Exhibition Reception
Friday, August 23, 5:30 – 7:00 PM
The evening will also feature open studios by the current resident artists.  Beer will be generously provided by Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co.

Artist Demo by Molly Koehn
Saturday, August 24, 11:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Fiber artist Molly Koehn, who is featured in the exhibition, will demonstrate a double-weaving process.

In Residence: 11th Edition celebrates HCCC’s Artist Residency Program, which has supported makers for almost two decades. Featuring artwork made from clay, fiber, metal, wood and mixed media, the exhibition includes works by 2017 – 2018 resident artists, Corey Ackelmire, Daniel Garver, Hiromi Iyoda, Molly Koehn, Hannah Oatman, Angel Oloshove, and Liz Robb.

The Artist Residency Program at HCCC provides resident artists with a space for creative exploration, exchange, and collaboration with other artists, professionals in the field, and the public. HCCC Curatorial Fellow María-Elisa Heg notes, “The works in this year’s In Residence showcase both excellence in traditional craft and exciting innovations from artists who are continuing to expand their output and vision.”

Corey Ackelmire uses her work in metalsmithing and jewelry to affect and observe human behaviors and habits. As part of her Better Angels Project, Ackelmire has altered pennies and sent them into the hands of participants to leave for others to find, as a kind of meditation on the faith people put in both fiat currency and humankind.

Daniel Garver and Angel Oloshove embrace mark-making in their practice. Garver moves between drawing, weaving, and ceramics to examine how psychology affects perceptions of pattern, order, and form, incorporating optical illusions to invite deeper viewing. Oloshove uses color and form to convey emotional and spiritual intensity, moving between printmaking and ceramics to balance the spontaneous act of creation with the practice of her craft.

In her fantastical ceramics, Hiromi Iyoda references her childhood spent in Japan, watching cartoons like Akira, a film where an ever-expanding construct takes over the body of a teenager, adding mass and growth with every moment of psychological intensity. Iyoda’s ceramic figurines are a combination of Akira and the humble hermit crab: they move through the world, continuing to grow and evolve, just as humans do as they age and accumulate memories.

Molly Koehn and Liz Robb respond to the natural world in their work, drawing attention to environmental issues through their use of techniques and materials. Robb’s work in clay and fiber draws on the elemental rawness of nature by using natural dyes and techniques to bring out a rich palette that taps into mystical connections with wildness and the unknown. By contrast, Koehn’s work relies on the use of man-made materials to simulate organic architectural forms that combine rigidity and softness. Her pieces are intended to remind humanity of its debt to nature in the dawn of the Anthropocene, the current geologic age that is defined by the singular impact human beings have had on the climate and environment.

In her jewelry, Hannah Oatman references traditions of collage and the history of mass production and consumer design. Her Collage series, true to its name, was achieved through layering distinct elements to form a larger whole. Newer works include partially assembled brooches intended to be acquired and put together by their collectors, who are unaware of what pieces they may get. The series challenges the authority and taste of collectors and asks them to relinquish control.

In Residence: 11th Edition was curated by HCCC Curatorial Fellow, María-Elisa Heg. More information about Houston Center for Contemporary Craft’s Residency Program can be found at:
https://crafthouston.org/artists/residents/.

About Houston Center for Contemporary Craft
Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) is a nonprofit visual arts center dedicated to advancing education about the process, product, and history of craft.  HCCC provides exhibition, retail, and studio spaces to support the work of local and national artists and serves as a resource for artists, educators and the community at large.

Located in the Museum District at 4848 Main Street, HCCC is open Wednesday through Saturday, 10 AM – 5 PM, and Sunday, 12 – 5 PM. Holidays: Closed Easter, July 4th, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day. Admission is free. Free parking is available directly behind the facility, off Rosedale and Travis Street. HCCC is three blocks south of Wheeler Ave. MetroRail station on Main Street.

HCCC is supported by individual donors and members and funded in part by The Brown Foundation; Houston Endowment, Inc.; the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance; Texas Commission on the Arts; the National Endowment for the Arts, the Kinder Foundation; the Morgan Foundation; Windgate Charitable Foundation; and the Wortham Foundation. HCCC is a member of the Houston Museum District and the Midtown Arts District.

For more information, call 713-529-4848 or visit www.crafthoustodev.wpenginepowered.com. Find HCCC on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram @CraftHouston.

Image credits:

