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  • Handwork: Handcrafted Objects That Made America [Craft in America] by Emily Zaiden book cover
  • Handwork: Handcrafted Objects That Made America [Craft in America] by Emily Zaiden book cover
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Handwork: Handcrafted Objects That Made America [Craft in America]

by Emily Zaiden

American life, viewed through handmade objects

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AlbakiReads Editorial

American life, viewed through handmade objects

Organized around four sections—DWELL, FEED, FURNISH, and ADORN—this illustrated survey uses handcrafted objects to trace more than 250 years of American life. Its examples range from a nineteenth-century Kiowa cradleboard and a silver bowl by Paul Revere to an antique Hawaiian surfboard and a sneaker prototype. Essays by experts place these works in wider cultural contexts, with particular attention to underrepresented artists and overlooked narratives. Contemporary makers extend the book’s historical scope by showing how craft traditions are reinterpreted today. The collection connects material culture with questions of innovation, resistance, artistry, and community.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • People interested in American history and material culture
  • Readers exploring craft, design, and handmade objects
  • Those seeking an illustrated, essay-based survey of American craft traditions

Themes

American craft and material cultureCultural histories told through objectsUnderrepresented artists and overlooked narrativesContinuity and reinvention of craft traditions

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

Craft in America presents a compelling and essential portrait of American culture through an extraordinary range of handmade objects

Handwork: Handcrafted Objects that Made America is a visually stunning, deeply inspiring celebration of America's spirit through ordinary, surprising, and overlooked handcrafted objects spanning more than 250 years. Edited by Emily Zaiden, director and lead curator of the Craft in America Center, with a foreword by Carol Sauvion, the visionary behind the Peabody Award-winning PBS series Craft in America, this book is part of a sweeping national initiative marking 250 years since the Declaration of Independence.

Grouping handmade objects into four curated sections--DWELL, FEED, FURNISH, ADORN--Handwork takes readers on a journey through time and across the multiplicity of cultures that have made America, uncovering the powerful stories behind objects that shaped American life. From a nineteenth-century Kiowa cradleboard and a silver bowl made by Paul Revere to celebrate a rebellion, to an antique Hawaiian papa heʻenalu--or surfboard--and a prototype for an iconic sneaker, these objects reflect innovation, resistance, artistry, and community--and were all crafted by hand.

Accessible yet authoritative, the book includes illuminating essays by experts nationwide and places a special focus on overlooked narratives and the underrepresented artists who helped define American life through their craft. Contemporary makers featured throughout show how craft traditions live on--reimagined, reinterpreted, and renewed.

The official book of Handwork: Celebrating American Craft 2026--Craft in America's yearlong, nationwide initiative marking 250 years since the Declaration of Independence, featuring hundreds of museum exhibitions and events, a four-part PBS docuseries, and specially designed educational components--Handwork is essential reading for anyone curious about American history, design, material culture, or craft. With vibrant full-color photography; a fresh, engaging layout; and an inclusive approach, this book is as captivating and eye-opening as the objects and artists it celebrates.
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