Arrowmont to Remain in Gatlinburg

Future of the Nationally Recognized School Now Secure
(Gatlinburg, Tenn.) 08/23/10 – In a historic decision, the Board of Governors of the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts has voted to keep the nationally renowned center for contemporary craft education at its current location in Gatlinburg, Tenn. Arrowmont offered its first craft workshops in 1945.

Over the past two years the organization has been considering options for the future following a decision by the owners of the land to sell the property currently occupied by the school. A special task force was formed to evaluate options and possible new locations for the school and through their work the choices were narrowed to a site in Greeneville, Tenn. or remaining in the current Gatlinburg location. Since then, the Arrowmont Board has been working with officials from Gatlinburg and Greeneville to finalize proposals presented by both communities.

In making the announcement, Arrowmont Board of Governors President Mary Ann Hruska said, “After reviewing the proposals from Greeneville and Gatlinburg as well as numerous meetings with local officials, the Board decided that Arrowmont should remain in its place of founding. We look forward to working more closely with the local community regarding our future.”
The Gatlinburg community effort to retain Arrowmont was led by former Mayor Jerry Hays and City Manager, Cindy Ogle.

"I am extremely pleased with this decision to keep Arrowmont in Gatlinburg. I want to especially thank the Gatlinburg Arrowmont Work Group for their dedication during this process. A lot of hard work has gone into preparing for this day by representatives of the City, Sevier County, Sevier County School System, the Chamber of Commerce, and private citizens. From here, it is my hope that we can sit down together and map out how we will achieve the goals and dreams for Arrowmont’s future," states Jerry Hays.

Arrowmont’s Strategic Planning Committee, along with the Gatlinburg Work Group, will immediately
begin determining next steps including the orchestration of a capital campaign for funds to support the School’s future and exploring community partnership opportunities. The School’s on-going fundraising continues through the Friends of Arrowmont Fund. You may join by visiting our website or by calling 865- 436-5860.

“This decision ensures that the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts will continue to be a leader in
contemporary studio craft for many years to come,” said Hruska, adding, “Arrowmont provides the best in craft education in new and exciting ways while furthering our mission of enriching lives through art.”

About Arrowmont
Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts is a nationally renowned arts center that offers an artist in
residence program and one, two-week and weekend workshops in ceramics, fiber, metals, glass, painting, mixed media, and woodworking for the beginner to advanced artist. Students learn in professionally equipped studios on a 14-acre residential campus in Gatlinburg, TN. Five galleries, an art supply store, and artist resource center are open visitors year round. For more information about Arrowmont’s programs, visit www.arrowmont.org or call (865) 436-5860.

I want a new Arrowmont mug!

In early spring of 1995 Steve Ford of Ford and Forlano taught a workshop in polymer clay and I was there. About Wednesday, during my lunch break, I visited the Arrowcraft Shop and bought two mugs. I still use the one above, and I pack it each time I spend a week at Arrowmont. They were made in 1994 by a potter named "Mangum." A quick consultation with Mr. Google brought me the Mangum Pottery website here: http://www.mangumpottery.com/ where I stayed a while and drooled over their current work.

I hear that Arrowmont mugs are frequently requested by new and returning students and I had an idea. What if students in pottery workshops made one mug per student just for Arrowmont and donated it to be sold in the Artists Outfitters Store or in a weekly or monthly mug sale to benefit the school or even specifically the clay studio? Clay instructors could get in on the project as well, with thrown and handbuilt mugs welcome. With or without handles, built large to hold a latte or tiny for espresso or right in the middle to hold the morning's first cup of black coffee or fragrant tea, the mugs could be used immediately and often.

A mug is an opportunity to try out a new technique on a small form and could spark some competition in making the largest or most beautiful or glazed with the most original glaze or the most humorous face or the most saleable...mmm. Options for mugs are endless. Mugs are a small investment that can grow into a collection; might be a collection of mugs or a more ambitious acquisition of fine ceramics. A mug is a wonderful gift for the person who has everything or for a father or husband or boyfriend who is difficult to shop for.

When I get to Arrowmont in September for Cynthia Toops' class in polymer clay I'm going to see if I can find a 2010 Arrowmont mug to add to the crowd.

Mugs by (left to right) Anna Silver, Kathleen Horst, J.R. Cooper, Joel Plum, unknown potter, Don Penny.

A new art raffle at Arrowmont!

