The CCF/FCMA, in partnership with the Alberta Craft Council and the Alberta College of Art + Design are very pleased to announce that Shannon Stratton, Chief Curator at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, will be the keynote speaker at our upcoming conference, “Cultivating Craft: Pathways to Practice”.

A perfect fit for the conference, Stratton brings an international perspective steeped in Canadian experience. An alumni of the Alberta College of Art + Design (ACAD) with a background in contemporary conceptual craft, she will address the sustainability of of formal and traditional craft education, as well as the need to raise the value of craft in society in order to raise the value of craft as a practice, as a career, and as a commodity.

Although she studied in Canada, Shannon Stratton’s career is deeply rooted in America, including her time in Chicago, Illinois, where she spent twelve years as the founder and executive director of Threewalls (an organization that offers grants and resources to artists practicing in the Chicago area) and through her teaching position at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the very same school from which she earned her MA.

Now the Chief Curator at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, she will bring a valuable perspective and breadth of experience to “Cultivating Craft”. Her presentation will be the launching talk of the conference, taking place during the Evening Symposium & Awards Ceremony on October 14th, followed by a full day of panel discussions and lively conversation on a variety of craft-education based topics of interest on October 15th.

The full programming for the CCF/FCMA’s 11th Annual National Craft Conference, “Cultivating Craft: Pathways to Practice”, takes place October 13th – 16th at the Alberta College of Art + Design in Calgary. Be sure to catch Shannon Stratton’s presentation by joining us in October – register today!