The Unofficial TOC: April/May 2012

Every issue we aim to show interesting work in wood, glass, ceramics, fiber, and metal – along with other mediums that fall outside those boundaries. We aim to talk to artists at various stages of their careers and to touch all corners of the United States. We generally hit the major craft institutions – Penland, Haystack, Cranbrook, MAD, the Renwick, other museums, galleries, and so on. Those things make up our official lineup of stories; in magazine parlance that’s our TOC (table of contents).

But the magazine’s editors are always amused by some of the quirkier bits in every issue, the details we look for and delight in and hope will delight readers too. These comprise our Unofficial TOC.

Here’s your UTOC for April/May:

• From “Deco Japan” to kawaii (“cute”), Japanese aesthetics play big in craft.
 
• Can Peeps be an art medium? They think so in Racine.

• One ceramist’s favorite tool? The chopstick. 

• Sea life inspires artists across mediums – ceramics and glass, to name two. 

• What sustainable eyewear material is a favorite among fancy Hollywood types? Buffalo horn. 

• Post-post-modernism has modernism’s idealism, tempered with post-modernism’s cynicism. At least that’s what we get from one artist’s effort to make a toaster from scratch.

• He’s a modern maker in the paperweight genre, but you can see the influence of the Enlightenment in Paul Stankard’s work.

• What makes ceramist Anne Hirondelle unique? A bowl haircut she does herself, and a late-career shift from laborious glazing to latex paints and a Dr. Seuss aesthetic.

• Where did furniture maker Scott McGlasson go to find customers when architects quit calling? Farmers’ markets.

• What’s the soft touch on his charming Finny stools? Icelandic lamb pelts.

• Dale Chihuly references this issue: 2

• Year-to-date Chihuly references: 6

Have we sparked your curiosity yet?

You can buy American Craft at Barnes & Noble and other fine newsstands. But we really want you to become a member of the American Craft Council. The introductory rate is just $25, and you probably spend that on coffee every month. For that price, you get not only a subscription to the magazine, print and digital, but also free admission to ACC craft shows in Baltimore, Atlanta, St. Paul, and San Francisco. On top of that, we are continually building up educational offerings, both at our Minneapolis headquarters and online. Our mission is to remind people how important the creative impulse is to their quality of life. We support artists, and we hope you’ll join us.

Monica Moses
Editor in chief