81st American Crafts & Historic Homes Tour
Original folk art paintings are done on gessoed board using acrylics. A series of glazes seal the paintings and a shrink coat is applied to create cracks (the aged appearance). Oils are rubbed in to define the cracks. When dried, the shrink coat is washed off and a series of varnish coats are applied. the paintings are then placed in hand-grained and frequently lettered frames.
Using surgical scissors, I create cut paper designs from a single sheet of black or white paper, creating the dramatic effect of light versus dark with small bits of color (painted or cut paper) for focal points. A few of my designs have added layers of cut paper over the base cutting to create a dimensional effect.
The art is called “scherenschnitte”–or scissor cutting, a very old art form that developed in Switzerland and Germany in the 1500’s. The process is like woodcutting: you start with a blank resource and create the art by cutting parts of it away. Precision is paramount and it demands full concentration. Many of the cut lines are no thicker than thread-width. The paper is attached to the base mat with only small dots of glue so that the cutting floats within the frame, creating shadows. I feel this is an important part of the composition and it also works to identify the paper cutting from a pen and ink work or print.
Kid Friendly! Watch as a cutting is started then take it home and finish it yourself. Learn about the history of this almost lost art.
Inspired by a collection of early family silhouettes, Shriver began creating silhouette collages incorporating antique papers with original ideas. When creating an original, the hand cut silhouette is the main subject, it is juxtaposed with relevant maps, stamps, antique ledgers & letters, beach collections, fossils, leaves, branches, wax seals, etc.
The silhouette collages are of many different subjects, including sailing ships, antique chairs, tables, dog breeds, cats, tea pots, pitchers, tureens, sea life, birds, butterflies, farm animals, horses, presidents & famous peoples silhouettes.
Shriver has been creating, exhibiting & selling original art around the world for nearly 30 years. The work continues to evolve each year which is extremely rewarding.
Art has been a part of Jeffords’ life since she was a child watching her father paint. He instilled a love of the beauty of nature and the simple things in life that mean so much to all of us. She has been painting professionally for around twenty years. Growing up in a rural setting with farms and glorious beauty of the seasons is what inspires her paintings. It’s fun to bring the beauty of the countryside and maybe an untold story of an old house or barn to life! Jeffords always has a story in mind behind the landscape and people in her art. Her hope is that the artwork will bring you to another place. A place where you can feel the breeze in the fields, the comfort and warmth of another time and the contentment of “Home”.
Kid Friendly! Children can watch Barbara as she shows them how to take basic shapes and turn them into animals.
Mihills creates original pictures using a miniature needle and a single strand of cotton thread producing a series of approximately 1200 loops and stitches per square inch. The technique creates intense detail, surface texture, depth, and a sense of motion.
The technique was used on a larger scale for punched rugs in the 1800s. It was also used on a smaller scale for folk costumes.
She will be demonstrating the technique on a miniature rug.
Ratcliffe creates miniature quilts inspired by 19th c. quilts. Using the most effective elements in the design and color of 1800s. pieces, She stitches intricate miniatures adding contemporary interpretation. Each is a complete, backed quilt of cotton fabric, hemmed by hand. Quilt tops are sewn using traditional sewing-machine straight stitching and hand techniques such as straight stitching, cutwork applique, English paper piecing, and foundation piecing. She makes patterns chooses fabric based on the study of 19th c. textiles and quilt construction techniques, thus preserving and validating the early works of artistic expression. Quilts range from 6 to 13 inch squares and rectangles, about 1:12 scale, some with as many as 1,200 tiny pieces. Current work reflects the change in style from early chintz quilts to the bold graphics of later and current times. All quilts are presented archivally framed in wooden frames.
I design and make contemporary sterling silver jewelry using traditional metalsmithing techniques and tools such as hammers, anvils, mandrels, and torches.
Continuing in the slip trailing traditions, Steve has developed a line of stoneware work that bridges Old World traditions with a contemporary sensibility. His functional and decorative forms have an elegant calligraphic style that is uniquely his own. From stately urns to serving platters, his inspirations come from a melding of cultures and a personal design aesthetic to create work that is beautiful to use and to look at.