Craft In America

Craft In America By Episode

• Memory (#101)

  The first episode takes a personal tour through craft's history in America. The intimate stories of some of the country's most prominent craft artisans are set against the larger historical context of craft itself. The episode includes visits to woodworker Sam Maloof, furniture maker Garry Knox Bennett, basket makers Mary Jackson and Pat Courtney Gold and metalsmith Tom Joyce.

• Community (#103)

  The final episode focuses on the spiritual connection between artisans and their communities. The personal stories of gifted artisans reveal the deeply held belief that craft is about more than just the making of an object. The episode profiles Pilchuck School of Glass, Penland School of Craft, Mississippi Cultural Crossroads, potter Sarah Jaeger, jewelry maker Denise Wallace and the team of basket maker Dona Look and master jeweler Ken Loeber.

• Origins (#201)

  "Origins" focuses on the origins of the American craft movement and features artists who tie their work to early craft techniques and pass these techniques to others in a continuum of creativity. Artists featured include South Carolina blacksmith Philip Simmons, North Carolina potter Vernon Owens, Kiowa beadworker Teri Greeves, weaver and UCLA teacher Jim Bassler, and New Jersey glass artist Paul Stankard.

• Process (#202)

  "Process" looks at what inspires a person to choose a career in craft and demonstrates how they go about acquiring the knowledge and necessary skills. This episode also reveals some of the best and most interesting artists who turned to craft as a second career later in life.

• Messages (#301)

  This episode of "Craft in America" looks at the ways many craft artists go beyond skill to personal and political expression. They use craft to tell a story, prove a point or bring attention to contemporary issues. Often their work is passionate and provocative. Artists featured include Wisconsin glass artist Beth Lipman; New Mexico santero Charles Carrillo; Baltimore quilter, sculptor and performance artist Joyce J. Scott; and New Orleans metal and jewelry artist Thomas Mann.

• Family (#302)

  This episode explores the creative home environments and personal dynamics of four families of craft artists and asks: Is talent inherited? What's it like to live in a household where objects are made by hand? In this episode, former President Jimmy Carter shares stories of Ed Moulthrop, a fellow Georgian who is known as the father of modern woodturning. Philip Moulthrop followed a career path similar to his father's. Trained as a lawyer, he found greater satisfaction making unique wood bowls. Matt Moulthrop apprenticed with his father and grandfather and continues the family tradition. Paul Marioni creates sculptural glass forms. An early member of the San Francisco Studio Glass Movement, as a single father he moved to Seattle, center of American glass, where his gifted son, Dante Marioni continues to make internationally recognized work. Dante's sister Marina Marioni is also a craft artist, creating jewelry that plays with form and meaning, much like her father's sculptures play with visual puns. Tradition and invention are the center of the Lee household in rural Pennsylvania where potter Cliff Lee and metal artist Holly Lee live and work together in their 18th century Dutch farmhouse. The Lees have two sons who grew up playing in their parents' studios, learning the hard work it takes to succeed as a self-employed artist. Oklahoma's Lisa Sorrell is one of a very few women who make custom cowboy boots. Following her passion and defying parental expectations, she established her place in a male-dominated field. Lisa's two teenage daughters have decided to follow in their mother's footsteps and are each becoming artists in their own right.

• Threads (#401)

  Explore woven textiles and story quilts by artists Faith Ringgold of Harlem, Randall Darwall of Cape Cod, Consuelo Jimenez Underwood in California and Terese Agnew in Wisconsin.

• Crossroads (#402)

  This episode explores America as a crossroads: a land where craft evolves from global influences, a place of exciting intersections between modern technology and the handmade.

• Forge (#501)

  "Forge" profiles exceptional artists who are working in what may be the only tangible example of "alchemy" we have - the forging of metal magically transformed by fire. Follow young Chloe Darke as she begins her career as a silversmith at Old Newbury Crafters; Iraqi war veterans Tom Pullin and Jeremiah Holland as they turn to art as an antidote to the harsh realities of war; and Albert Paley, master metal sculptor, who uses knowledge from his 50-year career to build monumental artworks for New York City's Park Avenue.

• Holiday (#502)

  This program celebrates some of our most important traditions. Nordic folk woodcarver Harley Refsal brings to life the rich history of winter solstice. Clay artist Susan Garson creates fanciful Chanukah menorahs. George Vanderbilt's opulent turn-of-the-century Christmas is recreated at the Biltmore in Asheville, North Carolina. Daring chefs make lavish gingerbread houses for the competition at Grove Park Inn. Navidad is celebrated in San Antonio with religious processions, tamales and Kathleen Trenchard's sparkling luminarias. Garcia Art Glass makes colorful ornaments, and Veronica Castillo creates a traditional Mexican Tree of Life.

• Industry (#503)

  "Industry" explores the business of the handmade, going into workshops where artists are crafting the future and making contributions to the local and national economies. The program highlights the important connection between the consumer and the maker and explores the value of exquisitely crafted handmade objects in today's creative economy.

