TSA Interview with Craft in America’s Carol Sauvion
Textile Society of America
December 29, 2022
As one of the last (though certainly not least) gifts of 2022, we had the opportunity to speak with Carol Sauvion, a true advocate for craft and the Executive Director of Craft in America, a multi-faceted project dedicated to promoting and advancing original handcrafted work through educational programs in all media. Notably, Sauvion is the creator of the Peabody Award winning PBS series Craft in America, a documentary series that celebrates American craft and the artists who bring it to life. In this interview, she discusses what we actually talk about when we talk about craft and her hopes for its future.
Read the full article here
Consuelo Jimenez Underwood on PBS NewsHour
Consuelo Jimenez Underwood was featured on PBS Newshour about her American flag works in the exhibit Flagged for Discussion at the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Consuelo Jimenez Underwood was featured in the THREADS episode of Craft in America and exhibited her work at the Craft in America Center.
2023 Getty Marrow Intern – Mary McCord
Mary here, writing from week 5 of my Getty Marrow Undergraduate Internship. I can’t believe my time at Craft in America is half over! The diverse range of projects I’m working on have made the experience fly by.
My role at Craft in America is in digital communications, but the opportunities I’ve been given through the Getty Marrow program encompass much more than that. Yesterday for example, the Getty sent members of my internship cohort on a walking tour of public art in Long Beach. I had little experience in the realm of public art, but the Arts Council of Long Beach presented an informative snapshot of the entire process including conception, funding, community input and engagement, and conservation. A few weeks ago, the Getty Center hosted a leadership summit for this year’s internship cohort. We were treated to a series of lectures from Getty Marrow alumni, and encouraged to explore the museum’s exhibitions after the day’s activities concluded. My current immersion in craft gave me a new perspective on the value of handmade objects in museum collections.
Week to week, I’ve been working on a number of exciting projects. I am currently focused on conducting research for our upcoming Craft Video Dictionary project, supported by the Decorative Arts Trust’s Prize for Excellence and Innovation. The Craft Video Dictionary seeks to be a resource for craftspeople of all skill levels by providing a video encyclopedia of common techniques, materials, and tools spanning a variety of craft media. Contributing to this project has deepened my appreciation for the extensive knowledge and skill craftspeople bring to their work. I’ve also been promoting different facets of the Craft in America Center on social media. This includes our current exhibition, Couples in Craft, as well as the ever-expanding Craft in America library. The library houses a collection of over 3,000 craft books, catalogs, and publications, all completely free and open to the public. I would love to see the surrounding community utilize this more often!
A highlight of my internship so far was attending an advanced weaving workshop led by Ferne Jacobs, a prolific fiber artist whose work I’ve admired for years. I was thrilled when Craft in America agreed to let me film the event for social media while participating as a student. Jacobs is a gifted educator, and the small class size allowed her to spend ample one-on-one time with each participant. We had a great discussion about our individual goals, inspirations, and the creative process, receiving constructive feedback throughout. It was one of the most energizing creative experiences I’ve had – all because this internship gives me the opportunity to make my passions part of my job description.
On a related note, the exhibition “Ferne Jacobs: A Personal World” is on at the Claremont Lewis Museum of Art until September 24th. Thoughtfully curated by Craft in America’s own Emily Zaiden, the exhibition is a 60-year retrospective which includes rarely-exhibited works. It’s a great source of insight into the more esoteric themes in Jacobs’ work. I highly recommend checking it out if you’re in the area.
Looking back on the first half of my internship, I am awed by how much I have learned about the world of craft. I am looking forward to the second half of this experience, excited about perfecting skills I have begun to develop.
Decorative Arts Trust Grants
IDEAL INTERNSHIP GRANTS
The Trust offers grants to museums and historic sites in support of internships that improve and promote inclusivity, diversity, equity, access, and leadership (IDEAL) in the museum field. The Trust seeks to fund summer and academic-year internships beginning in the summer or fall of 2024 for high school and undergraduate students. Internships should focus on the decorative arts and object-based research, exhibitions, installations, and educational programs. IDEAL Internship Grants can be up to $5,000.
