In this episode of the Art + Climate series, Contemporary Craft Executive Director Rachel Rearick talks with AMT Lab Lead Researcher Hannah Brainard about their recent exhibition, Climate Awakening: Crafting a Sustainable Future, which explored the human impacts on climate change. They discuss how art can be used as a catalyst for conversation, opening the door for intentional community engagement.
Contemporary Craft is a visual arts organization in Pittsburgh, which fosters the use of traditional craft materials such as ceramic, fiber, glass, metal and wood to make art. Through their exhibitions, studio and store, they honor the history and heritage of craft, while showcasing modern, exploratory work.
transcript
Hannah Brainard
Welcome to another episode of Tech in the Arts, the podcast series of the Arts Management and Technology Laboratory. The goal of our podcast series is to exchange ideas, bring awareness and stay on top of the trends. You're listening to our climate podcast series highlighting artists and industry leaders working at the intersection of climate tech and the arts. My name is Hannah Brainard. My pronouns are she/her and I'm the Lead Researcher for AMT Lab.
Today, I'm joined by Rachel Rearick, the executive director of Contemporary Craft, a nonprofit visual arts organization in Pittsburgh whose mission is to engage the public in creative experiences through contemporary craft. The organization presents innovative exhibitions of contemporary art and craft materials along with a variety of hands-on workshops, lectures, performances, and a variety of community engagement programs. Rachel, thank you so much for joining us today.
Rachel Rearick
Absolutely. Thank you so much for the invitation.
Hannah Brainard
Just to get started, could you talk a little bit more about your background as an artist and as a public administrator, and sort of how those come together in your position at Contemporary Craft?
Rachel Rearick
Sure. Sometimes I struggle to define myself as an artist, while I do make work. I am a printmaker, and I would say, it was pretty early on whenever I was even an undergrad that I was studying art. But I fell much more in love with administration, which I think it's not something a ton of people say, but I really, truly loved policy and procedures and systems development. So then I went on to public administration for my masters. And I knew that I wanted to work in the arts.I wanted to work for a nonprofit. And actually, Contemporary Craft was the first arts organization that I worked for coming out of some more kind of administrative fields. And I just fell in love with craft, the materiality really speaks to me and the way that it kind of translates to other fields and other sectors. So that's how I first came to Contemporary Craft. And it has kind of stayed with me when I was in some other positions because of the materiality. So having the opportunity to come back and really marry all of my interests and affections within art and craft, it was kind of just intrinsic for me.
Hannah Brainard
Yeah, I love that. And I think you're speaking to the right audience that there's this like this art of art administration - that's really fun and interesting. I want to talk a little bit about a recent exhibition called Climate Awakening: Crafting a Sustainable Future. It featured works by artists Susie Ganch, Courtney Mattison, Meghan Price, and Adrien Segal. And really, correct me if I'm wrong, but it's centered around human impact on climate change. I'm wondering, what were some of the motivations behind presenting an exhibit on climate change? And how were these artists in particular selected?
Rachel Rearick
Yeah, so I think I have to rewind for a second and credit my predecessor, Janet McCall. She started what is for us, we consider a social justice series. So this is the fifth exhibition in that series, we had done work about Enough Violence, Artists Speak Out, Mindfulness, and Mental Health, as well as some other topics. So whenever I came back to Contemporary Craft, as the executive director, it was really important to me that we continued showing work in the vein of social justice. And we've expanded some of that work beyond just this series, but we're just trying to stay true to continuing to develop that series. So previously, each of those exhibitions were kind of building on one another. But the way that we did it this time is we had staff do an anonymous survey, and kind of present topics that they had interest in or that they might want to talk about. And then, we had a full staff meeting where we really went through those topics and tried to decide what we could offer as a presenting organization that would speak to the things that we were truly passionate about, and climate really rose to the top, at that time. So we plan this pretty much two years out from the point that it's installed. And yeah, I think it was really important to us through those conversations, that we address the topic from a place of being able to still instill some hope. So I would say that for us, with pretty much every exhibition, but specifically the social justice exhibitions, we're using the art as a catalyst for conversation. And so we felt like if we could present things specifically focused on human impact, it gave us the opportunity to have conversations with our community about how we might be able to have, you know, positive influence on the direction of climate change.
