Entrance to the Philadelphia Art Alliance - on a sunny day.

Judith Schaechter reminded me of a cross between rock star Juliette Lewis and Amelie Poulain: a strong, quirky personality with wild, brown locks and fiercely intelligent eyes that even a pair of wire-framed glasses couldn’t quite obscure. I was completely unsurprised upon discovering after a bit of research that her experience-laden past includes a stint as a musician in a local band. The outfit she chose to wear for the occasion, with its warm, earthy tones and bold, floral print, seemed eminently appropriate for a stained glass artist. Bruce Metcalf, an artist who specializes in jewelry, wall reliefs and sculptures, introduced her to the floor as a person of “acid, high anxiety obsessions” with a “profound faith in beauty.”

Judith Schaechter (l.) and local sculptor Susan Hagen (r.) at the post-lecture discussion

The lecture, on the quest for craft’s ability to define itself in the face of fine art, continued for about an hour, or as Schaecter quantified it, “nine pages, single-spaced.” In between some close calls with a glass of water that perched precariously atop a table, Schaecter subtly wove her blunt, somewhat bawdy sense of humor as she stood before cleverly-captioned illustrations and images from the Power Point Presentation behind her.

The lecture space on the third floor of the Philadelphia Art Alliance.

The debate, she maintains, falls primarily between the idea of untouchable museum art and craft as the “realm of folks.” It is a match that can sometimes seem unfairly weighed — with philosophy, the mind and sacred ideals lining up for art, and craft being represented by functionality, the body and skilled labor. In contemporary times, the prejudice against craft is exemplified by poorer funding and fewer college courses. It is a prejudice, Schaechter attests, owing primarily to man’s fear of the human body and all its attendant messiness and mortality.

Judith Shaechter did not use pictures of her work during the lecture, but instead used craft images (supplied mostly from Google). Here's an example from Schaecter's portfolio above: Monument, 25" x 30"

Art, Schaechter fears, is evolving into a field for “monomaniacal devotion” to navigating “a path to discovery of truth.” Craft, on the other hand, remains a valuable resource. (She somewhat cheekily explained that with the frequency with which human civilizations lean towards collapse, craft contains skill-sets we may very well find useful in the not-so-distant future. In more practical terms, hands-on experience is the most reliable pathway towards future innovation.) While she maintains that fine art as an idea must remain fundamentally separate – as that which is the highest to which we aspire – she proposes that the true question of separation comes down to discrimination vs. the power to discriminate.

Another example of Schaecter's work: Body Bag, 28" x 47"

It is not a matter of where craft falls in relation to art, but of good vs. bad. Good art and good craft should be valued intrinsically. Bad art, on the other hand, should be tossed into obscurity just as easily as bad craft. Anything else, Schaechter attests, is “insulting to the intelligence” and “depriving us of the ability to dream.” While Shaechter’s lecture added some much-needed dimension to the dualistic debate, I couldn’t help but wonder where the gray realm of subjective opinion can subsist in a black-and-white world of good and bad.

On April 14 at 7 pm, the next lecture in the series, “Artist as Scientist, Scientist as Artist?,” will feature Philadelphia sculptor Adelaide Paul on the line between art and science.

We had to see some on an actual body or two to get the full effect. And so we asked Ruth Snyderman and Kat Moran to model for us. Ruth is wearing a brooch and Kat has the lovely Bleuet around her neck. The works not only begged to be touched, once they escaped their display cases. They also suggested touching the jewels was not quite enough.

Kat Moran modeling Bruce Metcalf's Bleuet, painted and gold leafed maple, 24k gold plated brass, holly, 13 x 13 inches, 2003

The amazing thing is how lightweight these objects are. We mistakenly thought that Metcalf, a pre-eminent metalsmith, had fashioned the works from metal, but no, they are painted and gold-leafed fine woods…maple, holly, etc. with metallic touches. And the individual wood pieces are hollow–so, light as a feather.

Ruth Snyderman sporting one of Bruce Metcalf's brooches

Metcalf, who is also a writer, embellished his installation with drawings on the walls to give the art historical context. The context we loved best was Hans Belmawr’s sex dolls! And Metcalf had drawn an example of one on the wall. We thought about the Calder jewelry that showed at the PMA last year, too. Calder’s too looked totally different in the case, where the constructions were forbidding and sharp-looking, but photographed on the women for whom they were designed, oooh la la.

Jewelry is of course sexy to begin with — body adornment with the purpose of attracting and seducing. And even though you’ve probably not seen anything quite like their aggressive and openly sensual beauty in a bauble, these works are firmly in the time-honored tradition.

Jeanne D'Angelo, Vegetable Lamb of Tartary, 16x20" archival print of casein emulsion paint on paper.

While we were in the gallery, we went downstairs to the Works gallery space to see Moran’s curated works on paper show. The curator, who is also an artist, has been organizing shows for Benna’s Cafe and B2, and here she rounded up many fine young Philadelphia artists, some of them working in exquisitely-detailed illustrational form.

