Click Here to Print your Invitation for Free Admission!
The Rochester Folk Art Guild’s annual Holiday Festival of Crafts in Buffalo.
Friday, December 6, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
SaturdayDecember 7, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Sunday, December 8, 11 a.m..to 5 p.m.
Admission is $2 or free with invitation which can be downloaded and printed out at here
The show will be held at the UB Center For Tomorrow, on the Amherst (North) Campus.
Click here for a Map and Directions
For more information call 585-554-3539
More Info Below!
The Rochester Folk Art Guild will present its long-awaited Holiday Festival of Crafts in Buffalo on December 6, 7, and 8, hosted at the Center For Tomorrow on UB’s North Campus, just inside the Flint Road entrance. The hours are 10am to 5pm Friday and Saturday, and 11am to 5pm Sunday. Admission is $2, or free with an invitation available to print out at folkartguild.org. There is plenty of free parking.
The crafts range from functional pottery to natural fiber clothing, wooden bowls, furniture, kitchenware, and hand woven treasures. There are also folk toys, note cards composed of dried flowers, imported Middle Eastern rugs, and books for all ages to choose from. The Folk Art Guild has been showing fine handcrafts in Buffalo since 1984. Their first shows were at the Historical Society on Elmwood Avenue. Though the Folk Art Guild originated in Rochester, the group actually hails from a farm in Middlesex, in the heart of the Finger Lakes. In the craft studios on the farm, the potters are glazing teapots, the woodworkers are smoothing end-grain cutting boards, the weavers are tying tassels on warm wool shawls. It is no coincidence that the natural tones in their materials echo the seasonal colors they see all around them.
The Pottery specializes in stoneware and earthenware functional pieces to enhance the pleasure of cooking and serving fine food. “We are all looking forward sharing what we have been working on this summer,” says Nicole Hummel, potter and Guild member. “Our pottery displays will feature our classic and well-loved styles, as well as experimental creations and new glazes. Wheel-thrown kitchenware and tiles decorated with leaf impressions and intricate carving are some of the signature Folk Art Guild pieces. We will also be showing off the increasingly popular textured crackle glazes and ash glaze experiments, as well as a line of intriguing geometric disc sculptures.” The prolific Pottery Shop has been active with teaching classes, and bringing in a new apprentice, Jessie, who lives locally.
The Weavers are preparing a wardrobe of natural fibers to keep you warm this season, including colorful ponchos, shawls, and scarves. Weaving row by row on beautiful wooden looms, the artists work with wool, bamboo, alpaca, silk and cotton. They will also be offering hand-woven blankets and place mats, as well as an array of hand-knit wool hats for all ages. “We are going to have a lot of beautiful hand-woven accessories. We are very excited about this year’s display,” says weaver Noelle Miller. “People can look forward to comfortable and unique shawls and ponchos. We also have fashionable new items for your newborn, and we will have a nice selection of bamboo scarves which is an exciting new fiber we are working with.”
The Clothing Designers, working alongside the weavers in the fiber studio, have also filled out their inventory. Unique collage jackets incorporate wonderful and sometimes unexpected combinations of patterns, stripes and hand-dyed pieces from the archive to create a beautiful garment. Designer Claudia Welbourne, tells about a recent department excursion: “We took a tour of specialty fabric stores in Massachusetts and Vermont, and stocked up on soft and textured wools in black, white, red, and gray colorways for our flattering Twisters. This shawl stays in place with a twist sewn in. We visited Delectable Mountain Cloth in Brattleboro, VT, a tiny shop with every square foot, filled with every variety of silk fabric imaginable. We came away with 2 dozen stunning, shimmering yards of different silks, which we stitch into circular scarves.
As always, we use natural fiber fabrics including organic cotton, hemp, wool, silk, rayon and tencel made from eucalyptus fiber, along with vintage and reclaimed textiles from cultures around the world.”
For this Festival, Guild woodworkers have produced a line of end grain cutting boards, which mimic the colors of the fall foliage. The thin hardwood boards are for serving, and thicker ones are for chopping. The craftsmen work with a variety of local and recycled woods to create bowls and furniture, including cherry, ash, maple burl, osage orange, cypress, douglas fir, and mulberry. The furniture display is enhanced by an impressive collection of oriental rugs from Afghanistan, India, Pakistan, and Iran.
Do not hesitate to bring along the kids, because a wide array of wooden children’s toys will also be available to play with and purchase. The toys are drawn from various folk traditions, and are both fun and educational. The block tunnels promote intellectual development by teaching object permanence, and the hand-painted dancing men will be sure to cause a laugh.
In addition to these crafts, the Guild will present an array of books, including a variety of children’s books and myriad books on spirituality and art. “Although diverse in topics, the common thread is that these are unusually beautiful books that may be difficult to find elsewhere, especially grouped together,” says Paul Schliffer, who carefully chooses the titles. TheGuild always has some special surprises and even CDs of the music of Guild musicians.