Museum of Craft and Design

Announcing Rob Garza as the guest DJ for the XERO Club After Party! Rob Garza is a visionary musician and producer renowned for his boundary-pushing artistry. As one-half of the pioneering duo Thievery Corporation, Garza helped shape the landscape of electronic music, fusing elements of dub, reggae, world music, and electronica into an unmistakably innovative sound. Join us for a very special GARZA DJ set during the Museum of Craft and Design’s 20th Anniversary Gala on November 22 at Saint Joseph's Arts Society, a night filled with games of chance, a curated silent auction, themed hands-on activities, craft cocktails, and culinary temptations. We’ll keep the party going as XERO Club extends into the night with the After Party celebrating the creative community. Tickets are on sale now for the Gala’s main events and the After Party! ⁠Get your tickets at bit.ly/xero-club

Get your tickets today to XERO Club, the Museum of Craft and Design's 20th Anniversary Gala at San Francisco's Saint Joseph's Arts Society. Don't miss a night of intrigue and excitement. The evening will be filled with friendly games of chance*, a curated silent auction, themed hands-on creations, craft cocktails, and culinary temptations to enjoy. XERO Club will extend into the night with the visionary electronic music of Rob Garza through a special GARZA of Thievery Corporation DJ set during the After Party. Get TICKETS, come out to play, and place your bet on the future with MCD.

Step into a night of intrigue and elegance at XERO Club, MCD’s 20th Anniversary Gala. Tickets are on sale now! 🎩🍸 The Museum of Craft Design invites you to XERO Club, Friday, November 22, 2024, 6:00 PM-11:00 PM at Saint Joseph's Arts Society for a night filled with games of chance, immersive art, and a curated silent auction. Come out to play, and place your bet on the future with MCD. Complimentary valet parking included, with craft cocktails and culinary temptations provided. On view at Saint Joseph’s during XERO Club is the timely exhibition Packing and Cracking—The Art of (and Response to) Gerrymandering featuring quilters and textile artists using their craft to spark a dialogue about gerrymandering, the manipulation of electoral district boundaries, and the tradition of quilting as political dissent. There will be much to explore at XERO Club! 🔗 Purchase your tickets through this link! ➡️ https://bit.ly/xero-club #XeroClub #MuseumofCraftandDesign #SanFrancisco #Charity #Fundraising #SFArt #Art #Nonprofit #SJAF #SJAS #SaintJospehsArtFoundations #SaintJosephsArtSociety

Save the Date! Entry into XERO Club Awaits. 🚪♣️ Get ready to experience MCD’s XERO Club, our 20th Anniversary Gala celebration, on Friday, November 22, 2024 at Saint Joseph’s Arts Society. Become a XERO Club sponsor to gain early event access, and support MCD’s exhibitions and programs. For information, contact Sarah Kermensky, Development Director at 415.651.8224 or skermensky@sfmcd.org Reserve your tickets now! 🔗 🎟️ https://bit.ly/XEROClub [Description: Graphics for Xero Club, MCD’s 20th Anniversary Gala] #XeroClub #MuseumofCraftandDesign #SanFrancisco #Charity #Fundraising #Art #Nonprofit #Charity

Thank you SF Chronicle and Heather Ross for featuring “She Bends: Neon as Soulcraft” in your latest article! 🔆⁠ ⁠ "Over the spring, She Bends and the Museum of Craft and Design selected three teacher-student pairs in Los Angeles, Seattle and Philadelphia for the residency, helping them grow their practices while building hubs of neon know-how across the country.⁠ ⁠ "By creating relationships where one artist is teaching a next generation this trade that’s both an art form and a vocation, we’re not only supporting artists but also supporting a dying medium," explained Ariel Zaccheo, Curatorial Director at the museum."⁠ ⁠ Check out Heather Ross' full article below, then head to MCD to see the neon artwork created during the artist residencies. "She Bends: Neon as Soulcraft" opens July 20!⁠ ⁠ [Image Description: A screenshot of SF Chronicle’s article featuring a photo of artist Kelsey Issel bending neon at Meryl Pataky’s (not pictured) studio in San Francisco on June 12. Gabrielle Lurie/The Chronicle]⁠

Thank you Datebook SF and Tony Bravo for featuring MCD in your latest article! ✨ “This organization [MCD] feels familiar to me, but there will be things that I want to do, places that I want to take it that it hasn’t been,” said Atkinson. “But I don’t think that it’s going to be like dropping off a cliff. It feels like it’s going to be a nice transition.” Read the full article on Datebook SF below.