This time the artists in residence at Arrowmont are holding a raffle to fund a catalog of the Residents' Exhibit at the end of the residency year. They have a modest goal of $1,250 and have already met 20% of that amount. Each of the residents is already accomplished in his/her medium and each has produced an original and well-made piece for the auction. Click on the links to see a close-up image of each item to be auctioned.

Andrea Moon's figure of stoneware, slip and fiber can't quite look you in both eyes:
http://arrowmontresidents.blogspot.com/2010/08/andrea-moon-you-are-here-stoneware-slip.html .

Shawn O'Connor's stoneware teapot appears to have been kissed by the fire in the wood-fueled kiln: http://arrowmontresidents.blogspot.com/2010/08/shawn-oconnor-teapot-wood-fired-stone.html .

Jennifer Wells has made her copper bowls with patina glow from within by lining them with gold leaf: http://arrowmontresidents.blogspot.com/2010/08/jennifer-wells-golden-bowls-copper-gold.html

Wyatt Severs has embellished his turned maple bowl with milk paint, acrylic paint and black ink: http://arrowmontresidents.blogspot.com/2010/08/wyatt-severs-learn-to-swim-turned-maple.html

Just as the sign says, you get one ticket for $5.00 and five tickets for $20.00. It's an opportunity to pay a small amount for what could be a big reward. And even if you don't win one of the works of art, a catalog of their final exhibit will make winners of these four residents providing documentation of an event that lasts only a month.

You have until 1 PM on Friday, August 6, to purchase your chances to win one of the pieces made "before" a year in the Tennessee mountains changes the vision and experience of these artists forever. Git 'em while you can!

Oh, no! My class has been canceled!

It doesn't occur frequently, but it recently happened to a friend: his workshop at Arrowmont was canceled nearly a month before its scheduled start date because of insufficient student registration. He was very disappointed in the situation,because he really wanted to learn the skills taught by the instructor who was not teaching any more workshops this year.

My friend was able to schedule another class at Arrowmont that sounded vaguely interesting but he recounted an incident that got us thinking about filling classes rather than canceling them. A week or so ago he saw a buddy in the barber shop and the conversation came around to the canceled class. "Nuts!" said the buddy. "I wish I'd known about that class; I would have signed up for it and my son would have been interested, too!"

So instead of canceling unfilled classes maybe Arrowmont should enlist the aid of media-savvy volunteers to spread the news of classes with vacancies to local people and prospective students at a distance as well.

First of all a page on the Arrowmont website could list unfilled classes starting in the next four weeks, with a link to that list on the website's front page. The list could be updated as frequently as necessary as vacancies decrease. There is a blog written by Arrowmont Artists in Residence; why not have an Arrowmont blog for news - the writing could be shared by several staff members or volunteers who post five days a week. A blog post can frequently be written more quickly than updating the website every day.

Arrowmont offers discounts on tuition to residents of Blount, Cocke, Jefferson, Knox and Sevier Counties; each county boasts at least one newspaper that publishes in print and online. How about sending a weekly media release to each area newspaper listing classes with vacancies?

Many craft and art supply companies send an online newsletter to subscribers once a week on a specific day; readers could subscribe on the front page of the Arrowmont website to receive news of class vacancies, special events, promotions at the Artist Outfitters Store - whatever is going on at the school currently. A volunteer could publish the newsletter with information shared by staff members.

And OMG! Don't forget Twitter and Facebook - volunteers who are active in these media could use them to highlight those classes that need students.

Instructors work hard to prepare lesson plans for a week's worth of classes, schedule the time to be at Arrowmont and hate to have a class cancel. Students take vacation from work, prepare (and pay!) for travel to and from the school, frequently need specific skills to complete a project or start a new one. And Arrowmont loses the revenue from a class that is canceled. I think with some work by staff and volunteers that Arrowmont could vastly reduce the disappointments of a canceled workshop.

The Art 4 Art's Sake Auction

is being held at Arrowmont tomorrow evening, June 24, 2010. You'll find the particulars on the Arrowmont website and if you live within driving distance of Gatlinburg you should go there for the fun, excellent food and the opportunity to acquire a wonderful piece of art. And oh, yes, the purchases benefit the scholarship fund and allow even more students to learn skills at the school.

Here's a little preview of the artists who have very generously donated works to be included in the auction:

April Flanders makes monotypes and collographs; you can see her work at her website.

Frank Saliani, who is a former Arrowmont resident artist, works in colored cast porcelain which can be see at his website here.

