
Craft Spoken Here
May 5, 2012 - August 12, 2012

Craft Spoken Here
May 5, 2012 - August 12, 2012
Crafts were prominent
among the first works of art
to enter the collections of
the Philadelphia Museum of
Art when it was founded in
1876, and the Museum has
continued to collect and
exhibit crafts. Today, thanks
in large part to the Women’s
Committee and gifts from
individuals, the Museum is
particularly well-known for
its holdings of twentieth-and
twenty-first-century
American, European, and
Asian craft.
With
Craft Spoken Here, the
Museum seizes the opportunity
to experiment with
its collection and to understand
craft in an international context. Some forty contemporary works from 1960
to the present in ceramic, glass, metal, wood, lacquer, paper, and fiber—some by
living, acclaimed artists and others by lesser-known creators—are on view. Representing
the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe, the works highlight formal qualities
that cross cultures, time, and media.
Craft Spoken Here features an array of engaging education programs and interpretive
materials, including on-site artist demonstrations and hands-on craftmaking
activities for the public.
Behind the Scenes
Craft Spoken Here: "Static" Installation Time-lapse
"Static" is a site specific work by Jessica Jane Julius, a Philadelphia-based artist, which is made up of thousands of hand-pulled black glass threads. Here we offer a time-lapsed video of the installation, which took four days to complete.
Watch Video >>
Support
The exhibition is made possible by The Leonard and Norma Klorfine Foundation Fund for Modern and Contemporary Craft. Additional support is provided by the Windgate Charitable Foundation and the Center for American Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
In-kind support is provided in courtesy of A.C. Moore Arts & Crafts, Inc., Calico Corners, and Lion Brand Yarn.
Curator
Elisabeth Agro, The Nancy M. McNeil Associate Curator of American Modern and Contemporary Crafts and Decorative Arts
Location
Exhibition Gallery, Perelman Building