More about Garth Clark

The lecture I mentioned to a few weeks ago with Craft Emissary Garth Clark was fantastic. There was a lot of valuable information about the history of the craft movement in America, which of course peppered with examples from his first-hand experiences and a bit of, um, well, colorful opinions. Of course he won my heart when he subtly suggested that the hub for American Craft might well be found in Portland rather than New York, but I'm trying not to gloat about that too much.

For those of you who may have missed the talk due to scheduling conflicts or logistics of proximity, you can hear the entire talk online, courtesy of the Museum of Contemporary Craft. I must also mention a great interview that was run on Port right around the time the lecture hit town. Hmmm...maybe Portland IS the center of the craft universe?

The accompanying image is a piece by another one of my heroes, Beatrice Wood. Garth Clark was a big champion of her work during the 25+ year-run of his eponymous galleries in Los Angeles and New York. I have been a fan of hers since reading her autobiography 20 years ago that chronicles the time she spent in the company of artists like Marcel Duchamp. Which reminds me, Garth Clark told the audience that he actually asked Beatrice Wood what it was like to have conjugal relations with Mr. Duchamp. Do you want to hear the answer? You'll have to listen to the podcast because I'm not telling!