Application Deadline: August 31, 2023
CURATORIAL INTERNSHIP GRANTS
The Trust underwrites curatorial internships for recent Masters or PhD graduates in partnership with museums and historical societies. These internships allow host organizations to hire a deserving young professional who will learn about the responsibilities and duties common to the curatorial field while working alongside a talented mentor. The goal is to provide mutually beneficial opportunities that will nurture the next generation of museum curators while providing essential staffing for the host. For this grant cycle, the Trust is offering a two-year grant with $45,000 available per year for the intern’s salary.
Application Deadline: September 30, 2023
DEAN F. FAILEY GRANTS
Dean F. Failey Grants support noteworthy research, exhibition, publication, and object-based conservation projects that present new scholarship on the decorative arts, craftsmanship, and historic preservation. Preference is given to projects that employ or are led by young professionals in the museum field, and the Trust aims to support colleagues and projects that represent the full diversity of the field. The Trust will award up to $25,000 during the upcoming cycle. The funding is typically divided among multiple recipients, with grants ranging from $5,000 to $15,000.
Application Deadline: October 31, 2023
Filming with Ryan Taber at California State University Long Beach
Mary here, Craft in America’s summer 2023 Getty Marrow Undergraduate Intern. Last week, I had the pleasure of accompanying Craft in America to California State University Long Beach to shoot content for an ongoing project: the Craft Video Dictionary. CSULB is my alma mater, and returning to campus for my new job less than two months after graduating was surreal. The team set up in the school’s wood shop, nestled in the center of the fine arts building complex where I’d spent most of my time in undergrad. We were filming with Ryan Taber, head of the University’s Wood program, as he demonstrated a variety of woodworking techniques.
The Craft Video Dictionary is one of the most ambitious projects I’ll be working on throughout my internship. The project’s website, which launches later this year, will host an extensive library of videos illustrating craft techniques and their associated materials and tools. We filmed Ryan demonstrating a few common processes in furniture design. I had no prior knowledge of woodworking, but Ryan thoroughly explained each step to the crew. He advised us on presenting the material with clarity and accuracy throughout the day. I left with a deepened appreciation for the minutiae of furniture construction. It was one of the many ways this internship has helped me notice the subtle craftsmanship I interact with every day. The expertise and skill Ryan brought on set made me even more excited for the launch of this project.
The Craft Video Dictionary is supported by the Decorative Arts Trust’s Prize for Excellence and Innovation. To learn more about the Trust or to become a member, visit The Decorative Arts Trust.
Ceramic Beacon closing reception
Please join us at the Riverside Art Museum for the closing reception of Ceramic Beacon on Sunday, July 9 from 3-5pm. RSVP by Sunday, July 2, 2023 via https://ramcheech.ticketapp.org/portal/product/116
Riverside Art Museum, 3425 Mission Inn Avenue, Riverside, CA, 92501
Known for conveying her prophetic take on contemporary life through playful and witty narratives in ceramics, this exhibition celebrates the sculptural and functional work of Joan Takayama-Ogawa. Ceramic Beacon is the first significant survey of this respected Pasadena born-and-based artist’s work thus far. When she decided to take a ceramics course at Otis College in 1986, she found her creative home. She has worked there as an artist and professor ever since. She has developed a language based on color, pattern, form, humor, outrage, and beauty.
Unequivocally and fearlessly spotlighting issues ranging from the housing crisis and fossil fuel dependency, to the pandemic, Internment camps, and human-induced species loss, Takayama-Ogawa makes objects that embody her world view and life experience. She draws the viewer into her intricate sculptures because they are a pleasure to behold. Her toylike reinventions of the miniature figurine and game board are intimate and irresistible sculpture satires. They lure the child in us all to look deeper. Once captivated by their elaborate detail, her work initiates a conversation.
2023 Getty Marrow Intern — Mary McCord
We are pleased to announce that our 2023 Getty Marrow Undergraduate Intern, Mary McCord, has joined us for the summer.
This spring, Mary completed their Bachelor of Arts in Art History at California State University Long Beach. Prior to enrolling in CSULB’s Art History program, they studied fashion design and fine arts at Mount San Antonio College near their hometown of Claremont, CA. Exposure to the scale and speed of today’s garment industry, as well as its ecological implications, led Mary to explore the world of artisan craftsmanship in pursuit of a sustainable alternative. Their interest in craft was solidified at CSULB, where they were lucky to take several Art History classes in conjunction with the University’s thriving American Indian Studies department. During that time, they became enamored with the vibrant history of craftsmanship on the North American continent, as well as craftsmanship in the Caribbean diaspora. Naturally, an internship at Craft in America seemed like an excellent fit.
