Furniture '11 was not the first conference I helped to organize. But in terms of the effect I believe it had and will have, it was the most exhilarating. The studio furniture field has been asleep. It has existed in a house full of separate rooms and closets, all of them insulated from one another, reserved for singular items that were very much the same, neatly stacked and sorted, lovely in their own right but, oh, so very lonely, unchanging, unaware. Limited communication, education, criticism, and growth come with the territory of insularity.

Furniture '11 was designed to help change this situation. It was organized around the recognition that the separate rooms and closets of our field are part of a whole architecture, and its aim was to open the doors and enable the field to get to know better where it lives. We accomplished this, and therefore, I count Furniture '11 a major success.

We drew approximately 350 people, had 54 sessions, 2 exhibitions, and a live auction. We received financial and in-kind support from 25 institutions, all of whom we thank, along with the many volunteers and those who contributed and participated in our auction. At the bottom line, though the final numbers are still pending, FURNITURE '11 seems to have not only covered our costs, but added modestly to our treasury. We received good and useful feedback from participants. And we were well covered in various publications, including American Craft, Woodshop News, The New York Times, and the Associated Press (for an outstanding review of the conference, I highly recommend Loy Martin's article in the October 2011 issue of The Crafts Report). Much of the newsletter you're reading is devoted to some of what went on at Furniture '11. We are working on more in-depth coverage, including a comprehensive color record of "A Survey of North American Furniture," the exhibition that coincided with the conference.

But already our attention is focused on FURNITURE '11. The theme for next year's conference is "East Meets West--Visions Beyond the Horizon." Co-sponsored by the California College of Arts & Crafts and scheduled for June 24-27 in San Francisco, the event already promises to be bigger and better than this year's. The site coordinator for FURNITURE '11 is Donald Fortescue, the director of the recently revitalized furniture program at CCAC. Don brings a tremendous enthusiasm for the studio furniture scene and, as a native Australian, will enhance the trans-continental, trans-Pacific scope of the conference. The CCAC's new San Francisco facility promises to be a comfortable and comprehensive venue. Further, placement in a vital urban center will greatly expand programming possibilities. We have already initiated contact with the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Oakland Museum to arrange for satellite activities.