EXCELLENCE IN INNOVATION AWARD

In collaboration with american craft council (ACC), JRACRAFT awards GRACE BROGAN with the EXCELLENCE IN INNOVATION award at the american craft made show in baltimore, md.

Jurors Amanda Phillips, Nedra Agnew, and Jennifer Scanlan walked the show along with Award Chair Rebecca Ravenal to look for artists that showed innovation in their techniques, use of material, or approach to their work. They chose Grace Brogan, who combines traditional broom making and ceramic to create pieces which are both functional and sculptural. As part of the award, Grace will receive a $1000 cash prize from JRACraft and has automatic entry into next year's show from ACC. She was thrilled to be recognized for this award.

At first glance, Grace's quiet work seems to be the epitome of tradition  -- brooms and wood-fired clay. Two mediums as old as Craft itself. Slowly, you realize how ingeniously she has brought the two together to create something new and unexpected that still feels familiar and useful.

The jurors chose to honor Grace with an Innovation award for her approach to making which maintains a deep reverence for past methods and meaning but brings contemporary considerations to bear, modernizing the traditional to maintain relevance and connection to current culture.

Sometimes, Innovation is disruptive, kicking out the windows and knocking over the furniture. Sometimes, it slips in the door quietly and whispers “What if?”, prompting new ways of thinking about dearly held values and answers to a question you didn’t know you had.

https://gracebrogan.com/about