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The Best Episodes of Craft in America

Every episode of Craft in America ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Craft in America!

The Best Episodes of Craft in America

Explore the vitality, history and significance of the craft movement in the United States and its impact on our nation's rich cultural heritage. Capturing the...
  1. Background image for Threads
    8.6/10(5 votes)

    #1 - Threads

    S4:E1

    Explore the creativity of the human spirit through works that begin with the humble thread. Featured artists include fiber artist Terese Agnew, weaver Randall Darwall & designer Brian Murphy, artist Faith Ringgold, and fiber artist Consuelo Jimenez Underwood.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  2. Background image for Origins
    8.5/10(7 votes)

    #2 - Origins

    S2:E1

    The American craft tradition did not just appear, fully-formed and mature. The artists in Origins tie their work to early craft techniques and demonstrate how they are involved in passing these techniques to others in a continuum of creativity. Featured artists include Philip Simmons, Mark Hewitt, Teri Greeves, Jim Bassler, Paul Stankard, and Vernon, Pam, and Travis Owens.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  3. Background image for Landscape
    8.2/10(10 votes)

    #3 - Landscape

    S1:E2

    Craft artists depend on their natural environment for both materials and inspiration. This hour looks at the processes through which natural materials become finished works of craft, and what deeper messages may be contained therein. Featured artists include Jan Yager, Kit Carson, David Gurney, George & Mira Nakashima, Richard Notkin, and Timberline Lodge.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  4. Background image for Music
    8.2/10(5 votes)

    #4 - Music

    S7:E1

    A look at how fine handmade instruments are crafted, featuring the world renowned artists who play them including Jake Shimabukuro with his Kamaka ukulele, Joan Baez with her Martin guitar, Scotty Barnhart of the Count Basie Orchestra with his David Monette trumpet, Rhiannon Giddens with her James Hartel banjo, Tony Ellis with his Stelling Banjo, timpanist Joseph Pereira and mallet maker Jason Ginter.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  5. Background image for Community
    8.0/10(8 votes)

    #5 - Community

    S1:E3

    Throughout time, craft work has been a community activity. Gifted artists and passionate newcomers alike reveal the deeply held belief that craft is about more than just the making of an object. Featured artists include Jamex & Einar de la Torre, Preston Singletary, Pilchuck Glass School, Sarah Jaeger, Ken Loeber, Dona Look, Mississippi Cultural Crossroads, Penland School, Denise & Sam Wallace.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  6. Background image for Nature
    8.0/10(6 votes)

    #6 - Nature

    S8:E2

    Artists explore the beauty and wonder of the natural world. Featuring sculptor Patrick Dougherty, artist Mary Merkel-Hess, woodcarver Michelle Holzapfel, glass artist Preston Singletary, book artist Catherine Alice Michaelis.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
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    The 20 WORST Episodes of Craft in America

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  8. Background image for Memory
    7.8/10(11 votes)

    #7 - Memory

    S1:E1

    Take a tour through craft's history in America beginning with the pioneers of the field to the intimate stories of some of our country's most prominent craft artists. Memory observes how past is prologue, and looks to the dynamic of cultural history and personal heritage in creating objects. Featured artists include Sam Maloof, Garry Knox Bennett, Mary Jackson, Tom Joyce, and Pat Courtney Gold.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  9. Background image for Crossroads
    7.8/10(5 votes)

    #8 - Crossroads

    S4:E2

    How do borders and personal crossroads affect an artist? How do science and craft interact? How do other cultures influence American style and technique? This episode explores the intersections of craft, culture, and technology. Featured artists include Tanya Aguiñiga, Lia Cook, Clary Illian, Warren MacKenzie, and Jeff Oestreich.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  10. Background image for Play
    7.8/10(5 votes)

    #9 - Play

    S15:E1

    No description available

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  11. Background image for Forge
    7.6/10(5 votes)

    #10 - Forge

    S5:E1

    Exceptional artists forging metal magically transformed by fire. Follow Chloe Darke as she begins her career as a silversmith at Old Newbury Crafters; Iraqi war veterans Tom Pullin and Jeremiah Holland as they turn to art as an antidote to the harsh realities of war; Join sculptor Albert Paley as he prepares for Paley on Park Avenue, the most ambitious project of his 50 year career.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  12. Background image for Holiday
    7.5/10(8 votes)

    #11 - Holiday

    S5:E2

    Embracing familiar and new winter celebrations of our American experience with the handmade. Celebrates some of our most important cultural and religious customs and leads viewers directly to their own creativity.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  13. Background image for Process
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #12 - Process

    S2:E2

    What inspires a person to choose a career in craft? How does one acquire the knowledge and necessary skills? From self-taught artists to those who pursue formal study, from avocation to college, from apprenticeships to craft schools. Featured artists include the 92nd St Y, Dave & Roberta Williamson, Cary Esser, Nikki Lewis, KCAI, N. Bennet St. School, Tom Killion, and Julie Chen.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  14. Background image for Messages
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #13 - Messages