Mary Todd Beam, a mixed media artist, teaches to quickly-filled classes at Arrowmont and has a following eager for her latest pieces. See her work and get a link to her blog here.

Jeweler Deb Karash's necklace is seen in the graphic at the top of the post and other pieces on her blog and her website.

Another former Arrowmont resident artist, Damon McIntyre, is a woodworker; see his gallery on his website.

Make your dinner reservations today and by all means, for a good time, show up at Arrowmont for the Art 4 Art's Sake Auction tomorrow evening!

You will see Elaine and Stan Fronczek

on the Arrowmont campus attending meetings, helping to count inventory at the end of the fiscal year, manning the Arrowmont booth at east Tennessee fine craft fairs, bidding (and winning) during the Art 4 Art's Sake auctions and showing up for action any time there's a volunteer opportunity. Elaine is a fiber artist who professionally creates felted pieces for wearing and for interiors.

She frequently uses a garden theme and her color sense includes many palettes; while this scarf blends subtle shades, her sixteen inch tall vessel uses bold contrast for a strong statement.

Elaine teaches workshops in felting at Arrowmont and expands her skills by taking courses as well. Her scientific background keeps her on the move researching dye reactions and tool sources and both her students and her classmates benefit from her enthusiasm. Elaine's felted pieces can be seen at the Art Market Gallery in Knoxville.
Stan Fronczek is an accomplished woodworker with an eye for elegant design and a flawless surface. His "Urban Forest" contrasts with his table (with its top of bloodwood and legs of mirapixum) to enhance the simplicity of the sculpture and the sophistication of the polished furniture.

Stan makes smaller sculptures as well as furniture, such as his current project, a rocker.

Elaine and Stan will be attending the June 24 Art 4 Art's Sake Auction and Elaine will have a piece in the September 23 auction. They are good examples of the many generous artists who give art, cash, time and energy to Arrowmont to benefit its students and the school's community.

Steppin' out with Bonnie Allen

I met Bonnie last summer in Elizabeth Barton's dyeing/art quilt class early in July. Bonnie had taken a course in dyeing with Elizabeth before and knew what to expect from the class. We had no idea, though, how creative Bonnie could be with low-water immersion dyeing techniques and what visions she could capture in planning her quilt.


Over the fall and winter she and I kept in touch; in Georgia, I was making a large quilt for a friend from hand dyed fabrics and in Indiana she was dyeing with ice, and using the photographs she had taken at Arrowmont to make wonderful notecards and constructing one of a kind purses with the hand dyed scraps we just can't discard. This spring she sent me some photographs of her garden stepping stones made with stained glass and concrete. She tumbles and grinds the glass so that the mosaics are not only beautiful but also safe to step on without cutting feet.


She's developed several techniques to enhance the appearance and longevity of the stones and she's building a market in Evansville for her one of a kind designs. She donated a group of her stones to a fundraising auction at her church and was astonished and pleased to find that they sold for nearly a thousand dollars.


Bonnie will be returning to Arrowmont this year and when she does, she'll be bringing a stone or two for the Art for Art's Sake Auction in September. If you can attend the event in Gatlinburg, you might just be fortunate enough to have the winning bid on one of her artworks for your garden!

The Arrowmont Art for Art's Sake Auction

is scheduled for Thursday, June 24. Today I packaged and mailed two silver bracelets to donate to the school to be auctioned either in June or in the September event. If they'd sell them both in June, I'd make more for the fall auction. Proceeds from the auctions benefit the Arrowmont scholarship fund and allow students that might otherwise not be able to afford the expense, to take courses during the year.

Now, here's the deal. I live on a very tight budget and I really cannot contribute as much cash as I would like to Arrowmont's fundraising efforts. Even with the price of silver as high as it is, however, I can afford to purchase several ounces of silver wire and a solid sterling clasp - and that's what I did. I combined the new silver wire with a couple of ounces that I had on hand and made the two bracelets in the photograph above. I have invested a total of about one hundred thirty dollars in the two pieces, and I expect that they will bring around two hundred dollars apiece or a total of four hundred dollars. I think donating a high-quality piece of fine craft or art is an excellent way to magnify your charitable gift to Arrowmont.

Last summer in Elizabeth Barton's dyeing for art quilts class lots of the students gave a piece of hand-dyed fabric for the auction held at the end of the week. So many students were generous that we made two packets of maybe six quarter yards of beautifully colored cotton, tied them with raffia and took them to Karen Green's office. Whoever won the bid on that fabric got a wonderful addition to a quilt and much more than she might have expected.

