrandt received an Art Works grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for the Aesthetics of Health Course she developed for Interlochen Arts Academy. An artist, educator, and arts-in-health advocate, Hildebrandt currently lives and works in Austin, Texas, where she is Associate Professor of Practice in the Department of Art and Art History at The University of Texas. See more of Hildebrandt’s work at https://www.meganlynnhildebrandt.com/

This week on The Artist Unmasked Podcast features Contemporary Craft Artist Steffi Dotson. Steffi is a woodworker and founder of San Diego Craft Collective. San Diego Craft Collective is a nonprofit organization who offers craft art workshops such as woodworking and making your own glass jewelry.

Jaydan was born into a family of fourth generation tombstone makers in California. Most of his childhood was largely spent at the family business, which doubled as a rental storage space; where he would rummage through other peoples objects, and listen to families making arrangements for their loved ones. It is these experiences that made him value the heirlooms and objects we choose to use as markers for significant moments.His career began as an undergraduate student at California College of the Arts, in Oakland and received his MFA and MA from University of Wisconsin-Madison.Jaydan has furthered his career through generous opportunities as an artist in residence at Penland School of Crafts, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, and a Fountainhead Fellowship at Virginia Commonwealth Universities Craft/Material Studies Program. He has received grants through the American Craft Councils Emerging Voices Program, North Carolina Arts Fellowship, and the Peter S. Reed Foundation. He has shown in recent exhibitions at Design/Miami (FL), Basel (SWI), Cheongju Craft Biennale (South Korea), Museum of Craft and Design (CA), Racine Art Museum (WI), Fuller Craft Museum (MA), and the Center for Craft, Creativity, and Design (NC). He has also held teaching appointments at Rhode Island School of Design, Virginia Commonwealth University in the Craft Materials Studies Program, California College of the Arts, and Penland School of Crafts.Jaydan is represented by Ornamentum Gallery (NY).Got questions? Email Jaydan: jaydantmoore@gmail.com Instagram: @jaydan.mooreWebsite: jaydanmoore.com•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••APPLY TO IN SCHOOL SUSPENSION an open call brought to you by JV Collective. Visit jv-collective.com for the details of the call. Don't forget to Rate AND Review us on iTunes!SUPPORT PERCEIVED VALUE!www.patreon.com/perceivedvaluewww.perceivedvaluepodcast.com/how-to-support-donate/Want a chance on the mic? Visit our events page at www.perceivevaluepodcast.com/events to find out when Perceive Value Podcast will be in your area!Instagram + Facebook: @perceivedvalueFind your Host:sarahrachelbrown.comInstagram: @sarahrachelbrown≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠≠The music you hear on Perceived Value is by the Seattle group Song Sparrow Research.All You Need to Know off of their album Sympathetic Buzz.Find them on Spotify!

In this special recording, designer, Supernaturalist, cultural activist and fiber artist Xenobia Bailey is in conversation with DCPL Artist in Residence Tsedaye Makonnen discussing her process, work and inspirations. Xenobia Bailey studied ethnomusicology at the University of Washington, it was there that her interest in craftsmanship and fabric took full bloom. She worked as a costume designer for the renowned African-American community theater, Black Arts West, until her acceptance into Pratt Institute in Brooklyn in 1974. She received her BA in industrial design while she learned to crochet under needle artist, Bernadette Sonona, after which she began to create and sell colorful crocheted hats inspired by distinctly African-American patterns, themes and hairstyles. Bailey is best known for her eclectic crochet hats and large scale crochet mandalas, consisting of colorful concentric circles and repeating patterns. Her pieces are often connected to her ongoing project "Paradise Under Reconstruction in the Aesthetic of Funk". Her designs draw influences from in Africa, China, and Native American and Eastern philosophies, with undertones of the 1970's funk aesthetic. Her hats have been featured in United Colors of Beneton Ads, on The Cosby Show, and in the Spike Lee film Do the Right Thing (worn by Samuel L. Jackson as DJ Mister Señor Love Daddy). Bailey has been artist-in-residence at the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Society for Contemporary Craft in Pittsburgh, and the Marie Walsh Sharpe Art Foundation in New York City. Her work has been exhibited at the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Jersey City Museum, the New Museum of Contemporary Art, and the High Museum of Art in Atlanta. Her work is in the permanent collections at Harlem's Schomberg Center for Research in Black Culture, the Allentown Art Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Arts, and the Museum of Arts and Design. Tsedaye Makonnen is an Ethiopian-American interdisciplinary artist, a mother and a former doula. Recurring themes present in her work are identity, colorism, womanhood, ritual and kinship. She's particularly drawn to conveying the African Diaspora's creative responses to assimilating, destroying and recreating the Self within new and/or hostile territories, whether that happens to be a new country or a hospital room. As of late, she has been connecting the forced migrations taking place in DC and abroad through performance art and installations.