1. Corey Ackelmire, “Flatware Set,” 2015. Sterling silver. 5 inches long. Photo courtesy of the artist.
2. Corey Ackelmire, “Some Cents,” 2017. Copper pennies. 12 x 12 x 12 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.
3. Daniel Garver, “Modular Cup In Check Pattern,” 2017. Slipcast ceramic. 4.5 x 4 x 4 inches. Photo courtesy of Nick Moen.
4. Daniel Garver, “Red Around White,” 2019. Found fabric. 90 x 90 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.
5. Hiromi Iyoda, “Peace of Mind – Nomadic Floater,” 2018. Clay, wood, paper, plastic, glue.13×7.5×8 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.
6. Hiromi Iyoda, “Peace of Mind – Nomadic Traveler,” 2018. Clay, wood, paper, plastic, glue. 23.5×5.5×15 inches, and 12x4x8.5 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.
7. Molly Koehn, digital sketch for “Structure 10,” 2019. Site-specific installation at Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. Handwoven stainless steel, linen, silk, and nylon, wood, piano wire, flagging tape, astro turf, and miscellaneous materials. Size variable. Image courtesy of the artist.
8. Molly Koehn, “Sans Delineation,” 2019. Site-specific installation at Art League Houston. Handwoven stainless steel, linen, silk, and nylon, wood, concrete, brick, astro turf, and miscellaneous materials. Size variable. Image courtesy of Alex Barber and Art League Houston.
9. Hannah Oatman, “Collage 05,” 2017. Steel, sterling silver, vitreous enamel, 18k gold. 34 x 22 x 1.5 cm. Photo courtesy of the artist.
10. Hannah Oatman, “Collage 07,” 2017. Steel, sterling silver, vitreous enamel, 18k gold. 16 x 10 x 1cm. Photo courtesy of the artist.
11. Angel Oloshove, “Orange Blossom Rose Water,” 2017. Ceramic, glaze. 10 x 11 x 5 inches. Photo courtesy of William Say.
12. Liz Robb, “Desert Wildman I,” 2018. Raffia, porcelain, sand on wood panel. 30 x 54 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.
13. Liz Robb, “Passage,” 2016. Cotton, grout. 30 x 84 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Fall Exhibitions Reception
Friday, September 27, 5:30 – 8:00 PM

Curators’ Tour of Fall Exhibitions
Saturday, September 28, 3:00 – 4:30 PM

Conversation with Kathryn Hall & Anna Walker
Saturday, November 9, 3:00 – 4:30 PM

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is pleased to present OBJECTS: REDUX—How 50 Years Made Craft Contemporary to commemorate the 50^th anniversary of OBJECTS: USA, a seminal exhibition of American craft that debuted at the Smithsonian National Collection of Fine Arts in 1969. Featuring a selection of work by artists in the original exhibition, along with contemporary makers who have made their own contributions to the field, OBJECTS: REDUX reflects on the legacy built by the influential survey.

As a traveling exhibition sponsored by S.C. Johnson and organized by art dealer Lee Nordness and Paul J. Smith, Director Emeritus of the Museum of Contemporary Crafts (now Museum of Art and Design), OBJECTS: USA acknowledged the pioneers of the American Studio Craft movement in enamel, ceramics, glass, metal, jewelry, plastic, mosaic, wood, and fiber. From glass artist Dale Chihuly to woodworker and furniture designer Wendell Castle, many of the featured artists embraced new techniques and modes of experimentation to engage with the world around them. As the exhibition traveled throughout the United States and Europe, many of the pieces were acquired by museums, solidifying the foundation of American Studio Craft collections across the country and making space for craft artists to be presented in the same context as fine art and design.

OBJECTS: REDUX demonstrates how craft first became contemporary in the 1960s and ‘70s, when studio-craft artists were striving to push boundaries and challenge the traditions of American craft.  The show looks critically at how the field has evolved in the last 50 years, moving beyond traditional wares and beautifully crafted functional objects, into a diverse selection of work that confronts the current socio-political environment and favors an interdisciplinary approach, utilizing new technologies and skill sets gleaned from traditional craft practices. The exhibition includes works by celebrated artists Wendell Castle, Dale Chihuly, Arline Fisch, Stanley Lechtzin, Howard Kottler, George Nakashima, and Tashiko Takaezu, as well as a variety of contemporary makers. Today’s artists, who continue to challenge existing hierarchies, embody the fearless spirit set forth by the American Studio Craft movement, while demonstrating the relevance of craft in a contemporary context.

OBJECTS: USA Artists

Robert Arneson, Wendell Castle, Dale Chihuly, Wharton Esherick, Arline Fisch, Trude Guermonprez, Ted Hallman, Stanley Lechtzin, Karen Karnes, Howard Kottler, Harvey Littleton

Charles Loloma, Maria Martinez, Popovi Martinez, George Nakashima, Ronald Hayes Pearson, John Axel Prip, June Schwarcz, Kay Sekimachi, Olaf Skoogfors, Toshiko Takaezu

Contemporary Artists:

Tanya Aguiñiga, Vivian Beer, Jamie Bennett, Sonya Clark, Kat Cole, Jennifer Ling Datchuk, Karen Donnellan, Annie Evelyn, Josh Faught, Nicki Green, Ross Hansen, Holland Houdek, Yuri Kobayashi

Roberto Lugo, Christy Matson, Hannah Oatman, Suzanne Peck, Chinami Ricketts, Rowland Ricketts, Matthew Szösz, Hiromi Takizawa, MJ Tyson, Norwood Viviano, Thaddeus Wolfe

OBJECTS: REDUX—How 50 Years Made Craft Contemporary is curated by HCCC Executive Director Perry Price and HCCC Curator Kathryn Hall.