    S3:E1

    Many artists use their craft to share personal and political opinions. Craft has the ability to entice viewers to consider topics that they might find difficult. By expressing their ideas through their work, artists add meaning to the objects they create. Featured artists include glass artist Beth Lipman, santero Charles M. Carrillo, bead artist Joyce J. Scott; and jeweler & sculptor Thomas Mann.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  15. Background image for Family
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #14 - Family

    S3:E2

    Family explores the creative environments and personal dynamics of four families of craft artists and asks: Is talent inherited? What is it like to live in a household where objects are made by hand? Meet the featured artists (the Lees, Marionis, Moulthrops and Sorrells).

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  16. Background image for Industry
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #15 - Industry

    S5:E3

    Industry explores the business of craft and how artists contribute to local and national economies.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  17. Background image for Service
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #16 - Service

    S6:E1

    Documenting craft in the military and the power of the handmade to inspire and heal.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  18. Background image for Celebration
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #17 - Celebration

    S7:E2

    Discover the role craft plays in our winter holiday traditions, rituals, and festivities. Featuring lion dancers & float builders for San Francisco’s Chinese New Year Parade, ceramic artists in Michigan for the holidays at Pewabic (Detroit) and Motawi Tileworks (Ann Arbor), Kwanzaa celebrations with Chicago & Oakland artists, and Christmas card making in Tacoma with Yoshiko Yamamoto.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  19. Background image for Teachers
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #18 - Teachers

    S8:E1

    Artists committed to sharing their skills and passion for craft with students of all ages. Featuring Navajo weavers Barbara Teller Ornelas and Lynda Teller Pete at Idyllwild Arts, glass artist Mark Mitsuda at Punahou School, glass artist Therman Statom, and ceramic artist Linda Sikora at Alfred University School of Art and Design.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  20. Background image for Borders
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #19 - Borders

    S9:E1

    Explore the connections between Mexico and the United States through craft. Featuring master altar maker Ofelia Esparza and the Day of the Dead celebration; master weaver J. Isaac Vásquez Garcia and family; weaver Jim Bassler, potter Veralee Bassler and the colorful Guelaguetza parade; and artist Kiff Slemmons and maestro Francisco Toledo at Taller Arte Papel.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  21. Background image for Neighbors
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #20 - Neighbors

    S9:E2

    Explore the connections between Mexico and the United States through craft. Featuring ceramic artist Gerardo Monterrubio; ceramic artists Magdalena Pedro Martínez and Carlomagno Pedro Martínez; glass artist Jaime Guerrero; silver designers William Spratling, Carmen Tapia, Miguel Angel Ortíz Miranda, Cristina Romo, and Eduardo Herrera; muralist Judy Baca and SPARC.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  22. Background image for California
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #21 - California

    S10:E1

    Explore the diverse craft traditions and innovations in the Golden State. Featuring Pomo basket weaver Corine Pearce, silversmith Randy Stromsoe, the Arts and Crafts architecture of Greene and Greene, stained glass artists at Judson Studios, cabinetmakers James Ipekjian and Jack Ipekjian, and textile artist Deborah Cross.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  23. Background image for Visionaries
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #22 - Visionaries

    S10:E2

    Documenting the ways in which artists and influencers inspire new generations to envision the limitless possibilities of craft. Featuring textile designer and founder of LongHouse Reserve Jack Lenor Larsen, curator Helen Molesworth and Black Mountain College, fiber artist Kay Sekimachi, collector Forrest L. Merrill, and book artist Felicia Rice.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  24. Background image for Quilts
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #23 - Quilts

    S11:E1

    Learn about contemporary quilters as we celebrate the role quilts have played in our country's story. Featuring Susan Hudson, Victoria Findlay Wolfe, Michael A. Cummings, Judith Content, the International Quilt Museum and special guest Ken Burns.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  25. Background image for Identity
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #24 - Identity

    S11:E2

    Artists explore issues of gender, race, culture and place, offering true expressions of their experiences in this world. Featuring potter Diego Romero, photographer Cara Romero, furniture maker Wendy Maruyama and sculptor Cristina Cordova.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown
  26. Background image for Storytellers
    NaN/10(0 votes)

    #25 - Storytellers

    S12:E1

    Meet artists who use narrative to communicate personal and universal truths. Featuring artist Nicholas Galanin, Julie Schafler Dale, Linda J. Mendelson, George Rodriguez and Christina Bothwell.

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    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

Best Episodes Summary

"Threads" is the best rated episode of "Craft in America". It scored 8.6/10 based on 5 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 5/11/2012. This episode scored 0.1 points higher than the second highest rated, "Origins".