AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL ANNOUNCES AWARDS
HONORING DISTINCTION IN THE CRAFT FIELD
2024 Awards include The College of Fellows, Gold Medal for Consummate Craftsmanship, Award of Distinction, and Aileen Osborn Webb Award for Philanthropy
Minneapolis, MN (January 23, 2024) – The American Craft Council (ACC), a national nonprofit dedicated to advancing American craft, announced today the winners of its four major awards. This year marks the 54th year of the awards honoring individuals and organizations for exceptional artistic, scholarly and philanthropic contributions to the craft field.
First presented in 1970, and biennially since 2010, the ACC Awards include the College of Fellows, the Gold Medal for Consummate Craftsmanship, the Award of Distinction, and the Aileen Osborn Webb Award for Philanthropy. This year’s awards highlight 17 artists, curators and arts advocates and who continue to uplift traditions while advancing the boundaries and impact of contemporary craft.
ACC will celebrate this year’s honorees during a virtual ceremony in September of this year. Specific date, time, and details forthcoming.
Biennially, ACC accepts nominations for its awards, which typically come from the current Fellows and a guest list of nominators. Honorees are selected by an Awards Committee, comprised of past Fellows or Honorary Fellows, and are chosen based on professional accomplishments, achievements and support of the craft field.
“This cohort of honorees is an exceptional group of artists, educators and arts advocates who have dedicated themselves and their careers to not only their craft but the craft field as a whole,” said Andrea Specht, executive director, ACC. “Their impact on the arts community has and continues to shape the field and will continue to influence generations to come. We’re honored to recognize them for their contributions.”
“One of the most valuable aspects of the ACC Awards program is that it has a long history that deepens with every new award cycle,” shared Tom Loeser, ACC Fellow 2012, Awards Committee Chair and ACC Trustee. “This year the awardees are amazing, envelope-expanding, inspirational, and risk-taking creative forces. The American Craft Council is honored to celebrate this stellar group of awardees as they continue to create the evolving history of the craft field.”
ACC Awards programming is possible thanks to generous support from the Windgate Charitable Foundation.
Lynda Watson, of Santa Cruz, CA, is an artist specializing in jewelry who was awarded two individual National Endowment for the Arts Fellowships and was named Santa Cruz County Artist of the Year. In 2022, she was selected Master Metalsmith by the Metal Museum in Memphis, TN.
Her work has been shown nationally and internationally and is in the permanent collections of museums here and abroad. It has appeared in numerous books and periodicals and a catalog of her work was recently published by the Metal Museum.
Lynda is a long time member of the Monterey Bay Metal Arts Guild
2024 ACC AWARD HONOREES
Visit the ACC website at craftcouncil.org for more information about all the honorees
GOLD MEDAL FOR CONSUMMATE CRAFTSMANSHIP
Nick Cave (Chicago, IL)
Wendy Maruyama (San Diego, CA)
Anne Wilson (Evanston, IL)
COLLEGE OF FELLOWS
Syd Carpenter (Philadelphia, PA)
Michael A. Cummings (New York City, NY)
Einar and Jamex De La Torre (San Diego, CA)
Yuri Kobayashi (Camden, ME)
Mark Newport (Hamtramck, MI)
Michael Puryear (Shokan, NY)
Diego Romero (Santa Fe, NM)
Lynda Watson (Santa Cruz, CA)
HONORARY FELLOWS
Diana Baird N’Diaye, Ph.D. (Cheverly, MD), Cultural Specialist and Curator, Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage
Cindi Strauss (Houston, TX), Sara and Bill Morgan Curator of Decorative Arts, Craft, and Design, Museum of Fine Arts Houston
AWARD OF DISTINCTION
JoAnn Edwards (San Francisco, CA),Co-Founder and Executive Director, Museum of Craft and Design
Carol Sauvion (Beverly Hills, CA),Founder and Director, Craft in America
AILEEN OSBORN WEBB AWARD FOR PHILANTHROPY
Charles “Chuck” Duddingston (Minneapolis, MN)
American Craft Council (ACC) is a national nonprofit working to keep the craft community connected, inspired, and thriving. Founder Aileen Osborn Webb recognized the significant impact craft has on individuals and communities and established the nonprofit to preserve, cultivate, and celebrate this communal heritage. Eighty years later, the organization’s efforts span the nation. ACC shares stories and amplifies voices through American Craft magazine and other online content, creates marketplace events that support artists and connect people to craft, and celebrates craft’s legacy through longstanding awards and a unique research library. A range of other programs creates space for dialogue and action—because ACC believes craft can bring us together as people. Learn more at craftcouncil.org.