Thank you Bloomberg CityLab and Kriston Capps for featuring MCD’s new Executive Director, Nora Atkinson, in your latest interview. Read Kriston Capp’s full interview and learn more about how Nora came to MCD, how her experience as the curator for the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington D.C. prepared her for the role, and some of her goals for the future of MCD! Read Capps' full article article at https://lnkd.in/gpxb3RpQ.

Mr. Roboto exhibit https://lnkd.in/ghz_T-bZ is up until June 30th at the San Francisco Museum of Craft and Design. Conducted by approximately 60 San Jose State University students and curated by Virginia San Fratello, Professor and Chair of Department of #Design, and Eleanor Pries, Assistant Professor of Design, Mr. Roboto showcases a collection of design activities and experiments that test the #creative possibilities of collaborating with a robot. It is educational, beautiful, and entertaining. Go Spartans! #research #creativeactivity Shannon Miller Mary Elizabeth Anderson Richard Mocarski Jessica Trask Emily K. Chan

The American Craft Council has announced their 2024 awards honoring distinction in the craft field. We are thrilled to share that MCD's Co-founder and Executive Director, JoAnn Edwards, received the "Award of Distinction." JoAnn has overseen MCD’s vision and growth since its 2003 founding, spearheading its innovative pop-up exhibitions, relocation, and acclaimed reopening in the vibrant Dogpatch district. She is a staunch advocate for artists and an expert in contemporary craft and design. This is truly a well-deserved award and honor. “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.” A huge congratulations to JoAnn Edwards and all of the 2024 ACC award recipients who continue to uplift traditions while advancing the boundaries and impact of contemporary craft!

The Board of Directors of the Museum of Craft and Design (MCD) is pleased to announce the appointment of Nora Atkinson as its new Executive Director. Co-founder and Executive Director, JoAnn Edwards, will retire after over 20 years of visionary and distinguished leadership. Atkinson currently leads the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) in Washington D.C. She brings to MCD 20 years of experience in some of the leading American art museums focusing in craft and design where she has served in leadership and curatorial roles. Board Chair Neil O'Donnell shared the news earlier today, saying “We are thrilled that Nora Atkinson has chosen to bring her enthusiasm and ideas to MCD. She has a distinguished record of innovation and accomplishment that bodes well for the future of MCD with her at its helm.” In Atkinson’s nearly 10 years at the Renwick, she has curated heralded exhibitions such as "This Present Moment: Crafting a Better World", "No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man", and "Murder Is Her Hobby: Frances Glessner Lee and the Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death." Since 2019 she has served as the Fleur and Charles Bresler Curator-in-Charge, overseeing the full range of activities at the Renwick including exhibitions, acquisitions, staff, patron relations, research, and publications. The Search Committee was led by Lisa Bayne, recently retired CEO of Artful Home, and included MCD Board members O’Donnell, Peggy Dalal, and Michon Pinnix, as well as independent curator, author, and historian Glenn Adamson, and former Senior Director of the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, @ Sandra Edwards. The Committee conducted a rigorous nationwide search that produced a large number of highly qualified candidates. But as Board Chair O’Donnell put it, “During the search process Atkinson dazzled us with her combination of energy, vision, and thoughtfulness. Her focus and interests in contemporary art and craft, the role of the handmade in the digital age, and the desire to share new directions in the field of craft and design align perfectly with MCD’s mission and we are confident she will carry on the groundbreaking work Edwards has accomplished.” Learn more about Nora Atkinson's appointment and read MCD's full announcement at sfmcd.org/nora-atkinson/ Image: Courtesy Smithsonian American Art Museum. Photo by Libby Weiler.