In just one week at Craft in America, Mary’s appreciation for a variety of craft traditions has already deepened. They are especially excited to continue learning about the communal element of craftsmanship: from the teachers who form a link between old and young generations by passing down traditional techniques, to the artisans who dedicate themselves to making their crafts accessible to local communities. They are inspired by the dedication of craftspeople to the lifelong process of honing their skills, as well as their ability to create deeply personal works within traditional craft techniques. Mary hopes that this experience will inform their own multimedia arts practice, teaching them to utilize craft for the purpose of community bonding and resilience as generations of craftspeople have done before.
Craft in Schools: End of School Year Student Showcase
In the last week of Craft in America’s Permanent Collection exhibition, we proudly feature artwork made by students from our Craft in Schools program. The student art on display includes completed projects from school-workshops, virtual workshops, and school field trips to the Craft Center led by teaching artists. We’d like to extend a big thank you to Rosewood Elementary, Fairfax and ArTES Magnet High School classrooms for participating in this end of semester Student Showcase.
Over the last six months, 300 students from over six schools engaged in Craft in America’s Exhibition key concepts, vocabulary, art discussions, and artist workshops. K-12 students collaborated with teaching-artists Mandora Young, Victoria May (of Craft in America), Joe Cunningham, Carrie Burckle and the inspiring work of Diedrick Brackens. Featured mediums in this Student Showcase include compact card-loom weavings, quilting, and Hmong Paj Ntaub embroidery as explored in our previous exhibition Inspiration and Home: Highlights from the Episodes.
Craft in America wishes all students and their families a happy end of the school year! We hope to collaborate with more LAUSD schools in the coming school year!
For future Craft in Schools-program inquiries, please contact both:
Education Programs Lead – Sam Sermeno and Craft Center Director – Emily Zaiden
center@craftinamerica.org
Craft in Schools: Home and Inspiration Winter Reflections
As we welcome Spring, our Craft in Schools program proudly reflects on all that we accomplished earlier this year. Thanks to ongoing partnerships with K-12 LAUSD classroom teachers and various teaching artists, we were able to host several on-site field trips, virtual gallery talks, and hands-on craft workshops based on our recent Home and Inspiration Exhibition.
In these educational programs, students were conversationally guided through Visual Thinking Strategies, and journaling and sketch pad prompts as they explored fiber, ceramics, woodworking, and sculptural art. Students ages 8-18 were encouraged to share their curiosity, ideas, and critiques of how they viewed craft and art practices both past and present.
Talented 4th grade weavers proudly show their yarn-weavings
Several classrooms hosted on-site teaching artists, such as Paj Ntaub artist Mandora Young and textile artist Victoria May. Together, we learned about the significance of Paj Ntaub’s mesmerizing embroidery within the Hmong diaspora, while learning the foundations of cross-stitch embroidery. Our neighboring Rosewood Elementary 4th graders enjoyed a dynamic “human loom” weaving exercise as pictured above! And, several classes explored hands-on weaving as seen in Diedrick Brackens’ Kente-cloth inspired weaving. Our Craft in Schools program hopes to continue collaborating with and would like to thank the engaging classes at: Rosewood Elementary, Palms Middle School, Van Nuys High School, ArTES Magnet High School, and Fairfax High School.
Stay tuned for more family and Craft in Schools programming!
Teaching Artist Mandora Young leads a hands-on Paj Ntaub workshop with elementary schoolers
Paper Made–Fiber Art Now
Open March 1 – March 31, 2023
We are trying something new at Fiber Art Now! For the first time ever, we are going to exhibit art that exclusively focuses on using paper as a medium. We are looking forward to seeing your submissions, which may include (but are not limited to) book arts, cut, sculpted, woven, and otherwise manipulated paper that demonstrates ingenuity.
Call for Entry Details
Beginning March 1, we are inviting artists to submit their 2D or 3D artwork in paper for this juried exhibition, and selections will be featured in the Summer 2023 issue of Fiber Art Now! Please note that artwork submitted to Paper Made must be made primarily from paper, paper products, or created using a paper-making process.