Craft Fair of Southern Highlands this week!

 I can speak for all of us at HandMade in America (HIA) when I say that we are very excited to represent at this year’s Craft Fair of Southern Highlands.  For four days every July and October the US Cellular Center is packed full of fine crafts from over 200 craft artists, selling their works of clay, fiber, glass, metal, and more.  Staff and volunteers of HandMade in America will be at a table to share our latest and greatest news, events, and programs.  This will be our first time representing at the Craft Fair of Southern Highlands.

Did you know that the Southern Highlands Craft Guild was chartered in 1930?  The Guild was created in response to the Great Depression as a way to help craftspeople and generate revenue in the Appalachian regions.  Fast forward 83 years, and the Guild is made up of almost 1,000 craftspeople from 293 counties, spanning 9 states!  They keep busy with many different educational programs, demonstrations, an entire library, 5 craft shops, and 2 of the most highly recognized craft fairs held every year.

 The first Craft Fair of Southern Highlands was in 1948 in Gatlinburg, TN.  It wasn’t until a few years later, in 1951 that they moved the Fair to Asheville, NC.  Back in those days the Fair was a full week-long event that lasted until 10:00 pm every night!  It’s hard to believe that people would’ve been more serious about craft 60 years ago than they are today.  Deb Schillo, Southern Highlands Craft Guild Archivist, explained that back in those days there would be people in lines extending far beyond of the doors to the Fair.  That was one reason the Guild added a second craft fair in the fall of 1960.  They have been offering two craft fairs per year ever since.

 Looking for something fun to do July 18th-21st?  Come down this week to US Cellular Center in Asheville, NC to see craft artistry represent this amazing Southern Highland region that is so rich in craft and culture.  Oh, and say hi to us at HandMade in America too!

Lindsey Mudge,

Operations Manager

HandMade in America

lmudge@handmadeinamerica.org

828-252-0121 x303

Craft Fair of Southern Highlands

Dates/Times: July 18th-21st

Thursday-Saturday 10am-6pm

Sunday 10am-5pm

Location: U.S. Cellular Center

87 Haywood St. Asheville, NC

http://www.craftguild.org

Non Profit of the Month!

Patton McDowell & Associates deemed HandMade in America in September of 2012 and somehow we didn’t find out about it until just recently!

“Patton McDowell and Associates’ mission is to elevate nonprofit organizations through careful planning, unique strategies, creative fundraising and dynamic staff and board development. The PMA Blog covers various nonprofit, fundraising and philanthropy news, in addition to thought leadership pieces and case studies. Our blog aims to explore the intersection of nonprofits, philanthropy, technology and innovation.”

We are all so proud to be a part of an organization whose work is truly creating opportunities and affecting economic change all across WNC and beyond. Recognition like this plays such an important role in helping us to connect to a wider audience who may benefit from the services of our organization, so Thank you!

CLICK HERE to read the article about HIA!

Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft–A Success!

Friday night was unbelievable. Our gallery was filled to the brim the entire evening with people who are passionate about Western North Carolina Craft. We are so fortunate to live in an area where Fine Craft is as appreciated as it is prevalent, and the turnout we had Friday night evidences that our community is thriving. We had between 150 & 200 people in attendance throughout the night and almost all of the artists were able to make it. There is just nothing better that being able to ask the artists themselves about their pieces.

 

If you weren’t able to make it out Friday night but would like to learn more about the artists and their work, please visit the links below!

Anna Johnson
Jeana Eve Klein
Janet Williams
Gwendolyn Bigham
Kenn Kotara
Sondra Dorn
Dustin Farnsworth
Hayden Wilson
Rachel Meginnes
Sam Reynolds
Robin Johnston
Kathie Roig
Heather Allen Hietala
Ben Elliott
Austin Richards
Michael Parry

Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft, Opening and Reception

HandMade in America is pleased to announce the upcoming opening of its new exhibition, Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft. Opening reception will take place on Friday, March 8, from 5:30- 8 pm to celebrate the work of regional artists. This exhibit, running from March 8- June 30, is supported by the N.C. Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Resources, Starbucks and Windgate Charitable Foundation.

