The
36th Annual Contemporary Crafts Exhibition at Mesa Contemporary Arts
Museum was not what I thought. Given the name of the exhibition, I thought I
might see tables of craft projects for sale like hand-made gift cards for $1
each or the latest knitting fads mass produced for one and all to purchase at
various prices under $20. Instead I walked in on a gallery of specialized, and
extremely high quality pieces priced anywhere from $295 to $14,000.
Oh.
So, not your basic craft fair.
So
what makes these pieces worth the big bucks? True artistry and craftsmanship.
For instance, look at the meticulous and minute hand stitching on this piece.
Probably a million little stiches make up this gem of hand crafting.
“Grains
of Time” by Gretchen Boyer deceived me. I thought it was wood carving but
turns out it is actually ceramic with the appearance of wood grain. Who knew
that could be done in ceramics?
Now,
here is a real wood piece that is beyond comprehension. To achieve the
spectacular graining in this rocking chair called “Flame” (by David Belthony)
the wood was laminated slab by slab and then sculpted to achieve incredible
artistic beauty in a functional piece of furniture.
I
could go on and on about the pieces in this exhibit but you’ve got to come see
for yourself the many “Contemporary Crafts” showing at the MCA Museum 36th
Annual show. It ends Sunday, April 5!
By
LaDawn Lingard
