Tools of the Trades

A particular hammer head, the grip of a handle, the perfect density of a brush: artists, particularly craftspeople, rely heavily on tools in the creation of their work. Some processes might require implements very idiosyncratic to an artist’s process, that aren’t simply available at the hardware store. Tools of the Trade will focus on contemporary, handmade tools, made by artists distinctly for craft processes, with extreme attention to craftsmanship and design. Vintage tools will round out the selection.  

Prior to today’s mass-production, makers and artists fabricated their own implements as needed. In doing so, they might decide to add a bit of beauty to the functional with some decoration. Tools of the trade celebrates the ingenuity born of necessity and the special narratives in the hand-crafted. The objects pertain to a wide scope of crafts: ceramics, textiles, hot glass, wood working, and metal, including the niche fields within them, such as ironwork or spinning.

Artists include: Seth Gould, Tom Latané, Hsin Chuen Kung, Eleanor Ingrid Rose, Brent Bailey, Michael Sherrill, John Williams of Guildwerks, Douglas Pryor, Liza Nechamkin, Dennis Dusek, Brien Biedler, Peter Ross, Andrea Harvin Kenington of NC Black, Heather McLarty and others.

Guest curatorial consultant: Heather McLarty