Glenn Adamson - Craft Is Art
The Thomas J. Volpe Lecture Series welcomed Glenn Adamson, Director of the Museum of Arts and Design as the latest speaker in the series on February 29, 2016.
Dr. Adamson covered a wide range of topics including stressing how important it is to recognize the work that goes in to making art, not just the final work. He hopes people pay attention to the nature of craft and how things are produced, not just artwork, but everyday items as well.
Adamson pointed to the Jabulani, the special soccer ball made for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa as an example of how pieces from all over the world are brought together, with the help of machines and people, to make a unique product.
(Watch the Glenn Adamson Volpe Lecture)
Dr. Glenn Adamson became the Nanette L. Laitman Director of the Museum in October 2013. Previously he lead the Research Department at Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) in London. He has also published several books including The Invention of Craft (V&A, Bloomsbury, 2013), The Craft Reader (Berg, 2010), Thinking Through Craft (V&A, Berg, 2007), and is founding co-editor of the Journal of Modern Craft, a peer-reviewed academic journal.
The mission of the Museum of Arts and Design (MAD) is to collect, display, and interpret objects that document contemporary and historic innovation in craft, art, and design. In its exhibitions and educational programs, the Museum celebrates the creative process through which materials are crafted into works that enhance contemporary life.
This is the third Volpe Lecture event of the school year. Steve Hindy, co-founder of Brooklyn Brewery and San Antonio Spurs Assistant Coach Becky Hammon also appeared.
The lecture series is funded through a generous gift from Thomas J. Volpe, Chairman Emeritus of the St. Francis College Board of Trustees and a former Senior Vice President of Financial Operations for The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc..
Guest speakers offer an international perspective in a variety of fields; from business leaders to world leaders. Past speakers include astrophysicists Neil deGrasse Tyson (Cosmos), Jerry Greenfield (Ben & Jerry's), authors Frank Bruni (New York Times), Pete Hamill (Snow in August), E.L. Doctorow (Ragtime) and Salman Rushdie (Midnight's Children), Russell Simmons (Def Jam), Mariane Pearl (wife of slain reporter Daniel Pearl), Paul Rusesabagina (the real Hotel Rwanda hero), Lech Walesa (former President of Poland, Nobel Prize winner) and George Mitchell (former U.S. Senator, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, baseball steroids report).