Metalsmith Magazine

Metalsmith Vision Objectives from the Board of Directors, November 2009 

Metalsmith will provide a range of information and images reflective of the vigor, diversity, and quality of the field. Metalsmith is dedicated to all forms of art and design as they relate to jewelry and metalsmithing. The board of directors’ vision encompasses but is not limited to work made solely with metal.

Metalsmith serves as a platform documenting the art, design, jewelry and metalsmithing field. It is a vehicle through which those working in many different areas —galleries, museums, teaching at all levels, contemporary craft shows, retail venues, online venues, and non-traditional venues—share their ideas, insights and opinions. Metalsmith’s content encompasses the field’s past, present and future.

Metalsmith will remain a hybrid: the appeal of an arts periodical, a visually engaging design and style, and the in-depth exploration of a scholarly journal. Metalsmith’s content will spark inspiration, stretch boundaries, and stimulate intellectual inquiry. Its scholarship and critical writing will remain comparable to other, similar journals.

Metalsmith is published by the Society of North American Goldsmiths and remains its most far-reaching program. Metalsmith’s editorial exploration will continue to stretch beyond the work of its current members. Featuring work by both SNAG members and others in the field will ensure the viability of Metalsmith as the best publication in North America documenting our field.

We will encompass a broader variety of the constituencies as well as strive to serve the interests of more people working in the field. Yet Metalsmith will never become predictable or self-indulgent at either end of the spectrum—whether that is extravagantly conceptual or solidly mainstream.

The board recognizes its long-term fiduciary responsibility of the organization and the significant resources, both financial and otherwise, that Metalsmith magazine requires. We will deepen and broaden the reader base while always remaining true to the highquality of the publication and its overarching educational mission.

Editor’s Charge
1. Proactively search out and find the best work in all the various categories of work in the field.
2. Bring forth different types of work and disparate perspectives; understand that each type of work inexorably has different standards, and find superior-quality work in each category.
3. Choose writers and writing styles that best discuss the most salient features of the work with ample consideration given to the audience being served. Address the work’s unique considerations appropriately in the writing.
4. Feature quality ideas, quality work, and infectious passion. 
5. Vary the pacing of the magazine through a rotating list of editorial departments of different lengths; keep it exhilarating and fresh.
6. Be agile in adding and retiring editorial departments as needs change.
7. Recognize that one of the strengths of the magazine is that it delves into the “what” and “why” of the work featured. Metalsmith is not about the “how to,” however we are interested in “how did they”?
8. Listen carefully to feedback and hear the core perceptions conveyed. There may be kernels of truth and insight even in the mundane. 

Summary of Vision
The editor will build on what Metalsmith already does well and improve any editorial areas that may be lagging. The magazine will continue to evolve in terms of breadth of content and readership. It will deepen the relationship with our loyal readership, attract new readers, and retain its place within the culture. The board expects some variation of this vision to evolve based on the vision, skills and resources of the editor.

The board wants Metalsmith to be received as a viable art journal on its own merits; not as the mouthpiece of SNAG nor as a vehicle solely to promote the work of SNAG members. SNAG members do not have an advantage in being covered by Metalsmith; there is no insider’s path to coverage. Yet it is also essential that readers immediately recognize that Metalsmith is published by SNAG, and that information about SNAG’s programs is found in each issue.