Nick DeFord is an artist, educator, and arts administrator who resides in Knoxville, TN. He received his MFA from Arizona State University, and a MS and BFA from the University of Tennessee. He exhibits nationally, with recent exhibitions at the Coastal Carolina University, The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, University of Mississippi, Lindenwood University and this spring in 2018 at East Tennessee State University. He has had artwork or writing published in Surface Design Journal, Elephant Magazine, Hayden Ferry Review, and Willow Springs. Currently, Nick is the Program Director at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Tennessee, and works on his fiber art practice from his home studio.Nick's website: www.nickdeford.comInstagram @nick_defordMore about the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts: arrowmont.orgInstagram: @arrowmont_schoolMore about Pentaculum:https://www.arrowmont.org/events/arrowmont-pentaculum/Don't forget to Rate AND Review us on iTunes!Find Perceived Value:perceivedvaluepodcast.comInstagram + Facebook: @perceivedvalueFind your Host:sarahrachelbrown.comInstagram: @sarahrachelbrownThe music you hear on Perceived Value is by the Seattle group Song Sparrow Research. All You Need to Know off of their album Sympathetic Buzz.Find them on Spotify!

Interview with Houston Center for Contemporary Craft Curator Kathryn Hall. We talk about the current exhibit “For Hire: Contemporary Sign Painting in America”

Andrew Casto is Head of Ceramics at The University of Iowa, where he teaches graduate and advanced undergraduate level Ceramics courses. Casto has participated in over sixty exhibitions in nine countries, and is a member of the University of Iowa Public Digital Arts Faculty Cluster initiative. Bobby Tso, is an Assistant Professor of Fine Art at Northwest Missouri State University. He teaches all level of ceramics classes, and still is not getting over the culture shock he had when he moved from Hong Kong, where there are 8 million people, to a Northern Iowa town of 300.

Born and raised in Hangzhou, China, Shiyuan Xu received her BA from China Academy of Art in 2012, and MFA from Arizona State University in 2016. Completed a summer residency at Archie Bray Foundation last year, currently Shiyuan is the resident at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft in Houston. Shiyuan is the recipient of 2017 Ceramics Monthly Emerging Artist.

Namita Gupta Wiggers is a curator, writer, educator, and artist living in Portland, Oregon. A first generation American of South Asian descent, she is a keen observer of how people select and organize their lives. She began her career in museums, eventually serving as curator and then director of the Museum of Contemporary Craft in Portland. Namita sees curation as both collaborative and empathic—that the curator's job is to make room for multiple narratives to exist within a project. A lifelong learner, she believes that when she comes across something she isn't familiar with—a culture, a tradition, an artist—the onus is on her to learn more. In keeping with that approach, Namita is a co-founder of Critical Craft Forum, which provides spaces for makers to discuss critical issues to the field of craft, including a recent symposium on Gender and Jewelry in New York City. After more than a decade of focusing on writing and curating, she joins Make/Time just as she returns to making jewelry with upcoming residencies with Watershed Center for Ceramic Arts and Ox-bow School of Art. Make/Time shares conversations about craft, inspiration, and the creative process. Listen to leading makers and thinkers talk about where they came from, what they're making, and where they're going next. Make/Time is hosted by Stuart Kestenbaum and is a project of craftschools.us. Major funding is provided by the Windgate Charitable Foundation.

