Sounds from the Studio is a monthly podcast that shares engaging interviews with contemporary artists and curators who are changing the field of craft. You’ll hear about the their personal stories and practices, along with how their work and the field of craft relates to and reflects the world around us. The podcast is co-hosted by CC Executive Director Rachel Saul Rearick and Kahmeela Adams of RuggedAngel Productions.
Click the links below to listen on Spotify, or find Sounds from the Studio wherever you get your podcasts. And don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review!
Episode 11: Erika Diamond
Erika Diamond, a textile-focused artist, curator, and educator wants to save lives. Her work explores the potential for textiles to record and protect while it examines the fragility and resilience of the human body and our vital need for human connection. How do textiles hold memories? What are we supposed to do with our bodies? Rachel and Kahmeela discuss these topics and more, in this episode with Erika.
Episode 10: matt lambert
matt lambert is a non-binary, trans, multidisciplinary collaborator and co-conspirator working towards equity, inclusion, and reparation. On the Eve of their “Self” exhibition opening at Contemporary Craft, matt shares thoughts on craft, historiography, and better questions to ask at a party.
Episode 9: Kahmeela Adams
Host Rachel Rearick turns the mic on to Co-Host Kahmeela Adams. They chat about Kahmeela’s podcasting, photography and writing career and why she is, the way she is.
Episode 8: Sharif Bey
The “more Jazz than Classical” artist, ceramicist and professor, Sharif Bey joins us to discuss his artist practice and how it came to be. Bey speaks on connectivity, generational values and the power of the Ancestral memory.
Episode 7: Jennifer-Navva Milliken
Executive Director & Chief Curator for The Museum for Art in Wood in Philadelphia, Jennifer-Navva Milliken joins us to talk all things curatorial. When is a cup just a cup and when is it a proxy for the female body? Jennifer explains her thought process in curating the museum’s current exhibit “Vessel: Embodiment, Autonomy, and Ornament in Wood.”
Episode 6: Missy Graff Ballone
Missy Graff Ballone is the Founder and Podcast Host of Wellness for Makers. She joins us to discuss her mission is to motivate and empower creatives, through education, mindful living, and movement. She uses her background as an Artist, Alignment-based Yoga Instructor, and Licensed Massage Therapist to create positive movement patterns for the body.
Episode 5: Tereneh Idia
Tereneh Idia is a Pittsburgh-raised and internationally based fashion designer and the founder of Idia’Dega. Tereneh is currently in an artist residency at Contemporary Craft, working on an extraordinary exhibit that explores the importance of African American History in the Pittsburgh region. But how it’s so easily overlooked. Tune in to learn more about the artist and her works.
Episode 4: Lauren Kalmen
Meet the 2022 Elizabeth R. Raphael Founder’s Prize Winner, Lauren Kalmen! Lauren is a visual artist based in Detroit, whose practice is rooted in contemporary craft, sculpture, video, photography, and performance. Here we discuss her current work Devices For Filling a Void which is quite literally molds of empty spaces from the body. What is her process? How did she come to this style of artwork? How does she separate herself from the art? What are bodily misbehaviors? Listen in to this explorative discussion.
Episode 3: Linda Swanson
In this episode, we will be talking with former Raphael Prize / Transformation winner, ceramicist Linda Swanson. Linda is an artist whose interests are grounded in the metamorphic nature of ceramic materials and processes. In this episode we discuss how different variables affect the ceramics outcome, becoming an alchemist and stepping back to allow the materials to choose their ultimate form.
Episode 2: Tanya Crane
Tanya Crane’s artwork dwells within a liminal existence between prejudice and privilege. In this episode, we talk about her bold enamel designs, how art and craft can intentionally be the same, and culturally making a statement with her art.
Episode 1: Akiko Kotani
Akiko Kotani’s art embodies the arresting power and attraction of simplicity. The diversity of her influences and her training come together in her distinctive imagination, which enables her to create original works. In this episode, Akiko takes us through her background, creative process, and the meaning behind her latest installation, “Red Falls”.
