Crafting Opportunity
CRAFTING OPPORTUNITY is an exhibition of ceramics, furniture, fashion, fibre art, jewellery and metalwork from Mingei International Museum's permanent collection. A non-profit institution, Mingei collects, preserves and exhibits “art of the world, art of the people,” including folk art, craft and design from all eras and cultures. Through objects crafted in mid-century America, this exhibition will explore the relationship between art and craft, including the blurred line that only vaguely divides the two categories.
Mid-century craft and design in America is a study in creative pluralism, tackling the distinctions between craft and production, the rustic and the modern, and the functional and the conceptual. In the period after World War II, women and men began working side by side as women, who had been displaced from wartime work from returning veterans, found an alternative working space in society. More opportunities began to open up for them, and many women worked for themselves or in collaboration with their spouses.
A distinct sense of place—from the city of San Diego to the pueblo of San Ildefonso, New Mexico—existed alongside domestic and international influences, and counterculture was not incompatible with commercial success for these artists. The result was a pervasive spirit of experimentation that unites this diverse collection of objects that continue to inspire and delight makers and collectors today.
11 May - 28 July 2019 SAN DIEGO CENTRAL LIBRARY ART GALLERY, 330 Park Blvd. San Diego, CA 92101 USA.