Masters: 2016 American Craft Council Awards
Masters: 2016 American Craft Council Awards
Masters: 2016 American Craft Council Awards
The average tenure at a job today is around four-and-a-half years. For younger generations, it’s even less. We have become a nation of rolling stones, skilled at reinvention – and shy on long-term commitment. The artists, scholars, and craft advocates who are the recipients of the 2016 American Craft Council Awards, however, are exceptions.
Each has devoted decades to their cause: to making art, to the pursuit of knowledge, to building an infrastructure to help the craft community thrive. They’ve made breakthroughs and mistakes. They’ve had successes and setbacks. And earlier this year, when we crisscrossed the country to interview these individuals, a theme emerged – a kind of humility that becomes visible only in time. It’s the recognition that every accomplishment merely sets the stage for the next challenge, that every lesson learned reveals how much more there is to know.
Gerhardt Knodel has never stopped pushing the limits of his medium. The mixed-media Destiny 2 (2015) is one of his folding books.
Courtesy of the artistNo matter where you are on your path – or how long you plan to stay on it – we know you’ll find wisdom in their words and their work. Profiles of each honoree, including exclusive videos, will become available over the next few weeks. (Follow American Craft on Facebook and Twitter to see them as they are published.) And we hope you’ll join us this October when we celebrate these remarkable individuals in Omaha, Nebraska, in conjunction with “Present Tense,” ACC’s first national conference in seven years. We’ve planned three days of unscripted, free-flowing conversation, and if our 2016 honorees are any indication, there will be inspiration and insight to spare.
2016 American Craft Council Awards
Gerhardt Knodel – Gold Medalist
Sara S. Morgan – Aileen Osborn Webb Award for Philanthropy
CERF+ – Award of Distinction
Hank Murta Adams – Fellow
Nick Cave – Fellow
Edward S. Cooke Jr. – Honorary Fellow
Michael Cooper – Fellow
Françoise Grossen – Fellow
Chris Gustin – Fellow
Myra Mimlitsch-Gray – Fellow
About the ACC Awards
Since 1975, ACC has inducted 302 individuals into its College of Fellows, honoring those who have demonstrated outstanding achievement for more than 25 years. We celebrate them along with our Gold Medalist, a career-crowning honor reserved for a previously elected Fellow, and the winners of the Aileen Osborn Webb Award for Philanthropy and the Award of Distinction.
Since the inception of the College, new members have been elected by their peers – the preceding Fellows, whose ranks include Lenore Tawney, Sam Maloof, and Betty Woodman. It is a profound form of recognition to be honored by those who have walked the same road.
The ACC Library establishes a file for each honoree’s work, archiving images, interviews, exhibition catalogues, and other documents and ephemera. Dig into these resources online through our digital collections.
