"RugLife," an original exhibition curated by Ginger Gregg Duggan and Judith Hoos Fox of c2-curatorsquared, will be on view at the Museum of Craft and Design through April 20th. "RugLife" features the work of 14 contemporary artists from around the world who are using the humble rug as a medium for exploration of issues that define our culture. With a focus on the rich history of rug making, which varies incredibly from region to region, "RugLife" will examine this decorative object turned art object in its contemporary form, as it is manipulated, reinterpreted, and even made new, exploring timely and important themes such as religion, technology, environment, justice, identity, and housing.

During SF Art Week, MCD hosted an artist conversation related to the exhibition to provide further discussion and investigation into related themes.

Upcoming Exhibitions:

"Beau McCall: Buttons On!" May 10 - September 14, 2025

"Buttons On!" marks the first-ever retrospective for artist, Beau McCall. Proclaimed by American Craft magazine as “The Button Man,” McCall creates wearable and visual art by hand-sewing clothing buttons onto mostly upcycled fabrics, materials, and objects. "Buttons On!" showcases pieces from McCall’s nearly forty-year career, the debut of several new works, and select archival material. Organized into several themes, the exhibition explores McCall’s mastery of the button and commentary on topics such as pop culture and social justice. The exhibition’s four themes include: “Buttons on the Body,” “Buttons on the Mind,” “Buttons on the Soul,” and “Buttons Off,” each one representing a different facet of McCall’s creative practice. Visitors will experience McCall’s button-embellished plethora of wearable art including jackets, vests, yokes, shorts, aprons, sneakers, jewelry, and durags; visual art such as a 450-pound cast iron bathtub, a life-size Kool-Aid Man, and an installation of over 100 jars of buttons; mostly never-before-seen archival materials documenting McCall’s career and evolution; and a few select items of McCall’s button-less works that spotlight his versatility and boundless creativity.

"A Roadmap to Stardust" May 10 - September 14, 2025

"A Roadmap to Stardust" is an immersive installation that features new site-specific work by acclaimed artists Neil Forrest and John Roloff—collaboratively known as OortCloudX—inviting visitors to explore the mysteries of the cosmos through the transformative lens of craft. At its heart, "A Roadmap to Stardust" begins with the smallest building block—a speck of stardust—and expands into a wide-ranging narrative of myth and history. OortCloudX reinterprets ancient archetypes and creation myths through the timeless medium of ceramics, revealing a world where craft becomes a bridge between past and present. Antiquarian images of the heavens, reimagined origin stories, and legends of early civilizations converge to form a modern myth steeped in mysticism and scientific inquiry. In the galleries, the exhibition unfolds like an archaeological dig into an imagined past. Curious faux-historical artifacts, predominantly fashioned from clay, evoke the excavation of a long-lost civilization. Visitors will encounter reinterpreted “telescopes” crafted from elements reminiscent of Greek amphorae and classical statuary, alongside other relics such as crocodile skulls, warrior gear, and early technologies. These pieces collectively suggest an origin story where the very substance of Earth—clay—becomes a metaphor for creation and cosmic exploration.