Exploration and insight require time and commitment. The Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation Awards in Craft seek to make both possible for devoted craftspeople and artists from around the country who strive to express what we see and experience in our world through engagement with material. The award recognizes practitioners committed to material mastery and exploration with practices encompassing the stewardship of living cultural traditions, unique insight in material study, and the advancement of craft at the intersection of other fields including science. We recognize that arts funding, especially for craftspeople, is lacking in the US, and we encourage others to commit to these fields.
2022 marks the first year for the Awards in Craft, and each year we aim to give five craftspeople $100,000. These are one-time, unrestricted awards intended to amplify the voices and work of each craftsperson and give them time and funding as they grow in their careers and propel their work forward. This year’s award winners were selected by a committee of panelists for their unique and visionary approach to material-based practice, their potential to make significant contributions to their craft in the future, and the potential for this award to provide momentum at a critical juncture in their career.
The foundation partnered with United States Artists to pilot and administer the program. The selection panel for this inaugural group of recipients included Andrea Hanley, chief curator of the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian in Santa Fe, N.M.; Fabio J. Fernandez, director of Greenwich House Pottery in New York; and Sarah Turner, president of The North Bennet Street School in Boston. We aim to recognize the vibrancy of the field and the importance of these artists’ varied, hands-on explorations of cultural heritage, emerging technologies, materials and trades, and the intersections between them. Self-nominations for the awards are not accepted.
Learn more about all winners and their work below, and read more details here.