“What is innovation in art? Perhaps it is a willingness to fail or make mistakes in service to fearless creativity. ‘Breaking ground’ by definition, engages the unfamiliar and is key to an innovative studio practice.”
-Kathryn Gremley

Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft features the work of WNC craft artists who are pushing the boundaries of their medium in unexpected ways. Featuring 26 works in clay, fiber, glass, metal, wood, or mixed media, the pieces in this exhibit illustrate a balance of craft processes and unique ideas, combining tradition with innovation.

Artists featured are: Michael Parry, Austin Richards, Jeana Eve Klein, Janet Williams, Gwendolyn Bigham, Kenn Kotara, Sondra Dorn, Dustin Farnsworth, Hayden Wilson, Rachel Meginnes, Robin Johnston, Sam Reynolds, Kathie Roig, Heather Allen Hietala, Ben Elliott and Anna Johnson

If you haven’t seen Kenn Kotara’s braille poetry piece, in the eyes of memory, Stacks by Hayden Wilson, or Dustin Farnsworth’s Saint Anne’s Theatre, you are in for a real treat. These are just a few among a slew of beautiful pieces.

CSA: Community Supported Art!

We are so excited here at HandMade about this new business incubator program, and apparently, so is the Mountain Xpress! Click HERE to see the write-up online…

Over the last 20 years, Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) has become a popular way for consumers to buy seasonal food directly from local farms. With that buy-local spirit in mind, Community Supported Art is a similar endeavor to support regional craft artists and collectors.

We are seeking craft artists to launch our inaugural Community Support Art (CSA) program. Our local CSA program is modeled after the Community Supported Art project created by Springboard for the Arts and mnartists.org in Minnesota, where it continues successfully season after season.

Join us in becoming the first Community Supported Art program in North Carolina!

Vist our homepage HERE

John C. Campbell

This year, WNC’s American Craft Week celebrations are going to be huge. Many organizations and galleries throughout Western North Carolina and all across the state are committed to honoring craft by participating in this October celebration, and we have already started planning! A few of us WNC organizations got together for a first 2013 meeting and field trip with Sherry Master’s guidance. She even organized a van to drive us all out to John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown! We went out on Wednesday and had such a wonderful time. We went on a nature walk across the grounds to visit artist studios and ate lunch in the beautiful dining hall where we were able to begin strategic planning for ACW.

Take a look at the photos from that day…

Textile Study Group w/ Ismini Samanidou

If you haven’t attended a Textile Study Group at HandMade in America, they happen on the third Wednesday of every month. On January 16, the group had an amazing turnout. The room was so packed that we had to borrow chairs from people’s offices! Ismini Saminidou, a wildly accomplished textile artist and designer, gave a lecture at the last meeting and presented on the exhibition she currently has up at The Center for Craft Creativity & Design. The exhibition is called Topography: recording place–mapping surface. In her Artist’s Statement, Ismini says, “I am particularly interested in the construction methods of woven fabrics, and the way that textiles can exist within a space. Narrative is a strong element in the work and often the weaving relates to a particular place, becoming a site-specific piece. The collaborative works extend my practice through conversations about materials and processes.”

The lecture was as inspiring as it was informational and I can’t wait to go see the works in person in Hendersonville. We were able to get the lecture on video, and it will be posted on the Members-only page soon. Stay posted for news about when it goes up!

To learn more about Ismini, you can visit her website HERE

To learn more about the Textile Study Group at HandMade in America the 3rd Wednesday of every month, visit the LOCAL CLOTH Facebook page…

 

See you at The Center for Creativity, Craft and Design…

The PIECED Quilt Show is Up!

We love partnerships. Our Register of Deeds, Drew Reisinger, approached HandMade in America last year to see if we would be interested in installing and maintaining a bi-annual quilt show, and of course, we jumped at the opportunity. What a great way to get craft artists’ work seen by the general public? The Register of Deeds office is full of people all day every day, from all walks of life, and they all see the quilts. The Deeds building has a great open space when you walk in and gets lots of natural light, but the quilts add a vibrant dimension, warming the otherwise bare walls.

The thing I love most about the show is that it puts craft in front of people in unexpected places. I want craft to be so sought after that it would be considered odd for a public building NOT to have work on display created by regional artists. The more we put it out there, the more ‘out there’ wants it!

Here are some photos and descriptions of the quilts that we installed last week. The photos definitely don’t do them justice, though, so please stop by next time you’re driving down Woodfin Ave. to check them out!

