L E T T E R S
TOM PATTI
ROBIN GREBE
- ALES VASÎCEK
W
e ’ v e
G
o t M
a i l
Furniture maker Tom Loescr and
his public seating project
Cinch,
on
the December/January 2009 cover.
K udos!
T h e Decem ber/January issue
w as so packed full o f infor-
mation on the highest level that
it could function as a source
book for years to come.
Thank you!
DOT HODGES
Charlotte, N orth Carolina
W e Need M ore L ik e H er!
I just opened the Decem ber/
January issue and flipped im -
mediately to the article on
Karen Johnson Boyd (“ T h e
A rt o f Stealth Philanthropy”).
W h at an outstanding piece.
In my form er life as a
corporate consultant, s. c .
Johnson w as one o f m y larg-
est clients. It w as common
know ledge how com m itted
the Johnson fam ily w as to
the com m unity. W hen my
corporate life began to
overlap w ith the craft w orld,
I knew “ som eone in the
Johnson fam ily” played a ma-
jor role in the em ergence o f
the craft movement. W h ile
the fam ily members involved
in the corporation and family
foundation w ere highly vis-
ible, K aren Johnson B oyd’s
name was virtually unknown
to those not involved w ith
the Racine A rt M useum or
aware o f her involvem ent
w ith Perim eter G allery in
Chicago. T h e term “ stealth
philanthropy” could not be
more fitting. It pays tribute to
a wom an w ho put the devel-
opment o f the field ahead of
her ow n recognition.
On a personal level, having
seen the impact o f the Johnson
fam ily from many angles, I
found this a very special article.
M ore importantly, there is a
great deal o f provocative infor-
mation relating to some o f the
issues w e grapple w ith now in
building new awareness o f the
im portance o f the “ m akers”
and in revitalizing the field.
SUE BASS
Chicago, Illinois
T h e H eartland Q uestion
I have to admit there’s been
something bugging me since
finishing the Am erican C raft
Decem ber/January issue.
T he term “ Heartland” you
used on the cover to describe
the geography o f the Upper
M idw est is wrong. Merriam-
W ebster defines the term
“ H eartland” as follow s: “ a
central land area (as northern
Eurasia) having strategic
advantages; the central geo-
graphical region o f the United
States in w hich mainstream
or traditional values predom i-
nate; a region w here som e-
thing (as an industry or activ-
ity) most strongly thrives.”
W h en did C hicago,
Cincinnati and D etroit b e-
come part o f the “ Heartland?”
You do a good job o f writing,
but I think you all should
stay away from teaching geog-
raphy. Since I’m a generous
guy, if you send me an address
I’ll send a map so you can
see where the “ Heartland” is.
ERIC A .R Y S E R
M anhattan, Kansas