By 2015, the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education had a problem — the good kind of problem: It couldn't accommodate the crowds that wanted to get into its exhibits and events. So it commissioned a study to see if it could afford a bigger building. Then director Judy Margles learned that the Museum for Contemporary Craft was closing its downtown Portland doors after 79 years.“It was just absolutely serendipitous, as we were completing the study in February 2016, this building landed on the market,” Margles said. “We said, 'This building is perfect for us.' It had exactly what we needed: a changing exhibition gallery, space for core exhibitions.”Read the full story: http://www.opb.org/radio/article/oregon-jewish-museum-new-home

2016 was packed — packed! — with big arts stories, both locally and nationally (we're still mourning you, Bowie and Prince, Cohen and Jones, and all the other dynamos). We decided to spend our first episode of 2017 looking back at some of them and updating them for the new year.Art Glass MeltdownWe should have known 2016 was going to be a doozy last January, when one modest Forest Service research project turned the Northwest’s storied art glass industry upside down. Oregon’s two major suppliers, Bullseye Glass Co. and Uroboros Glass, stopped most production while everyone tried to figure out what the studies meant. In May, Washington state’s Spectrum Glass became the first to announce its closure, and then in September, Uroboros announced it would close its doors after 44 years. A California company called Oceanside GlassTile has announced it will buy both and move their production to Mexico. We review a mid-year feature, and hear from Uroboros founder Eric Lovell, who's in the process of shelving his business.PNCA Closes the Museum of Contemporary Craft, And the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education Buys Its Downtown Space - 12:13In February, the Pacific Northwest College of Art announced that it would close the Museum of Contemporary Craft. The college was losing more than $200,000 a year keeping it operational, and ultimately concluded that students and faculty simply weren't engaging with it enough to justify the cost. The building has been sold for $5 million, and the collection moved over to PNCA's home at 511 Broadway. We review what happened and the outcry in the craft community, then meet the buildings new owners, the Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education.Where They Landed: Revisiting Displaced Artists From Troy Laundry - 22:35Affordable workspaces for artists have been dropping like flies: the Towne Storage Building, Conduit Dance, Northwest Dance Project, Polaris Dance Theater, Shaking the Tree, Third Rail Repertory Theatre — every month it seemed like another performing set of studios or arts organization lost its building. Then, at the end of June, word came that the Troy Laundry Building in Southeast Portland had been sold. For nearly 40 years, it housed dozens of artists in what was the city’s oldest artists cooperative. We listen back to part of our June story, and seek out some of the artists who were sent searching for new space (hint: it's nigh impossible to fit art supplies and a Christmas tree both in the living room).Ted Wheeler Takes Office - 31:09Portland's new Mayor is Ted Wheeler, former State Treasurer and Multnomah County Commission Chair. The city is waiting to see how he'll handle the economic, social, and cultural issues that have wracked Portland with growing pains. We review a few things he told us at last January's Candidates' Forum for Art and Culture. Then we sit down with Jean-Pierre Veillet of the design/build firm Siteworks, architect Tony Belluschi, and urban designer Mike McCullough to talk about some of the planning and bureaucratic challenges that may define Wheeler's term.The Color of Now, Revisited - 40:28After the heartbreaking week in July when first Alton Sterling was shot in Louisiana, then Philando Castile in Minnesota, and then five police officers in Dallas, we put together a show exploring how local artists were responding to the shootings, from MCs Mic Crenshaw and Rasheed Jamal to the painter Arvey Smith.We started the show at an event called the Color of Now, where an actor performed a piercing monologue from a touring production called "Hands Up: 7 Playwrights, 7 Testaments." The event continued with a conversation between Color of Now organizer Chantal DeGroat and "Hands Up" director Kevin Jones, of the August Wilson Red Door Project, and we invited them into the studio to see how their year has gone since, and to ask how the election has affected their continuing work.

