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Exploring the Studio Craft
Movement in Vermont
May 22 - October 31, 2010 at the Bennington Museum

backroads, covered bridge

State of Craft is a landmark exhibition at the Bennington Museum examining the evolution of the contemporary studio craft movement in Vermont (1960-2010). On view from May 22 through October 31, State of Craft features more than 125 objects by 85 Vermont craftspeople, including master artists, emerging artists, and key individuals throughout the more than fifty-year time-frame of the studio craft movement, c. 1960-2010. This exhibition is the centerpiece of a statewide showcase of Vermont crafts coordinated by the Vermont Crafts Council, in celebration of their 20th anniversary. The entire celebration has been designated a Cultural Heritage event for 2010 by the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing.

State of Craft explores three overarching themes Living by "Making", Inspirations, and Communities and Connections. Each theme includes compelling stories of Vermont's diverse craftspeople, illustrates the multifaceted nature of craft production in the state, and is interpreted in the exhibition at the museum through selected captivating pieces created by representative artists.

Living by "Making"
Living by "Making" examines the cultural roots of the early pioneers and successive generations of craftspeople, in addition to exploring the challenges met while they tried to sustain an artistic career in a small rural state. It looks at how individuals have become professionals through formal education, self-education, and apprenticeship, as well as their choice to focus on production work or one-of-a-kind art pieces. It raises issues as whether their artistry is created independently or with others, the role technology can play in the creation and marketing of their work, and how craft can sustain a new generation of artists.

Works in this category include ceramics by Karen Karnes, known as the "grandmother of American ceramics", as well as textiles woven over the past thirty years by self-taught weaver Carol Crawford, and unique jewelry and distinctive pieces created with the revolutionary new material Precious Metal Clay by professional jeweler Jennifer Kahn and master artist Celie Fago. Their work and their intriguing stories are all representative of the theme Living by ³Making².

Communities and Connections
Communities of craftspeople have developed throughout Vermont for decades as creative individuals gravitated towards geographic regions for education, marketing, and a strong artistic culture. Creative clusters have formed near Goddard College in Plainfield, Windham College in Putney, and Marlboro College, to name a few. Recalling historic creative enclaves, the Weston Priory, where Brother Thomas Bezanson made his renowned ceramics, was established for religious reasons. However, it was within this community that Brother Thomas began his creative work in the 60's and 70's, and went on to gain national recognition through his use of traditional Chinese forms and glazes

Other representatives of this group include nationally respected woodworkers Michelle and David Holzapfel whose distinctive wood crafts are impacted by the artists' integral connection with the Marlboro community, its lumbermen who supply their wood and fellow artists. Judith Reilly, is an award winning fabric artist and quilter who moved to Brandon, Vermont in 2004 seeking a stronger sense of community. Her quilt Edge of Town, expresses her sense of community and the inseparable relationship between man and nature. Robert and Caitlin Burch, both award winning glassblowers, clearly represents 'connections'. Burch has worked with inquisitive artists such as Josh Simpson at Goddard College, and has remained in touch with some of Vermont's finest glass artists including Alan Goldfarb. Growing up in the family's glass studio, Burch's own daughter, Caitlin is now an award winning, second generation glassblower.

Inspirations
The interaction between traditional craft and expressive craft, along with many artistic influences found locally and globally, provide a framework for understanding the diverse nature of contemporary crafts in Vermont. For Harry and Wendy Besett, inspiration is outside their window, as they overlook the rolling hills and open meadows of rural Hardwick, Vermont. They create pieces that combine landscape painting with blown glass forms, each piece capturing Vermont landscapes, and encasing it in glass. One such piece Dreams, Persuaded, is on view in the State of Craft exhibition. Daniel Omondi, a furniture maker who began learning his craft at age 13 in his father¹s workshop in Mombasa, Kenya moved to Vermont from his homeland in 2001. He now combines native Kenyan with Vermont woods to create genuinely unique pieces. He incorporates traditional Swahili carving techniques with New England woods and sensibility, producing such pieces as his hallway table that is included in State of Craft.

Curated by Jamie Franklin, Curator of Collections at the Bennington Museum and guest curator Anne Majusiak, the State of Craft exhibition at the Bennington Museum is sponsored by the farm families who own Cabot Creamery with additional support from Bennington Potters, Chittenden Bank, a Division of People's United Bank, Windham Foundation, and the Vermont Department of Tourism and Marketing. The Bennington Museum is located at 75 Main Street, Bennington. Open from 10 am to 5 pm, the museum is closed on Wednesday except for September and October when it is open every day of the week. For more information on the State of Craft Exhibition and the museum's other programs, events, and exhibitions, visit www.benningtonmuseum.org or call 802-447-1571.

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