Image credits:

1. Ross Hansen, “Marbled Shelf,” 2017.Epoxy clay, pigment, wood. 19 x 45 x 77 inches. Photo courtesy of Volume Gallery.
2. Harvey K. Littleton, “185°Squared Rotated Ellipsoid,” 1981. Glass. 15 ×4 1/2 ×5 1/4 in. and 4 3/4 ×4 1/4 ×6 3/4 in. Photo courtesy The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Gift of H. T. and Judy Youens, 83.252.A,.B© Harvey K. Littleton.
3. Wharton Esherick, “Music Stand,” 1962. Cherry. 43 3/4 ×19 3/4 ×20 1/2 inches. Photo courtesy The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Museum purchase funded by J. Brian and Varina Eby, by exchange, 97.112© Estate of Wharton Esherick.
4. Arline Fisch, “Collar,” 1983. Copper wire.1/2 ×10 1/2 in. Photo courtesy The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Helen Williams Drutt Collection, museum purchase funded by the Design Council, 2003; Sally and Tom Joyce; and Anned Muse, 2002.3740© Arline Fisch.
5. Stanley Lechtzin, “Brooch 90-B,” 1967. 14k gold, quartz, baroque pearls, and silver. 3 1/4 ×2 1/2 ×1 3/8 in. Photo courtesy The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, Helen Williams Drutt Collection, museum purchase funded by the Morgan Foundation, 2002.3907© Stanley Lechtzin.
6. Wendell Castle, “Molar Couch,” 1965. Fiberglass. 25 1/2 ×54 ×33 in. Image courtesy The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, The Leatrice S. and Melvin B. Eagle Collection, museum purchase funded by the Caroline Wiess Law Accessions Endowment Fund, 2010.2042© Wendell Castle, Inc.
7. John Axel Prip, “Four-piece ‘Diamond’ Pattern Tea and Coffee Service,” 1960. Manufactured by Reed & Barton. Silver. Coffeepot: 11 3/4 ×7 1/2 ×4 1/4 in. Teapot:  7 7/8 ×7 1/2 ×5 in. Creamer:  4 1/2 ×4 3/8 ×3 in. Sugar Bowl:  4 1/2 ×4 ×4 in. Image courtesy The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, The Leatrice S. and Melvin B. Eagle Collection, gift of Leatrice and Melvin Eagle in honor of the memory of Lottie and Benjamin Eagle, 2010.2263.1-.4.
8. Sonya Clark, “Octoroon,” 2018. Canvas and thread. 83 x 38.25 inches. Courtesy of artist and Lisa Sette Gallery.
9. Nicki Green, “Operating in Bright Sunlight,” 2015. Glazed earthenware. 17.5 x 15 x 15 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.
10. Holland Houdek, “Asymmetrical Mammoplasty – Double Breast Implant,” 2015. From the Hyperbolicseries. Hand-fabricated copper, pierced, silicone breast implants, bead-blasted Swarovski crystals (1,267), patina. 1.75 x 10.75 x 7.25 inches. Photo courtesy the artist.
11. Holland Houdek, “Cardiotubular Apparatus – Heart Replacement,” 2016. From the Hyperbolicseries. Hand-fabricated copper, pierced and bead-blasted Swarovski crystals (558), patina. 4.25 x 5.75 x 4.5 inches. Image courtesy the artist.
12. Roberto Lugo, “Colin and a Queen,” 2018. Terra cotta, china paint, luster. 11 x 6.5 x 17 inches. Photo by KeneK Photography. Courtesy of Wexler Gallery.
13. Roberto Lugo, “Colin and a Queen,” 2018. Terra cotta, china paint, luster. 11 x 6.5 x 17 inches. Photo by KeneK Photography. Courtesy of Wexler Gallery.
14. Roberto Lugo, detail of “Colin and a Queen,” 2018. Terra cotta, china paint, luster. 11 x 6.5 x 17 inches. Photo by KeneK Photography. Courtesy of Wexler Gallery.
15. Matthew Szösz, “Untitled (Inflatable) No. 75g,” 2018. Glass. 19 x 9 x 19 inches. Photo by artist.
16. Matthew Szösz, “Untitled (Inflatable) No. 85b,” 2018. Glass. 16.5 x 13 x 16.5 inches. Photo by artist.
17. Norwood Viviano, Detail of “Cities Underwater: Galveston, TX,” 2018. Blown glass, vinyl cut drawing. Photo courtesy of Heller Gallery, New York.
18. Norwood Viviano, Detail of “Cities Underwater: New Orleans, LA,” 2018. Blown glass, vinyl cut drawing. Photo courtesy of Heller Gallery, New York.

Fall Exhibitions Reception
Friday, September 27, 5:30 – 8:00 PM

Curators’ Tour of Fall Exhibitions 
Saturday, September 28, 3:00 – 4:30 PM

“The Water Line” Concert
Thursday, December 5, 6:00 – 7:30 PM

The Water Line, a solo exhibition by contemporary basket weaver Nathalie Miebach, features a large-scale woven installation, sculptures, and watercolor musical scores that translate weather data into art. The exhibition addresses the scientific and emotional effects of 2017 hurricanes Harvey, Irma, and Maria, three of the five most catastrophic hurricanes in U.S. history. Miebach is fascinated by the two narratives generated by every disaster:  one based on science, encompassing temperature, wind and pressure gradients, and one based on human experience, which provides important emotional perspectives and offers lessons to be learned.

The artist’s approach to data visualization pushes the means by which scientific data is commonly represented and demonstrates the beneficial marriage of art and science. In her woven sculptures, she uses basketry techniques to turn a simple grid of information into a three-dimensional object that can be studied in the round. She weaves together human experience alongside quantitative data to portray the complex narratives that occur during natural disasters. To further the conversation around these events, Miebach partners with composers and musicians to translate her watercolor scores into musical compositions, so that her works also can be experienced through sound.  Visitors can hear a selection of these compositions as they view the exhibition.