I encourage every instructor to share a small or large piece of work with Arrowmont, and I think the students should consider a gift from their classes as well. A collection of polymer clay or ceramic beads could be strung as a necklace; watercolorists can turn a tiny sketch into a greeting card; woodworkers' miniatures can be hung as holiday ornaments. Every piece counts, and every piece is grander when laid out on the evening of the auction. Finally the joy of giving may be the best part of all; for each item won at auction there are three winners: Arrowmont wins the proceeds, the purchaser wins a piece of art and the artist gets the marketing value and the happiness and pride of having contributed to our worthy cause.

Keep watching the Arrowmont website, where some of the auction items will be displayed in the next week or so. And bid generously for a piece that you'd like to have!

GoodSearch is a search engine

that contributes to your favorite non-profit organization when you use it to find information on the internet. If you download the GoodSearch toolbar for Arrowmont from this site your searches automatically benefit Arrowmont, you get a direct link to Arrowmont's website, Amazon's site and Ebay's site. And when you shop at many online websites, like Amazon and Ebay, a contribution is made to Arrowmont by the site. All of these contributions are made at no cost to you when you use the internet to search out information or to make purchases you would make anyway.

Find out how GoodSearch was started, how GoodSearch and GoodShop work here, and get started giving a little gift to Arrowmont whenever you search or shop. It's easy, it's safe, it's smart giving and the question is, why wouldn't you do it?

The Mountain Press applauds the task force...

that reported to the Arrowmont Board of Governors on three possible locations for Arrowmont's permanent home in an editorial today; you can read the entire column here. I think it was gracious way to publicly thank eleven busy individuals for sharing a great deal of time and energy with Arrowmont, and I thank The Mountain Press for consistently keeping the school's current project in the news.

Local media report on Arrowmont...

whenever there's action by the Arrowmont Board of Governors and a media release http://www.arrowmont.org/MR-Arrowmont-Task-Force-Presents.pdf is presented by the Arrowmont staff. Usually the local newspapers, The Mountain Press of Gatlinburg, Sevierville and Pigeon Forge http://www.themountainpress.com/pages/home ), the Knoxville News Sentinel http://www.knoxnews.com/ , Josh Flory, business columnist for the KNS and blogger http://blogs.knoxnews.com/flory/ , The Seymour Herald http://seymourherald.com/ and the Greeneville Sun http://greenevillesun.com/ pick up the media release verbatim. Following the task force's report to the Board on its visits to the three possible locations for the Arrowmont of the future, however, the Greeneville Sun presented an article by Rich Jones, the Assistant Managing Editor, which you can read here: http://greenevillesun.com/story/309601 .

You can GoodSearch on "Scott M. Niswonger," and "Mary Jane Coleman" to read about some very interesting and caring people in East Tennessee. Wait - you don't know what GoodSearch is? Come back Tuesday for information on this search engine that donates to your favorite non-profit (like Arrowmont!) each time you search on a term.

Christa Assad will be teaching

ceramics at Arrowmont the week of June 6 - 11; her course is called "Cut and Construct Intensive." Take a look at her gallery here: http://christaassad.com/gallery/ and if clay is your medium be advised that she can squeeze a couple more students into her class. I think I'm attracted to her work because not only does it make me want to reach into my computer monitor and grab a piece, but she's a master colorist whose glazes fit her pot shapes perfectly.

The four artists in residence will be departing Arrowmont to start new adventures and the new artists will be arriving in mid-June. If you have not visited the residents' blog you should click on this link http://arrowmontresidents.blogspot.com/2010/05/changing-of-residents.html and read not only the current post about the four new arrivals but also the posts from the past year. Photographs of Arrowmont in all seasons are excellent and the artwork of Victoria, TJ, Martina and Kent is well-documented. The residents work hard and with good humor not only in their own studios but also teaching in the community and assisting in so many ways in Arrowmont's workshops, auctions and other events, and this year added outreach to, well, anyone in the world who reads the residents' blog. Keeping up with them has kept me in touch with Arrowmont and its spirit of sharing.

