Trends to Watch in 2021: Craft Figuration

“Craft Figuration” is the second installment in a series of three features that spotlight the trends we’re watching in 2021. Along with a resurgence of figurative painting, depictions of the body through craft media have recently been met with great enthusiasm. Historically cast as lower art forms, this trend reflects the widespread embrace of craft within the art world in recent years. While this approach is not new, contemporary artists are utilizing craft media and techniques to explore identity in new ways that convey cultural histories and personal experience, speaking to a diverse range of cultures and their diasporas. From embroidered portraits and collaged figures to bodies sculpted from clay, discover a curated …