Spanning close to 17 feet long, The Burden of Every Drop (2018) tells the fraught story of the effects of Hurricane Maria on Puerto Rico by combining weather and other numerical data with anecdotal information from news reports about the storm’s aftermath. Miebach juxtaposes the fierceness of the wind and rain with the stark silence of communication, caused by the breakdown of electrical systems on the island. The piece begins with wind data that crescendos, as the storm reaches landfall. Miebach creates a sort of unraveling quilt to represent the chaos of information, including the underestimated death toll, the fleeing population, and the slow reconstruction of the U.S. territory.

Like a modern-day Kandinsky painting, Miebach’s watercolor musical score, Harvey Twitter SOS (2018), depicts the effects of Hurricane Harvey on Houston, Texas, as abstract forms that stand in as musical notations. She uses color and geometric shapes to tell the traumatic narrative of the hurricane, layering precipitation and wind data with responses from individuals who turned to Twitter for help when the emergency response system became overloaded. Like the clanging of symbols resonating across the paper, large circles depict different concentrations of tweets in areas where people were in distress.

The Water Line serves as a cry for change in how response and recovery are handled across the country. Two years after these natural disasters occurred, Miebach uses her artwork to comment on the reality of living amidst an increased risk of flooding—a reality all too familiar to Houstonians. HCCC Curator Kathryn Hall commented on the relevance of this exhibition in the current moment:  “Over the past few years, the City of Houston has seen an uptake in the amount of flash flooding and precipitation that falls annually. By portraying the different emergency-response-and-recovery narratives of three, recent major hurricanes, Miebach questions how we can adapt to the increased precipitation in our own backyards. She encourages us to think collectively about what this means for our future and to share our own stories.”

Nathalie Miebach: The Water Line is curated by HCCC Curator Kathryn Hall.

About Nathalie Miebach
Based in Boston, Massachusetts, Nathalie Miebach is a contemporary basket weaver who translates the scientific data of ecology, climate change, and meteorology into musical scores, sculptures, and large-scale installations. Miebach holds an MFA in sculpture and an MS in art education from the Massachusetts College of Arts in Boston. She has exhibited across the United States, and her work can be found in the collections of the Denison Museum of Art, the DeCordova Sculpture Museum, the Spencer Art Museum, Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, and Facebook, among many others. She has received numerous fellowships, awards, and grants, including the Massachusetts Cultural Council Artist Fellowship (2017), IAPP Artist Residency (2016), ART Lab Residency (2015), Oxbow School Artist Residency (2014), Pollock-Krasner Award (2011), and the TED Global Fellowship (2011). Visit www.nathaliemiebach.com for more information.

Image credits:

1. Nathalie Miebach, “A Storm within a Storm,” 2018. Wood, paper, rope, data. 38 x 31 x 31 inches. Photo by John-Michael Seminaro.
2. Nathalie Miebach, Detail of “A Storm within a Storm,” 2018. Wood, paper, rope, data. 38 x 31 x 31 inches. Photo by John-Michael Seminaro.
3. Nathalie Miebach, Detail of “A Storm within a Storm,” 2018. Wood, paper, rope, data. 38 x 31 x 31 inches. Photo by John-Michael Seminaro.
4. Nathalie Miebach, Detail of “A Storm within a Storm,” 2018. Wood, paper, rope, data. 38 x 31 x 31 inches. Photo by John-Michael Seminaro.
5. Nathalie Miebach, “Harvey Twitter SOS,” 2018. Watercolor. 16 x 20 inches. Photo by the artist.
6. Nathalie Miebach, “The Burden of Every Drop,” 2018. Wood, paper, rope, data. 17 x 10 x 2 feet. Photo by Jean-Michael Seminaro.
7. Nathalie Miebach, Detail of “The Burden of Every Drop,” 2018. Wood, paper, rope, data. 17 x 10 x 2 feet. Photo by Jean-Michael Seminaro.
8. Nathalie Miebach, Detail of “The Burden of Every Drop,” 2018. Wood, paper, rope, data. 17 x 10 x 2 feet. Photo by Jean-Michael Seminaro.
9. Nathalie Miebach, “The Burden of Every Drop,” 2018. Watercolor. 16 x 20 inches. Photo by the artist.

Exhibition Reception
Friday, May 31, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
The evening will also feature the opening of Justin Favela:  All You Can Eat in the Main Gallery and open studios by the current resident artists.  Beer will be generously provided by Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co. and delicious tacos from PAN de TACO food truck will be available for purchase.

Artist Talk with Tiff Massey
Saturday, June 1, 3:30 – 5:00 PM
Massey will give a brief overview of her work, influences, and multi-disciplinary artistic practice.

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is pleased to present Tiff Massey: A Different World, a solo exhibition by the interdisciplinary artist and metalsmith. The first exhibition of Massey’s artwork in Texas, A Different World showcases three bodies of work that reference the material culture of nostalgic pasts, from 1980s hip hop to African hair braiding. Informed primarily by jewelry, Massey’s diverse artistic practice deftly renders her observations on race and class in contemporary American culture.

