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| Rowland Ricketts: Work Time installation shot. Image courtesy of Museum of Contemporary Craft. Photo: Matt Gaston '15 |
An installation with cascades of indigo
textiles draped above the exhibition space functions as the center piece to the
Museum of Contemporary Craft’s most recent and final exhibition, “Rowland Ricketts: WorkTime”. Ricketts uses centuries old
Japanese methods and natural indigo dyes to create large scale contemporary
installations and designs. Unlike modern indigo production, Ricketts prefers to
use slower and more natural methods to honor the quality of traditional indigo
practices. I originally came across Ricketts’ work at a panel discussion at the
College Art Association Conference in 2014. I was eager to see his work in
person after his memorable artist talk. Seeing “Rowland Ricketts: Work Time” did
not disappoint, but unfortunately news of the Museum of Contemporary Craft’s
impending closure has overshadowed the exhibition.
On February 3rd, 2016 the
Pacific Northwest College of Art sent out a press release announcing the
closure of the Museum of Contemporary Craft. PNCA’s reasoning for the closure
states that the, "vision of transforming the museum into a dynamic,
student-centric educational resource was not fully realized. In the meantime,
the financial cost to the college has remained high." The museum’s collection
will be absorbed by PNCA, who will open the Center for Contemporary Art and
Culture.
I was deeply disappointed to hear the
news of MOCC’s closure especially considering my academic passion and
dedication to crafts inclusion and importance to the contemporary art world.
MOCC also functioned as a leader in Portland’s notable craft community. My own
interest in contemporary craft stemmed deeply from the Portland’s craft
artists. I see the closure of MOCC as a direct result of the long asked question,
“Is craft art?” Even in a city that held one of the nations largest and oldest
institutions dedicated to craft, this argument continues to develop. Daniel Duford wrote on the news of MOCC’s closure and craft’s importance, “For all the
academic patois and MFA art speak around “radicality” and “criticality” it is
in craft where the voices of women, indigenous cultures and working people are
first heard.” This argument rings true and was evidenced in MOCC’s previous
exhibition “Alien She” which highlighted the influence of the Riot Grrrl
movement on contemporary craft artists. Artists in this exhibition discussed
issues of race, gender, sexuality, and commercialism all through the radical
medium of craft.
In light of MOCC’s upcoming closure, I
am left wondering about craft’s future in Portland. Who will carry on the
legacy? Make sure to stop by for MOCC’s final exhibition, “Rowland Ricketts: Work
Time.”
Related Articles:
“PNCA Answers Some Questions About Closing theCraft Museum”- Barry Johnson
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