Hannah Brainard
Yeah, and I love that you said that it's a catalyst for conversation because your work doesn't stop in the physical space. You do a lot of programming outside of just the exhibition. Could you talk a little bit more about what some of that programming looked like for Climate Awakening?
Rachel Rearick
Yeah, absolutely. So, again, that's why these exhibitions sit kind of in a series because they have really robust programming around them. We call on community partners, who are experts and professionals in these fields to really serve as the conversation around that artwork. For this, we chose to have less partners and have more in-depth relationships with them, rather than a broad set of partners. And some of the examples I would say that were - you know, they were all meaningful, - but I would say some of the ones that were, it felt like we were actually in relationship with people. One was we were partnered with the Triboro Ecodistrict. And as part of that, they of course, brought members of their team in to do exhibition tours, we talked about the work, they, Brian Rolovich helped develop the curriculum guide. So we had a curriculum guide that was available for teachers to use with their students, either while visiting or talking about the exhibition ahead of visiting. But we also did a community cleanup day with the Triboro Ecodistrict. So it was an opportunity to engage people that might normally work with us or people that worked with them, to go into the Millville community. And we did some planting, some painting of buildings, or restoration type work. They're working on an incredible park project. So that was kind of the impetus for why we worked there with them. And then the other, I would say program that was really kind of substantial was that we had a climate forum. So many of the people who are our partners came and presented that day. And it was open to the public, anybody who worked in the field, people that were just interested, artists, students, etc. And we had a variety of topics, but some of that I can think of off the top of my head were like: the carbon dynamics of crafting honey, or policymaking in Pennsylvania, environmental justice and how you can actually take action, as well as - the thing that I would say blurred both lines - would be the site responsive art practices that we discussed as well. And then we're doing tours with the Green Building Alliance and some other things that, again, we try to always talk about the art first in these conversations, but then move into - now, how are we actually taking action as an organization and also offering that opportunity to the public?
Hannah Brainard
Are those resources available anywhere from that forum that people could reference?
Rachel Rearick
Yeah, we do have them available. I think they're still on our website. That exhibition actually just closed this weekend. But we do have a number of resources that people could still pop in and find.
Hannah Brainard
When I went to visit the exhibition, one of the pieces that stood out to me when I walked in the door, like I was just drawn to it. In the very back, called “Remember Me Katrina” by Susie Ganch - just made up of thousands of plastic lids, and you were talking about, like city cleanup. From a distance, it kind of looked like this beautiful white wave. But as I walked closer, like it's all these plastic lids, and then even closer, you can see the dirt and the lipstick and their coffee stains that really made me process - this is a human impact. It really kind of made me think about that. And so much of that was based around the material of the piece, I think, and I'm just curious sort of how you see the materials used in these pieces changing with the impacts of climate change.
Rachel Rearick
Great question. So if it's okay, I'll answer that in, in kind of two stages. So the first, specifically about that piece by Susie. It's really interesting in conversation with Susie, she was a trained metalsmith. She worked on small metals, jewelry, things along those lines. And of course, that meant always - or not always, but probably most readily - using new metal, metal that comes in sheets, sawing, filing, you know, soldering things along those lines. And there's a lot of conversation, of course, in the craft community in the ethical metalsmiths about where's metal coming from, especially in terms of gemstones or other materials? Are they ethically sourced? Are they coming from mines, you know, all of those kinds of questions that of course, have an impact. So at one point, Susie started what's called Radical Jewelry Makeover, and it's a project that invites people send either their fine jewelry or costume jewelry, whatever it is that they don't want any more for one reason or another, it could be, you know, you could imagine all the reasons that somebody might not want their jewelry anymore.
