Kansas Artist Craftsmen Association · 2008

The Kansas Artist Craftsmen Association (KACA) was founded in 1966 as a resource group for communication, support, workshops, exhibitions, and networking for Kansas artists working in 3-dimensional media. Since its inception, KACA has been a showcase for regional contemporary work in clay, fiber, metal, wood, enamel, jewelry, glass and mixed media. KACA membership includes faculty members from universities and colleges in Kansas, public school art teachers, studio artists, and students enrolled in art programs. 

Generally, there is a juried member show associated with each annual conference, as it challenges KACA membership, heightens the professionalism of the organization, and provides visibility for artists in the region. Twenty-two artists are featured in the exhibition which ranges from large scale clay works by Amy Kephart and Yoshiro Ikeda to astonishing jewelry pieces by Lin Stanionis. “The opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with Kansas artists (leading professionals in the craft field), while at the same time exposing our college community to works of contemporary craft and technique, is an invaluable opportunity that KACA brings to educational programming at our college.” stated Sydney Pener, KACA Host Coordinator and JCCC fine arts instructor.  

Johnson County Community College will host the Kansas Artist Craftsmen Association 2008 annual fall conference with an opening reception from 5-7:30 p.m. Friday, Oct. 3, with lectures by Pener, Nick Haney, Amy Kephart and Lin Stanionis, and conference day, 8 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 4, at the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art and other campus locations. Keynote speaker is Howard Risatti, emeritus professor of contemporary art and critical theory in the department of art history at Virginia Commonwealth University (where he also was chair of the department of craft/material studies from 2001-05). Demonstrations will be provided in ceramics by Chris Staley, professor of ceramic arts, Penn State University, and in metals/enamel by Barbara Minor, Baton Rouge, LA., a studio enamel artist working in jewelry and objects. 

Artists included in the exhibition:

Ceramics/Fiber

Donna Cole
Laura-Harris Gascogne
Nick Lowe Haney
Dale Hartley
Yoshiro Ikeda
Amy Kephart
John S. Kudlacek
Janet Kuemmerlein
Larry Peters
Peggy Wyman

Metalsmiths/Wood

Lynn Cool
Linda Gebert
Jon Havener
Ron Hickman
Janet Lewis
Jennifer Nolan
Sydney Pener
Barbara Terrell Pujol
Eric A. Ryser
Marjorie Schick
Lin Stanionis
Gina Westergard