This may sound a little over the top, but 2017 is a banner year for books about Canadian fine craft and design. Of course, when talking about books what I’m referring to is more accurately described as exhibition catalogues. But big deal. These publications can contain as much good reading, photography and design as a standard book. And this year, five notable publications stand out, all with something pleasurable to look at and read.
One
A bilingual publication, Canadian Craft Biennial, produced by the Art Gallery of Burlington and Craft Ontario, scores high for how it covers the content of its main exhibition, Can Craft? Craft Can! Sure, the exhibition title is a tad corny, but how fortunate to be presented with images of each work along with nine essays that examine different aspects of Canadian contemporary craft.
Sandra Alfoldy, a leading historian in Canadian craft, considers three key transformations in the handmade between Canada’s 1967 centennial and the 150th anniversary this year. Critic and artist Amy Gogarty explores the theme of sustainability by highlighting some works in the exhibition. And individual artists, including Karen Cantine, Beth Biggs, Cheryl Wilson Smith and the phenomenal jacquard weaver Ruth Scheuing, are given longer essay-style treatments.
In a broader context, the best observation comes from independent curator and writer Gloria Hickey, who considers craft’s deep engagement with object making. She argues that conceptualism in the visual arts in the 1960s and 1970s “created a vacuum where material-based practices (i.e., studio craft) could flourish.” And thrive, I might add, because nothing beats relating to something tactile.
Two
From Toronto’s Gardiner Museum this year’s big offering is True Nordic: How Scandinavia Influenced Design in Canada, co-produced with Britain’s Black Dog Publishing. It’s amazing this is the first publication devoted to a design phenomenon that, especially in the postwar period, infiltrated practically every household in Canada − even if just with a set of brightly printed tea towels. Oh, and ever hear of Ikea? Well, True Nordic will take you much deeper into the history of what my mother used to characterize, not too accurately, as Danish, signalling something stylish and unlikely to be thrown out soon. Despite the catalogue’s rather bland cover there’s good documentation of the objects, which are featured in a touring exhibition of the same name on view at the Vancouver Art Gallery until Feb. 4.
Three
There’s no mistaking a ceramic work by Janet Macpherson, one of the country’s most provocative and intriguing artists at the moment. Her slip cast porcelain menagerie of bandaged rodents and other small animals can’t help but evoke feelings of pain and alarm. Do they foretell a cloning experiment gone horribly awry? Perhaps. But the exhibition catalogue, Janet Macpherson: A Canadian Bestiary, conveys a more surprising story about the Toronto-based artist and the four immersive installations she created for the Gardiner. Given the small scale of many of her animal figurines, photography and layout are key to making her strange world of hybrid bodies imaginable. In this publication, they are.
Four
At more than 65 yards in length, Sandra Sawatsky’s embroidered masterpiece, The Black Gold Tapestry, also requires thoughtful presentation. Fortunately for the artist and the tapestry’s admirers, the exhibition catalogue published by Calgary’s Glenbow Museum is a winner. The writing is excellent and informative. And while the publication is modest in size, it’s as much of a splash of colour and detail as the monumental work itself. Most importantly, the layout helps viewers understand the Calgary-based artist’s nine-year effort.
Five
Is the concept of print-on-demand or custom printing the way to go for craft publications that may have a small audience? If so, Relational Learning: ACAD Ceramics Visiting Artists – The First 3 Decades is a good example of how to do it. It features 90 colour reproductions and accessible writing by instructors at the Alberta College of Art and Design and the many visiting ceramic artists who have spent an entire academic year at the Calgary-based institution. Part history, part personal reminiscences, it casts a wide net over the world of contemporary ceramics.