And then what they do is they have artists sign up to participate, to receive a package from Radical Jewelry Makeover, or they all come together in community, depending on where it's happening, and then essentially disassemble these pieces of jewelry and reassemble them either into new jewelry or new pieces of artwork. And I think, you know, through my conversations with Susie, I certainly don't want to speak for her but, what I kind of came to learn is that, that was really impactful on her own process. So in the sense of saying, “I'm encouraging other people to do this,” she started to investigate what was the material she was using, and what was her impact on the environment. So at that point, she switched to really using more plastics or things that already had a life that she was giving them a second life. So I think that's really beautiful about her work. And I think if you look in the gallery, there was a photograph as well, where it was like bales of hay. But those were made also out of plastic lids that had essentially been stitched together and then rolled up. And Susie's doing what I think is becoming more prevalent in the field that sometimes she will reuse components. So that piece also literally has a second life, that those might be constructed, then deconstructed and put into another piece. So I think the field of craft is seeing more of that happen. Which gets into that larger second part of my answer, which is - I do think many more artists in craft are thinking about that impact. Where are these coming from? How can we use materials that already exist? And in often case, how can I reuse my work to recreate something, if it's not specifically a piece that is for sale?
Hannah Brainard
Wow. Yeah. And thinking about specifically, in Susie's case, a completely different skill set, I would assume, between metalwork and plastic lids, and so maybe keeping some of the same artistic elements. But that would take a lot of learning to transition, I would think.
Rachel Rearick
Yeah, she and I actually talked about that. And she did say it was a challenge. But I think it was so beautifully articulated in some of the work here, because there was another piece where it was all of these beads that were essentially stitched together, the same way that you would create a necklace, however, they were made into this larger sculpture. So she's really, you know, keen and intuitive on how she's taken that practice and then transferred it to a different material.
Hannah Brainard
Amazing, I have to include some photos of this work, because really just looking at it had a huge impact. Sort of switching gears, I have to read this line from your website, talking about the definition of craft. It says “craft to us emanates from a community and lineage, much like it would have historically through processes and practices passed on from one individual to another.” And I think there's this conversation sort of in sustainability about the preservation of culture, and which cultures maybe are experiencing more erasure because of the impacts of climate change. A lot of the physical elements of culture are potentially compromised with rising sea levels and fire. I mean, a museum in Maui was, like, flattened in the fires last summer. So I wonder sort of how you see, maybe the unwritten elements of craft and craft making, sort of continuing this unwritten heritage?
Rachel Rearick
Yeah, that's a super deep question that I probably could talk about for hours. Let me try to be concise. You know, I think there's a couple of ways to look at it. Craft is so intrinsic to our daily lives. From a functional perspective, I think that's why craft as a field is so accessible because for the most part, for us, when we're talking about craft, we're talking about things like wood, metal, clay, glass ceramics. And so while we're showing contemporary work that was made from those materials in our gallery, we're also in our store selling objects that are also made of those materials. And I think there's something to note that through just generations, and as culture has continued to evolve, we can continually find references of culture in things that are functional, similar to bowls or cups or vessels of one kind or another. And it's not just as, you know, cut and dry as like we have found this. And, you know, it's representative, but rather, so many people's hands have touched it before it was found or before it was lost. And I think craft offers us that opportunity to make things that last a lifetime. And that can be carried through generations and histories. And while they're objects and have physical presence, they also carry with them a life of oral histories and oral stories. Not that other visual arts don't, I just think it's very different when your hand has familiarity with something, especially that's functional. And then I think that craft, also, while we do show contemporary work, again, in the gallery that is very focused on conceptual and contextual things, we are also focused on selling craft, whether that be aesthetic or functional. I think there's, for me, I should say, personally - I think there's something about buying a piece that is made by an artist, that is also craft that you may keep for your lifetime, you may pass it on. But it's less about consumerism in a way and more about the quality of that object and living without object. So it's not a field that saying, like, let's make mass production, as much as it is saying, you know, maybe you can buy less mugs, but those mugs will last your entire life, which of course has an impact from, you know, you could say that also for fiber and clothing and fast fashion that, within our field, I feel like there's just this interest in by last, keep it and then share it.
