American Craft Council

THE AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL LIBRARY IN MINNEAPOLIS WILL INCREASE ITS ABILITY TO SUPPORT PATRONS BOTH IN PERSON AND ONLINE. THE LIBRARY'S COLLECTION IS THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE IN THE NATION ON CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN CRAFT FROM WORLD WAR II TO THE PRESENT. ALTHOUGH THE LIBRARY CLOSED AND HAD TO CANCEL ITS EVENTS DURING THE HEIGHT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC, IT SAW A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN REQUESTS FOR REFERENCE SERVICES DURING THAT TIME. WHILE SOME RESOURCES ARE FREELY AVAILABLE ON THE LIBRARY'S WEBSITE, MANY MATERIALS ARE NOT AVAILABLE DIGITALLY. PATRON REQUESTS FOR THOSE MATERIALS STILL REQUIRE A LIBRARIAN TO SEARCH WITHIN THE PHYSICAL ARCHIVES. THE LIBRARY WILL HIRE A PART-TIME ASSISTANT LIBRARIAN TO SUPPORT PATRON REQUESTS AND AID WITH THE LIBRARY'S FURTHER DIGITIZATION EFFORTS.

AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL LIBRARY AND LEGACY ACTIVITIES PROTECTION

IMPLEMENTATION PROJECT: DIGITIZING HISTORIC PUBLICATIONS OF THE AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL [THE AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL (ACC) WILL DIGITIZE AND MAKE ACCESSIBLE HISTORIC ISSUES OF AMERICAN CRAFT MAGAZINE AND ACC REGIONAL ASSEMBLY NEWSLETTERS, CONTINUING THE WORK COMPLETED THROUGH PREVIOUS GRANT FUNDING. MATERIALS WILL BE DIGITIZED BY AN OUTSIDE VENDOR, AND PROJECT STAFF WILL BE HIRED TO WRITE THE NECESSARY METADATA FOR THE DIGITAL OBJECTS. ALL MATERIALS WILL BE ADDED TO THE ACC?S DIGITAL COLLECTIONS LINKED FROM THE ACC WEBSITE, WHICH WILL ENHANCE THE EASE AND DEPTH OF SCHOLARSHIP OF STUDENTS, CURATORS, ART HISTORIANS, PUBLISHERS, AND ARTISTS IN THE FIELD OF CONTEMPORARY CRAFT. THIS PROJECT WILL FILL THE GAP IN DIGITAL ACCESS TO AMERICAN CRAFT MAGAZINE BACK ISSUES, AS WELL AS PROVIDE ACCESS TO REGIONAL NEWSLETTERS CURRENTLY NOT CATALOGED OR DIGITIZED. THE PROJECT WILL BE COMPLETED BETWEEN JUNE 1, 2024, AND DECEMBER 31, 2025.]

TO SUPPORT THE DIGITIZATION AND PRESERVATION OF "YOUR PORTABLE MUSEUM" A SIGNIFICANT HISTORICAL CRAFT SLIDE ARCHIVE FROM THE LATTER HALF OF THE 20TH

TO SUPPORT THE DIGITIZATION OF THE AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL'S LIBRARY COLLECTIONS.

PURPOSE: TO SUPPORT AMERICAN CRAFT MAGAZINE.

TO SUPPORT DIGITIZATION OF ARCHIVAL MATERIALS FOR INCLUSION IN AN ONLINE DATABASE.

TO SUPPORT THE VIRTUAL PROGRAM AMERICAN CRAFT FORUM.

TO SUPPORT "PRESENT TENSE," THE NATIONAL LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE FOR THE FIELD OF CONTEMPORARY CRAFT, DESIGN, AND THE APPLIED ARTS.

TO SUPPORT THE ESTABLISHED SCHOOL TO MARKET AND MAKING MEANING IN THE MARKETPLACE PROGRAMS, IN CONSORTIUM WITH THE CALIFORNIA COLLEGE OF THE ARTS.

PRESERVATION ASSESSMENT OF THE AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL AUDIOVISUAL ARCHIVES COLLECTION [THE PRESERVATION ASSESSMENT OF THE AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL AUDIOVISUAL COLLECTION WILL BE USED DETERMINE CONTENT AT HIGH RISK OF LOSS DUE TO DEGREDATION, AND TO CREATE A PRIORITIES PLAN FOR DIGITIZING THE CONTENT IN THE AUDIOVISUAL COLLECTION WITHIN THE ARCHIVES. A REPORT PRODUCED AS A RESULT OF THE CONDITION AND PRESERVATION ASSESSMENT CAN BE USED TO SUPPORT FUTURE GRANT APPLICATIONS THE AMERICAN CRAFT COUNCIL WILL SUBMIT TO VARIOUS ORGANIZATIONS TO FUND DIGITIZATION EFFORTS. DIGITIZING THE COLLECTION WILL SERVE TO BOTH PRESERVE CONTENT VALUABLE TO CRAFT HISTORY RESEARCH CONTAINED IN FORMATS THAT ARE SUSCEPTIBLE TO DEGRADATION, AND TO PROVIDE ACCESSIBILITY TO THE CONTENT CURRENTLY HELD IN OUTDATED FORMATS IN A REPOSITORY LACKING APPROPRIATE PLAYBACK EQUIPMENT. A PRESERVATION ASSESSMENT FUNDED BY THE PRESERVATION ASSISTANCE GRANT WILL BE AN IMPORTANT STEP TO PRESERVE THE ANALOG MATERIALS, AND THE FIRST STEP TOWARD EMBARKING ON DIGITIZATION OF THE AUDIOVISUAL COLLECTION.]