Spend a week with a friend at Arrowmont

Last summer my sister and I went to Arrowmont together. She took a class with Kathy Cooper http://kathycooperfloorcloths.com/ in making floorcloths and I took a course in dyeing for making quilts with Elizabeth Barton (http://ebarton.myweb.uga.edu/ and http://elizabethbarton.blogspot.com/ ). Now, my sister Kathleen and I don't see each other very frequently but we really enjoyed our vacation in the Smoky Mountains; we worked all day, enjoyed meals and the evening events together and visited all the studios each day to observe and applaud the progress of students in other media. I think that we both found that a vacation learning skills and reviewing them with criticism only sisters can share to be both fun and rewarding.

When I got back to Georgia with new skills and dyeing confidence as well as fifteen yards of freshly colored fabric I found myself emailing a couple of my classmates, Bonnie from Indiana and Elaine from nearby Knoxville. We send each other pictures, fabric, websites, our newest handmade pieces. We commiserate with each other over life's potholes and rejoice over life's rewards. We share the latest tidbits of information about Arrowmont's future because we will all keep returning to the school for teaching, learning and volunteering. Last summer we were acquaintances and now we are friends.

In March of this year I signed up for a workshop with Cynthia Toops http://www.cdbeads.biz/ in working with polymer clay. Eternally frugal, I made certain that I got that early application discount; I'll spend the money I saved (and more) in the Artist Outfitters supply and book store. Last week I found out that Bonnie and her husband will be at Arrowmont at the same time; Bonnie will be learning to make glass beads from Cynthia's husband Dan Adams and her husband, an accomplished woodworker, will be studying with Dixie Biggs ( http://dixiebiggs.com/gallery ). I bet Elaine will drive to Gatlinburg sometime during the week to join us for dinner and, since the class is the first full week in September, to celebrate the announcement of the location of Arrowmont's home.

I'm ecstatic that I'll be seeing my long-distance friends at the same time that I'm learning new techniques in a favorite medium with one of the best polymer clay artists ever. And probably adding new Arrowmont friends to our little circle!

Great news...

A May 18 update to the Arrowmont website (http://www.arrowmont.org/) says that events and workshops will be scheduled through 2012, and that the school's Board of Governors will announce the location of the campus of Arrowmont in August, 2010. Stan Voit of "The Mountain Press" reports on the two-day meeting of the Board in this article: http://www.themountainpress.com/view/full_story/7470488/article--Arrowmont-board-gets-status-update-from-task-force-?instance=latest_articles

Any guesses on where we'll be taking and teaching workshops five years from now?

Arrowmont's history is heartwarming...

and well documented from its beginning in 1912 as the Pi Beta Phi Settlement School established by the Pi Beta Phi Fraternity. You can see a brief synopsis on Wikipedia at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arrowmont_School_of_Arts_and_Crafts but the photographs, essays and document images on the Arrowmont website (http://www.lib.utk.edu/arrowmont/history.htm) tell a fascinating story of the school and the southern mountain community. Fiber artists will find Philis Alvic's Weavers of the Southern Highlands particularly interesting, filled with information about the importance of weaving to the income of local families, and visitors to Arrowmont can pick up a copy of Adrienne Mitchell's booklet, "50 Years of Education at the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts."

No matter where the school is located five years from now its roots are firmly in the rocky soil of Gatlinburg and Sevier County, Tennessee and there will always be a warm connection to the families and students it has served.

Take a workshop this year...

and next year too, to experience the historic campus of Arrowmont as it has evolved slowly over nearly ten decades. Because no matter where Arrowmont finds its home - even if the campus remains right where it is in Gatlinburg just above the Great Smoky Mountains National Park - the school will be changing more quickly. More people will know about its programs and events and more populations will be served: youthful art students, meeting participants, shoppers seeking art supplies and finished examples of clay, wood, glass, metal and fiber and oh, gosh, more!

Visit the Arrowmont website: http://www.arrowmont.org/ and find a one-week or two-week course and enroll. Bring your supplies and bring your camera and video camera, too. Make stuff and make friends. Document your visit up close and over the rooftops and take home photographs and email addresses of classmates, because a week at Arrowmont creates skills and inspiration for months of work and memories to enjoy for a lifetime.

At the age of ninety-eight...

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, stands at the edge of change. After decades of leasing its campus and most of its buildings, the school is about to embark on the process of land ownership. This blog is presented to document this change, to help support the school, staff and board of governors verbally, visually and financially as they take the first steps in this project and to provide a forum for Arrowmont students, instructors, and any other interested individuals to share and celebrate their experiences at the school in the mountains.