| For more information about this article or gallery, please call the gallery phone number listed in the last line of the article, "For more info..." |
June Issue 2004
Piccolo Spoleto Crafts Show Celebrates 25th Year in Charleston, SC
The 2004 Piccolo Spoleto Crafts Fair
is celebrating it s 25th year of offering fine craft art to festival
goers and the lowcountry community. The first fair took place
on May 28-30 and the second fair will take place on June 4-6,
at Wragg Square Park in Charleston, SC.
The event began twenty-five years ago as an offshoot of the emerging
South Carolina Crafts Guild in the late 1980's and with the support
and backing of the South Carolina Arts Commission and City of
Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs. The first events primarily
showcased South Carolina crafts artists, many of whom had been
juried into the newly formed SC Crafts Guild. A group of these
artists including Rosemary Stafford, David Stuart, Linda Yates,
and others handled the artist selection and operation of the event.
First held in Marion Square, the booths offered an atmosphere
that celebrated the hand-crafted work of seasoned professionals
and emerging craft artists.
Stafford, an early event organizer, recalls Linda Yates suggesting
they go to the City Market and view the work of a sweetgrass basket
weaver who had a novel approach and style to her work. This artist
was Mary Jackson who now is featured internationally in collections
that also include the Smithsonian Institution. Jackson served
as one of the show jurors for the 2003 event. Many of the current
top artists in their media were exhibitors in the formative years
of the show. As the event grew in popularity among patrons and
artists, the events slowly evolved.
Nancy Roth, another event organizer during
the early years, remembers that artist slides were held up to
the ceiling lights, one-by-one, to select exhibitors outside of
the crafts guild for participation. The event still occurred in
Marion Square and began charging a nominal entrance fee to help
cover the expenses. Weather was usually on the sunny side, some
years intolerably so. One year, the temperatures soared to 105
degrees in the shade and the decision was made to locate an indoor
venue to house the show. The Gailliard Auditorium Exhibition
Hall served as the site for the inaugural indoor event.
Other Crafts Association members served as organizers of the event,
including Kitty Parrot. The event continued to evolve and with
the indoor location, became a prestigious craft show that attracted
exhibitors from beyond the state borders. As the world of craft
art began to focus on more high-end work, the Piccolo Spoleto
Craft Show also featured a more varied display of craft art. The
event began including patron receptions and the crafts artist
unloading their van in shorts and tee shirts transformed into
the coat and tie artist.
As the years progressed, the SC Crafts Guild became the SC Crafts
Association. Charleston Crafts formed in 1989 for artists of the
lowcountry as an off-shoot of this group. Dorinda Harmon took
on the organizing of the craft show and suggested that Charleston
Crafts take on the revival of the outdoor show to complement the
indoor event. The SC Crafts Association disbanded and Charleston
Crafts became the sole producer of both an indoor and outdoor
event during the first two weekends of the festival.
Regina Semko became involved as an organizer and the events continued
for several years in this manner. It became increasingly more
difficult to locate a suitable indoor venue and the event is now
held outdoors both weekends. Piccolo Spoleto Craft Shows continue
to attract acclaimed and emerging craft artists from throughout
the state and the entire southeast. Exhibitors from as far away
as New York, California, Louisiana, and Colorado have been featured
in addition to local crafts artists.
The event provides an annual selection by the show juror entitled,
City of Charleston Mayor's Purchase Award, for the best
in show artwork as a donation to the city collection of artwork.
The Office of Cultural Affairs and Mayor Riley have been long-time
supporters of this event. Today, a committee of coordinators from
Charleston Crafts artist cooperative organizes the events. The
craft shows offer a wonderful opportunity to stroll among the
artist booths, talk with the craftspersons about their work and
techniques, and get a glimpse of the variety of fine and traditional
craft available. It is truly an event for all ages that remains
a very affordable offering of the Piccolo Spoleto Festival.
For further information check our SC Institutional Gallery
listings, contact Dorinda Harmon by calling 843/953-5620, e-mail
at (harmond@cofc.edu) or at (www.charlestoncrafts.org).
Carolina Arts is published monthly by Shoestring Publishing Company, a subsidiary of PSMG, Inc. Copyright© 2004 by PSMG, Inc., which published Charleston Arts from July 1987 - Dec. 1994 and South Carolina Arts from Jan. 1995 - Dec. 1996. It also publishes Carolina Arts Online, Copyright© 2004 by PSMG, Inc. All rights reserved by PSMG, Inc. or by the authors of articles. Reproduction or use without written permission is strictly prohibited. Carolina Arts is available throughout North & South Carolina.