Craft Australia Advocacy·Communication·Research
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Craft Australia is the peak national advocacy organisation for Australian contemporary craft and design. We actively promote and provide access to Australian contemporary practice through advocacy, communication and research.
Craft Australia is a company limited by guarantee not having share capital with its constitution outlining it mission and key goals:
The Board of the Company ordinarily consists of seven people being four Directors elected by the members and three Directors appointed by the Board, having regard to the expertise of the nominees and the needs of the Company.
Craft Australia endorses the outstanding achievements of Australian contemporary craft and design by celebrating the breadth of practice including the influence of new technologies, hybrid artworks and links with industry as a growth area for Australian craft and design.
The organisation works in collaboration with the network of Australian Craft and Design Centres, ACDC, the tertiary sector and the public and commercial galleries in delivering its key goals of advocacy communication and research.
We promote craft and design by delivering programs and activities through the Craft Australia website which is a hub for the sector.
Craft Australia receives funding and support from two key Australian Government Programmes:
Please see our funding and support page for details of other funding and support to Craft Australia.
Craft Australia has been championing Australian contemporary craft and design practice since it was estalished as the Craft Council of Australia in 1971. Over this time Craft Australia has responded to changes in the field and implemented key strategies to advance the sector.
In the 1990s it changed its name to Craft Australia and in 2003 changed its location from Sydney to Canberra but, the continuity of its history and its importance in the arts in Australia is of significance and is worth reflecting upon.
Craft Australia facilitated the growth of the Australian craft and design sector at a time when educational resources were scarce, and support organisations were minimal. A lasting legacy of Craft Australia's work in the early 1970s was to facilitate the establishment of craft councils in each capital city of Australia. Now known as the network of Australian Craft Design Centres (ACDC), this dynamic network operates to meet the needs of craft and design practitioners and affiliated groups in the various states and territories and to develop exhibitions and programs that promote the sector.
Jane Burns, the founding Director of Craft Australia in 1971 until 1992, provides an insider's view in an article about the development of the then Crafts Council of Australia with its steering committee of prominent craftspeople, designers and writers and how they challenged and extended crafts in Australia. It is argued that this vision of support for studio practitioners earning a living from craft has provided greater opportunity for more people to participate and explore craft. Please read The foundation years of Craft Australia - the 1970s.
Craft Australia retains copyright in the site as a whole and all material on the site that is authored and commissioned by Craft Australia. However, Craft Australia supports and encourages the dissemination and exchange of information.
Please see Craft Australia's Copyright Policy for further details.
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