The Capital of Craft
What was once a weekend event has blossomed into a five-day celebration, thanks to the combined forces of two Washington, D.C., craft powerhouses.
The James Renwick Alliance (JRA) has partnered with the Smithsonian Women’s Committee, producers of the Smithsonian Craft Show, to host Craft Week DC 2009.
The alliance, a support group of the Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, has traditionally sponsored a weekend event for craft collectors each spring. This year, the weekend will run concurrently with the Smithsonian Craft Show, held April 23-26 at the National Building Museum. Highlights include:
- A curator-led tour of “The Art and Craft of Greene & Greene,” an exhibition at the Renwick that examines the work of the Arts & Crafts designers Charles and Henry Greene;
- A tour of select Georgetown galleries;
- Open studios and artist demonstrations at the Gateway Arts Community in Mt. Rainer, Md.;
- A discussion of artists’ lives by “Masters of the Medium” awardees at the JRA Spring Craft Weekend Symposium;
- Silent and live auctions at the JRA Spring Craft Weekend Gala;
- A preview of work by artists who have taught at the Penland School of Crafts at Habatat Galleries in Tysons Corner, Va.
- Craft Week DC runs April 22-26; for details, visit www.jra.org or www.smithsoniancraftshow.org.