For today’s episode, I have Delyth Done from England, her hardworking and dedicated efforts are indispensable in promoting and developing artist blacksmiths in today’s modern world.  Delyth is the Course Leader for the MA in Contemporary Crafts and the BA for the Artist Blacksmith program at Hereford College of Arts.   She also is the coordinator of an upcoming major international contemporary forged metal exhibition called “Transition” that will open at the Ypres International blacksmithing event in Belgium starting September 1st, 2016.   What We Talked About Delyth has a clay background for her education which includes a Bachelor of Art and a Masters from the Royal College of Art in London. After her education, she exhibited her clay art in many venues and also completed some bronze castings. She began as a ceramics and clay teacher at an art school in Cardiff that offers a single discipline Ceramics degree. This led to becoming the course director for the program at the school. After a few years of running the ceramics program in Cardiff, Delyth felt that she would like to move to the next step in her career. A position opened at the Hereford College of the Arts to oversee all of the programs at the college, Delyth applied and was hired.  After being at Hereford for 10 years and working with the students, Delyth saw the need for a master’s program to be developed for the contemporary art students, so Delyth, along with a coworker, developed a 45 week Master’s degree program in Contemporary Craft. Hereford College of the Arts offers a 3-year Artist Blacksmiths program that teaches a solid grounding in history and in critical ways of thinking about creative practice. This is done by simultaneously teaching process and design creation, always pushing the student to generate design ideas from their inspirations.  The program also includes a professional work placement, creating a professional portfolio and business plan. Delyth talks about her ABANA conference experience in Salt Lake City and how she led a series of lectures along with Rick Smith and Heiner Zimmerman. The Ypres International Blacksmithing Event will be held in Ypres, Belgium, September 1 – 6th and Delyth has organized a lecture series with some of the 24 master blacksmiths that have been selected to forge a panel during the event. Another project that Delyth is spearheading involves coordinating a major international, contemporary, forged metal touring exhibition, called “Transition” to coincide with the Ypres event and then continuing on, travelling to other countries and galleries. The exhibition’s theme is about the transitions that happen during the first world war in landscape, languages, and process. The exhibition drew over 90 art submissions from 15 different countries. A panel of 5 judges took 6 weeks to look over the submissions and select 40 pieces of art to be in the exhibition. Guest Links Hereford College of Arts website - http://www.hca.ac.uk/Courses/University-Level/BA-(Hons)/Artist-Blacksmithing Ypres International Blacksmith Event website – Ypres2016.com A Big Thank You to today’s sponsor – www.Ypres2016.com If you enjoyed this episode, I would love it if you would support the show by: telling your friends. sharing this episode using the social sharing buttons below. subscribing to the show and leaving a rating and review in iTunes.  Not sure how?  Just follow these simple steps here or watch the short video tutorial, http://youtu.be/rq4OCyRGjHc?list=UUH3MfNZLXlKgionAs6kMT_Q subscribing to the show in Stitcher, http://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=54499&refid=stpr Thanks so much for your support!

It's pledge week, people! Of course we're putting out the good china: one of the season's most sumptuous films, a new way to look at a Portland icon, and the unveiling of the Portland 2016 Biennial artists.Portland's Second Largest Art Museum to Close - 1:14Pacific Northwest College of Art is folding Oregon's 79-year-old Museum of Contemporary Craft into a new Center for Contemporary Art and Culture, laying off most employees, and selling the building. We hear some background and hopes/fears for the collection.Disjecta Announces the Portland2016 Artists - 5:22Curator Michelle Grabner announced the names of almost 40 top shelf contemporary artists who will be featured in Disjecta's Portland2016 biennial this summer (see the full list). Among them: the sculptor and conceptual artist Tannaz Farsi, who is the subject of a gorgeous Oregon Art Beat profile this week.Todd Haynes on "Carol" and Bowie - 9:07One of Portland's brightest cinematic minds talks about his new Oscar-nominated film, "Carol," and reflects on the loss of David Bowie, who inspired Haynes glam rock film "Velvet Goldmine." You can hear the full conversation on Think Out Loud.Randy Gragg in Conversation with Kengo Kuma - 21:20Say hello to our new guest columnist: We loved reading Randy Gragg as the editor-in-chief in "Portland Monthly" and at his long-time post as architecture critic at the "Oregonian." Randy now directs the John Yeon Center for Architecture and the Landscape at the U of O. We're kicking off a year-long series with Randy, beginning with the renovation of Portland's Japanese Garden by one of the top names in international architecture, Kengo Kuma.

