By Christina Chacon
The June events list is here! Wonderful and exciting options for your creative side. Check out Dwell on Design in LA (say hi when stop by our booth there, AND stay to watch some Handful of Salt profiles strut their stuff on the NEW Dwell Demo Stage!); explore Iron Twenty Ten for a look into the under discussed world of blacksmiths and their work; or get outside at an event like the Contemporary Craft Festival in the UK, showcasing some of the best work all over Britain. For you luck folks in Colorado, Yves Saint Laurent: The Retrospective promises to be an amazing visual experience, and the venue is the only one in the US to be hosting the collection.
Northern California
Image Courtesy of March
May 17-July 31, 2012 @ March 3075 Sacramento Street, San Francisco
San Francisco’s thinking person’s kitchen/gatherings emporium, March, curates some pretty glorious goods. And now it’s curating mini-exhibits featuring works by Jonathan Kline, Maria Moyer, and Josh Vogel who individually and collectively “elevate humble materials to an art form.” Who can resist? Opening reception is May 17 from 5-8 pm.
June 11-17, 2012 @ Zinc Details. Opening Reception: June 12, 6-8 pm
Part pop up store, part gallery event, come and celebrate some of the best of SF design. SF Local Design Market participants include 3 Fish Studios, Rachel Gant, Jeremiah Collection, Meg O’Halloran, Beau Oyler and Jared Aller, PapaLlama, Justin Porcano, Kaii Tu, Nick and Beau Trincia, Jeni Tu, Mahsa Vanaki and design book publishers Gingko Press, which will be organizing a pop-up design bookstore. Part of SF Design Week.
Public Glass: Artists and Artisans Auction Gala
June 23, 2012 @ Fort Mason, SF, 6 pm.
Public Glass’ 8th Annual Artists & Artisans Benefit Auction Gala. The gala will feature the exquisite creations of more than 60 local, national and international glass artists, all up for bid via live and silent auction. This event is Public Glass’ biggest fundraiser of the year, providing vital financial support for three shops, used by 66 resident artists, and for its education program. Buy tickets here.
Hedge Gallery Presents: Erna Aaltonen, “Nostalgia”
April 27th – June 9th, 2012 @ Hedge Gallery
Hedge Gallery is delighted to present the first American exhibition of work by Finnish ceramic artist Erna Aaltonen. New sculpture will be presented, a mix of tall amoeba-like forms and graceful vessels, evidence of Aaltonen’s ongoing preoccupation with formal clarity and richly-hued surface.
The Fashion World of Jean Paul Gaultier, From Sidewalk to Catwalk
March 24 – August 29, 2012 @ De Young Museum, San Francisco
Fashion’s bad boy is a master of the provocative. He’s also a master of the craft. This dynamic, multimedia exhibition will include 140 haute couture and prêt-à-porter designs created between the mid-1970s and 2010, along with numerous sketches, archival documents, fashion photographs, and video clips that spotlight Gaultier’s collaborations with filmmakers, choreographers, and musicians, most notably Madonna.
San Francisco Center for the Book Workshops
Month of June @ San Francisco Center for the Book
SFCB workshops have a whole new line up to enjoy. From bookbinding to calligraphy, there is a workshop for every interest and every level to choose from. Check out their website for a complete list of exciting classes.
Southern California
June 22-24, 2012 @ Los Angeles Convention Center
The confab for all things modern–and this year HANDFUL OF SALT!– hits LA in a few weeks. Come see the latest and greatest for interiors, listen to architects talk, and prepare to be dazzled (and learn a few things) in demonstrations (including ones we’re putting on with the great designers and wood alchemists Justin and Kagan from KnowHow Shop LA, Japanese wrapper (yes, with a W) Megumi Inouye demonstrating the craft of presentation, tile magician Jacqueline Moore (who’ll bring some classic soul to all that modernism), and fab designer and maker Brandon Morrison from Whyrhymer. Come for Trade Day on Friday, or take your time and linger (with us!) over the weekend. Can’t wait to see you! Stay tuned on Handful of Salt promotions, events, and inside news on our LA events and whereabouts via Facebook and Twitter.
June 30 to September 10, 2012 @ Heath LA
Starnet, one of the most respected galleries and design stores in Japan, marks its United States debut with a Summer Shop called “Starnet Works,” installed at Heath Ceramics Los Angeles. Designed by Starnet Founder Baba Koshi and made by artisans in the Starnet workshop, items in the show include hand-thrown ceramic vases and bowls, leather bags, shoes and hand woven and dyed textiles.
Starnet Works is curated and produced by Playmountain’s Shin Nakahara and Heath LA Studio Director Adam Silverman. Founded by acclaimed designer Baba Koshi in 1998, Starnet, in Mashiko, Japan, is known for its unique and constantly revolving collection of handcrafted home items, clothing and accessories.