(Descriptions are in order from Left to right)
ROW 1
1. Pipe Down
Cotton fabrics, rayon threads
31”x55”
Janice Maddox
$650.00
Inspired by a group challenge to use green piping and a pipe theme. Machine pieced, appliquéd, and quilted

2. Earth, Sun, Sea and Sky
Cotton fabrics, rayon thread
59”x59”
Janice Maddox
NFS
This piece utilizes the traditional block “Bright Hopes,” a variation of “Log Cabin.” Graded fabrics help achieve a more contemporary look.

3. Summer Evening
Cotton fabrics, rayon thread
62”x62”
Janice Maddox
$975.00
Inspired by City Blocks pattern in Better Homes & Garden—Best of Weekend Quilts.” I added Trapunto leaves with embellished machine quilting. Machine pieced and quilted.

4. Somersaults
Cotton fabrics, rayon threads
46”x54”
Janice Maddox
NFS
Published in American Quilter’s Society Engagement Calendar 2009. Machine pieced, appliquéd, and quilted.

ROW 2
1. Woven Ribbons
Hand-Dyed & commercial cotton fabrics, cotton batting
73”x73”
Julie Dugas
$750.00
the front of the quilt, I modified a Jinny Beyer design and used over 100 different fabrics in graduations of color and value. For the back of the quilt, I pieced a rail fence design using the same fabrics. The quilt was machine stitched and machine quilted using variegated threads. All layers are cotton.

2. Butterfly Garden Labyrinth
Cotton fabric, poly/cotton batting, metallic thread
60”x60”
Laurel Reinhardt
$1175
Pieced and quilted octagonal labyrinth in pink and yellow

3. Magic Dragon Labyrinth
Cotton fabric, poly/cotton thread & batting
60”x60”
Laurel Reinhardt
$1175
Pieced and quilted octagonal labyrinth in green and blue. Center images include a castle, children, and dragons

4. Snow Blossoms
Cotton fabrics, rayon thread
57”x57”
Janice Maddox
$2800.00
Inspired by the early Spring snow on newly bloomed crocus and daffodils

CALL TO ARTISTS–Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft

This call is for our gallery exhibition space at HandMade in America. Take a look! It’s going to be an exciting show…

CALL FOR ARTISTS

HandMade in America’s Exhibition
“Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft”
March 8-May 31

HandMade in America is pleased to announce a call for entry for the upcoming exhibition Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft. Pieces should incorporate innovative ideas which help push the boundaries of the medium, and will be judged on technical proficiency, creative use of the medium, and contemporary relevance. This exhibition is open to craft artists living in the 25 counties of Western North Carolina as defined on our website, http://www.handmadeinamerica.org
Craft is defined as made from clay, glass, fiber, metal, wood, recycled/reused materials, and natural products.

The juror for this exhibition is Kathryn Gremley, Director of the Penland Gallery & Visitors Center. Since 1996, Kathryn has curated and installed over 70 invitational exhibitions and 144 instructor exhibits at the Penland Gallery. Off-sight projects include Penland: Mind, Hand, Materials at SOFA Chicago 2004, Iron: A New Vocabulary, an exhibition of contemporary iron which traveled in the south in 2004-05, Identity: Narrative Explorations by Four Penland Artists, at the Milton Rhodes Center in Winston-Salem in 2010, and curatorial assistance for 0-60: The Experience of Time Through Contemporary Craft at the North Carolina Museum of Art and Penland School in 2013.

Dates:
Entry Deadline* February 15
Notification of accepted pieces February 21
Delivery to HIA of accepted work February 24-28, 9:30 am-4 pm
Opening Reception March 8, 5:30-8 pm
Selected work pick-up: June 3-5, 9:30 am-4 pm

*This is NOT a postmark deadline. Entries must be received by February 15, 5 pm EST. Submissions can be done via mail or email.

Mail: If you are sending in your entry form by regular mail, please send your CD, entry form, and entry fee to: HandMade in America, Attn: Exhibitions, 125 S. Lexington Ave., Suite 101, Asheville, NC 28801.

E-MAIL: Photos (JPEGS only) and entry form to mailto:exhibitions@handmadeinamerica.orgwith subject line: ‘ATTN: Groundbreaking’. If you are mailing the entry fee in check form to the above address, please include a copy of your entry form. Otherwise, please pay via Paypal on our website, handmadeinamerica.org.

