Tools of the Trades: American Handmade Implements and Devices is the first exhibition of its kind to highlight beautifully designed, handcrafted tools made by contemporary toolmakers in the United States. It will also be the first in a series of exhibitions for Handwork 2026, a nationwide semiquincentennial collaboration showcasing the importance of the handmade and celebrating the diversity of craft that defines America. This is a chance to see the kinds of age-old devices that in some cases have not fundamentally changed for centuries, yet are interpreted anew by current makers. Even in this age of technology and mass production, there is a thriving community of craftspeople who labor in their workshops to produce small batches of tools to be bought and used by other makers and connoisseurs. These are enduring tools that will be used for a lifetime and can hardly compare to the kind readily available at a hardware store. A particular hammer head, the grip of a saw handle, the reliable, perfect cut of pliers; tools are the essential, behind-the-scenes factor in a makers process. They are often overlooked by the uninitiated, and yet critical in the specialty fabrication that is at the core of a creative process. The highly crafted objects in the exhibition pertain to a wide scope of disciplines: ceramics, textiles, hot glass, wood working, and metal. Viewers will gain insight into tools engineered for niche fields like jewelry making, book arts, and glass blowing. Inventors and makers since time eternal have always relied on hand tools to successfully go about their work and creative people will routinely fabricate their own. Tools of the Trades celebrates the resourcefulness born of necessity and expands on the history of artisanal tool making in America. Vintage tools from various collections will show the early precedents that inspire todays makers. The Craft in America Center is a small museum and library in Los Angeles, Calif., that presents artist talks, scholarly lectures, hands-on workshops and concerts, in addition to rotating exhibitions. The center works in tandem with the acclaimed PBS documentary series Craft in America to give voice to traditional and contemporary craft, ranging from functional to purely conceptual. Being a brick-and-mortar venue, the center provides the public an opportunity for direct personal engagement with art, artists and ideas. For further information, visit www.craftinamerica.org.