Our flagship show in Baltimore is now in full swing! We’re all holding our breath, but so far we’ve been spared by the snowstorm, except for a smattering of flurries this morning. Keep your fingers crossed for good weather through the weekend!

Now that I’ve had a chance to take in more of it, I’ve been struck by the wonderful balance between the old and the new at our Baltimore Show. As you wander your way through the aisles, you can find 30-year show veterans like David Bacharach and Seymour Mondshein next to up-and-coming crafters exhibiting their wares in Baltimore for the first time. There are so many exciting first-time exhibitors this year, it would be impossible to highlight them all, but here are a few that particularly caught my eye.

I loved Myung Urso’s mixed media necklaces (booth 300), assembled from various fibers, handmade papers and organic materials like sponges and loofas. Some of her designs reference sea life, while others incorporate paper that has been painted with calligraphy then compressed into assemblages that bring to mind industrial byproducts like used air filters.

Ceramic artist Wendy Gingell (booth 2107) decorates her pottery using the sgraffito technique, in which a dark slip is applied to the piece and then scraped off to reveal the white clay body underneath. Wendy’s distinctive designs range from whimsical to bizarre, like her dinner plates decorated with anatomical imagery like lungs and muscle structures.

Our expanded AltCraft section features up and coming makers that typically show at smaller shows on the indie craft circuit. These are making their Baltimore Show debut in an open marketplace style space. Val Lucas of Bowerbox Press is one AltCraft exhibitor that stood out to me. She creates letterpress prints and handmade books from woodcuts, often of ravens, owls and other bird imagery.

New York fashion designer Selma Karaca of MAAC, LLC (booth 709) designs edgy wearables which she hand-sews in her Brooklyn studio. She combines various fabrics and surface design techniques to create her garments, letting each construction evolve organically as she works on it.

Local artist Shin-Yeon Jeon (booth 3002) sculpts expressive figurative sculptures, some of which include wheel-thrown sections taken from pottery pieces. Shin-Yeon’s work draws on her interest in psychology, using ambiguous facial expressions to suggest the range of complexity in human emotions.

Another great new clay exhibitor Leora Brecher (booth 2509) creates beautifully articulated vessels referencing seashells. Leora crafts her undulating forms by coil building each crisply defined section, allowing the shape to evolve and emerge as she works. Leora explained, “They just grow and become what they want to become.”

Emily Johnson of EC Design (booth 3905) is exhibiting her metal jewelry for the first time at our Baltimore Show. I love the hand-hammered surfaces of her Cells and Windows collection, which focuses on soft geometric shapes and subtle organic textures.

I sat in on a demonstration by another first-time ceramics exhibitor, local Baltimore artist Lenore Lampi (booth 3303). Lenore demonstrated the hand-building techniques she uses to create her signature birch bark inspired stoneware and porcelain vessels.

Aside from all these fabulous new artists, a few other fun things caught my eye:

Joline El-hai of Bella Luz Studio (booth 1513) creates distinctive art glass and back-lit decorative glass lighting. I love her series of illuminated suitcases and small wall-mounted glass and copper Luminette night lights.

Jim Rosenau of This Into That (2210) builds shelves, birdhouses and wall sculptures from vintage books, often pairing them with objects that relate to the books’ subject matter, like a shelf made out of cookbooks with a whisk incorporated into the base.

Those are just a few of my favorites. What about you? Show visitors, share your picks with us!

Comments

Post Your Comment

Fields in bold are required. Your email address is required but not published. Please enter the five digit code as it appears in the text field on its right.

Comments...
Submit