The Museum of Contemporary Craft is no stranger to changes in name and location. It was originally founded in 1937 as the Oregon Ceramics Studio on SW Corbett Avenue. It went through several titles before settling on its current name when it moved into the Pearl District in 2007. MOCC now bills itself as the oldest continuously-running craft institution in the United States, and along the way, it developed a national reputation for its thoughtful, innovative exhibitions.Now the museum will undergo perhaps its greatest change yet: dissolving entirely into a new Center for Contemporary Art & Culture within PNCA's main campus building."The collection from MOCC will come into PNCA to be combined with our existing programs at PNCA," says the college's interim president Casey Mills. "So it would span not only craft, but craft, art, design, and show that these are actually all interrelated and that they actually feed off one another."Read the full story: http://www.opb.org/news/article/pnca-to-close-the-museum-of-contemporary-craft-and-sell-its-pearl-space

Leah Hamilton French was born and raised in Cambridge, MA. The daughter of a museum professional and a craftsman, she had a lot of exposure to the arts as a child. In and out of school she immersed herself in various art forms – piano, signing, ceramics, drawing, and theater. Following her senior year of high school, French combined her love of acting with her interest in making things, competing in the PBS engineering reality show Design Squad: Season 2. In each episode, contestants designed and built solutions to engineering tasks. The best part, according to French, was learning how to use all the tools in the shop. “Before we started filming, they gave us a crash course in the design process, from drafting to test models, to final product. It was really empowering to realize, hey, if I can dream it, I can draw it, and if I can draw it, I can build it.” French attended Wellesley College, where she majored in Anthropology and French Cultural studies, and joined Teach for America shortly after commencement.  As a pre-kindergarten teacher, French found that a curriculum infused with art, math, and science was the best way to engage her young students. Painting and drawing strengthened her students’ early literacy and fine motor skills. Playing with clay and making collage developed their early math skills, like spatial awareness, pattern recognition, and naming, rotating, and tessellating shapes. Upon moving to Houston, TX, French decided to explore a different approach to education. She worked for Writers in the Schools (WITS), teaching creative writing to young students in the Houston public schools, and loved how easy it was to bring art into those lessons. Currently, she works as a museum educator at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. She loves that her job combines several of her passions – art, specifically craft, and education. At the moment, French’s pet project is creating downloadable lesson plans that integrate craft into core subjects. “For me, because I have that experience with art, and math, and engineering, I see how they all fit together. I also have experience as a teacher, and know there are only so many hours in the day. I wanted to create a resource to help teachers easily connect art to the math, science, and language arts concepts they are already teaching. When you can find a way to tie it all together, you produce well rounded students, who then become more creative and innovative citizens.”  For more information visit www.cstem.org. 

Gary studied at the University of Wisconsin and obtained a Masters of Fine Arts from University of Illinois Champaign.   One of Gary’s biggest challenged was learning the administrative aspects to the art world; “you’re trained for the technical aspects of art, not the admin part.   The joy of life creeps into your art making. Gary provides good advice on experiencing life and bringing that into your art. Art can be a way for you to process what happened in life. It can be therapeutic.   One’s quality life can be based on happiness. Think about if you are doing something happy. As a culture, are you doing something to improve the quality of life. I don’t take it lightly that I work with metals. As a maker of objects, I hope they do not end up in the landfills. I try to use objects that do not hurt the Earth.   The objects around us have a story. You can have the community around you to collect and engage. Finding ways to repurpose items instead of throwing them away. Objects have something beyond what you see to the eye.   Success is a work in progress. I feel that I am relatively successful because I’m still doing what I setup to do and I still love it.   Gary is a Resident Artist at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and his currently designing a limited edition piece inspired by his kids.

