Cherokee County NC Blog

(From the Folk School Website:)

The new Blacksmith studio fundraising campaign has begun!

Timber framers from all over will gather at the Folk School for an old fashioned barn raising!

The John C. Campbell Folk School is proud to announce plans for an annex to the historic Blacksmith Shop, originally dedicated to Francis Whittaker in recognition of his two decades of teaching and demonstrating at the school.

Whittaker, known as the “Dean of American Blacksmiths,” devoted his life to keeping the art of blacksmithing alive in this country and the existing studio stands as his symbolic legacy. But, while Blacksmithing has long been the most popular of some 50 programs the Folk School offers, the shop has suffered decades of wear and its space is no longer adequate for the size and diversity of classes such a premier program should offer.

The solution is to renovate the Whittaker Studio and to build an annex with the help of the Timber Framers Guild, which has offered to assemble close to 80 timber framers to do a traditional barn-raising in June 2008.

Fundraising for the project kicked off with a $1000 gift from longtime instructor Lou Mueller. Clay Spencer, nationally known blacksmith and fixture at the school also donated $1000. Not to be outdone, Don Neuenschwander, a long time student and friend of the Folk School from Indiana, donated $5000. Julie Clark, Folk School blacksmith instructor, donated $10,000!

While the full architectural plans have not been finalized, the project cost is estimated at an ambitious $500,000. With the strength and spirit of the Blacksmithing community, we are confident the goal can be met. Ours is a community that is resourceful, creative and, like the Folk School, dedicated to the spread of knowledge and education about blacksmithing.

Please contact Susi Hall, Development Manager, at susi@folkschool.org or at 828-837-2775 ext. 118 to contribute or to discuss making a gift and Paul Garrett, Resident Artist for Blacksmithing, at pdg86@hotmail.com or 828-835-8441 with ideas to assist with the project.

Learn more about the new Blacksmithing annex on the Folk School’s website.

The new documentary Sing Behind the Plow: John C. Campbell Folk School, explores the 82-year history of the Folk School through interviews with various scholars on Appalachia, Folk School personnel, and archival photos, footage and recordings.

Even people who know and love the Folk School may not know who John C. Campbell was. Who were the founders Olive Dame Campbell and Marguerite Butler Bidstrup? How did the local people build the school? Who was Fred O. Scroggs? How did Denmark come into the story? These are some of the questions this program tries to answer, while setting the Folk School’s story in the larger context of what was happening to the nation and the world during those years.

Funding was provided by United Community Bank.

Following its premier on UNC-TV, the documentary will be available for purchase on DVD from the Folk School’s Craft Shop.

For more information about the John C. Campbell Folk School, its classes, crafts, and events, call 828-837-2775 or 1-800-FOLK-SCH (800-365-5724) or visit www.folkschool.org.

Their website has more information about the school, the Craft Shop, and their Concerts, Dances, and Events.

(Clyde NC)

(Baltimore, MD) HandMade in America and Haywood Community College partner with the Arts Business Institute (ABI) to present an art business boot camp March 3-5, 2006 in Clyde, North Carolina. Returning for a fourth consecutive year, Haywood ABI brings fresh faculty and a new perspective this year.

Nancy Markoe will lead the weekend with an inspiring keynote address, sharing her lessons learned as a successful art potter and American craft gallery owner. Says Markoe, “Like most artists, I never intended to own a gallery. I was focused on the day-to-day of making. Now that I have walked a mile in gallery owner shoes, I know things I never knew as an artist traveling the show circuit. I hope to help Haywood attendees open their eyes to a new connection between making great work and passionately selling to collectors.”

Other weekend workshop faculty include glass artist and author, Milon Townsend; web expert, Mark Zelis; American Craft Council exhibitor, Luann Udell; and Carol Summers, planner of the HandMade in America Guidebooks series.

Haywood ABI registration cost of $150 includes morning and afternoon meals, workshop materials, a full notebook of handouts and source material, and discounts for sponsoring supplier programs and services. Limited scholarships are available. Those who register early will be paired with a mentor for a free, one-on-one business counseling session.

Established in 1994, HandMade in America works in partnership with more than 20 local, regional and state organizations to support the creation of traditional and contemporary crafts in the region, to protect natural resources and to promote community development. To learn more about HandMade in America, call 828.252.0121, email bettyhurst@handmadeinamerica.org, or go online to www.handmadeinamerica.org.

Haywood Community College is located on the college campus in Clyde, NC, just a few miles west of Asheville and right at the edge of the Smoky Mountains. It was begun in recognition of the strong heritage of craft in the region. The college wants to create a place where students can learn the basics of their craft media as well as how to transform that craft into a business. To learn more about Haywood Community College, call 828.627.2821 or go online to www.haywood.edu/index.php.

Arts Business Institute (ABI) is an independent non-profit organization serving the educational needs of individual artists through traveling workshops across the U.S. and Canada. To learn more about ABI workshops or to register, call 1.800.224.5106, email alishavincent@comcast.net, or go online to www.artsbusinessinstitute.org.