''American Craft'' is a periodical

magazine A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combinatio ...

that documents crafts, craft artists, and both practical and creative aspects of the field of American craft. Originally founded by

Aileen Osborn Webb Aileen Osborn Webb (1892–1979) was an American aristocrat and a patron of crafts.Joyce LovelaceWho Was Aileen Osborn Webb? July 25, 2011, American Craft CouncilBarbara LovenheimCrafting Modernism, NYCityWoman.comSandra Alfoldy, ''Crafting Ident ...

in 1941 as ''

Craft Horizons ''Craft Horizons'' is a periodical magazine that documents and exhibits crafts, craft artists, and other facets of the field of American craft. The magazine was founded by Aileen Osborn Webb and published from 1941 to 1979. It included editoria ...

'', the magazine has been published by the nonprofit American Craft Council under the title ''American Craft'' since November 1979. As of 1979, the magazine's monthly circulation averaged 40,000 copies, making it the main craft publication in the United States. As ''American Craft'', the magazine developed "a more visual orientation as a coffee-table magazine". After the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

began to award grants to individual craftspeople in 1973, ''American Craft'' profiled major NEA craft recipients. However, its reviews were often limited to "one or two in-depth commentaries" accompanied by a "visual summary of shows". Like its predecessor, which both "documented and shaped" the changing history of the American craft movement, ''American Craft'' has reflected the development of craft. Writers such as

Ed Rossbach Ed Rossbach (Chicago, 1914 – Berkeley, California, October 7, 2002) was an American fiber artist. He earned a BA in Painting and Design at the University of Washington in Seattle, Washington in 1940, an MA in art education from Columbia Univer ...

have examined the history of craft in its pages. In the 1980s Rossbach wrote a series of articles describing tensions between textile artists

Mary Meigs Atwater Mary Meigs Atwater (February 28, 1878 – September 5, 1956) was an American weaver. She revived handweaving in America by collecting weaving drafts, teaching and writing; ''Handweaver and Craftsman'' called Atwater "the grand dame and grand moth ...

, Anni Albers,

Dorothy Liebes Dorothy Wright Liebes (14 October 1897 – 20 September 1972) was an American textile designer and weaver renowned for her innovative, custom-designed modern fabrics for architects and interior designers."Dorothy Liebes: Sample room divider (1973 ...

and Marianne Strengell in the 1940s. In 1993, the magazine marked its 50th anniversary and the national "Year of American Craft" with a commemorative issue profiling the previous fifty years. ''American Craft'' was described in 1994 as a "major scholarly periodical" of interest to both researchers and serious craftspeople. ''American Craft''s current editor is Karen Olson (2020-). Previous editors-in-chief include Deborah Pines, Pat Dandignac, Lois Moran (1980 to 2006), Andrew Wagner (2007-2009), Janet Koplos (guest editor, 2009-2010), Shannon Sharpe (deputy editor), Monica Moses (June 2010 to January 2018) and Megan Guerber (2018-2020).

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