We welcomed twenty-four objects into our Permanent Collection in the 2022 calendar year. The body of acquired works includes impressive examples of blacksmithing, casting, enamel, and metalsmithing. Two of these pieces were already displayed in our Space Within: Select Pieces from the Permanent Collection exhibition, from February 5th to April 16th. Moreover, pieces by Harold B. “Bill” Helwig and Ana M. Lopez exhibited here speak to our recent exhibitions Extending the Potential: The Art and Techniques of Bill Helwig, from February 19th to May 21st, and Reimagining the Real: Ana M. Lopez & Natalie Macellaio, open until July 9th. 

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The success and growth of the Metal Museum relies on “circles” of engagement that often overlap. Our community consists of artists, students, collectors, donors, and patrons who return to the Museum, sometimes in new capacities, over many years. The objects acquired in the year 2022 in our Permanent Collection highlight the movement between these circles within our Metal Museum community. The pieces themselves, as well as the artists and donors, help to tell the ongoing story of crafting metal in contemporary America.