CraftTexas 2012 Juror Jade Walker

CraftTexas 2012 is just around the corner! The call for artists will close on March 15, and the exhibition will run from September 29 - December 30, 2012. All of us at HCCC are looking forward to this, our seventh in a series of juried exhibitions showcasing the best in Texas-made contemporary craft. We are especially excited to have Jade Walker, an Austin-based artist and Director of the Visual Arts Center and the Creative Research Laboratory at the University of Texas at Austin, as one of our three jurors.

Walker is an active participant in the Texas visual arts community and, along with her day job as the director of the Visual Arts Center in the department of Art and Art History at the UT Austin, she has her own rigorous studio practice. On January 20th, an exhibition of her work, titled Contact, will open at Lawndale Art Center, our awesome next-door neighbor. The exhibition features an array of characters--some fictional and some real--permeated by physical breakdown and includes several sculptures and sculpture-based installations that are inspired by the physical repercussions of trauma on the human body.

Jade Walker,  Figures # 6.
Fabric, hat rack, mixed media 59” X 40” X 60" 2009.
Photo courtesy the artist.

Jade Walker,  Figures # 6 (rear view).
Fabric, hat rack, mixed media 59” X 40” X 60" 2009.
Photo courtesy the artist.

On October 5, 2011, the LVL3 exhibition space in Chicago had a post on their blog naming Jade Walker their “Artist of the Week,” and it included a short interview with the artist. When asked how to explain her work to a stranger, Jade responded, “My practice is a mixture between an exploration of materials (fabric, rubber, found objects, crusty old paints, tool-dip and whatever else I can get my hands on) and my desire to reproduce the human body.  I am interested in the mechanics of gender, both physically and symbolically, and that interest patinas the work as well.”

Walker’s exhibition at Lawndale could not be on display at a better time, as it will be an incredibly enjoyable opportunity to acquaint ourselves with her as a person and as an artist. CraftTexas 2010 is most definitely one of my favorite exhibitions that have been on display since I became part of the HCCC family in early 2010, and one of the reasons is the incredible variety of work that is submitted. Work in every craft medium, as well as both functional and non-functional work, is selected. I am thrilled to see what craft artists around Texas are currently making, and we hope that Walker enjoys participating in the jury process just as much as we enjoy putting the exhibition together.

Jade Walker, Trophy Room (detail 1).
Vacu-form panels, plastic, leather, found objects.
Site-Specific installation: 12’ X 11’ X 8’
Domy Books 2009. Photo courtesy the artist.

Jade Walker, Trophy Room (detail 2).
Vacu-form panels, plastic, leather, found objects.
Site-Specific installation: 12’ X 11’ X 8’
Domy Books 2009. Photo courtesy the artist.

The CraftTexas series began in 2002 and is one of the most exceptional and significant exhibitions in the Texas craft community. And, for HCCC, it is an event deeply rooted in the core mission of our organization. It serves as a starting place for the general public to appreciate the depth and breadth of craft being made in our own communities and across the state.

--Ashely Powell, Curatorial Assistant

To learn more about how to apply to CraftTexas 2012, click here.

If you would like to read more about Jade Walker and view more photos of her work, check out her website: http://jadewalker.org/

Click here to read the Lawndale press release that includes info on her exhibition.