OBJECTS: USA revives the landmark 1969 Smithsonian exhibition that helped define American craft as a space for freedom, experimentation, and artistic possibility. Organized in partnership with R & Company, the show brings together more than 70 works across furniture, fiber, sculpture, jewelry, clay, enamel, glass, metal, mosaic, and wood, pairing pioneering figures from the original presentation with a generation of makers working now.
Historic works by Wendell Castle, George Nakashima, Peter Voulkos, Sam Maloof, Art Smith, June Schwarcz, and Kay Sekimachi sit alongside contemporary pieces by the Haas Brothers, Roberto Lugo, Tanya Aguiniga, Nicole Cherubini, Woody De Othello, and Misha Kahn. Together they open a conversation across six decades about material, making, and what we choose to value.
The exhibition carries particular weight in San Francisco: the Bay Area was central to the development of American studio craft.
