Hello my name is Marti and I began making lollipops almost 60 years ago! My great aunt made lollipops and candy to support herself and I was lucky enough to live close and help her often. The molds I use are her original molds! The lollipops are sentimental to me and have a wonderful way to honor the woman who was decades ahead of her time by owning her own business.
This will be my first Avant-Garde Art & Craft show and I'm looking forward to participating. I have participated in local craft show here in Ontario, Ohio where I reside. I always enjoy meeting the other vendors and shoppers!
All of the profits from the sale of my lollipops and candy go to Elizabeth's Book Drive. Elizabeth is my granddaughter was still-born. My daughter and son in law started this charity to help turn their grief into something positive. They collect new and used books, and purchase books to give to children of all ages. In the last 3 years we have given away more than 32,000 books across 4 states and Africa. We have received donations from Walmart, Kroger, Amazon, Dolly Parton and Dean Koontz, just to name a few. Every July 25th we celebrate Elizabeth's birthday by distributing the books to children in hospitals, food pantries, shelters, and anywhere there are children in need of books. It's wonderful to see how excited the children are when they receive their books! To find out more information about Elizabeth's Book Drive visit our Facebook page or our website: www.elizabethsbookdrive.com
Meet Genia Hardin from Genia's Art...
Hello my name is Genia Hardin! I have been an artist/crafter for around 15 years and recently just got back into the show circuit! I reside in Phoenix, Arizona, although I am originally from Columbus, Ohio. I've decided to use a trip this summer to visit family as an opportunity to participate in craft fairs throughout Ohio! I am super excited about this crazy adventure I have planned!
This will be my first Avant-Garde Art & Craft show and I am super excited! Part of my creative process is just waking up in the middle of night when an idea pops into my head! I love finding discarded furniture and wood on the side of the road and throwing into my car to create something fun. When I find treasures I literally get giddy!
I started making things for fun and my art just took off! I can't imagine myself not doing it. In 5 years, I hope to still be creating. It will be a blessing to do any sort of creating in 5 years. I hope I'm able to continue growing and creating! The message behind my work is to keep the earth beautiful one trash pick at a time!
Meet Marcee L. Stephenson from Criation Station Alpaca Farm...
Hello my name is Marcee and I am the owner of Criation Station Alpaca Farm. Several years after marrying my husband, we decided to build a farm in Oberlin, Ohio. Along with a beautiful new home, we built a barn big enough to house 7 horses, so my dream of raising American Paint Horses continued. After 6 years with the horses, I was exposed to alpacas through a co-worker. Thus, we traded in our riding boots for muck boots and began raising alpacas in October, 2001. The journey with these incredible animals has been a lot of fun and provided many income streams throughout the years.
We began to to pursue meat and hides from Alpaca that were being culled from other farms' herds in 2015. Alpaca meat is lean and lower in cholesterol and fat than most other meats. After experimenting with turning hides into leather, I decided to design a line of alpaca leather goods, exposing the public to a completely new and unique leather. I participated in an Avant Garde show with my friend several years ago. I am really excited to return with the alpaca leather goods!
My inspiration to create is to be the one on leading edge, bringing the newest and most unique items to the market. No one I know is offering alpaca leather, let alone alpaca leather that is completely American from pasture to product! In 5 years, I hope to grow the alpaca leather business into one that provides me a full-time income and one that people will ask by for name. The message behind my work is: don't be afraid to step out and be unique in your craft! Great rewards require great risks!
Meet Dominic Knepper from Phoenix Fire Glassworks...
Hello my name is Dominic! I am a classically trained artist with a BFA in class from Bowling Green State University. I have been working with class since 2001.
I started as a glassblower, graduated and realized I couldn't afford a studio so I went into kiln glass.
I am inspired by the art deco movement but I have always been a closet Bohemian. My work is a snapshot into my "go where the wind takes me" mentality. I am influenced by great artists like Lino Tagliapietra and Toots Zynsky from my time in the Florida Keys and when I lived in Las Vegas. I am interested in beauty for beauty's fake, not some awe inspiring meaningless wordplay.
Meet Sarah Harste from Sarah Haste Weavings...
My name is Sarah and I am the weaver fever behind Sarah Harste Weavings. I am originally from Georgia but moved to Columbus about three years ago! I have been weaving for about a year and started my business in December 2015. This will be my first Avant-Garde show and I am very excited! Since I was a little kid, I was always inspired to create for outward recognition. I wanted to create something beautiful or moving. Recently, however, creating has become a lot more of a selfish act that is self-fulfilling. I'm more inspired to create because of what I get from the process than the final result-- of the course the final result is still pretty exciting!
I started seeing pictures of weavings popping up on Instagram and my reaction was always, "That's SO cool - I want to know how to do that!" So I purchased a lap loom and sat down on a snow saturday afternoon determined to figure it out. Six hours later I had one very lopsided weaving and I was hooked! I wish I could say that I discovered my talent but I really had to keep practicing and I slowly began to perfect it. My creative process begins with a lot of experimentation. The wonderful (and somewhat cruel) thing about weaving is that if you don’t like something, you can just take the piece apart and try again. Sometimes the idea of re-doing an hour or two worth of work makes me want to cry, but it’s always worth it to make something that really projects what you were trying to create. If you are asking what the actual process of creating a weaving looks like: I warp up (wrap string around the notches) my loom, cut and attach the fringe, weave yarn and other materials over and under the warp strings. When I’ve finished the piece, I cut it off the loom and attach it to a dowel – then it’s ready to hang! Weaving is a slow craft, but that’s what makes it very meditative and relaxing.
In 5 years, I would love to be teaching classes and workshops on weaving (hopefully with some travel involved!) and I would love to make installations for events (weddings, parties, etc.) and store fronts. And of course, I hope to still make weavings that people can put in their living spaces!
The message behind my work is all about bringing joy into your home. Up until my current home (an apartment in Clintonville), I never took the time to decorate because it always felt like a “temporary” space. I also deferred to my roommates’ taste and style and didn’t take the time to pick out what pieces surrounded me from day to day. But the way you treat your home is so important – and by that I don’t mean, you have to have a pristine place with no dishes in the sink and no clothes on the floor (who has that home?!) What I mean is that your home should be your safe space, the space that you look forward to being in -- not just because it’s where your bed lives, but because it’s the only environment that you can control. There should be pieces in your home that bring your joy, that evoke memories, that bring a smile to your face. Those are the type of pieces I strive to create: pieces that bring a little more joy to your space than you had before.
2016 Columbus Summer Avant-Garde Art & Craft Show
Saturday, June 11, 2016
10:00am-4:00pm
St. Agatha's Parish Hall
1860 Northam Rd
Columbus, OH 43221
For more information, contact Becki Silverstein, Event Coordinator at Becki@ag-shows.com
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