Another Crossing: Artists Revisit the Mayflower Voyage

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Fuller Craft Museum presents Another Crossing: Artists Revisit the Mayflower Voyage, an exhibition recognizing the 400^th anniversary of the Mayflower crossing and its significance to American and world history.

Developed in partnership with Fuller Craft Museum, Plymouth College of Art, and The Box (both in Plymouth, England),  Another Crossing brings together ten artists from the United States and Europe for a global, cross-cultural effort that examines a pivotal event in world history.

In 2018, guest curator Glenn Adamson selected ten artists to participate in the project with the charge that only 17^th century technology and processes be used in the creation of the objects. To fuel and inspire the work development, the artists and project partners participated in two research trips­—the first to Plymouth England in March 2019, followed by Plymouth, Massachusetts in April 2019.  These immersive experiences created a sense of communion amongst the artists while providing important scholarly and technical information to inform the development of the work.

These resulting artworks illustrate exceptional technical skill, while also speaking to the social realities behind the material culture, and the examination of the Mayflower crossing through a contemporary lens. For some, the Mayflower voyage and subsequent settlement of Plimoth Colony is a treasured historical event, while for others, the colonization and treatment of the Wampanoag peoples illustrate imperialism and cultural ruin. Through Another Crossing, the artists responded to this complex part of our history and its impact on our culture over the last four centuries.

Another Crossing: Artists Revisit the Mayflower Voyage is offered in conjunction with the initiatives of Plymouth 400 (https://plymouth400inc.org/), a non-profit organization created to highlight the cultural impact of this 400-year anniversary through exhibitions, programming, and other relevant events.

RELATED LINKS:

Virtual Event: July 15, 2021 – Another Crossing: Artists Revisit the Mayflower Voyage
British Art Studies Article: Another Crossing: Artists Revisit the Mayflower Voyage

EXHIBITING ARTISTS:

Annette Bellamy, United States
Based in Halibut Cove, Alaska, Annette Bellamy has had success as both a commercial fisher and artist. She works with clay and fish skin to create large-scale sculptural work and smaller ceramic forms. In her estimation, her dual careers are deeply connected: “Life on the water and life making art fuel each other. I value the physicality of both as well as the dependence upon my hands, the importance of timing, the work ethic and tools required, and the reflection afforded.”

Along with the inspiration she receives from her surroundings, her expertise and growth as an artist has been influenced and transformed through extensive travel and residencies. Bellamy’s work has been exhibited across the country in both group and solo formats, such as the exhibition Floating at Fuller Craft Museum in 2014, which was also shown at the Anchorage Museum. http://annettebellamy.com

Annete Bellamy’s creative collaborators include Lena Amason (Alutiiq), Sonya Kelliher-Combs (Iñupiaq and Athabascan), Rebecca Lyon (Unangan and Athabascan/Dene), Tommy Joseph (Tlingit), Da-Ka- Xeen Mehner (Tlingit), and Heidi Aklaseaq Senungetuk (Iñupiaq).

Sonya Clark, United States
Sonya Clark is deeply engaged in African American history and culture and uses a mix of installation art and textiles to explore issues of race, history, and contemporary culture. She is well known for her Hair Craft project, as well as an ongoing series of engagements with flags in American history. In the work Unraveling, she invited visitors to join her in unpicking a Confederate flag, thread by thread.

Clark’s work has been in over 300 exhibitions and is part of permanent collections both in the United States and abroad. Clark received her BFA from the Art Institute of Chicago, where she studied under Nick Cave, and her MFA from the Cranbrook Academy of Art. She currently serves as Professor of Art at Amherst College, and was previously the Chair of the Craft/Material Studies Department at Virginia Commonwealth University. http://sonyaclark.com

Sonya Clark’s creative collaborators include Ed Rayher of Swamp Press, Mary Hark of HARK! Handmade Paper, and Bo Peng.

David Clarke, United Kingdom
The leading conceptual metalsmith in the United Kingdom, David Clarke is particularly known for his postmodern recombination of existing historic objects. These deft re-arrangements often see the objects taking on lifelike, psychological qualities. Clarke primarily works in pewter, a key material for everyday use in the 17th century, and the artist has done a fascinating series of sculptural works in which metal is exposed to salt, sugar, and other substances. These objects are infused with humor and subversion, provoking conversations about both historical traditions and contemporary culture.

