“Tools of the Trades” highlights hand-crafted tools including a pig hammer created by John Williams and Atticus Keesling. (photo courtesy of Craft in America)

“Tools of the Trades: American Handmade Implements and Devices” at Craft in America is the first exhibition of its kind to highlight beautifully designed, hand-crafted tools made by contemporary toolmakers in the United States. The exhibition will be on view through Jan. 3. 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, a thriving community of craftspeople labor in their workshops to produce small batches of tools to be bought and used by other makers and connoisseurs.

The enduring tools 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 maker’s 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 such as jewelry making, book arts and glass blowing.

Inventors and makers 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 today’s makers.

“Tools of the Trades” is the first in a series of exhibitions for “Handwork 2026,” a national semi-quincentennial collaboration showcasing the importance of handmade items and celebrating the diversity of craft that defines America.

Craft in America is located at 8415 W. Third St. For information, visit craftinamerica.org.