This week: we travel from the front lines of forest fires to the trailer parks of outer space. It's all in a day's work for the Labor Day weekend.Graphic Novelist Craig ThompsonWe start with the singular Craig Thompson. His incredible, 600-page autobiography “Blankets,” about growing up in a fundamentalist Christian family in Wisconsin, was a game-changer, sweeping the awards and redefining the literary depths a graphic novel memoir could reach. Then Thompson completely changed gears with “Habibi,” an epic set in a modern Arabian Nights fantasia. Now Thompson has released “Space Dumplins.” It’s the zany adventure of a girl who has to save her family from giant planet-eating whales whose excrement has replaced oil as the universe’s fuel. Did we mention there are sartorial, talking chickens?How Do Bands Decide?As you check out the fall concert calendar — you probably noticed we have some big acts coming to town, like Madonna’s first visit in years — have you ever wondered how bands decide where to book stops on their tours? Our pal Mitchell Hartmann looked into it for Marketplace.Musician Craig FinnBest known as the frontman of the Hold Steady, Craig Finn is famous for his storytelling, both in his songs and between them. He’s on tour this summer to promote his new solo album, “Faith In The Future.” During a live session for OPB Music, Finn performed the song “Newmyer’s Roof” and told the story behind the music. Alien SheThis weekend the Museum of Contemporary Craft and the Pacific Northwest College of Arts opens the exhibition called “Alien She” designed to unlock the history and impact of the Riot Girl Movement. The curators tell us about it.Painter Rachel DavisRachel Davis’s newest exhibition, “A Trace History,” explores the interplay of ancient and modern China. In her whimsical watercolors, skyscrapers spring up as tall as mountains, and trucks go barrelling over land while terra cotta warriors wait buried below the surface. It’s a juxtaposition close to Davis’s heart. Both of her adopted daughters were born in Central China. Davis told us about how she’s riveted by the speed with which China has hurtled ahead during her daughters’ childhood here. The Astoria Music Festival Gets A New BoardThe festival’s onstage presence can be peaceful and sublime. But offstage, there’s been some drama. The Festival’s entire board announced in late July they were resigning, en masse. This week, a new board has signed on. We talk check in with “Daily Astorian” reporter Erick Bengel for an update.A Jazz LifeOur sister station KMHD runs a series called “A Jazz Life,” where jazz artists and fans talk about moments when a musical experience changed their lives. They’re starting up a new season with this story from Jennifer Mayerle, a Portland-based marketing content strategist, who happened to sit behind an idol at a small New York jazz club.Wallowa Fiddle Tunes CampOne day in July we were driving through the small town of Wallowa in the far Northeast corner of Oregon on our way to Joseph to record a show from the Fishtrap writers’ retreat. As we drove past the school, we couldn’t help but notice the front lawn was filled with tents. What was the reason for a full-scale summer camp out at school? Meet Fiddle Tunes Camp.Fire Fighting Meets PhotographyAlan Thornton’s photography career has taken him from the deserts of the Southwest U.S. to distant lands like Turkey and Cambodia, but there was one shot that he could never get close enough to snap: a forest fire. So this spring, Thornton took a wildland firefighting course. Since then, he has found a new job working as a photographer and a firefighter. You can hear to the full conversation on Think Out Loud.

Drew Cameron is a second-generation hand papermaker, trained forester and former Army soldier. He co-founded the Combat Paper Project and has been facilitating workshops with veterans and the community in which they transform military uniforms into handmade paper, prints, books and art since 2007. The portable workshop has reached thousands of people throughout the country in 29 states and more than 125 workshops. His work is represented in 33 public collections and has been shown numerous times including at the Corcoran Gallery, Courtauld Institute, Library of Congress, Museum of Contemporary Craft and Craft and Folk Art Museum among others. Combat Paper is now operating in four locations: New York, New Jersey, Nevada and California with open and ongoing programming. Drew is based in San Francisco at Shotwell Paper Mill and continues to practice papermaking, teach and encourage others to do the same. About Combat Paper Coming home from war is a difficult thing. There is often much to account for as a survivor. A new language must be developed in order to express the magnitude and variety of the collective effect. Hand papermaking is the language of Combat Paper. By working in communities directly affected by warfare and using the uniforms and artifacts from their experiences, a transformation occurs and our collective language is born. Through papermaking workshops, veterans use their uniforms worn in service to create works of art. The uniforms are cut up, beaten into a pulp and formed into sheets of paper. Participants use the transformative process of papermaking to reclaim their uniforms as art and express their experiences with the military. The Combat Paper Project is based in San Francisco, CA with affiliate paper mills in New Jersey, New York and Nevada. The project has traveled to Canada, England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Kosovo providing workshops, exhibitions, performances and artists' talks. Combat Paper is made possible through the collaborative effort of artists, veterans, volunteers, colleges and universities, art collectors, cultural foundations, art spaces, military hospitals and installations. Through ongoing participation in the papermaking process, we are broadening the traditional narrative surrounding the military experience and warfare. The work also generates a much-needed conversation between veterans and civilians regarding our collective responsibilities and shared understanding in war. http://veteranpodcast.com/009

Namita Gupta Wiggers is on our show this week, talking about changes in the regional art landscape since 2000, and the recent news that she's stepping down as Director/Chief Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Craft.