Midwest
Texture and Tradition: Japanese Woven Bamboo
June 30, 2011 – July 29, 2012 @ The Denver Art Museum, Colorado
Focused on Japanese woven bamboo, over 70 beautiful pieces will be displayed in this installation, including baskets, screens, trays, containers, accessories, hand warmers, and a chair. Among the works on view are pieces by basket makers who have been designed Living National Treasures.
Image Courtesy of The Denver Art Museum
Yves Saint Laurent: The Retrospective
March 25 – July 8th, 2012 @ The Denver Art Museum, Colorado
A sweeping retrospective of the designer’s 40 years of creativity, Yves Saint Laurent: The Retrospective features a stunning selection of 200 haute couture garments along with numerous photographs, drawings, and films that illustrate the development of Saint Laurent’s style and the historical foundations of his work. Organized thematically, the presentation melds design and art to explore the full arc of his career, from his first days at Dior in 1958 to the splendor of his evening dresses from 2012.
East Coast
Transformation 8: Contemporary Works in Small Metals
February 3, 2012 – June 30, 2012 @ Society for Contemporary Craft, Pittsburgh, PA
The finalists for the 2011 Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize established in 1997 in honor of Elizabeth Raphael, founder of the Society for Contemporary Craft have been selected and will be included in the biennial juried exhibition, Transformation 8: Contemporary Works in Small Metals.
June 2 – October 7, 2012 @ Fuller Craft Museum, Boston MA
Iron Twenty Ten: A Juried Exhibition of Contemporary Blacksmithing offers both the casual viewer and the seasoned metalsmith a comprehensive survey of the finest contemporary blacksmithing in the United States today. The artists in the exhibition are united by a commitment to the highest levels of craft and a point of view that is both distinct and contemporary.
February 18th, 2012 – September 3, 2012 @ Fuller Craft Museum, Massachusetts
Dan Dailey, the first graduate student of Dale Chihuly, has pursued his own unique voice in glass, from his singular work in antique Vitrolite sheet class to complex constructions of blown glass and metal. This retrospective exhibition focuses on the various methods and techniques employed by the glass artist during his 40-year career.
Swept Away: Dust, Ashes, and Dirt in Contemporary Art and Design, through August 12, Museum of Arts and Design, NY
MAD has a way with unsual materials. This exhibit features works that deal with issues such as the ephemeral nature of art and life, the quality and content of memory, issues of loss and disintegration, and the detritus of human existence. Sculptures made from ash by Chinese artist Zhang Huan, life-size sculptures of unfired dirt by American artist James Croak, and works created from city smog by American artist Kim Abeles, among others, illustrate the transformative potential of humble, overlooked, and discarded materials.
May 15- June 4, 371 Madison Street, New York
The BOFFO Show House will bridge art and design through installation showcasing designers and artists in a residential setting with the goal of creating a profound and relevant experience representing modern living at a visually enticing Manhattan destination. Opening Reception: Saturday May 19 from 7-10.
United Kingdom
June 15-17 @Mill Marsh Park, Bovey Tracey, Devon
The Contemporary Craft Festival showcases the very best in British craft and creates a new, sustainable and strong market place for contemporary craft. The festival showcases both new and familiar artists and is one of the most prestigious and highly acclaimed craft events in the UK.
June 13-17, 2012 @ Somerset House, London
The Goldsmiths’ Company Pavilion is a contemporary jewelry selling exhibition featuring some of the hottest independent designer-makers in the UK. From glittering gold bling to subtle statements in silver; elegant evening pearls to sparkling bejeweled cufflinks; colorful enamel curiosities to platinum wedding bands; the Goldsmiths’ Company Pavilion offers something for everyone.
British Design 1948-2012: Innovaton in the Modern Age, March 31-August 12, @ Victoria and Albert Museum, London
This exhibit elebrates the best of British post-war art and design from the 1948 ‘Austerity Games’ to the summer of 2012. Over 300 British design objects highlight significant moments in the history of British design and how the country continues to nurture artistic talent and be a world leader in creativity and design.
May 3-August 12, @ Barbican Art Gallery
This exhibit elebrates the best of British post-war art and design from the 1948 ‘Austerity Games’ to the summer of 2012. Over 300 British design objects highlight significant moments in the history of British design and how the country continues to nurture artistic talent and be a world leader in creativity and design.
May 10-June 16, @ Gallery Libby Sellers
Pottery manufacturer Royal Tichelaar Makkum invited a handful of Dutch designers, including Helena Jongerius, Jurgen Bey, Studio Job, and Alexander van Slobbe to work with their craftsman reinterpret their pyramids, the extraordinary Delftware flower vases that were fashionable in the 17th century.
May 10-June 16, @ Gallery Libby Sellers