Crafting the Future
Crafting the Future works to increase access to creative enrichment by connecting BIPOC artists with opportunities that will help them thrive.
Crafting the Future partners with Youth Arts Organizations across the country to provide their students with scholarships to renowned Craft schools and pre-college programs. Not only do they create pathways into the field for BIPOC artists, but they offer continued support once these artists have arrived. This means connecting people with professional opportunities like internships and commissions that will help establish their networks and plant roots in the community. And for those who have already planted their roots, they are celebrated and supported year round.
Cotsen Children’s Library
The Cotsen Children’s Library, a unit within Princeton University Library’s Department of Special Collections, is the benefaction of Lloyd E. Cotsen, ’50, and Charter Trustee, Emeritus. The curatorial division administers the research collection of illustrated children’s books, manuscripts, original artwork, prints, and educational toys, hosts academic conferences on children’s books and publishes their proceedings, and sponsors fellowships for research. The outreach division of Cotsen serves children of all ages, families, librarians and educators. Campus visitors can explore Bookscape, a whimsical reading environment with its two-story bonsai tree, Wall of Books, exhibition space, and attend free weekly story hours and special events.
https://library.princeton.edu/collections/cotsen-children%E2%80%99s-library
Skirball Cultural Center
The Skirball Cultural Center is a place of meeting guided by the Jewish tradition of welcoming the stranger and inspired by the American democratic ideals of freedom and equality. It welcomes people of all communities and generations to participate in cultural experiences that celebrate discovery and hope, foster human connections, and call upon them to help build a more just society. Open to the public since 1996, the Skirball is one of the world’s most dynamic Jewish cultural institutions and among the leading cultural venues in Los Angeles.
https://www.skirball.org
International Folk Art Market
The mission of the International Folk Art Market is to create economic opportunities for and with folk artists worldwide who celebrate and preserve folk art traditions. IFAM envisions a world that values the dignity and humanity of the handmade, honors timeless cultural traditions, and supports the work of artisans serving as entrepreneurs and catalysts for positive social change. Recognized globally as the largest market of its kind, IFAM provides an event for some of the finest folk artists to gather in one location, exhibit their artwork that is rooted in tradition and culture, and partake in cross-cultural artistic exchange. The earnings generated from the Market return to the home communities of the artists, creating long-term economic opportunity.
https://folkartmarket.org
Society of Inclusive Blacksmiths
The Society of Inclusive Blacksmiths is an organization working to change the image of blacksmiths in the 21st century by supporting, promoting, and highlighting historically underrepresented populations and forward-thinking work. Through listening to the experiences of others and working to understand their perspective, SIB builds a community that truly supports, encourages, and educates people regardless of constructs of race, gender, sexuality, gender orientation, or physical limitations.
The organization began in 2018 when smiths gathered in August 2018 at the Cascadia Center for Arts and Crafts (CCAC) in Oregon. The goals were a collaborative project for the on-site sculpture garden and conversation around issues of inclusivity in blacksmithing. The event brought women from across the country, ranging in age, experience, and metalworking interests. At the conclusion of their time at the CCAC, the team agreed to continue the project as the Society of Inclusive Blacksmiths (SIB).
The Decorative Arts Trust
The mission of the Decorative Arts Trust, a non-profit organization, is to promote and foster the appreciation and study of the decorative arts. They achieve their mission by exchanging information through domestic and international programming; collaborating and partnering with museums and preservation organizations; and underwriting internships, research grants, and scholarships for graduate students and young professionals.
The Trust was the brainchild of Dewey Lee Curtis (1924-1986), an important fixture in the early Americana field. During the bicentennial era of the 1970s, Dewey noted an opportunity to connect like-minded collectors, curators, and history enthusiasts from across the country through a national organization aimed at supporting museums and preservation groups in the broadest possible sense. At the core of the Decorative Arts Trust, Dewey saw an opportunity to champion the sea change of scholarship and collecting that defined the 1960s and ‘70s. By drawing attention to talented and up-and-coming scholars and important historic sites around the country and abroad, he provided access to the well-spring of new information generated by his peers. Perhaps most importantly, Dewey established an egalitarian organization accessible to all comers interested in learning about the past.
