Photo: John Thornton

The Annual Founders' Fundraiser event honored American Craft Council (ACC) Fellows with both a major exhibition and publication release as detailed below.  Board Chair Richard Goldberg recognized these exhibiting Fellows as well as other Honorary ACC Fellows in attendance, including Albert LeCoff, Co-Founder and Executive Director, and Helen W. Drutt English (right), Keynote Speaker. Goldberg then announced details of the major contributions, including a leadership gift from Fleur Bresler and the Bresler Family Foundation as well as major gifts from Ron and Anita Wornick and Jerome and Deena Kaplan.

                                                                                                                     

Bob Stocksdale (1913-2003) at his studio, Berkely, CA, cicrca 1985 Photo: Paul J. Smith

Ash Wood Bowl, 1987, 3 x 11 x 93/4 in. The Center for Art in Wood Museum Collection

The Center for Art in Wood, which will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2016, continues to be the preeminent arts and education organization advancing the growth, awareness, appreciation and promotion of artists and the creation and design of art in wood and wood in combination with other materials. In 2011 the Center mission expanded its traditional promotion of wood turning to encompass a broad spectrum of art in wood.

The Center is in the second year of a three-year, $600,000 challenge grant, provided by the Windgate Foundation. For more information on the Windgate Challenge, please click here.

Current Exhibition: Art in Wood: Philadelphia's American Craft Council Fellows, October 30, 2015 - January 16, 2016 

Running concurrently: Paul J. Smith Portraits: A Photographic Journal of Wood Artists
As The Center for Art in Wood approaches its 30th anniversary in 2016 we present a
major exhibition of the Philadelphia American Craft Council (ACC) Fellows who work in
wood and wood in combination with other materials. The exhibition includes furniture
installations and small scale wearable sculptures and is part of a multi-venue series of
exhibitions honoring ACC Fellows who have made a major impact in the Philadelphia
region.  Click here to view the interactive version of the Masters of Craft publication.

Exhibiting artists: Sharon Church, David Ellsworth, Michael Hurwitz, Bruce Metcalf, and the late George Nakashima

The Windgate ITE International Residency  is a collegial experience in which the resident fellows explore new work through research, exploration and collaboration.

The ACC College of Fellows is an honorary cohort of craftspeople who have made significant contributions in their discipline within the United States, with more than 25 years of practice in their respective fields.  Each is recognized for generating longstanding influence on the region through works in wood, clay, fiber, metal and glass.  The Philadelphia region is widely recognized for its rich history within the field of craft, now reflected in the number of local artists who have been elected to the ACC College of Fellows.

Helen W.  Drutt English is Founder and Director of her eponymous gallery in Philadelphia (1973-2002), among the first galleries in the United States to champion the Modern and Contemporary Craft movement. She is internationally known and recognized for her expertise as a cutorial consultant, archivist, and author.