The exhibition focuses on the artist’s colossal steel sculptures of chains and rings, alongside intricately braided crimson neckpieces and accompanying portraits. Themes in the exhibition span cultural appropriation, authenticity, and the diasporic legacy of “bling.”  Guest curator and former HCCC Curatorial Fellow, Sarah Darro, comments, “A Different World reflects the intersectional interests of Massey’s work in an immersive installation that emphasizes physical junctions and meeting points. Corners and thresholds in the gallery become potent spaces for her works, which themselves function as sites of critical dialogue about space, the body, and politics of race, class, and gender.”

Borrowing forms from iconic Dookie Rope chains and four-finger rings, Massey mines the use of jewelry as an element of early hip-hop culture, relating “bling” to a legacy of adornment that traces back to African nomadic tribes and royalty. Informed by the 1980s Detroit of her youth, a period that lauded black culture, bespoke jewelry, and ostentatious personal adornment, Massey recognizes visual and physical weight as a principal tenant of hip-hop jewelry, drawing attention to the wearer as well as reminding the wearer of the piece. She says, “Bling is audacious. It’s in your face. I’m using hip hop as a reference for the scale, for the weight of the work.” She learned to fabricate the illusion of weight in metal, using techniques like hollow-forming to achieve voluminous, architectural silhouettes in her jewelry. In her series, Everyday Arsenal (2018), she further emphasizes this weight, bringing her jewelry to a monumental scale through massive steel reproductions of rings she designed for each of her fingers.

Massey approaches her artistic output like a social scientist. She is interested in what happens when people are adorned, the ways in which jewelry causes people to hold themselves differently and more confidently, and how jewelry functions socially as a technology of belonging. Chains are potent cultural symbols and, in hip hop, can signify affiliation with music labels and organizations, with members collectively owning and wearing particular chains. Massey explores this symbolism in her monumental 18-foot sculpture, Facet (2010), in which diamond-shaped steel links, large enough for a person’s torso to fit through, are connected through an articulated chain. At this exaggerated scale, the artist explores how work can adorn landscape and speak to a community.

Massey is devoted to the exploration of material, in service of the conceptual themes that underpin her work. In her series, Je Ne Sais Coiff (ongoing), she applies African hair-braiding and coiling techniques to wool, jute, and rope to create necklaces informed by tribal hair designs affiliated with royalty and wealth. By accompanying this work with stark photographic portraits of the white women who are wearing these pieces, Massey effectively broaches topics of ownership, bodies and hair, the performance of identity, and cultural appropriation.

A Different World showcases Massey’s diverse, conceptual approach to material and presents a unique opportunity for visitors to experience jewelry on a monumental scale, while exploring some of today’s most pressing social issues.

Tiff Massey: A Different World is curated by Sarah Darro.  The exhibition is supported in part by the Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG).

About Tiff Massey
Artist Tiff Massey’s oeuvre is expressed in mediums as varied as metal, fiber, wood, and performance and in scales as varied as monumental sculpture, wearable adornment, and immersive installation. The Detroit artist earned an MFA in metalsmithing from Cranbrook Academy of Art, and her work, despite its wide range, remains informed by jewelry—drawing from its cultural history, processes, techniques, and materials. Massey’s work has been widely exhibited nationally and internationally, at venues including the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, the Society of Arts + Crafts in Boston, Craft in America in Los Angeles, Library Street Collective in Detroit, and Galerie Marzee in Nijmegen, Netherlands. She is the recipient of the prestigious Kresge Arts in Detroit Fellowship; Michigan Chronicle’s 40 under 40 Award; the Best Time-Based Performance at SiteLab during Art Prize in Grand Rapids, Michigan; and most recently, the Susan Beech Mid-Career Artist Grant, which is the largest art jewelry cash award in the U.S.  Massey has also participated in international residencies including the Red Bull Arts Residency in Detroit, Ideas City hosted by The New Museum of New York, and the Volterra-Detroit Foundation in Italy.

Image credits:

1. Tiff Massey, “Facet,” 2010. Steel. 216 x 54 x 6 inches (variable). Photo courtesy of the artist.
2. Tiff Massey, “Everyday Arsenal (Steel Edition),” 2018. Steel. Dimensions variable. Photo courtesy of the artist.
3. Tiff Massey, “Everyday Arsenal (Steel Edition),” 2018. Steel. Dimensions variable. Photo courtesy of the artist.
4. Tiff Massey, “Je Ne Sais Coiff”  Series, ongoing. Rope and Wool. Dimensions variable. Photo by Tim Johnson, Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit.
5. Tiff Massey, “Abby (from the ‘Je Ne Sais Coiff’ series),” 2012. Rope and wool. 18 x 16 x 10 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist.
6. Tiff Massey, “Sasha, Molly, and Abby (from the ‘Je Ne Sais Coiff’ series),” 2012. Rope and Wool. Dimensions variable. Photo courtesy of the artist.

This spring, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) is pleased to host a collection of exquisite contemporary art jewelry, assembled for the first time in the United States, from the Danish Arts Foundation. On view March 15 – June 23, 2019, in the Asher Gallery, Statecraft will showcase more than 80 important pieces of contemporary jewelry that the Foundation’s Craft and Design Committee has acquired directly from the country’s most innovative and prominent designers and artists over the last five decades.

Featuring a wide variety of trends—everything from the late-1970s emphasis on fine silversmithing to the riot of new materials, forms, and concepts of the 1990s through today—the collection provides an irreplaceable opportunity to trace the evolution of contemporary Danish jewelry design. Many of the featured works represent examples of singular Danish artists at different moments in their careers, which, in some instances, span more than 40 years of sustained output in jewelry.

