Event Details
CRAFTWORK & COMMUNITY
The Arts and Crafts Movement that began in mid-19th century England was a bold expression of frustration with increasing industrialization and mass production. Likewise, as we approach the mid-21st century, tensions surrounding the environment, health, trade, AI, and job issues, among other things, has begun to dampen hyper-consumerism and the embrace of the disposable. In times of stress such as these, people seek comfort and connection; meaningful local consumption has an opportunity to replace a throw-away society.
The emphasis on the value of sustainability in production has presaged this more tumultuous moment in time. There has also been a growing emphasis on “going small,” or owning fewer items of higher quality. But the social, political, economic, and environmental disturbances of our time are leading to a deeper search for meaning.
Embracing community is essential in times of stress. Community provides a critical sense of belonging and identity that can keep anxieties related to larger sociocultural issues at bay. A crafts guild, like a local association, is intended to mold itself around the needs of a local community. The Old Lyme Guild of Arts and Crafts of the 1930s, for example, stated that its raison d’etre was to “provide beautiful and well-made items for the local population so that they would not have to search further afield.”
The Lyme Artisans Guild likewise feels the pressure to step up in these challenging times and be a source for meaningfully produced and fairly-priced functional items of the highest quality. Unlike large corporation, we encourage consumer engagement with both our process and our persons; our handmade goods come with stories of origin and construction that we are excited to share. Buy less, buy local, buy hand made.
Featured Artists;
Sherry Block
Mariette Brown
Janet Soares
Paul Maulucci
Michaelle Pearson
Barbara Eaglesham
Jeni Gray-Roberts
Ian Everton
Carol Hunts Stanland
OPENS JULY18TH 6-8PM
THE EXHIBIT RUNS THROUGH AUGUST 15TH