A graduate of the Royal College of Art, he has been a lecturer in Europe, Asia, and North America, and was the recipient of the Sotheby’s Award in both 2007 and 2010. His work is included in many of the finest public and private collections in the world. http://misterclarke.wordpress.com

Michelle Erickson, United States
Michelle Erickson is a scholar and celebrated ceramist, whose work involves deep research into historic techniques. This interest was sparked early on by her exposure to Native American, Asian, British, and other European pottery unearthed in the “historic triangle” of Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown, Virginia.

Through her command of colonial era ceramic methods, Erickson crafts contemporary recreations—sometimes even direct replicas—of 17^thand 18^th century objects; she also repurposes this vocabulary to illuminate contemporary political, social, and environmental realities. As she states, “I use the depth of history through the art of making to draw parallels through time. . . I make objects of the past from an imagined future in the present.” Erickson has lectured and demonstrated her work at venues in both the United States and abroad and is part of numerous museum collections. www.michelleericksonceramics.com

Michelle Erickson’s creative collaborators include Jonathan James-Perry (Aquinnah Wampanoag).

Jeffrey Gibson (Mississippi Choctaw-Cherokee), United States
Jeffrey Gibson’s rawhide paintings, totemic sculptures, “atmospheric landscapes,” and other works contain allusions to his own indigenous heritage – he is part Choctaw and part Cherokee – as well as to mass consumerism and popular culture. He often combines craft techniques associated with Native Traditions with other materials, such as Everlast punching bags. His multidisciplinary practice is deeply layered, often autobiographical in emphasis, and includes abstract sculpture, video, performance art, painting, printmaking, and beadwork, amongst other media.

Gibson received his BFA from the Art Institute of Chicago and MFA from the Royal College of Art. He recently has been the subject of exhibitions at the Denver Art Museum and Wellin Museum of Art, and was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship. www.jeffreygibson.net

Jasleen Kaur, United Kingdom
Jasleen Kaur is a Scottish-Indian artist whose multidisciplinary practice explores the malleability of culture and the layering of social histories within materials, objects, and daily routines. Raised in a Sikh household in Glasgow, Kaur’s experiences in her family hardware store business were an early influence on the way she perceives the value of materials. She continues to explore this theme in her practice today, exploring how making connects to cultural identity and social history.

Kaur was trained in silversmithing, metalwork, and jewelry at the Glasgow School of Art and Royal College of Art. Today, she maintains her studio practice in London while serving as a visiting lecturer at the Royal College of Art. Kaur was part of Jerwood Makers 2015, a biennial competition aimed to promote the significance of making and materiality within the visual arts. http://jasleenkaur.co.uk

Jasleen Kaur’s creative collaborators include Eleanor Lakelin.

Christien Meindertsma, Netherlands
Christien Meindertsma is a high-profile Dutch designer with a particular engagement with issues of sustainability and skills preservation. With a strong emphasis on process, her artistic investigations thoroughly explore the life cycle of products such as textiles, and the implications on raw materials. Meindertsma acts as part artist, part investigator, and part documentarian; her past projects have involved the cataloguing and photography of hundreds—sometimes thousands—of objects in her efforts to illustrate the implications and effects of relationships between sources and consumers.

A graduate of the Eindhoven Design Academy, Meindertsma has received wide acclaim for her work, and has exhibited across Europe. In addition, her work can be found in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art (New York), Victoria & Albert Museum (London) and Vitra Design Museum (Germany). http://christienmeindertsma.com

Christien Meindertsma’s creative collaborators include Elizabeth James-Perry. https://www.elizabethjamesperry.com

Jonathan James-Perry (Aquinnah Wampanoag), United States
Jonathan James-Perry is an Aquinnah Wampanoag culture bearer, leader, historian, artist and professional speaker.  He is grounded in the traditions of his ocean-going ancestors. His material work embodies the refined quality of that of his ancestors, while still drawing upon his experience in a contemporary society. James-Perry’s pieces reflect balance within the Natural World, incorporating stories, effigies, and symbology of Wampanoag traditions. He is currently serving his fifth, three-year term as Councilman for the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah).

