HereisthefirstcomprehensivesurveyofmoderncraftintheUnitedStates.Makersfollowsthedevelopmentofstudiocraft--objectsinfiber,clay,glass,wood,andmetal--fromitsrootsinnineteenth-centuryreformmovementstotherichdiversityofexpressionattheendofthetwentiethcentury.MorethanfourhundredillustrationscomplementthischronologicalexplorationoftheAmericancrafttradition.Keepingastheirmainfocustheobjectsandthemakers,JanetKoplosandBruceMetcalfofferadetailedanalysisofseminalworksanddiscussionsofeducation,institutionalsupport,andthephilosophicalunderpinningsofcraft.Inavividandaccessiblenarrative,theyhighlightthevalueofphysicalskill,examinecraftasaforceformoralreform,andconsidertheroleofcraftasanaestheticalternative.Exploringcraft’srelationshiptofineartsanddesign,KoplosandMetcalffosteracriticalunderstandingofthefieldandhelpexplaincraft’splaceincontemporaryculture.Makerswillbeanindispensablevolumeforcraftspeople,curators,collectors,critics,historians,students,andanyonewhoisinterestedinAmericancraft.
