(HOUSTON, TX) December 11, 2013 —Houston Center for Contemporary Craft (HCCC) is pleased to announce that Elizabeth Kozlowski will join its staff in January, 2014, as its new curator.
Kozlowski, who comes to HCCC with a background in contemporary craft and museum studies, plans to continue in her role as a facilitator of the arts and welcomes the opportunities that Houston presents: “I am especially interested in supporting the role of the makers and creators of objects that become such an integral part of our lives, and I’m excited to be in the middle of Houston’s vibrant arts community, where so much is happening within the field of contemporary craft.” As Curator at HCCC, she will oversee all aspects of exhibitions, including curating original exhibitions, coordinating traveling shows, creating related programming and events, and managing curatorial staff.
Kozlowski was recently awarded a Masters with Honors in Museum Studies through the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. For the past two years, she has served as the Windgate Curatorial Fellow at the Arizona State University Art Museum. As the Windgate Curatorial Fellow, she was responsible for the development, execution, and management of a wide-ranging initiative that explored the concepts surrounding craft within the context of contemporary art. The fellowship culminated in a national traveling exhibition, Crafting a Continuum: Rethinking Contemporary Craft, accompanied by a 192-page catalog with the same title, to be hosted by Houston Center for Contemporary Craft in the summer of 2015.
Originally from Delaware, Kozlowski has spent most of her professional curatorial career at organizations across the southwestern United States. Prior to her position at Arizona State University Art Museum, she served as Gallery Director for Florida Craftsmen, Inc., a statewide nonprofit organization representing fine-craft artists in St. Petersburg, Florida. The retail gallery represents over 200 artists working in clay, glass, metal, fiber and wood. Both national and international artists were introduced to the local community through numerous exhibitions curated by Kozlowski during her tenure. In 2010, she had the opportunity to work for the National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts (NCECA) and their 45th Annual Clay Conference, which took place in the Tampa Bay area. As the on-site assistant to the co-liaisons, she placed over 90 concurrent NCECA shows throughout the Bay area, while curating two exhibitions for the conference. Immigrant Impact, co-curated with Anna Holcombe, focused on international artists living in the United States and their personal experiences of emigration. The White Show was a generational survey of women artists working in clay and living in Florida. Eager to gain more museum experience, Kozlowski travelled to Bentonville, Arkansas, in 2011, where she worked as an assistant preparator for the newly constructed Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.
About Houston Center for Contemporary Craft
Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is a nonprofit arts organization founded to advance education about the process, product and history of craft. HCCC serves as an important cultural and educational resource for Houston and the Southwest—one of the few venues in the country dedicated exclusively to craft at the highest level. HCCC provides exhibition, retail and studio spaces to support the work of local and national artists. In addition, HCCC is a wonderful resource for art educators and provides mission-related educational programs in schools and underserved communities. Visitors enjoy viewing innovative exhibitions, visiting the resident artist studios, creating their own crafts in monthly HANDS-ON HOUSTON events, and shopping for one-of-a-kind gifts and home décor in the Asher Gallery.
Located in the Museum District at 4848 Main Street, HCCC is open Tuesday through Saturday, 10 AM – 5 PM, and Sunday, 12 – 5 PM. Summer Hours: Closed Sundays, July 4th – Labor Day. Winter Holiday Hours: Closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, December 26th, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. Admission is free. Free parking is available directly behind the facility, off Rosedale and Travis Street. HCCC is three blocks south of Wheeler Ave. MetroRail station on Main Street.
HCCC is funded in part by grants from The Brown Foundation; Houston Endowment, Inc.; the City of Houston through the Houston Arts Alliance; Texas Commission on the Arts; the National Endowment for the Arts; the Kinder Foundation; the Morgan Foundation; Windgate Charitable Foundation; and the Wortham Foundation. United Airlines is the official airline of Houston Center for Contemporary Craft. For more information, call 713.529.4848 or visit www.crafthouston.org. Follow HCCC on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