The Foundation supports the livelihood of practicing artists and, for the Danish people, preserves an important part of their cultural legacy. Since 2007, a majority of pieces in the collection have been made available for Danish citizens—who participate in official, special, or public events—to borrow and wear for those occasions. The lending program provides everyday Danes the chance to see, appreciate, and understand, through the opportunity to wear, the best of Danish jewelry design.

HCCC Executive Director Perry Price commented, “HCCC is thrilled to be the first institution in the United States to host this selection of jewelry from the collection of the Danish Arts Foundation. The Foundation’s commitment to supporting practicing artists is to be celebrated, of course, but most remarkable is their willingness to place important pieces of contemporary jewelry into the hands of its citizens. It fulfills the mission of collecting art for the public good—and of connecting, educating, and investing the public with the work of their artist compatriots.”

Statecraft: Selections from the Jewelry Collection of the Danish Arts Foundation is supported by the Danish Arts Foundation and is the first in a series of partnership programs between the Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and Denmark’s Danish Arts in Houston program, a joint venture between the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Please note:  Asher Gallery will close in-store retail sales and serve as an exhibition space during this time period.

Image credits:

1. Annette Dam, “Environmental Genes,” 2012. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
2. Helle Løvig Esperson, “Armsmykke,” 1998. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
3. Karen Ihle, “Armring No. 4,” 1994. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
4. Ulrik Jungersen, “Broche,” 1992. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
5.  Annette Kraen, “Armring,” 1990. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives. 
6. Gerda and Nicolai Monies, “Halskaede,” 2006. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
7.  Pernille Mouritzen, “Flora Oblitus,” 2017.  Photo by Dorte Krogh.
8. Peder Musse, “Halskrave,” 1998. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
9. Mikala Naur, “Feather,” 1983. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives
10. Camilla Prasch, “Fangarm Rot 1/10,” 2003. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
11. Per Suntum, “Ring 21,” 1994. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.
12. Ingomar Vangsgaard, “Armring Oval,” 1983. Photo courtesy the Danish Arts Foundation Archives.

Live Podcast Interview: Justin Favela & Chef Alex Padilla
Friday, May 31, 12:00 – 1:00 PM
Justin Favela will interview Alex Padilla, Executive Chef of the Original Ninfa’s on Navigation, for his Art People Podcast series. Their discussion will explore the history of Tex-Mex and their relationships with this beloved cuisine, as well as provide a glimpse into the day-to-day life of a chef.

Exhibition Reception
Friday, May 31, 5:30 – 8:00 PM
The evening will also feature the opening of Tiff Massey:  A Different World in the Front Gallery and open studios by the current resident artists.  Beer will be generously provided by Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co. and delicious tacos from PAN de TACO food truck will be available for purchase.

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is pleased to present “All You Can Eat,” a solo exhibition by mixed-media artist Justin Favela.  Featuring larger-than-life piñatas depicting a visual feast of Tex-Mex cuisine, from “nachos supreme” to “chili con carne,” this site-specific installation, which is both playful and challenging, is intended to generate conversation about popular culture, the politics of food, and the Latinx experience in the U.S.

HCCC Curator Kathryn Hall explains the central ideas behind Favela’s installation:  “Historically, food has been used as a powerful tool to unite people and to disarm adversaries. Through his work, Favela exposes the complex narratives found within the everyday meals people eat. His boisterously Texas-sized sculptures shed an absurd light on the dominant cultural narrative of Tex-Mex cuisine, and those who stake claim on its authenticity, to examine its complicated relationship to Latinx identity in the United States.”

As a queer, brown, first-generation American of Guatemalan and Mexican descent, Favela takes charge of his personal narrative by embracing the medium of the piñata, a craft practice that has a longstanding history in the Latinx community. By cutting strips of paper, known as papel china, the artist meticulously covers armatures made from everyday materials, such as cardboard, insulation, and Styrofoam to create his large-scale sculptures. His use of piñatas, which are common in many households, enables him to speak to issues related to popular culture and to the Latinx experience in an incredibly accessible way.

As co-host “FavyFav” of the podcast “Latinos Who Lunch” and host of “The Art People Podcast,” Favela creates a platform that supports queer people of color and calls attention to hierarchies set forth by Eurocentrism. Starting every episode by discussing their bond over a diverse selection of food, he and his LWL co-host, “Babelito,” aka curator and art historian, Dr. Emmanuel Ortega, critically address the problems that exist in a white-dominated society and seek to correct histories told from a colonialist viewpoint. Together, their voices challenge the status quo and empower others to speak up and make space for different perspectives.

Having exhibited in museums all over the country and abroad, Favela strives to tear down institutional barriers through his artwork and social practice. With All You Can Eat, he references the narratives of the Tejano people and raises awareness of issues related to cultural appropriation, while increasing the visibility of the Latinx community.

Justin Favela:  All You Can Eat is curated by HCCC Curator Kathryn Hall.

