Become a Master Artisan

Members whose applications have been accepted will, on the day of their scheduled jury session, bring 4 to 6 works that exemplify the Three Benchmarks for review by a jury of Master Artisans selected by the Standards Committee. The pieces brought for the jury should reflect the member’s body of work.

After arranging their works for review, each applicant will have three minutes to talk with jurors about his or her work by answering these questions:

• How long have you worked in your chosen medium?
• What do you find most compelling about your medium?
• What do you hope to convey with your work – what is your voice?

After the verbal presentations, the applicants will leave the jury area and the Master Artisan jurors will examine and review each applicant’s work to determine whether it successfully meets the Three Benchmarks.

Decisions are made by the jury based on all the information presented on the day of the jury session and on the Master Artisan application and accompanying documents.

A primary goal of the jury is to provide useful information about the artisans’ work, as the Master Artisan jury process is always about raising the level of our work, so after decisions have been rendered, each applicant, whether successful or unsuccessful, will be met by a juror or jurors who will speak with them individually about the rationale for the jury’s decision. Master Artisan certificates will be mailed to successful candidates within 4 weeks of the session.

One presentation is included in the cost of the application. Members who wish to return for a second session, within two years, may apply at a reduced re-jury fee of $25.00.

Respect and congratulations are due to every member artisan who makes application for Master Artisan Status, the most prestigious designation of the Pennsylvania Guild of Craftsmen.

Master Status in the Pennsylvania Guild is a lifetime honor awarded for a body of mature work that embodies the Three Benchmarks:

• Excellence in Craftsmanship
• Resolved Design
• Unique Voice (Contemporary Craft) or Faithful Representation (Traditional Craft)

Here are a few steps to take that will help you prepare to tackle this very big step in your artisan career.

Make full use of your PGC membership. Attend PGC Fine Craft Fairs and pay close attention to the works of Master Artisans who are exhibiting. Be active in your Chapter.. Listen critically to comments offered about your work and use those that you feel will lead you to a higher level. Find a mentor – or ask the Standards Vice President to help you find one – who will talk with you about your work and theirs.

Educate your eye. Visit large museums and galleries to look at work in your medium and beyond. Notice details. Learn to recognize good design, color and balance, the use of tension and space. Assess how what you see could be applied to your work. Look around you. Be observant. And practice, practice, practice. When you do take that step and submit your work for Master Artisan jurying, remember that the process is most importantly about education – learning about what is good and what might be improved in your work. (Try to) Relax. If you can open up to listening to the jurors, you’ll get the most out of the experience. Every juror who’ll be reviewing your work has been in your shoes.

The jury will assume you are bringing your best work to be reviewed. Be sure to look your work over with a critical eye. Careful attention to details – and reviewing it with the Three Benchmarks in mind – goes a long way toward getting your work ready.

When choosing which four to six pieces to bring for review, choose ones that complement each other – that represent your style and voice – and make sure the pieces feature your technical mastery of your medium. Excellence in Craftsmanship, Resolved Design and Unique Voice/Faithful Representation. That’s what you aim to demonstrate with the collection you bring.

Works not eligible for Master Artisan consideration include:

• Works created from commercially available kits and patterns
• (Non-traditional) work that is directly derived from the work of others
• Consumables
• Assemblages of found or manufactured items unless it is evident the maker has significantly altered raw materials.
• Commercially produced elements may not comprise a major component of any work.

Many Master Artisans did not pass on their first – or second – attempt, very probably including members of the jury. While no one wants to hear their work didn’t pass, when Master Artisan Status is awarded, you’ll have reached a high bar reflective of all your effort. It’s not uncommon for the person who reaches this mark on the second or third try to tell us they’re glad they needed to keep stretching as their work has matured.

When the day is over, pass or fail, does the process end here? Make use of the benefits of this great membership organization. Take time to reflect. Talk to your colleagues about your work. Push yourself to continue to learn and excel. Go to galleries and museums. Be observant. Take workshops. Take chances. Enter gallery exhibits. Have fun. Make fine craft.

Master Artisan Status jurying is the process by which member craftsmen may be awarded this high honor among our ranks. Master Artisans of the PGC receive special consideration in show acceptance, have their works sought out for PGC publicity, and are recognized among their peers as being the best of the best. The jury process is driven by the Three Benchmarks and the ultimate goal of the jury is to provide the applicant, successful or not, with well-reasoned valuable feedback as respects the artisan’s work.

Fine Craft Fair Exhibitor Selection Jurying is the process by which applicants to our Fine Craft Fairs are selected as exhibitors. There are always more applicants than there are spaces at our Fine Craft Fairs and the Selection Jury’s job is to review every submission and to choose the best of the best for the Fine Craft Fair. The jury may review well over 1,500 images in the Jury Session. Applicants are scored on their submission images and other information gleaned from their applications. Master Artisans are awarded an extra point in the scoring.

Floor Jurying is the process by which the PGC assures exhibitors and patrons alike of the best possible Fine Craft Fair experience. A group of Master Artisans, coordinated by the Standards Vice President, visits each exhibitor’s booth during the Fine Craft Fair to verify that the work complies with that submitted in the application; the artisan of record is, in fact, present in the booth; and, for Master Artisans, which exhibitors will be awarded the Three Benchmark Awards.