L E T T E R S
When Picasso was asked “what
is art?” his answer was “what
isn’t?” On the other hand, Du-
champ, who was a genius, used
the urinal as a gimmick for his
own promotion. Lauren Kal-
man’s so-called art pieces like
Syphilis
are nothing more than
tasteless attempts to attract
attention. It’s a disgrace to con-
sider it art and to promote
it in your beautiful magazine.
DR. ROBERT O. FISCH
Minneapolis, m n
As a former goldsmith I appreci-
ate the skill and creativity that
went into Kalman’s work. My
negative reaction is to the cover
photo of an open mouth with a
string of saliva. Our culture ex-
presses too much “cutting edge,”
and you may feel pressured to be
part of it. Every day we are bom-
barded by attempts to get our
attention. Brighter lights, louder
sounds, the bizarre—are we such
zombies that we need exception-
al stimulation to notice things?
Choosing the gold tongue as
your cover is less about the art
and more about getting people’s
attention. I urge you to not take
the magazine in that direction.
MICHAEL LARSON
Grass Valley, CA
I just received the October/
November issue, and love
the adventurous cover story—
American Craft taking risks!!
Inspired, I’m going to get out
my old retainer and do some-
thing weird and woody with it.
I’ve also been trying to do what
Kalman does to my own body,
using wood chips and dowels,
but I wound up with terrible
rashes, cuts and punctures and
was asked to leave the swim-
ming pool area at the health club.
Seriously, I think there is a
lot of new, experimental work
out there, much of it crossing
discipline lines, playing with
unexpected and/or multiple
formats and alternative materi-
als, and it is refreshing to see
some ink about it in AC. I am
building an Artisanry Integrat-
ed Media curriculum in our Ar-
tisanry M FA program because
I have had so many grad stu-
dents doing work that is not
media specific and, conceptu-
ally, moves away from tradi-
tional focuses and toward envi-
ronmental and social concerns.
STEVE WHITTLESEY
UMASS Dartmouth
New Bedford, MA
Don’t Get Too Comfortable
Re “In Defense of the Comfort
Zone” (October/November):
I think it is pretty well accepted
that comfort has its place in the
household, but only as far as we
expect to find our bed where
we left it that morning. But com-
placency-comfort’s kin—has
no place in craft. So please, don’t
get too comfortable.
AUSTIN REAVIS
Student, Herron School of Art
and Design, Indianapolis, IN
Clarification
Reader Helga Perry of Rugby,
U .K ., writes that Erik Scollon’s
review, “Against the Grain,” in
the April/May 2009 issue, re-
peats a curatorial labeling error
in an exhibition at Yerba Buena
Center for the Arts. Louise Nip-
pierd works with fake fur, not
real animal fur, which affects the
interpretation of the work.
Write to us:
American Craft magazine
72 Spring Street, 6th Floor
New York, NY 10012
Letters are subject to editing.
Anonymous letters will not
be printed.
www.myraburg.com
MYRA BURG
QUIET OBOES
TEL: 310.399.5040
Custom colors & sizes also available.
For show dates, gallery locations and installation ideas: www.myraburg.com.
Or- Call us. We're very friendly: 310 399 5040
Find more magazines at www.magazinesdownload.com