About Justin Favela
Based in Las Vegas, Nevada, and known for large-scale installations and sculptures that manifest his interactions with American pop culture and the Latinx experience, Justin Favela has exhibited his work both internationally and across the United States. His installations have been commissioned by the Denver Art Museum in Colorado and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas. His latest major project, Recuérdame, is on view in New York City, at the Sugar Hill Children’s Museum of Art & Storytelling, through September 8, 2019. He is the recipient of the 2018 Alan Turing LGTBIQ Award for International Artist. Favela hosts two culture-oriented podcasts, “Latinos Who Lunch” and “The Art People Podcast.” He holds a BFA in fine arts from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Image credits:

1. Justin Favela, “Doritos, Nacho Cheese,” 2015. Cardboard, paper, glue. 36 x 36 inches. Photo by Mikayla Whitmore.
2. Justin Favela in his Las Vegas studio. Photo by Mikayla Whitmore. 
3.  Justin Favela, “Floor Nachos,” 2017. Cardboard, paper, glue, and found objects. Dimensions variable. Photo by Simon Mills, The MAC Belfast.

Exhibition Reception
Friday, February 1, 5:30 – 8:00 PM

The evening will also feature the opening of Tom Loeser: Please Please Please in the Main Gallery and open studios by the current resident artists.  Beer generously provided by Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co.

Artist Talk & Tour by Ayumi Horie
Saturday, February 2, 2:30 – 3:15 PM

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is pleased to present To Be of Use: The Functional Ceramics of Mike Helke, Ayumi Horie, and East Fork, a group exhibition that demonstrates the uniqueness, independent spirit, and social relevance found in the handmade, as it compares the different creative paths taken by three makers of contemporary functional ceramics.

As one of the earliest forms of material engineering developed by humankind, ceramics and the production of functional objects has been central to humans’ use of clay throughout history. Since the Industrial Revolution, however, the necessity of handmade ceramic ware has been diminished, just as the development of plastics has made the many ceramic forms originally used for storage obsolete. To make functional pieces by hand today is a choice made by the artist to go against the current of all other means of mass production, and the decision by the user to purchase these pieces represents a clear desire for the unique qualities of the one-of-a-kind over the ubiquity of all other options.

To Be of Use juxtaposes three very different solutions to the challenge posed by making functional work in clay. Portland, Maine-based studio potter Ayumi Horie sees her work as providing a crucial connection between people and their communities—a source for the daily interactions she feels are the primary means of social change. Horie’s use of social media brings followers and patrons from around the world into her remote studio, connecting her finished pots with their method of production and the charismatic personality of their maker. This use of the Web extends to Horie’s social advocacy, including her co-founding of The Democratic Cup, a project that produced a series of cups, created collaboratively by artists and intended to catalyze political conversation, and Pots in Action, an Instagram-based curatorial project featuring ceramic artists from around the world.

Stillwater, Minnesota-based potter Mike Helke has developed a body of work that engages with the traditions of handmade functional ceramics, while standing slightly apart. His forms—cups, mugs, plates, and “pouring pots”—are undeniably functional, but his exploration of the formal considerations of a pot, such as what form a handle should take to be recognizable and useful, make for a subtly uncertain experience. Combined with his seemingly unfinished, unrefined, and haphazard-looking techniques, Helke’s work tests the sculptural limits of recognizable function.

In contrast to the limited studio production of Horie, Helke, and the many other individual potters across the country, East Fork explores the feasibility of limited-scale industrial production of ceramic dinnerware made in the United States. East Fork began with potter Alex Matisse, whose own ceramic training and earliest production pottery was heavily influenced by the folk ceramic tradition of the Southeast. In recent years, East Fork has pivoted, adding individuals and growing into a company that produces an exclusive line of pieces from a combination of hand and industrial processes. Their ceramic forms, selection of neutral glazes, and appealing seasonal-edition colors—as well as the establishment of both a direct-to-consumer online presence and two brick-and-mortar locations—adopt the strategy of retail industrial design over that of the studio potter.

To Be of Use was curated by HCCC Executive Director, Perry Allen Price. Price described his inspiration behind the show: “Functional ceramics may be among the most ubiquitous objects in a person’s life—who doesn’t have a favorite mug for their coffee? But inviting artist-made pieces into your routine, such as those featured in this exhibition, illustrates the persistence of the handmade to affect one’s daily life in subtle but profound ways.”

Image credits: (1) Mike Helke, “Pouring Pot,” 2018. Ceramic. Photo by Peter Lee. (2) Mike Helke, “Plates,” 2018. Ceramic. Photo by Peter Lee. (3) Mike Helke, “Pouring Pot,” 2018. Ceramic. Photo by Peter Lee. (4) Ayumi Horie, “Rabbit Bowl,” 2018. Ceramic. Photo by Ayumi Horie. (5) Ayumi Horie and Birdie Boone, “Write-In Spin Cup,” 2016. Porcelain. Photo by Ayumi Horie. (6) Ayumi Horie at the Ram Press, 2018. Photo by Ayumi Horie.(7) Ayumi Horie Spraying Down Bowls, 2018. Photo by Ayumi Horie. (8) East Fork, “Spring/Summer 2018 Seasonal Palette, Side Plates in Utah & Taro.” 2018. Ceramic. Photo by Tropico for East Fork. (9) East Fork, “Soapstone Dinnerware.” Ceramic. Photo by Whitney Ott. (10) East Fork, “Everyday Bowls.” Ceramic. Photo by East Fork.