Photo by Micah Fischer ‘13. CraftPerspectives Lecture | Namita Gupta Wiggers and Benjamin Lignel on Contemporary Jewelry Museum of Contemporary Craft and the MFA in Applied Craft and Design welcome Benjamin Lignel and Namita Gupta Wiggers.   Contemporary jewelry is doing OK. It does not need another pat on the back in the form of a 300-page book of images. When taking on the task of editor in 2010, Damian Skinner decided to treat Contemporary Jewelry in Perspective as an opportunity to examine jewelry as a mature, fully developed practice. Rather than propose yet another set of justifications for its existence, he led a project to provide instruments to navigate the spaces in which jewelry lives (Part 1), to understand the history of the field (Part 2), and to grasp some of the contentious issues that animate jewelry today (Part 3). This joint lecture by Benjamin Lignel and Namita Wiggers, both contributors to Contemporary Jewelry in Perspective, Part 1, will look at the history of contemporary jewelry through the lens of some of its defining moments. Why was the critique of preciousness so important? What exactly is de-skilling, and does it herald the end of bench-based craft? Why is inheritance an issue for long-term preservation of contemporary jewelry? Lignel and Wiggers will also discuss the spaces of contemporary jewelry, revealing how they are both found and invented as products of contemporary practice. We will show how such spaces are determined by maker’s willingness to appropriate them and to challenge the limits of what is historically “given.” While we share some assumptions about contemporary jewelry, our positions as curator and editor/maker have colored, and to some extent polarized, how we think about the field. This lecture is meant to test our methodology and to better understand the functionality of the book as a user-friendly tool kit. The lecture will pick up selected tools in a non-linear presentation of a non-linear book with the goal of leaving the audience with the strange urge to burn, and then redraw the plinth on which contemporary jewelry sits. This program is co-sponsored by Art Jewelry Forum and the MFA in Applied Craft + Design. A book signing will follow the lecture. Download

Photo by Marissa Boone ‘14. MFA AC+D Lecture: Mary Smull The MFA in Applied Craft and Design welcomes Mary Smull as part of the 2013-2014 Graduate Visiting Artist Lecture Series. MARY SMULL is an artist, writer, and curator living in Philadelphia, PA. She merges object and action in a practice centered around textile processes to expose the diversity of attitudes toward labor and the complex relationships surrounding art and craft, amateur and professional, producers and consumers. Recently, Smull’s work has been exhibited at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia International Airport, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Temple Contemporary, Bridgette Mayer Gallery, Philadelphia, PA, and at the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, Public Fiction Gallery in Los Angeles, CA, Cranbrook Museum of Art in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan. In 2013 and 2014, Smull will be featured in exhibitions at the Racine Art Museum in Racine, WI, and the Craft Alliance, in St. Louis, MO. Smull holds a BFA from the University of the Arts, Philadelphia, PA and an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art, Bloomfield Hills, MI, and currently teaches in the Fiber Department at the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, MD. Download

This week: Brian Andrews and Duncan MacKenzie check in with Judith Leeman and Shannon Stratton while visiting Portland, Oregon and discuss their most recent curatorial endeavor the "Gestures of Resistance" exhibition at Portland's Museum of Contemporary Craft.  We talk about problematizing the standard static exhibition, how a viewer can access a dynamic and evolving show, what an object be "loaded" with, and the problem with placards. The exhibition includes... Sara Black and John Preus, Anthea Black, Carol Lung, Cat Mazza, Mung Lar Lam, Ehren Tool, and Theaster Gates. Links... http://www.performingcraft.com/ http://www.shannonstratton.com/ http://three-walls.org/ http://www.judithleemann.com/ http://material-exchange.org/home.html http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tfi3DIlaXqg http://www.fraufiber.com/ http://www.post-craft.net/catmazza.htm http://www.munglarlam.com/ http://www.bquayartgallery.com/archive/access_tool2007.html http://theastergates.com/home.html http://www.museumofcontemporarycraft.org/