Craft in America

Head of weaving at Berea College, Erin Miller, and designer Stephen Burks on their Crafting Diversity weaving project. Bonus video from the DEMOCRACY episode.

Meet Cheyenne & Arapaho Peace Chiefs, Harvey Pratt, Gordon Yellowman Sr, Larry Roman Nose. Bonus video from the DEMOCRACY episode.

Learn more about Gere Kavanaugh's life and designs. Bonus video from the DEMOCRACY episode

Michael W. Monroe on the Year of American Craft. Bonus video from the DEMOCRACY episode.

Artist Harvey Phillip Pratt on the blankets he designed for the Oklahoma State Centennial and the Native American Veterans Memorial. Bonus video from the DEMOCRACY episode.

Watch a 1 minute preview of the DEMOCRACY episode, exploring how craft is intertwined with our nation's defining principles. Streaming starting Oct 26. PBS Broadcast premiere Dec 11, 2020.

Woodworker and furniture maker Wendy Maruyama delves into matters of ethnicity, gender and world issues in her work. Born an American of Japanese heritage, Maruyama satisfied her artistic passions by becoming an important furniture maker in a field dominated by men and in the process, overcame challenges related to her deafness and disability. Segment from the IDENTITY episode

Cara Romero, a contemporary photographer and member of the Chemehuevi Indian Tribe of the Chemehuevi Reservation (a branch of the Southern Paiute) of the Mojave Desert, CA is a passionate spokesperson for indigenous cultural and environmental issues. Her complex and nuanced images combine traditional iconography with a contemporary perspective, bringing past, present and future into consideration.

Diego Romero is a potter living and working in Santa Fe, NM and a member of the Cochiti Pueblo tribe. He makes art that transcends his Native American heritage by combining traditional materials, techniques and forms of ancient Mimbres, Anasazi and Greek pottery with comic book inspired imagery, to talk about contemporary issues. Segment from the IDENTITY episode

Navajo/Diné artist Susan Hudson's pictorial quilts honor her ancestors and the proud history of the Navajo people using a crossover style inspired by Ledger art. Recounting history through her ledger quilts has made Hudson an activist storyteller, chronicling the hardships endured by her ancestors. Segment from the QUILTS episode

Quilter Michael A. Cummings is inspired by jazz. Working in the narrative tradition, Cummings and his sewing machine tell stories of the African American experience across historical, cultural, philosophical and mythical realms. Segment from the QUILTS episode

Mosaic artist Roberto Biaggi of CERO Designs rebuilds roofs in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Bonus video from the IDENTITY episode, PBS premiere December 27, 2019

Quilters from the Hands of Love Cove Quilting Guild hand quilt a baby blanket and talk with Susan Hudson. Bonus video from the QUILTS episode

Quilters of the Quilts for Kids Lincoln, Nebraska chapter make quilts for kids. Quilts for Kids is a nonprofit organization dedicated to transforming fabrics into patchwork quilts to comfort children facing serious illness, trauma, abuse and natural disasters. Bonus video from QUILTS.

Judith Content's tumbled ceramic installation at the Palo Alto Art Center. Bonus video from the QUILTS episode.

Victoria Findlay Wolfe shows us an in-process quilt based on her grandmother. Bonus video from the QUILTS episode

Victoria Findlay Wolfe on quilts she has made. Bonus video from the QUILTS episode

Cara Romero on Chemehuevi baskets. Bonus video from the IDENTITY episode.

Ceramic artist Jaime Suárez on his work. Bonus video from the IDENTITY episode.

Robert Miller on Cochiti Pueblo potter Diego Romero. They discuss Diego's influences: Mimbres pottery and their college professors, Ralph Bacerra and Adrian Saxe. Bonus video from the IDENTITY episode