• Service (#601)

  "Service," part of the PBS veterans initiative Stories of Service, is the story of craft and the military. From the origins of the Army Arts & Crafts Program and the G.I. Bill to contemporary soldiers and veterans, "Service" documents the power of the handmade to inspire, motivate and heal. Featured artists are Eugene Burks, Jr., Pam DeLuco, Judas Recendez, Ehren Tool and Peter Voulkos.

• Music (#701)

  Focus on the makers of finely crafted handmade instruments - guitar, ukulele, trumpet, banjo and timpani - and the renowned musicians who play them, including Joan Baez, Jake Shimabukuro, Rhiannon Giddens, Scotty Barnhart, Tony Ellis and Joseph Pereira.

• Celebration (#702)

  This episode explores craft artists, objects and traditions of various holidays, featuring Lion Dancers and float builders of San Francisco's Chinese New Year Parade, ceramic artists in Detroit making festive pieces at Pewabic Pottery and Motawi Tileworks, Kwanzaa celebrations in Chicago and Oakland, and woodblock Christmas cards made by Yoshiko Yamamoto in Washington state.

• Teachers (#801)

  Follow artists committed to passing on their skills and passion for craft to new generations. Featured are Barbara Teller Ornelas, Lynda Teller Pete, Therman Statom, Mark Mitsuda at Punahou School and Linda Sikora at Alfred University.

• Nature (#802)

  NATURE celebrates the beauty, inspiration, and future of the American landscape. Featured artists include Patrick Dougherty, Mary Merkel-Hess, Michelle Holzapfel, Catherine Alice Michaelis, and Preston Singletary.

• Borders (#901)

  Explore the relationships and influences Mexican and American craft artists have on each other and on our cultures. The program features traditional weaving and the creation of paper jewelry.

• Neighbors (#902)

  Travel to and from the U.S. and Mexico to explore the people, history, traditions and crafts, noting how aesthetics cross from one country to another and back again in an organic and ongoing cultural exchange.

• California (#1001)

  Explore craft practices definitively Californian, from Native Americans continuing ancient traditions, to contemporary artists expressing new iterations of the art of the handmade.

• Visionaries (#1002)

  Meet artists, curators and collectors who envision limitless possibilities of craft and imagine new methods of achieving that vision.

• Quilts (#1101)

  Learn about contemporary quilters as we celebrate the role quilts have played in our country's story. Featuring Susan Hudson, Victoria Findlay Wolfe, Michael A. Cummings, Judith Content, the International Quilt Museum and special guest Ken Burns.

• Identity (#1102)

  Artists explore issues of gender, race, culture and place, offering true expressions of their experiences in this world. Featuring potter Diego Romero, photographer Cara Romero, furniture maker Wendy Maruyama and sculptor Cristina Cordova.

• Storytellers (#1201)

  Meet artists who use narrative to communicate personal and universal truths. Featuring artist Nicholas Galanin, Julie Schafler Dale, Linda J. Mendelson, George Rodriguez and Christina Bothwell.

• Democracy (#1202)

  Explore how craft is intertwined with our nation's defining principles. Featuring Robert L. Lynch, Sammy Little, Smithsonian Institution museums, Harvey Pratt, the Veterans History Project, Eudorah Moore and Berea College Student Craft.

• Harmony (#1301)

  Celebrate the joy of music and the creation of handcrafted instruments. Featuring Marc Savoy and the Savoy family, bow maker Susan Lipkins, luthier Doug Naselroad, and artist Richard Jolley.

• Jewelry (#1302)

  Explore the history, artistry and impact of personal adornment. Featuring jewelers Tom Herman, Harriete Estel Berman, Art Smith, Gabrielle Gould and Jesse Monongya.

• Inspiration (#1401)

  Inspiration visits the Saar family of artists (Betye Saar, Alison Saar, & Maddy Leeser), Simon Rodia & Watts Towers, weaver Diedrick Brackens, potter Ayumi Horie, Hmong master of paj ntaub embroidery Suzanne Thao & Mandora Young, artist Mary Little.

• Home (#1402)

  Home features Ojibwe artist Biskakone Greg Johnson, North House Folk School, ceramic artist Syd Carpenter, sculptor Wharton Esherick, architect Sim Van der Ryn & the Outlaw Builders, and curatorial consultant/educator Helen Drutt English.

• Play (#1501)

  PLAY explores the intersection of play and artistry, featuring Calder Kamin, Lorena Robletto, Roberto Benavidez, Schroeder Cherry, the Cotsen Children's Library, Chris Green, and the Skirball Cultural Center.

• Miniatures (#1502)

  MINIATURES explores the world of tiny objects and the artists that make them, featuring the International Folk Art Market, Leandro Gomez Quintero, Mark Murphy, Alexander Girard, and Gustave Baumann.

• Science (#1601)

  From the Santa Clara Pueblo in New Mexico to the computer science labs of MIT to NASA, SCIENCE investigates the unexpected intersection between art and the sciences, spanning technology, engineering, biology, math, and the climate emergency.

• Collectors (#1602)

  COLLECTORS reveals the essential role that craft appreciators play in the community. Featuring Chicano art to teapots and wooden spoons, learn what drives collectors and how their support furthers artists at all stages of their careers.