https://decorativeartstrust.org/
Robert K. Liu & Patrick R. Benesh-Liu / Ornament Magazine
Robert K. Liu, Ph.D. was trained as an ethologist at UCLA, but self-trained as a jeweler and photographer and has written extensively on ancient, ethnic and contemporary jewelry and personal adornment, as well as other non-art related fields. He is the author of Collectible Beads, The Photography of Personal Adornment and over 760 articles and publications. He is the co-editor of Ornament Magazine, which he co-edited with his wife, Carolyn L.E. Benesh. The publication, which was founded in 1974 as The Bead Journal, began with the encouragement of Robert’s former major professor and a small gift. After forty-seven years, it now serves as a conduit for information and scholarship concerning jewelry, artwear and its makers.
Carolyn, who died in late 2020 from Stage IV breast cancer, was a scholar and celebrated collector of contemporary jewelry who shared her love of adornment in her writings and her collections. She was also a champion of craft artists around the world.
Their son, Patrick R. Benesh-Liu, began working for Ornament in high school, and joined the magazine full-time in 2005. He now co-edits the magazine with his father and has covered pop culture’s recent contributions to wearable art in the form of costumery, as well as numerous artists, craft shows and museum exhibitions. Ornament Magazine, from its beginning, has set the exciting challenge of documenting the art and craft of personal adornment. Ornament demonstrates the richness and diversity of this vast subject with a stunning display of creative works, past and present.
Dignicraft
Dignicraft is a hybrid between an art collective, media production company and distributor of cultural goods, inspired by human dignity and justice, the artisanal process of creation, and the potential of collaboration to spark change. Through producing documentaries, distributing meaningful cultural goods, or facilitating workshops, Dignicraft aims to encourage unlikely encounters between people of different backgrounds. Dignicraft is the result of the evolution of collective work in Bulbo that Paola Rodríguez, José Luis Figueroa and Omar Foglio started over 12 years ago. A few of their most noticeable film projects include Tijuaneados Anónimos: Una lágrima, una sonrisa (Bulbo/Galatea audiovisual, www.tijuaneadosanonimos.org Tijuana, 2009) and Brilliant Soil / Tierra Brillante (Bulbo/Galatea audiovisual, www.brilliantsoil.org Michoacan, Mexico, 2011). The Collaborative Piñata is a long-term project to establish a dialogue between Purepecha crafts people and cultural agents from the region of Baja California, Mexico and Southern California, U.S.A
Knoxville Symphony Orchestra
The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra (KSO) has a mission to develop and sustain a symphony orchestra of the highest artistic standards and to reach East Tennessee audiences of all ages by providing excellence in musical performance and education programs.
Established over 80 years ago, the KSO is the longest continually performing orchestra in the Southeast. It was founded in 1935 by Bertha Walbun Clark, who was its first conductor, and is now led by its eighth Music Director, Aram Demirjian. The museum has gained both local and national acclaim and its programs have reached an audience of over 200,000 people annually.
In 2020, the KSO commissioned a violin concerto to complement the epic steel and glass masterwork, Cycle of Life: Within the Power of Dreams and the Wonder of Infinity, by Knoxville sculptor Richard Jolley, creating a convergence between the two artistic disciplines.
American Craft Council
The American Craft Council (ACC) is a national nonprofit working to keep the craft community connected, inspired, and supported. ACC founder, Aileen Osborn Webb, recognized the significant impact craft has on individuals and communities and established a nonprofit to preserve, cultivate, and celebrate this communal heritage. 80 years later, their efforts span the nation. Whether their amplifying artists’ stories, investing in creative economies, honoring innovators in the field, or engaging the community in discussion, their efforts need support. Become a part of their community.
The ACC shares stories and amplify voices through American Craft magazine and other online content; produce American Craft Made marketplace events that support artists and connect people to craft; celebrate craft’s legacy through longstanding awards and a unique research library; and create space for dialogue and action—because craft can bring people together.
The American Craft Council is a national nonprofit organization that connects and galvanizes diverse craft communities to advance craft’s impact in contemporary American Life. Discover content from their magazine and blog, find details about their marketplaces, register for an upcoming forum, and more at craftcouncil.org.
