SNAG 38th Annual Conference: Revolution

Revolution, the 2009 Society of North American Goldsmith’s conference, will take place May 20-23rd in Philadelphia, birthplace of the American Revolution. Revolution can be defined in many ways: sudden change; a movement against a current situation; the actions of individuals or groups of individuals ´revolutionaries.` On SNAG`s 40th anniversary, this conference will provide the critical context to consider the future of our profession, provide us the opportunity to reflect upon our history, and ultimately celebrate the independent thinkers and decisive movements that ensure change, growth and evolution in our discipline.

Philadelphia is not only known for the Declaration of Independence and the first Capitol, but it is also a city of firsts in the Arts; opening the first art school and art museum in America, and the first and oldest Diamond District in the United States. The city continues its revolution in arts education, as Philadelphia contains three major art schools with three historically strong and distinctive metal programs: The University of Arts, Tyler School of Art/Temple University, and Moore College of Art & Design.

The conference will take place in the Loews Hotel, a National Historic Landmark which was Howe & Lescaze`s1932 PSFS(Philadelphia Savings Fund Society) building. This building is widely considered the first International Style skyscraper, and is a dramatic setting for our gathering.

From Independence Hall to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia has much to explore and enjoy, and is the perfect setting for SNAG 2009. We have an exciting program of speakers and exhibitions that investigates and provokes dialogue, surrounding REVOLUTION from both historical and contemporary perspectives. We hope to see you in May 2009.

Doug Bucci & Vickie Sedman
SNAG 2009: Philadelphia Conference Co-Chairs

Activities

Opening Night Receptionn and PIn Swap
A Pin Swap will take place during the Opening Night Reception at the Philadelphia conference. Swap your pins or beads with other conference-goers over hors d’oeuvres and drinks. Keep it clever, simple and inexpensive. The Pin Swap is an informal and fun opportunity for seasoned and new conference attendees to meet one another. If you plan to participate, make and bring pins to trade and give out; generally bringing 30 to 50 pins works, while some people bring 100. However many you bring - the Pin Swap is all about having fun! 

Conference Presentations
Keynote Speaker
Stanley Lechtzin, Artist/ Temple University, Tyler School of Art, Professor and Head of Metals/Jewelry/CAD-CAM Area
“American Metalsmithing Revolutionaries”

Lechtzin is an internationally recognized jewelry artist known for his pioneering and revolutionary work with digital technologies that continually push the boundaries of the metals field.

He was the first in the crafts to work extensively with electro forming in making jewelry. He received numerous grants and awards for the development of this technique. Lechtzin studied jewelry with Philip Fike and Richard Thomas. Lechtzin believes artists are society’s cultural antennae and as such must address current societal issues. This has led him to his vision of Computer-Aided-Design/3D printing as a new craft medium. Lechtzin sees unique objects as having societal importance. Therefore he is engaged in an exploration of how crafts must change, while still maintaining their historical values.

Since 1962, Lechtzin has lived in Philadelphia after being brought there by Temple University to start the Craft Department at its Tyler School of Art, where as a professor, he continues to head the Metals/Jewelry/CAD-CAM area. For over 50 years, Lechtzin’s work has been exhibited extensively in the United States and abroad and is represented in many books and permanent collections.


Program Speakers
Leo Caballero, Klimt 02/Community co-founder
“Globally Networking in a Global Community”
Caballero is a Spanish artist and co-founder of the innovative Klimt02/Community and web gallery in Barcelona. His presentation will focus on evaluating the principles and objectives with which Klimt 02/Community was started in 2001, its impact on the jewelry world, and its journey and development during the past seven years of global networking through a website that offers knowledge, information, debates, and exchanges inside the context of contemporary jewelry.

Myra Mimlitsch-Gray, Artist/ Chair of the Art Department, State University of New York at New Paltz
“anti/icono/clastic”
Mimlitsch-Gray will discuss her recent Arts/Industry residency at Kohler Co. which resulted in two bodies of work - one familiar and domestic, the other abstract. The shift in subject, provoked by modes of production and expanded through formal abstraction, has presented her with new challenges and opportunities. While her recent experience in the foundry opened up her studio practice, it has also crystallized her commitment to metalsmithing. Her presentation will advocate on behalf of such dogma as the new radicalism.

Paul Greenhalgh, Director and President of the Corcoran Gallery of Art and the Corcoran College of Art and Design
“Future of Craft”
Greenhalgh will look at the language of jewelry from the perspective of its historical unfolding, poetics, and anthropology. Using specific case studies, the lecture will seek to explain the role of jewelry as an art in the next phase of modernity. Greenhalgh is a world-renowned scholar of the decorative arts and design and is currently Director and President of the Corcoran Gallery of Art and the Corcoran College of Art and Design, in Washington DC.

Albert Paley, Sculptor/Metalsmith, Paley Studios
“The Albert Paley Lecture”
Paley will survey his own work, the evolution from goldsmithing to large-scale monumental sculpture that explores shared sensibilities and design. Paley, known internationally as a sculptor who produces monumental works that grace the urban landscapes, is the first metal sculptor to receive the coveted Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Institute of Architects.

Camille Paglia, Cultural critic/ Scholar/ Professor, University of the Arts
“Art and Sex”
Paglia is an internationally known scholar, author, and social critic and the author of Sexual Personae: Art and Decadence from Nefertiti to Emily Dickinson; Sex, Art, and American Culture; Vamps & Tramps: New Essays; and Break, Blow, Burn: Camille Paglia Reads Forty-Three of the World's Best Poems. In addition to her books, Paglia is a columnist at Salon.com and a Contributing Editor at Interview magazine. She has written numerous articles on art, literature, popular culture, feminism, politics, and religion for publications around the world.

Neri Oxman, Architect/ Designer/ Researcher, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
“Craft by Ecology”
Oxman is an architect and researcher whose work attempts to establish new forms of experimental design and novel processes of material practice at the interface of design, computer science, engineering and biology. She is the founder of an interdisciplinary design initiative, M A T E R I A L E C O L O G Y. Her presentation will discuss her own work that transcends disciplinary and professional boundaries.

Panel, "Revolution/Evolution," moderated by Helen Williams Drutt English
The panel features Marianne Aav, Director, DESIGNMUSEO, Finland; Fritz Falk, Director, Schmuckmuseum, Pforzheim, Germany; and Liesbeth den Besten.

SNAG Juried Student Work Presentation
"Present / Represent"
Multimedia presentation of images of dynamic objects made by the future leaders of the field. The images represent the best ideas, materials, and forms from student artists. Deadline has passed.

Contact

REGISTRATION or HOTEL RESERVATIONS contact: 
Meetings A La Carte
snag@meetingsalacarte.com
Tel: (877) 738-MEET (6338) / Fax: (630) 420-7672
317 Osage Lane, Naperville, IL 60540 

Volunteer Contact: 
eliarenas@hotmail.com 

General SNAG questions or membership questions:
541-345-5689 

Vendor Room Contact: 
info@meetingsalacarte.com or call 630-420-7607. 

For the Silent Auction contact:
metal@marlenetrue.com or call 252-347-6555 

Connections Room (Portfolio Review and Educators Rooms) contact:
calliemay23@gmail.com 

Education Dialogue contact:
dankerner@comcast.net 
 
Educational Endowment contact:
mbt0317@ecu.edu 

Post-Conference Workshops go to:
www.uarts.edu/ce 

For additional conference information: 
conference@snagmetalsmith.org