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The Leage of New Hampshire Craftsmen
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- Category: WAN Art Blog
- Published on Friday, 15 July 2011 19:17
- Written by Erin Hall
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How Investment in the Arts Revitalized a Community
During a recent vacation to North Conway, New Hampshire, I had the pleasure of visiting the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen’s Conway Gallery. As I admired the unique jewelry, furniture, and sculptures decorating the walls, I conversed with the gallery’s owner, Philip Jacobs. His craft was glassblowing; many of his contributions to the League were displayed around the gallery. A purple tinted pitcher caught my eye, and I commented on the beauty of its shapely curves.
Jacobs smiled kindly, but then said, “Unfortunately most people who visit this gallery do not always find beauty in our craft.”
I shook my head in disbelief, and suggested, “I guess art isn’t for everyone - especially not in this economy!”
He released a dry chuckle, and replied adamantly, “No, art is for everyone! In fact, art had the capability of saving New Hampshire years ago, and it will again during this economic slump.”
Jacobs pushed back a thick dreadlock from his face, and briefly recounted the history of the league’s emergence. His quick “Art in New Hampshire” overview suggested themes of suffering, resourcefulness, restoration, and steadfastness. I longed to more astutely unite the strands of this artisan’s redemptive tale.
A piece on display at the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen's 2009 Fair. Photo by Batwrangler. Some rights reserved.
The founding of New Hampshire’s vibrant League of Craftsmen during the Great Depression, exhibits the unifying and inspiring nature of prolonged hardship. Despite the depression’s numerous effects on the United States’ economy, this financially stressed period sparked one of our nation’s most stimulating art movements. There were pockets of poor, yet inspired artisans throughout the United States, but New Hampshire’s White Mountain area is unique in its craftsmen revival roots.
This art revival began in the quaint villages of Sandwich and Wolfeboro, by Mrs. J. Randolph Coolidge, leader of a crafts shop in Center Sandwich, and A. Cooper Ballentine, leader of a crafts enterprise. Both women, feeling bound by their budgets’ limitations, sought financial refuge in craft making. They realized the earning potential of isolated farmers banding together to expand the market for what they had the capability of creating. During their daily craft endeavors, they experienced a solace capable of restoring and renewing their hope in the nation’s economy. This hope spread, igniting an infectious art exploration throughout New Hampshire.
Coolidge and Ballentine developed a cooperative committee with assistance from the Director of the Rhode Island School of Design and from the Russell Sage Foundation. The group then visited New Hampshire’s Governor, John Winant, and requested his help to solidify the committee’s purpose and communal negotiations. Committee leaders presented the need for developing competent community leadership, locating good craft instructors and employing a properly trained and compensated director. In 1931, the governor provided seed money from the state to create a Commission on Arts and Crafts, making New Hampshire the first state in the nation to support crafts. This commission immediately provided gainful work through home industries, native crafts, and arts.
In 1932, the commission became the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen. In its early existence, the league was dependent on the utilization of local materials like river clay, forming local craft guilds such as the Saffron and Indigo Society. In 1934, the league organized the first craft fair in the nation at Crawford Notch in the White Mountains. Along with an area for artisan sales, the fair had demonstrations of vegetable-dyeing, basket-making, wood-carving, and iron-working.
Today, the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen’s mission continues to encourage communal exposure to the arts and support the adventurous endeavors of various artisans. Crafts approved by the League's rigorous Standards Program are presented and sold through a network of eight retail galleries around the state ( Jacob Philip’s gallery in North Conway is one of these eight). The league also displays approved crafts at its headquarters gallery in Concord, New Hampshire and at other league-sponsored events. The league supports community-based craft education programs throughout the state.
In the spring, the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen’s Board of Trustees announced plans to launch a capital campaign to raise a minimum of $2,850,000 in funds for the league’s new craft education center and headquarters in Concord. The campaign, called “Craft Our Future: A Commitment to Handcrafted Excellence,” will provide funds for the league’s new facility, educational programming, technology, and endowment funding. Contributing craftsmen hope that such a building will increase the general public’s appreciation of local art.