Craft as an integral part of the fine art world

Hour 2

At what point does a craft transcend function, and enter  into  the world of fine art? The Philadelphia Museum of Art has recently opened a new exhibition, “Craft Spoken Here,” a collection of 40 contemporary works from 1960 to the present in glass, metal, ceramic, lacquer, paper and fiber, created by well-known and lesser-known international artists. We’ll talk about what is in these crafts our guest, the curator, ELISABETH AGRO, sees that rise to the high-profile, prestigious museum level. Our guest, Pittsburgh-based goldsmith BRIGITTE MARTIN, says this artistic distinction is a grey area, as techniques of craftspeople often overlap into fine art. She’s founded and curates an international social networking and online community for professional artists called crafthous. JESSIE HEMMONS, Philadelphia’s own “yarn bomber” will join us to describe how her craft has been taken from the streets onto the face of the Philadelphia Museum of Art’s Perelman building. Last year her stitching covered up the Rocky statue, in front of the musuem, with pink, hoody vest with the message, “Go See the Art” stated in black across the front.

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[audio: 051112_110630.mp3]