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| Photo: A
sculpture installation of tiny houses by Patricia Woodbridge in between tents for viewers to see. Photo by Bynn Shen. |
League of NH Craftsmen, Sunapee, NH
As a summer intern for the NH State Council on the Arts, I
had been in the office every day from 8:30AM–4:00PM working on various projects
assigned to me whether they dealt with the grant panels or designing for
conference graphics and bag designs. While I enjoyed learning the ins and outs
of the council and designing work, I jumped at the opportunity to attend the
League of NH Craftsmen fair in Sunapee, NH. Just for a day, I could stroll
around and see what the artists had to offer with my parents. It was a break
from work which you all could probably sympathize with me.
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| Photo: This copper pizza oven provided many people with good
looking pizzas during the beautiful weather. Photo by Bynn Shen.
|
We went Monday, August 5 which was a nice sunny day at 79
degrees Fahrenheit. As we arrived at noon at Mount Sunapee and parked the car,
there was a shuttle bus taking people to the entrance/ticket booth. However, we
had just missed it, so we walked for a few minutes to the gate ourselves. Before
we walked around, we ate lunch at the lodge. Per my supervisor’s advice, we
started from the very back tent and worked our way towards the tent closest to
the gate. Since it was my first time attending, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I
was surprised to see how large the fair was and how many tents there were as we
made our way to the end of the fair. There was a nice breeze, so it didn’t seem
too warm when we were walking from tent to tent. Throughout the fair, there were blacksmithing, glass
blowing, pottery, and basket weaving demonstrations as well as live music
playing which made for a great and enjoyable atmosphere. In the center of all
the tents, there were multiple food tents set up. The line for the pizza was very long and I could see why!
Each tent held up to 10+ artists with all varying focuses on painting, photography, woodworking, metalwork, ceramics, and many more. Among the tents was an Arts and Design Exhibition displaying work in one continuous space together. Throughout the tents, I noticed that there were many ceramic and woodworking artists like basket weaving, spoon making, and kitchenware. Some uncommon methods of working we saw were using Japanese wood blocks, utilizing copper etchings, and silk printing. As an artist myself, it was nice to be able to talk with the artists there about their process and interests. It gave my parents and I insight into the methods of art making that we hadn’t otherwise been able to learn in depth about. We neared three o’clock, so we took a quick snack and smoothie break. Afterwards, we finished up, we only had two tents left to go into. Overall, it was a really nice experience and we all enjoyed the wonderful weather. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who’s interested in the arts or looking, something to do in the summer, or taking a break from work. The fair lasted for a little over a week, so it accommodated people attending to make sure they had time to come. Be sure to check it out next year in August!
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| Photo: This
hand woven basket naturally aged over a span of 35+ years which became very informative for
the people visiting Jeffrey Gale's booth. Photo by Bynn Shen.
|
Each tent held up to 10+ artists with all varying focuses on painting, photography, woodworking, metalwork, ceramics, and many more. Among the tents was an Arts and Design Exhibition displaying work in one continuous space together. Throughout the tents, I noticed that there were many ceramic and woodworking artists like basket weaving, spoon making, and kitchenware. Some uncommon methods of working we saw were using Japanese wood blocks, utilizing copper etchings, and silk printing. As an artist myself, it was nice to be able to talk with the artists there about their process and interests. It gave my parents and I insight into the methods of art making that we hadn’t otherwise been able to learn in depth about. We neared three o’clock, so we took a quick snack and smoothie break. Afterwards, we finished up, we only had two tents left to go into. Overall, it was a really nice experience and we all enjoyed the wonderful weather. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who’s interested in the arts or looking, something to do in the summer, or taking a break from work. The fair lasted for a little over a week, so it accommodated people attending to make sure they had time to come. Be sure to check it out next year in August!
Blog Post by Bynn Shen, NHSCA Intern
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| Photo: The
view from a small incline towards the rear of the fair's many tents and visitors. Photo by Bynn Shen. |
