Craft in America

Arts and Music Series / 16 Seasons

Craft in America explores the vitality, history and significance of the craft movement in the United States and its impact on our nation's rich cultural heritage. Capturing the beauty, creativity and originality of craftsmanship, the film highlights artists and explores the inter-relationship of what they do, how they do it and why they have chosen a life of creating art.

53m 27s

Cheech Marin & Chicano Art segment

16m 51s

Comedian and collector Cheech has made a lifelong project of collecting and encouraging Chicano artists and found a home for his collection at the Cheech Marin Center for Chicano Art & Culture at the Riverside Art Museum. Artists Yolanda González, Francisco Palomares, Frank Romero and Jaime “Germs” Zacarias are featured. Segment from COLLECTORS episode

Feather artist Chris Maynard segment

7m 29s

Chris Maynard creates intricate art entirely from bird feathers. Inspired by his love of the natural world and his background as a biologist, Chris hopes to give people a new perspective on nature through his art. Segment from SCIENCE episode

Erik & Martin Demaine segment

10m 56s

At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Erik and Martin Demaine combine math with art. Erik is an MIT professor of computer science and the father-son team takes inspiration from their research to create unique curved-crease origami sculptures from folded paper. Segment from SCIENCE episode

Ceramic artist Joan Takayama-Ogawa segment

8m 38s

Ceramic artist Joan Takayama-Ogawa is a professor at Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, California. Joan uses her work in clay to respond to the ongoing climate emergency. Segment from SCIENCE episode

Quilt artist Karen Nyberg segment

6m 35s

Former NASA astronaut and quilter Karen Nyberg brought quilting to the International Space Station and inspired the international quilting challenge that connected makers from all over the world. Now retired from NASA, Karen continues to create art inspired by space and science. Segment from SCIENCE episode

Artist John Luebtow segment

10m 55s

John Luebtow is a glass sculptor and teacher. He introduces us to the founder of the modern kindergarten, Friedrich Froebel, and how Froebel’s geometric “gifts” inspired John and generations of other artists. Segment from SCIENCE episode

Potters Joseph & Sergio Youngblood Lugo segment

9m 5s

The Santa Clara Pueblo in New Mexico has been home to a long tradition of Native potters, including brothers Joseph and Sergio Youngblood Lugo. Joseph and Sergio demonstrate the ancestral firing technique that produces their unique polished pottery. Segment from SCIENCE episode

Carolyn Mazloomi, Cynthia Lockhart, Sara Vance Waddell segment

10m 38s

Artist and collector Carolyn Mazloomi founded the Women of Color Quilters Network (WCQN). We meet Cynthia Lockhart, a quilt artist who has found community with the WCQN, and Sara Vance Waddell, a collector of women’s art, and learn how the three women have developed a friendship through collecting that has provided inspiration and encouragement. Segment from COLLECTORS episode

Fleur Bresler, Judith Chernoff, Jeffrey Bernstein, Norm Sartorius segment

13m 14s

Meet three collectors who have donated work to the Renwick Gallery, Fleur Bresler, Judith Chernoff and Jeffrey Bernstein. They explain why sharing their collections with the public is an essential part of their connection with artists and introduce us to Norm Sartorius, a sculptor who makes fascinating and original spoons. Segment from COLLECTORS episode

Gloria & Sonny Kamm and Peter Shire segment

9m 32s

Meet Sonny and Gloria Kamm and their vast collection of teapots in Los Angeles, California. They lead us to artist Peter Shire and discover the joy he finds in creating unique objects, from teapots to mugs to furniture. Segment from COLLECTORS episode

American Craft Council marketplace segment

3m 47s

In Baltimore, Maryland, we meet several dynamic young collectors and the artists they support at the American Craft Council’s annual show, American Craft Made Baltimore. This celebration of craft provides an opportunity for artists and collectors to meet in person and connect over the art that brings them together. Segment from COLLECTORS episode

Meet the artists in Cheech Marin's Chicano Art collection

8m 42s

Learn more about the artists in Cheech Marin's Chicano Art collection, Jaime "Germs" Zacarias, Yolanda González, and Francisco Palomares, featured in the COLLECTORS episode

See more of Erik and Martin Demaine's sculptures

4m 47s

At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Erik and Martin Demaine combine math with art. Erik is an MIT professor of computer science and the father-son team takes inspiration from their research to create unique curved-crease origami sculptures from folded paper.

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