American Craft Week at Smith Galleries

Click to see the craftsmen
 at VitrixHot Glass make
a piece for Smith Galleries.

If cotton is the fabric of our lives – which brings us comfort, functionality, and versatility; then craft is the silk of our lives. It too brings comfort, functionality, and versatility to our everyday existence, but it offers a source for our individuality and expression of our personality.

Look around your home. Picture your surroundings. Now take away all the handmade items; the pieces designed and made with skill by individuals. What do you have left? What remains could be found in any house or institution. It may be skillfully made, but without  the human touch that gives it heart and soul and expresses your

Watch the craftsmen at
 Ed Levin Jewelry make
a squircle bracelet.

personality, your surroundings have been depersonalized.

Years ago everyone had a skill, a craft, born out of necessity. What one couldn’t make himself he would trade what he could make with someone who made what he needed. As years passed, the artisans began personalizing their articles so that a particular broom maker’s product was recognized by the way the handle was braided, or a potter’s mug was identified by its thumb rest. On and on we have examples of crafts becoming more than just items needed for everyday life.

Click to visit with
woodworker Ed Wohl.

They became artful additions to the decor of the home. Though a very simplified “history” of the growth of craft,  it still represents an accurate progression. 

As people moved to cities and began working in factories, many of the everyday items that originally were handmade were replaced by machine made substitutes. So began the decline and the loss of appreciation for what people made by hand. A renaissance in craft began around fifty years ago. This time around we have the traditional crafts and craftsmen along side those who learned their skills not at their father’s side, but in colleges and universities.  Today craftsmen are highly trained and the result

Click to see a video
about Maruca purses.

is evident in their work. They have new equipment, new materials, and many new ideas; but the love for what they do and the pride they take in their work sets it apart from that which is mass produced.

Click to see a slide show
of potter Jennifer Stas.

This week we celebrate those who spend their time and apply their skills to enrich our lives with their craft. We acknowledge the important role they play in helping us express our individuality. So join us as we participate in  celebrating the eighth year of  American Craft Week.

Please take a few moments to enjoy the videos we have linked in this post of just a handful of the craftsmen we feature at Smith Galleries. We selected one video to represent each main category of craft...clay, wood, metal, fiber, and glass.

Click to learn more about American Craft Week at Smith Galleries.

Smith Galleries is located in the Village at Wexford, Suite J11 (UPSTAIRS), on Hilton Head Island. Gallery hours are 10 - 6 Monday through Saturday. 843-842-2280