Prize Recognizes Artist’s Work on Climate Change
A Michigan furniture artist, Bill Perkins, won the “Honoring the Future® Sustainability Award” presented at the prestigious 2017 Smithsonian Craft Show in Washington, DC. The national award, which comes with a $1,000 prize, recognizes an artist whose work educates the public about climate change or inspires or models a sustainable response to climate change.
The winning artist creates sustainably made traditional bent willow and applied bark furniture in the style of the upper Great Lakes. “Environmentally, my work is about as low-impact as furniture gets,” says Perkins.
Skirt rocker by Bill Perkins. © Perkins, 2017. Courtesy of the artist.
The frames of Perkins’ rocking chairs are maple saplings, hand-sawed after a hard frost so the roots will re-sprout in the spring. Willow for seats is hand-clipped from plants that grow back to be clipped again, many times over. Table legs are made from discarded Christmas trees. Birchbark insets in tabletops come from fallen trees. All of the wood is used green, not kiln-dried, saving energy.
“I like the idea of bringing trees inside the house and shaping them into beautiful and functional objects, without losing the character and identity of the materials,” Perkins explains. “I like to use unprocessed materials in my work and harness the immediacy of a shoot of willow. From my first rickety plant stands to the pieces I make now, each piece of willow I trim and bend, each piece of maple or bark has taught me something new.”
Side table by Bill Perkins. © Perkins, 2017. Courtesy of the artist.
Lloyd Herman, founding director of the Smithsonian American Art Museum’s Renwick Gallery, judged the entries and praised the surprising structural strength of Perkins’ creations. Other examples of Perkins’ work can be found at the Sleeping Bar Twig Furniture gallery.
Twenty-one artists from 14 states vied for the award; several besides Perkins earned recognition for exceptional artistry. Jennifer Zurick from Berea, Kentucky won the Bronze Award for her basketry – also made from willow trees. Zurick says: “The trees are becoming harder to find. Their habitat is susceptible to changes in Earth’s climate that alter the flow of water and the migration of disease and insects. I hope that a person holding one of my baskets might consider its dependency upon a stable natural environment.”
From left to right: Basket by Jennifer Zurick; Tapestry by Wence & Sandra Martinez. Courtesy of the artists.
Wence & Sandra Martinez from Jacksonport, WI won the Bronze Exhibitors’ Award for contemporary tapestry that evokes the spirit of ancient times. Hand-woven on treadle floor looms in hand-spun Oaxacan wool, their creations use un-dyed or naturally dyed colors and primitive drawings to dramatic effect.
The Sustainability Award is the result of a partnership between Honoring the Future and the Smithsonian Women’s Committee. The Smithsonian Women’s Committee is a volunteer grant making organization; it produces the Smithsonian Craft Show to raise funds for grants to support education, outreach and research at the Institution’s 19 museums and galleries, 9 research facilities, 20 libraries, and the National Zoo.
