Prairie Excellence: Artists named
Work by 12 Saskatchewan Fine Craft artists was selected for the prestigious exhibition Prairie Excellence: The Today and Tomorrow of Prairie Craft. The 35 piece exhibition features the work of craft artists from Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta. It will be touring nationally and internationally for 3 years as a showcase for craft from the Canadian prairies. 267 entries were received by the selection committee, which consisted of Helen Delacretaz, Chief Curator and Curator of Decorative Arts at The Winnipeg Art Gallery; Karen Schoonover, Director/curator of the Art Gallery of Regina; and Mary-Beth Laviolette, independent curator, critic and author from Canmore, Alberta. Prairie Excellence will open at the Alberta Craft Council Gallery in Edmonton on October 2, 2010. The Saskatchewan unveiling will be at the Affinity Gallery (813 Broadway Avenue, Saskatoon) on January 14. Negotiations for future showings are underway with galleries in Canada and the United States. The exhibition is a joint project organized by the Saskatchewan Craft Council, the Alberta Craft Council, and the Manitoba Craft Council.For more info and images of Artists work please visit the Saskatchewan Craft Council Website.
The Northerners exhibition @ AKAR
The Northerners:
Does Canadian ceramics have a unified identity, or does the immense physical and cultural geographies make the question of identity much more intricate and diverse? This current show is an endeavor to find common threads if any by exploring works of six Canadian artists, unified by their excellence in craft and individuality in art. There are nuances of calmness and serenity; simplicity and under-stated references to nature in the collected works. Is that the collective Canadian approach? This show is designed, not to offer conclusive answers but to stir up the original question. Robert Archambeau, Manitoba
Sheila Clennell, Ontario
Tony Clennell, Ontario
Bruce Cochrane, Ontario
Harlan House, Ontario
Cathi Jefferson, British ColumbiaShow runs August 20th to September 10th
Via AKAR DESIGN
So it would be much easier for me to simply post this exhibition information and remain quiet…maybe I should. I have an enormous respect for the work of AKAR and it’s staff. I truly believe that they show amazing ceramic art and are a force within the art community and the maker community which is creating value and presence for handmade craft in contemporary culture and marketplace. I also have a large amount of respect for the artists represented in this Northerners exhibition. That being said, I feel that there is a conversation presented by AKAR within this exhibition that should be addressed and discussed by Canadian ceramic artists and international artists as well. What is our identity? Do we have one? Do we need one? Do other countries have one? Did we not get the memo that we needed one?
Personally I feel that this is a question/comment that has been put forth in the past regarding the Canadian scene as a manner in which to attempt at understanding Canadian ceramics, which have potentially been neglected a bit due to their proximity to America. Even a shallow look at the contemporary Canadian ceramic scene shows a wealth of skill, approach and perspectives towards craft. So much so that could never be summed up simply. Could any other country’s ceramic craft production be summed up similarly?
I do not even begin to suggest that AKAR is attempting to find a conclusion to this question, nor do I believe that they should. Great in fact that they asked the question, i guess. But I do have to wonder about an exhibition which posses the question while exhibiting solely functional based works by a limited geographical region, (4 out of 6 from Ontario? We do have 10 provinces and 3 territories), and without much variety in generational perspectives. While there are many Canadian ceramic artists engaging with what makes Canada, well Canada, gorgeous nature, diversity, tradition, etc. There are also many who engage critically and conceptually with other diverse and more universal subject matter. I’m not trying to upset with these comments, and admittedly i’m likely coming across defensively. I guess I just wanted to put my 2 cents out there, even if they are late at night 2 cents, and therefore maybe only worth a penny (a canadian penny no less) in an attempt to get some discussion happening, here on the blog or elsewhere about exactly what AKAR is questioning with this exhibition – What is Canadian Ceramics? Thoughts?
Job Vacancy: Oral History Interviewer, Crafts Lives
Since 1999 the Crafts Lives oral history project has been recording in-depth life stories with Britain’s craftspeople, exploring both their personal and their working lives. The project has encompassed British studio crafts such as pottery, glass, metalwork, jewellery, furniture, textiles and book arts (excluding rural crafts), which have traditionally suffered from a paucity of documentation and research.
National Life Stories (NLS) is now seeking to recruit a full-time oral history interviewer to add more recordings to this important collection. The oral history interviewer will co-ordinate, initiate, research and carry out a series of digital oral history interviews averaging 8-10 hours each, for deposit with the British Library. The postholder will be expected to carry out between 12 and 18 complete interviewers in a 12 month period.
This is a freelance fee-paid consultancy involving a package of 250 days’ work at a daily rate of £98, working on a flexible basis for a period up to 18 months. All travel and other out-of-pocket expenses will be met by NLS. Hot desk office space is available at NLS’s offices at the BL’s St Pancras building but home-based access to a PC with internet access is required. The post will be an integral part of the BL’s oral history team.
For more information about this position and job specification, please view the full advert at http://www.jobs.ac.uk/job/ABO252/oral-history-interviewer and click on the link to ‘Further Particulars’.
Applications
To apply you should send a CV and a covering statement explaining how your experience and skills meet the requirements specified in the job profile to:
Crafts Lives, National Life Stories, British Library, 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB or email this information to [email protected]
Please indicate where you found this position advertised.
All applications must be received by 5.00pm on Monday 27 September 2010.
Interviews will take place at the British Library on Thursday 21st and Friday 22nd October 2010.
If possible, we would like the successful candidate to start work in November 2010.
Via Craft Research
A site 2 see friday – Canadian Arts Coalition
From their website:
“About Us
Our Mission
The short-term goals of the coalition includes two specific asks to all parties:
- increase the annual budget of the Canada Council for the Arts to $300 million; and
- invest in a new market access and development fund – an investment measure aimed, in part, at replacing cut programs that supported international touring and dissemination.
The Canadian Arts Coalition is the largest consortium of arts, culture, and heritage supporters — business leaders and arts philanthropists, sponsors and volunteers, artists and cultural workers, and arts, culture and heritage organizations, — ever assembled in Canada.
We all believe that the future of our citizens, their towns and cities, and indeed, the nation itself depends on a rich, vibrant and diverse arts and heritage community. The viability of cities greatly depends on their cultural opportunities. Our artists are inventive and generous. But the arts can flourish only when they have adequate, stable, sustained investment.
History
The CAC was originally assembled to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Canada Council for the Arts and to advocate for the Government of Canada to further invest in stable, long term support that increases the Canada Council’s budget by an additional $100 million per annum. We believe the Canada Council is fundamental to the cultural infrastructure of Canada as the key public vehicle for supporting the promotion and development of the arts in Canada. In 2007, we applauded the federal government for a $30 million permanent increase to the Canada Council for the Arts.”Find out more and about ways to get involved here.
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