Hannah Brainard
I love that. And sort of I don't know, looking at an object that clearly has taken time to create was made by the hands of an artist - you sort of appreciate the objects in your life more, and maybe want to curate what's in your life a little bit more. I really love that. So you're talking a little bit about the store. Could you tell us maybe more about some of the upcoming programs that you have at Contemporary Craft? Exhibitions you're looking forward to? Anything like that.
Rachel Rearick
Yeah. We, as an organization, have exhibitions, store and studio. So we do programming for the community that is hands-on that people can come in and learn how to make something themselves. You might be an artist, or you might be someone who's looking for an opportunity to be creative for a day. But either way, we really feel like everyone can approach making and at some level walk away feeling good about it. And also we have opportunities for professional artists to work in the studios and really kind of hone their skill sets. But beyond just that broad stroke of what we offer, some of the things we have coming up, I would say that I'm really excited about is it's actually an exhibition, it's not the next one, but it's following called Hereafter. And it is a regional exhibition that is a little bit different for us to focus specifically on regional artists. But it's focused on grief and mourning, and also similar to climate, having a discussion about where is there joy? And where is there opportunity? So we're looking at cross-cultural perspectives on how people grieve or how, how they experience ritual, and having again, just some really deep conversations about how that impacts our lives. We’re doing some programming, offering some mindfulness sessions in the gallery, some grief practice with professionals that work in the field within the gallery. And then also, we have an exhibition coming up. It's called Gei, it's actually a character, and it is focused on Sogetsu and Ikebana, and then we're working with three artists. So we're going to create an immersive experience in the gallery with bamboo and willow. So there is actually an artist that works with us who harvest Willow, and he grows it, harvests it and then makes baskets from it, and it's absolutely beautiful and stunning. So he's working to grow some of the willow specifically for that exhibition. And then bamboo that will need to be cut and harvested at the end of season, we will use and let it kind of naturally decay in the gallery over time. And the artists are making vessels to hold all of this material.
Hannah Brainard
Just sort of curiosity, what's the process like for transportation of those materials into the gallery?
Rachel Rearick
So it's all locally sourced material and probably we will go over with a truck and just kind of fill up the truck bed and bring it back. Yeah.
Hannah Brainard
So just sort of my last question for you is looking towards the future. How do you see Contemporary Craft taking on issues of climate change? And maybe more broadly, how do you see curatorial practice transitioning in the world of climate change?
Rachel Rearick
I think it's something that as an organization, with any of these exhibitions that we do that have social impact, we do think about, it can't end after that exhibition. So we are thinking about the ways that we install work or working with artists that are sensitive to, like I said, reusing materials or focusing on practices within their own work that are sustainable. I think it's something, also, that as we expand and grow, like physically as an organization, and we talk a lot about space allocation, and usage, and how we can be responsive as an organization, you know, to not taking up space that we don't need, and at the same time having enough space. And then I think from a curatorial perspective, again, it's really thinking about who we work with, how we get their work, how we share that work with other organizations or institutions. So we do traveling exhibitions, for instance. So if crates are already created, and they're already made for something, is it easy to then continue to use that work instead of new work? Also, I would say that we're thinking about objects in our permanent collection, and how we might be able to, from time to time, utilize things that already exist instead of creating new things.
Hannah Brainard
Well, thank you so much for your time today. I've really enjoyed the conversation and I look forward to these future programs at Contemporary Craft.
Rachel Rearick
Absolutely. Thank you so much for, again, the invitation and the opportunity to talk about it.
Hannah Brainard
Thank you for listening to the Climate Series on Tech in the Arts. Be on the lookout for new episodes coming to you very soon. If you found this episode informative, educational, or inspirational, be sure to send this to another arts, climate or technology aficionado in your life. You can let us know what you think of this podcast by visiting our website amtlab.org. That's a-m-t dash l-a-b dot o-r-g. Or you can email us at amtlabcmu@gmail.com. Follow us on Instagram at Tech in the arts or Facebook and LinkedIn at Arts Management and Technology Lab. We'll see you next time.