Southern Highland Craft Guild
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[edit] Southern Highland Craft Guild
The Southern Highland Craft Guild[1], chartered in 1930, is today one of the strongest craft organizations in the country. Named Best Arts Non-Profit in 2006 by NICHE magazine[2], the Guild now represents close to 1000 craftspeople in 293 counties of 9 southeastern states. For over 75 years the Guild has been “bringing together the crafts and craftspeople of the Southern Highlands for the shared benefit of education, conservation and marketing”.
During the Great Depression the Guild cultivated commerce for craftspeople in the Appalachian region. This legacy continues today as the Guild plays a large role in the Southern Highlands craft economy through the operation of five craft shops and two annual craft expositions. Educational programming is another fundamental element of the organizations mission. This mission is fulfilled through integrated educational craft demonstrations at retail outlets and expos, free educational community events, and an extensive public library located at headquarters. Professional workshops and one-on-one consultations are also offered to the membership on a regular basis.
As an organization with roots that date back to the beginnings of the Southern Arts and Crafts movement – the Guild hold the largest and most important collection of Appalachian Craft in the world. Selected items from this collection are on view in the Permanent Collection Gallery at the Folk Art Center[3] in Asheville, North Carolina. As well as an object collection, the Guild maintains an extensive archive of documents paramount to preservation of this important regional history.
Membership in the Southern Highland Craft Guild
Membership in the organization has always been regarded as an achievement in one's chosen craft. Its active juried membership of over 900 craftspeople come from a nine-state region that includes counties within the Appalachian mountain area of Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Maryland and Alabama. These craftspeople produce both traditional and contemporary objects.
There are many other worthwhile reasons for becoming a member of the Southern Highland Craft Guild. Among them are: an instant network with craftspeople throughout the Southern Appalachian region; the opportunity to work with a professional staff who can advise you concerning marketing, gallery affiliation and process, methods and materials research, and pricing, to name a few; access to the Guild's library and archives for research; scholarship monies for craft-related travel and study; and professional affiliation with craft organizations throughout the country via membership.
The Southern Highland Craft Guild Jury Process
To become a member of the Southern Highland Craft Guild craftspeople must pass a rigorous jury process. Membership is open to craftspeople who reside in the mountain counties of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. Craftspeople who reside within this designated region may apply to become a member in a specified media category of; clay, fiber, glass, leather, manmade materials, metal, mixed media, natural materials, paper, wood and jewelry. The initial phase of standards jury procedure includes a written application and the preliminary screening of the applicant’s work through the presentation of five slides. Part two is the object jury when members of the Standards Committee together with a panel of media specialists evaluate each applicants work. Approximately 10% of applicants are accepted from each jury group.
Southern Highland Craft Guild Headquarters: The Folk Art Center, Milepost 382 Blue Ridge Parkway
The Folk Art Center showcases the finest in traditional and contemporary craft of the Southern Appalachians. It houses the Guild’s century-old Allanstand Craft Shop[4], exhibitions in three galleries, a library and an auditorium. The Guild's Permanent Collection is featured in an exhibition of craft permanent from Appalachia. Located on the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway at milepost 382, the Folk Art Center[5] was opened in 1980 as a cooperative effort between the Guild, the National Park Service and the Appalachian Regional Commission. The Folk Art Center[6] is the most popular attraction on the Blue Ridge Parkway, welcoming 250,000 visitors each year. From March through December, visitors can observe craftspeople at work in daily craft demonstrations as well as a series of educational events held year round. The Folk Art Center also houses the Eastern National Bookstore and Information Center. Free Admission. Open daily except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. January - March 9am-5pm; April - December 9am- 6pm.
The Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands:
Occurring twice annually in July and October, the Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands[7] has been a much anticipated event in the mountains since 1948. Over the course of six decades this event has become an established destination and a revered tradition. Produced by the Southern Highland Craft Guild, the Craft Fair is much more than a marketplace for fine craft. It is a cornerstone to the mission of the Guild, bringing together the crafts and craftspeople of the Southern Highlands. More than two hundred craftspeople fill two floors of the Civic Center, in Asheville, North Carolina, with fine handcrafted items. Local musicians play live on the arena stage; craft educators share their knowledge with adults and children alike through demonstrations and hands-on projects. Eleven thousand visitors from all over the country participate in festivities during the four days of the show. Over the course of the event, nearly a million dollars are invested in the purchase of craft and in the future of Appalachian regional culture.
The Shops of the Southern Highland Craft Guild:
ALLANSTAND[8], the nation’s first craft shop, was started by Presbyterian missionary Frances Goodrich in 1895. Ms. Goodrich bestowed ownership of the shop to the Southern Highland Craft Guild in 1930 for the purpose of allowing the fledgling organization to have a strong financial base from which to carry out its mission. Located in downtown Asheville, North Carolina from 1917 until moving to the Blue Ridge Parkway's Folk Art Center in 1980, purchases made today enable visitors to be a part of this ongoing gift. Allanstand has long been recognized as one of the nation’s top craft shops with pottery, wood, glass, fiber, metal and jewelry made by members of the Southern Highland Craft Guild. The shop continues to offer for sale an exciting array of work from traditional mountain crafts and folk art to the latest in contemporary American craft.
Guild Crafts, located at 930 Tunnel Rd. in Asheville, NC is a neighborhood tradition. A pair of stone houses were built in the 1940s by Ralph Morris Sr. for Stuart Nye and the Southern Highland Craft Guild, today they stand toether as a monument where time-honored traditions continue. Guild Crafts continues as a craft shop offering the finest handmade crafts by members from a nine state region including jewelry, pottery, baskets, ironwork, glass, fiber and much more. Seasonal live craft demonstrations and daily tours of the Stuart Nye workshop are available free of charge to the public.
Parkway Craft Center at the Moses Cone Manor located at Milepost 294 on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Celebrating over fifty years in this location, the Southern Highland Craft Guild continues to offer the best crafts from a nine-state region... weaving, basketry, pottery, woodcarving, glass and metal work... enduring skills passed from hand to hand for generations. Come and enjoy seasonal craft-making demonstrations, a gallery of fine crafts, and the beautiful mountain views from the house and surrounding park.
Arrowcraft Shop was founded in 1926 by Pi Beta Phi, the nation's oldest college women's fraternity. The Guild, Arrowmont School and Arrowcraft Shop have a joint history, which goes back to 1930, when Arrowmont joined with several other craft cooperatives to form the Southern Highland Craft Guild. The Arrowcraft Shop helped mountain families in this remote region gain independence by providing them with a source of income from the sale of their handiwork. Today, known simply as Arrowcraft, it is the oldest gift shop in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. As one of the Southern Highland Craft Guild shops, it continues the tradition of presenting fine regional crafts. This historic shop sells the best crafts from a nine-state region - weaving, basketry, pottery, woodcarving, glass, and toys - ensuring that these skills passed from hand to hand for generations will be preserved for the future.
Cumberland Crafts is the newest shop of the Southern Highland Craft Guild, located lies at the crossroads of Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia in Middlesboro, KY, at the Cumberland Gap National Historical Park Visitor's Center.