James-Perry works diligently to enforce and uphold the sovereignty of his tribal nation as well as to maintain cultural continuance among his tribal citizens. He has over fifteen years of experience working within the Tribal Historic Preservation Office, with the responsibility of protecting and preserving cultural sites of significance throughout southern New England. He currently works for the Elders Council at the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation to ensure cultural continuity and preservation within the community.  James-Perry has over twenty years of experience in the research and historical interpretation of Eastern Woodlands Native culture and art. He has worked with various non-profit and tribal organizations in exhibit design and cultural consultation based on traditional Wampanoag knowledge, symbolism, and values. James-Perry was most recently awarded the 2017 First People’s Fund Jennifer Easton Community Spirit Award for his work in reviving Wampanoag maritime traditions and mishoon building.

Jonathan James-Perry’s creative collaborators include Jared James (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Jennifer James, Alana James (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Ava James (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Elizabeth James-Perry (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Patricia James-Perry (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Leah Hopkins (Narragansett), Tristan James-Perry (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Tia James (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Jordan James (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Andrew DeVido (Aquinnah Wampanoag), Wesley James (Aquinnah Wampanoag), and Desmond James (Aquinnah Wampanoag). https://www.jonathanjamesperry.com

Katie Schwab, United Kingdom
Katie Schwab is an intuitive sculptor skilled in several disciplines, including ceramics, woodwork, and textiles. She explores personal, social, and craft-based histories, often attending to marginalized and overlooked traditions of making. Schwab’s recent work investigates the experience of shared space, as in her 2016 project Together in a Room—an installation of furniture, ceramics, textiles, and video that explored the tension between public and private space, through an evocative integration of design, color, and domestic objects.

Schwab received her BA from Goldsmiths College (London) and MFA from the Glasgow School of Art, and her work has been on view in numerous exhibitions in the United Kingdom over the past five years. www.katieschwab.com

Katie Schwab’s creative collaborators include Felicity Irons of Rush Matters and Stephen Thompson of Flameworks.

Allison Smith, United States
Allison Smith is a queer artist, time traveler, and practical animist based in Yelamu and Huichin a.k.a. the San Francisco Bay Area, on unceded Ohlone territory. Smith has presented their work at museums such as SFMOMA, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum, The Arts Club of Chicago, and S!GNAL Center for Contemporary Art, P.S.1/MoMA, Palais de Tokyo, the Wattis Institute for Contemporary Arts, MASS MoCA, and The Tang Museum. Smith’s work is held in the collections of the Whitney Museum of American Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Saatchi Gallery London, Linda Pace Foundation, and many other public and private collections.

Smith was born in Manassas, Virginia in 1972. They received a BA in psychology from The New School for Social Research, a BFA in fine arts from Parsons School of Design, and an MFA in sculpture from the Yale University School of Art. They also participated in the Whitney Museum Independent Study Program. They lived in New York City from 1990 until 2008 when they moved to the San Francisco Bay Area to join the faculty of California College of the Arts, where they currently serve as Dean of Fine Arts. www.allisonsmithstudio.com

Allison Smith’s creative collaborators include Jennifer Hennesy; Elisabeth Matkin Sullins; Russell Baldon; Raymond Crane; Brenen Iverson; Maricela Perea; Bill Kerry; Dave Slowe; Bob Beatson; an Elderberry tree of St. Edburg’s Churchyard, Bicester, UK; and a Mayflower (Hawthorn) tree of San Anselmo, CA, USA.

Another Crossing would not be possible without the funding support of the Joan Pearson Watkins Trust, Princess Yachts, Caroline R. Graboys Fund, Hamilton Company Charitable Foundation, Jonathan Leo Fairbanks Exhibition Fund, Plymouth City Council, and Arts Council England. Much gratitude is also due Program Sponsors Plymouth Center for the Arts, Plymouth 400, Pilgrim Hall Museum, and Plymouth Antiquarian Society. Furthermore, Fuller Craft Museum would like to thank its project partners the Plymouth College of Art and The Box for all their efforts and collaborative spirit in developing Another Crossing: Artists Revisit the Mayflower Voyage.

Another Crossing is also funded in part by the following cultural councils: Abington, Bridgewater, Brockton, East Bridgewater, Foxborough, Halifax, Hanson, Hingham, Holbrook, Mansfield, Middleborough, North Attleborough, Norton, Raynham, Scituate, Taunton, and Whitman. These local agencies support the arts with funding provided by Massachusetts Cultural Council. We are grateful for their support.