PLEASE NOTE: ALL ENTRIES MUST BE DIGITAL. No photographs or slides will be accepted.

PREPARING DIGITAL ENTRIES:
Artists may submit up to three pieces in JPEG format on a standard sized CD or by email to exhibitions@handmadeinamerica.org. Makers may submit up to two JPEGS (one full shot and one detail) per piece. If more than one image is submitted they MUST all be on one CD. All JPEGs must be named with the artist’s last name followed by 01, 02, 02b, etc. All CDs/images must be readable by PC and MAC platforms. Images must be 300 dpi and no more than 5 MB. Images should be oriented correctly. DO NOT submit PowerPoint presentations, automated slide presentations or work on DVD. All CDs must be labeled with the artist’s name and the exhibition entry form must be filled in and submitted with your CD or email. An entry form must also accompany all entries.

ENTRY FEES:
>Non-members: one $15 entry fee per artist (includes up to three pieces)
>Basic members ($25 Level): one $10 fee per artist (includes up to three pieces)
>Artist members ($45 Level): FREE*

*To join as a member, or increase your membership, please visit handmadeinamerica.wildapricot.org and choose the ‘JOIN US’ tab

The show is open to two and three dimensional works of craft. Work must be original and completed in the last 2 years. No copies, mechanical reproductions, molds or kit work will be accepted. All work cannot exceed 72″ in any dimension (including frame). 2D work cannot weigh more than 75 lbs. HandMade in America reserves the right to exclude work due to size or special requirements. All two-dimensional work must be dry, wired and ready to hang. No clip frames or alligator hangers. Pieces must be hand delivered to the gallery or mailed with return postage pre-paid in returnable container.

Accepted artists may submit a copy of their resume and/or artist statement by the delivery deadline (Feb. 24-28) to mailto:exhibitions@handmadeinamerica.orgor deliver with your work.

NOTIFICATION: Accepted pieces will be posted on handmadeinamerica.org and sent through an email notification by the end of the day on February 22, 2013.
Accepted work must remain through the entire exhibit. Works not picked up by their respective deadlines (June 5) will be charged a $5 per day fee for storage.

SHIPPING ARTWORK: Please include return postage or shipping fees and sturdy, reusable packing materials clearly labeled with your name and telephone number. Framed works requiring glass must use plexiglass. Do not use styrofoam packing peanuts. Shipments of artwork will be accepted no later than February 28, 5 pm. Hand delivered work will be accepted February 24-28, 9:30 am – 4 pm.

SALES: HandMade will retain a commission of 25% on all work sold during the exhibit. If a work is not for sale please indicate with NFS value in appropriate space on loan agreement.

ELIGIBILITY: Breaking Ground: Innovative Craft is open to all craft artists living in the 25 counties of western North Carolina defined on our website. A maximum of 3 works per artist may be submitted. All works must be original and completed in within 2 years of the entry date (Feb 15). Craft is defined as made from clay, glass, fiber, metal, wood, recycled materials, and/or natural products.

LIABILITY:
All pieces will be handled with the best care possible, but HandMade is not responsible for any damage. HandMade does carry a fine arts insurance policy, but is not responsible for damage caused by normal wear and tear, gradual deterioration, vermin, inherent vice, insurrection, confiscation by public authority, risks or contraband or other illegal transportation of trade. By entering into this show, the artist agrees to abide by all rules and regulations as set by exhibition guidelines.

QUESTIONS? Email Ryan-Ashley Anderson at mailto:exhibitions@handmadeinamerica.org.

To download submission form, please click HERE

Goldsplinter Exhibition

If you didn’t get a chance to see Chris Perryman’s work at our Cool Craft Market in December, we have another opportunity for you to view his beautiful woodwork. Chris makes cutting boards, serving dishes, baguette boards and other beautiful items for the kitchen and home, but that’s not all. He also makes unique jewelry, sculptural furniture, and sculptural wall art.

We just put up an exhibit at Beverly Hanks in Biltmore Square Park, and it’s definitely worth going for a little drive. There will be an opening night reception, and the times and date are TBD, but for now, there are photos of some featured pieces below…

And if you’d like to learn more, please check out Chris’ website HERE!