We loved much of what we saw, from Jeanne D’Angelo’s oddly-named and horribly skewered lamb in a tree to Joslyn Newman’s paper-doll-like cutouts including a sassy grandma with a walker.

Hurry over to catch these two shows because they come down Saturday, Sept. 26.

John Eric Byers' pieces are all 49" x 59" and made with casein milk paint on panel, varnish and wax.

Next up at Snyderman is John Eric Byers’ milk paint universes. Instead of furniture, this time Byers will show wall pieces that look like chess boards, ancient mosaics or blow-ups of fabric patterns for upholstered furniture. Meditations on color and shape–and on time, the works look great in reproduction. Next month we all can see them in person.

Doug Bucci, Islet /Red (Neckpiece) 2007. Photopolymer (Perfactory), polychrome & 18k vermeil 4 x 4 x 1 in. Shown at Tyler School of Art/Temple University Master of Fine Arts Alumni Exhibition 1969 – 2009

Most local artists involved in the metals scene know that Philadelphia has had a long and vibrant connection to jewelry, metalsmithing, craft, and design. Four exhibitions currently on view provide different looks at this ongoing relationship. The Philadelphia Art Alliance is hosting two of these exhibitions. The first, Stanley Lechtzin: Five Decades 1959-2009, is a retrospective exhibition of Tyler School of Art Professor Stanley Lechtzin. Lechtzin has taught at Tyler since 1962 and in that time has pioneered groundbreaking technological advancements within the jewelry field. In the 60′s he brought electroforming from industry into the artists studio and in the early 80′s he embraced computer-aided design (CAD) and computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) as the revolutionary “hands” of the future designer/jeweler. Many of his former students can be seen in the Tyler School of Art MFA Alumni Exhibition 1969-2009 on display in the new Stella Elkins Tyler Galleries. While I have not seen this exhibit, I am anticipating lots of futuristic looking virtual jewelry and displays of rapid prototyped designs from about 1985 onward – hallmarks of this program’s technological obsession.

Engorged Boutonniere by current UArts Professor Sharon Church, Revolution Exhibit

The second exhibit at the Art Alliance is titled (rEvolution): 105 Years of Jewelry and Metalsmithing at The University of the Arts and it features numerous artists who have taught at The University of the Arts and its predecessor institutions the Pennsylvania Museum School of Industrial Arts and the Philadelphia College of Art.

Bruce Metcalf, Costa Rican with Scroll (necklace), 2004-2006, 12 1/4 x 5 inches. Carved and painted maple and boxwood, 24k gold-plated brass, 23k gold leaf

In this exhibit it is clear that the UArts metal program has engaged a variety of artists with diverse creative approaches in reaching out and educating their students. Included in the exhibit are artworks from established artists such as Sharon Church, Rod McCormick, and Bruce Metcalf to younger artists like Veleta Vancza, Melanie Bilenker, and Erin Williams.

Susan Myers, Disposable Series, dimensions variable, silver-plated copper & brass, found material, 1998-2005

Other exhibits that show the metal of Philadelphia are Philadelphia Metalsmiths at the Philadelphia International Airport (Terminal D) and Wrought & Crafted: Jewelry and Metalwork 1900-Present at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. These exhibits continue the “Philadelphia Story” – the actuality that Philadelphia always was and still is home to many metalsmiths who teach, create, and exhibit their artwork both locally and throughout the U.S. and abroad. Leah Douglas selected 16 artists for Philadelphia Metalsmiths who live and/or work in the Philadelphia area. This exhibit is on view until November but like all exhibits at the airport is only open to ticketed passengers. Check it out during your summer and fall travels.

Samuel Yellin, American (b. Poland), 1885-1940, Lock, key and handle, 1911. wrought iron. Wrought & Crafted: Jewelry and Metalwork 1900-present.

Wrought & Crafted was put together by Elisabeth Agro, the Nancy M. McNeil Associate Curator of American Modern and Contemporary Crafts and Decorative Arts at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The exhibit includes many prominent artists with Philadelphia connections like Samuel Yellin, Olaf Skoogfors, Jan Yager, and Albert Paley, as well as recent modern and contemporary acquisitions. Of special interest is a necklace by Philadelphia artists Ford/Forlano, commissioned by the Museum in memory of its late director Anne d’Harnoncourt and given by the Women’s Committee of the Museum.

Olaf Skoogfors, American (born Sweden), 1930 - 1975, Brooch, 1975. Gilded silver, ivory, pearl

–Susan Myers is a visual artist and metalsmith who also works as a Project Manager at The Fairmount Park Art Association. Her newest installation “Memories of Happiness”, is on display at the Window on Broad project space at The University of the Arts Rosenwald-Wolf Gallery in conjunction with the 2009 SNAG Conference.