MAD ABOUT DESIGN

How do you draw the line between art and craft? David McFadden, head curator of the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, says don't bother. He talks about the museum's sensibility and new location with Ariel Ramchandani ...

Special to MORE INTELLIGENT LIFE

The new Museum of Arts and Design stands jewel-like at the heart of Columbus Circle, its 22,000 custom terra-cotta plates glinting in the sun. Brad Cloepfil's elegant refurbishment of an odd, old, unused building opened its doors in September, after several years and $90m. The new site increases the size of the museum three-fold and doubles the gallery space of its former site on 53rd Street, when it was the American Craft Museum.

The galleries are similarly dazzling, "an amazing cacophony that is by turns dismaying, enervating, infuriating and invigorating", wrote Roberta Smith in the New York Times. This "cacophony" is exemplified by the exhibition "Second Lives", in which everyday things--pills, rubber gloves, forks and spoons, bottle caps, wooden scraps, nails, paper bags--become works of art. These odd arrangements are breathtaking for their attention to detail, such as the strange beauty of "A Mixture of Frailties" by Susie MacMurray, who stitched hundreds of rubber gloves into a flowing, organic couture gown. The show includes a metal jacket made entirely of dog tags and a collage of clothing labels made to look like textile workers.

Ariel Ramchandani talked to David McFadden, head curator of the museum, about the new building, the drop of the word "craft" from its name, and why recessions can be good for museums.

MIL: What’s the most exciting aspect of moving to this great new space?

DM: We can think bigger. This space is more conducive to three-dimensional art and stimulates you to think about how art fits into the space. There’s also a lot more natural light, [which] is a luxury to work with, especially in New York.

MIL: Do you feel you can do more with the viewer's experience in this location?

DM: We're looking to eradicate the boundaries that separate art and design. [We] make no final line between designers by trade and people labelled as fine artists. To show them all together underscores how inter-dependent art, craft and design really are.

MIL: In some ways "craft" is a loaded word. It has negative connotations, as though it describes something inferior to "fine" art.

DM: Yes. By dropping the word "craft" from our title we are able to use the word as we want to use it. It’s related to folk art, hobby work, keeping with a category of objects. Craft defined as attention to detail remains fundamental. Every artist in “Second Lives” has a high level of craftsmanship and has explored the potential of everyday materials.

MIL: How do you see “Second Lives” specifically as an inaugural show in this space?

DM: Because these artists used everyday goods, the work is very accessible. When people look at it, they get it. Versus when you work with art that is so conceptual, and you look at it and say: ‘something must be wrong with me, I don't get it’. When I go into the galleries and listen to visitors, people come up here and they are finding humour in the work. It sets a tone for the museum.

MIL: What I particularly like about "Second Lives" is the way the ingenuity of the artwork sneaks up on you. I found myself enjoying the aesthetics of a piece, and then I would get close and think "Wow, hey, it’s made of spoons.'

DM: Yes, there's a triple wow. Take the El Anatsui piece when you first walk in. You notice the neck wraps and then the material and through that the narrative embedded in the object. Or the portrait of a textile worker. A closer look reveals it's made entirely out of labels. What they are made of makes the meaning.

MIL: Do you find that this kind of work lends itself to social commentary? Are you drawn to artists with social agendas?

DM: I did choose artists for social commentary. I wanted the pieces to tell a story. I always say that a dialogue with a piece of art begins with reading it. I tell [visitors] to say what they see even if it's hard to articulate. This is what leads to interpretation and commentary.

MIL: How did you become interested in decorative arts in the first place?

DM: In college I majored in biology, and then became very involved in theatre design, and then I discovered the history of art, where you learn every object has meaning. Except I was interested in the decorative. I would look at a painting and think, what's going on with that chair? What's its significance (for the artist, the people in that painting). The structure of the object has its own meaning.

MIL: How do you propose to keep the museum contemporary? Often people presume the world of design and craft is static.

DM: There will be a programme launched early next year called “Promised Gifts”, which will have two gallery spaces with lively, quick, turnaround shows. For example, people are doing outrageous things with radiator design. We will show what has happened in the field of compact radiators. We will be building works of art in the galleries.

MIL: What are you most proud of in this new space?

DM: I feel most proud of having brought the making of art and design to life. These are not objects behind glass in a vitrine and you're thinking ‘how did that get there’, trying to like and understand something static. On the 6th floor we have three open studios where artists will be working in the afternoon in wood, ceramics, fibreglass, mixed media etc. A visitor should go the sixth floor, talk to an artist and watch them work and then go into the galleries; so there's a personal interaction, there's meaning behind making the craft. The studios are important for reinforcing the goals of the museum.

MIL: What happens to the arts, particularly decorative arts, in an economic downturn?

DM: New York museums had the highest visitor record right after 9/11. I like to think of museums as a place for people to go in tough times to rediscover the values important to you. Unlike many other things, it’s enriching but not expensive.

Picture Credit: The Museum of Arts and Design’s Chazen Building, designed by Allied Works Architecture. Photo by Hélène Binet. Susie MacMurray, "A Mixture of Frailties", 2004. Photo by Susie MacMurray (all via The Museum of Arts and Design)