This Autumn in the U.S. Capital:
A National “Conversation” on Hand-Made Craft
“CRAFTING A NATION” Brings Together Craft Artists, Experts and Enthusiasts to Celebrate the Future of Our Past.
For immediate release
CONTACT: Carol Sauvion, Craft in America
310-659-9022 (office), carolsauvion@craftinamerica.org
(Washington, D.C.)
During the first annual American Craft Week, a ground breaking, two-day interactive conference, “CRAFTING A NATION,” will be held October 8 and 9, 2010 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, located at 8th and G Streets N.W., in Washington, D.C.. Craft artists, scholars, collectors, retailers and enthusiasts are invited to participate in this important celebration and inquiry into the evolving state of American handmade objects. To register for the conference, which is free and open to the public, please visit www.americancraftweek.com/craftinganation or call (310) 659-9022.
American Craft Week, a nationwide celebration of the wonders of our country’s craft traditions and innovations, is organized by CRAFT (Craft Retailers and Artists for Tomorrow) and Craft in America. The “CRAFTING A NATION” conference is organized by Craft in America and the Craft Retailers and Artists for Tomorrow in collaboration with the Smithsonian American Art Museum and its Renwick Gallery.
The conference will be an anchoring event for American Craft Week and a landmark occasion for the craft community to come together, engage and interact regarding where handcrafted work is heading in the twenty-first century.
The sessions at “CRAFTING A NATION” will be structured as dialogues led by moderators and panelists, but driven by the participation of the audience as open forums. The thematic link for each of these “conversations” will be the idea of craft education and the economics of producing handmade goods in this day and age. The global origins of craft, the business of creating and retailing the handmade, the DIY movement, and the environmental sustainability of craft are among the topics that will be addressed.
“CRAFTING A NATION” will be a unique opportunity to convene and explore the range and vitality of craft, the satisfaction it engenders in those who produce and collect and use hand-made works, and the expanding role that craft will play in our economy,” said Carol Sauvion, founder of Craft in America.
For more information and about participating panelists and a schedule of presentations, please visit www.americancraftweek.com/craftinganation