Although contemporary American crafts are widely exhibited and appreciated, very little information is available about the artists themselves, their training, careers, inspirations, and feelings about their work, and place in society. As part of a large oral history and survey project of the Research Center for Arts and Culture of Columbia University, ten personal narrative interviews with craftspeople were edited and collected for The Craftsperson Speaks. The selected artists represent a variety of disciplines and media, including ceramics, glass, jewelry, metalwork, and fiber, and also exhibit a balance of age, ethnicity, regionalism, and stage of career development. Each interview is prefaced by brief life and career data and followed by information on exhibit sources and professional affiliations and honors and a photographic illustration of a representative piece of work. The volume's introduction, written by the project coordinator, Mary Greeley, offers an overview of the history of the craftsperson in the United States, and a final bibliography provides sources for further reference. This combination of information and insights will be of interest and value to artists, teachers, students, art professionals, and the general public. Greenwood Press is pleased to publish it in time to help inaugurate 1993 and the Year of the American Craft.

We are living in a new urban age and its most tangible expression is the "supertall": megastructures that are dramatically bigger, higher, and more ambitious than any in history. In Supertall, TED Resident Stefan Al-himself an experienced architect who has worked on some of the largest buildings in the world-reveals the advancements in engineering, design, and data science that have led to this worldwide boom. Using examples from the past (the Empire State Building, St. Paul's Cathedral, the Eiffel Tower) and present (Dubai's Burj Khalifa, London's Shard, Shanghai Tower), he describes how the most remarkable skyscrapers have been designed and built. He explores the ingenious technological innovations-in cement, wind resistance, elevator design, and air-conditioning-that make the latest megastructures a reality. And he examines the risks of wealth inequality, carbon emissions, and contagion they yield while arguing for a more sustainable, resilient, and equitable built environment for everyone.

A compelling blend of art history, social analysis, and personal testimony, "Creative Collectives" presents a new paradigm for understanding Chicana/o studies. By following the artistic and ideological journeys of two groups of northern California Chicana artists, MarA-a Ochoa argues that the women involved in these collectives created complex images whose powerful visual social commentary sprang from the daily experiences of their lives.

Ochoa's artistic narrative first focuses on Mujeres Muralistas, a pathbreaking San Francisco group of mural painters organized in the early 1970s at the height of the Chicana/o Movement. The story then turns its attention to Co-Madres Artistas, a group of artists who came together in the 1990s after spending decades tending their families, becoming successful in their careers, and launching key Chicana/o cultural institutions in the Sacramento Valley. Ochoa tells the stories of the individual members of these collectives to show how they combined art and activism.

Through an innovative application of oral history interviews, a fascinating compilation of individual and collective stories emerges. Creative Collectives is notable for its skillful weaving of personal recollections, representational analysis of mural and easel painting, and social movement narration.

Often hard to describe, the term modern' changes according to context or relationship. It is a sensibility that is recognised as being progressive or forward thinking, pushing the limits of style. Nowhere is this as easily grasped as in the visual arts. In design, modern patterns are formed by geometric shapes, graphic figures, and abstract imagery; coming together in a deliberate formation of lines, colours, shapes, and symbols. Featuring hundreds of images of fresh, bold, and innovative pattern work, Modern Patterns is sure to inspire. Includes a CD-ROM.'

Ethan Allen and HGTV may have plenty to say about making a home look right, but what makes a home feel right? In House Thinking, journalist and cultural critic Winifred Gallagher takes the reader on a psychological tour of the American home. By drawing on the latest research in behavioral science, an overview of cultural history, and interviews with leading architects and designers, she shows us not only how our homes reflect who we are but also how they influence our thoughts, feelings, and actions.

How does your entryway prime you for experiencing your home? What makes a bedroom a sensual oasis? How can your bathroom exacerbate your worst fears? House Thinking addresses provocative questions like these, enabling us to understand the homes we've made for ourselves in a unique and powerful new way. It is an eye-opening look at how we live . . . and how we could live.