Exhibition Reception
Friday, February 1, 5:30 – 8:00 PM

The evening will also feature the opening of To Be of Use in the Front Gallery and open studios by the current resident artists.  Beer generously provided by Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co.

Artist Talk & Tour with Tom Loeser
Saturday, February 2, 3:30 – 5:00 PM

In partnership with the Museum of Craft and Design in San Francisco, HCCC presents Tom Loeser: Please Please Please, a traveling exhibition of the Wisconsin-based maker and designer’s imaginative furniture and works on paper. The playful show encourages viewers to shake up their habits and interact with the environment and one another, while considering issues such as body posture and etiquette that are often taken for granted. Loeser’s work also raises a clever question: “If the furniture we sit on every day were totally different, would our lives be different, too?”

Guest curated by Glenn Adamson, Please Please Please reimagines what furniture can be by juxtaposing the artist’s furniture with his series of pyrographs and cyanotype prints. “In making this exhibition,” says Adamson, “we have been inspired by Loeser’s way of turning furniture upside-down and inside-out. This is partly about understanding the medium’s full potential, and partly about sheer enjoyment. It’s a show that children and adults alike will love.”

Loeser’s exploration of unconventional furniture forms began in the early 1980s with Folding Chairs, his series of colorful, postmodern chairs that double as wall-hung art. With this body of work, the artist intended to highlight the distinction between functional and formal considerations. Thirty years later, Loeser is still investigating the balance between form and function, with furniture made by joining antique tools—including parts of scythes, shovels, and pitchforks—with natural timber slabs.  This “tool handle” series speaks to the union of tool and material that underlies all forms of craftsmanship, while referencing past studio furniture masters like George Nakashima and J.B. Blunk.

The artist’s recent series, New York/Chicago/LA, features three tumblers that have been beautifully carved, painted, and upholstered with felt or dyed leather. Made in collaboration with Paris-trained upholsterer, Matthew Nafranowicz, of The Straight Thread in Madison, Wisconsin, the tumblers’ soft felt surfaces and reinforced corners allow every side to be rolled around and sat upon. The name of the series references the city skyline of the three largest American cities, recognizing the tumblers’ variations in height when arranged at will. Visitors are invited to test out the tumblers, creating, in Loeser’s words, their own “micro-community of sitters.”

Loeser’s playful experimentation in reference to furniture can also be found in his works on paper. By using a selection of chair-shaped metal brands to “burn” images into paper, he created a series of pyrographs. These pieces place emphasis on the physical gesture of embossing and scorching, while his series of cyanotype prints contain ghost-like silhouettes of his small, handmade furniture forms.

As presented together in the exhibition, Loeser’s inventive furniture and works on paper form an engaging show that appeals to all ages on multiple levels. The exhibition will be accompanied by an illustrated publication with essays by Glenn Adamson and Stephen Knott, author of Amateur Craft and Theory.

Tom Loeser: Please Please Please is co-presented by Houston Center for Contemporary Craft and the Museum of Craft and Design and curated by Glenn Adamson.

About Tom Loeser

Tom Loeser designs and builds one-of-a-kind functional and dysfunctional objects that are based on the history of design and object-making as a starting point for developing new form and meaning. He has been head of the wood/furniture area in the Department of Art at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, since 1991. He holds a BA from Haverford College, a BFA from Boston University, and an MFA from the University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth. Loeser is the recipient of four Visual Artist Fellowship Grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and an NEA Creative Artist Exchange Fellowship. His work has been featured in many national and international exhibitions and is in the collections of the Smithsonian Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum (New York, NY); Museum of Arts and Design (New York, NY); Rhode Island School of Design Museum (Providence, RI); Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (Houston, TX); and many other institutions. He was elected to the American Craft Council College of Fellows in 2012.

Image credits: (1) Tom Loeser, “Dig for Three,” 2015. Walnut, shovel handles. 46 x 34 x 34 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (2) Tom Loeser, “Dig 23,” 2015. Spalted maple, shovel handles. 66 x 37 x 26.5 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (3) Tom Loeser, “Wall,” 2015. Pyrograph. 39 x 32 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (4) Tom Loeser, “Scythe by Scythe” (detail), 2016. Maple, hickory, scythe handles. 102 x 32 x 49 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (5) Tom Loeser, “Scythe by Scythe,” 2016. Maple, hickory, scythe handles. 102 x 32 x 49 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (6) Tom Loeser, “LA/Chicago/New York,” 2016. Wood, paint, felt. Approximately 12 x 17 x 26 inches each. Photo courtesy of the artist. (7) Tom Loeser, “Not a Dozen Odd,” 2014. Cyanotype. 32 x 28 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (8) Tom Loeser, “LA/Chicago/New York,” 2016. Wood, paint, felt. Approximately 12 x 17 x 26 inches each. Photo courtesy of the artist. (9) Tom Loeser, “Heap,” 2015. Pyrograph. 32 x 39 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (10) Tom Loeser, “Free Fall #1,” 2014. Cyanotype. 50 x 27.5 inches. Photo courtesy of the artist. (11) Tom Loeser, “Folding Chairs,” 1987. Painted plywood, maple, stainless steel. 34 x 25 x 22 inches each (when open). Photo courtesy of the artist. (12) Tom Loeser, “Folding Chair,” 1987. Painted plywood, maple, stainless steel. 34 x 25 x 22 inches (when open). Photo courtesy of the artist.