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| Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show | |
|---|---|
| Name | Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show |
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Craft fair |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Location | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
| Venue | Philadelphia Museum of Art |
| First | 1950s |
| Organizer | Philadelphia Museum of Art |
Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show The Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show is an annual juried exhibition and marketplace held at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The show brings together makers, curators, collectors, and scholars from institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Institution and Victoria and Albert Museum and draws visitors from cultural centers like New York City, Washington, D.C., Boston, Baltimore, and Chicago. Historically associated with fundraising efforts for the Philadelphia Museum of Art and partnerships with organizations including the Crafts Council, the event features works that enter collections at places such as the Art Institute of Chicago, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Renwick Gallery, and the Brooklyn Museum.
The show traces antecedents to mid-20th century American craft movements connected to figures and institutions like Anni Albers, Margaret Evangeline, Willem de Kooning exhibitions, and galleries such as Guild of Artists and Artisans. During the Cold War era the show intersected with cultural diplomacy initiatives exemplified by exchanges with the United States Information Agency and exhibitions circulated through the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service. In the 1960s and 1970s craft revival circles involving artists affiliated with Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, Penland School of Craft, and Cranbrook Academy of Art influenced the curatorial criteria. By the 1990s collaborations expanded to include contemporary craft advocates from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Cooper Union, Pratt Institute, and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
The show is organized by staff and committees drawn from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, trustees, local arts organizations such as the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and regional arts councils including the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. The format typically combines a juried exhibition, live demonstrations, and an artisanal marketplace resembling events at venues like Jacob K. Javits Convention Center and Harrisburg Farm Show Complex. Programming often features panels with curators from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, critics from the New York Times, and educators from the University of the Arts (Philadelphia), Temple University, and Drexel University.
Exhibitors range from solo studio artists to small workshops associated with makers who have taught at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, served residencies at the American Craft Council, or appeared in exhibitions at the Renwick Gallery and Philadelphia Museum of Art. The selection process uses jurors drawn from institutions including the Museum of Modern Art, Cooper Hewitt, Pratt Institute, Brooklyn Museum, and private collectors from Christie’s and Sotheby’s. Applicants submit portfolios evaluated for craftsmanship, originality, and exhibition history; many accepted artists maintain practices connected to studios in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and New York.
Featured works span disciplines represented in collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum, Cooper Hewitt, and Art Institute of Chicago: ceramics, glass, textiles, metalwork, furniture, jewelry, and woodwork. Notable categories include studio ceramics informed by techniques from artists and workshops related to Bernard Leach, kiln-formed glass influenced by practitioners associated with Corning Museum of Glass, contemporary jewelry resonant with designers from F.I.D.E.M. circuits, and furniture reflecting traditions taught at Cranbrook Academy of Art and Ravenscroft School of Art and Design.
Attendance draws collectors, curators, and public audiences from metropolitan regions anchored by New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia. The show has served as a marketplace where works enter museum collections such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, and the Brooklyn Museum, while also supporting small businesses and artisan economies linked to districts like Old City, Philadelphia and Fishtown. Media coverage has appeared in outlets including the New York Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Artforum, Hyperallergic, and Crafts Magazine.
The event bestows juried awards and purchase prizes adjudicated by representatives from institutions such as the Cooper Hewitt, Renwick Gallery, Museum of Arts and Design, Baltimore Museum of Art, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art themselves. Past awardees have included makers who later exhibited at the Museum of Modern Art, received fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, or awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and the American Craft Council.
Held within the landmark setting of the Philadelphia Museum of Art—near sites like the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, the Rodin Museum, and Fairmount Park—the show utilizes galleries and adjacent tented spaces configured for display, shipping, and conservation-grade handling following standards practiced at institutions such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution. Logistics coordinate with transportation hubs including 30th Street Station and Philadelphia International Airport, and with local services provided by agencies such as the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Category:Craft fairs in the United States Category:Events in Philadelphia