American Craft Forum: Innovation in the Face of Adversity Part 1

April 3, 2020, 2 p.m. CDT / 3 p.m EDT

Start date

Friday, April 3, 2020, 9:00am

End date

Friday, April 3, 2020, 10:15am

American Craft Forum presents Innovation in the Face of Adversity

We may be in the house, but it’s time we think outside the box. This FREE three-part online series is meant to be an inspiring, refreshing, pragmatic, and safe conversation space. We'll explore innovations in our craft communities in the face of adversities and challenges during the COVID-19 outbreak. We want to hear from you about ways artists, writers, and organizations are creating unique solutions in a time of crisis.

Produced and presented in collaboration with American Craft Council, CERF+, Springboard for the Arts, and the Society of North American Goldsmiths (SNAG).

Part 1: Vulnerabilities, Disruptions, and Opportunities in the Marketplace

April 3, 2020, 2 p.m. CDT / 3 p.m. EDT

Americans for the Arts is reporting a $3.6 billion impact on the arts sector due to the effect of the outbreak on operations through canceled events, lost wages, and other expenses. The business of craft has been disrupted at every level – from marketplace events to supply chains to retail and gallery outlets to small manufacturing production. What solutions are we seeing? How are artists and businesses adapting? What alternatives might we consider? Can we use craft thinking to design our way out of this?

Program Outline:

Opening remarks

Sarah Schultz, American Craft Council executive director @craftcouncil

Cornelia Carey, CERF+ executive director @cerfplus

Laura Zabel, Springboard for the Arts executive director @springboardarts

Moderators

Gwynne Rukenbrod Smith, SNAG executive director @snagmetalsmith

Lauren Baker is a UK-based doctoral researcher exploring the role of support organizations in the development of craft career pathways. @doctorlozzo

What have we learned?

Guest: Jackson Schwartz, co-founder of Hennepin Made, a glass lighting fixture company launched in response to the last economic recession @hennepinmade (Photo: Aaron Davidson)
Moderated Q&A: Where have we been and what have we experienced in the past and how did we overcome it?

What’s new about this scenario and what does innovation look like?

Guest: Ayumi Horie, founder of Pots In Action lauded for her pioneering use of digital marketing and social media within contemporary ceramics @ayumihorie
Moderated Q&A: Who else is innovating, changing, refocusing?

How do we coordinate new ways of working?

Guest: Tori Hong, cofounder of Asian American Youth Storytellers and She Spends community member @tori.hong
Moderated Q&A: What other ways are artists collaborating to be successful?

How can we take care of one another, ourselves and our community?

Guest: Michael Strand, producer of Misfit Cup Liberation Project and social entrepreneur @strand_michael
Moderated Q&A: How else can we take care of one another, ourselves, our community during this time?