The Art of Craft

With names like Stitch and Bitch and Crafty Bastards, it’s clear that crafters are a creative lot with a good sense of humor. The DIY crafts movement is based on a playful approach to a variety of materials that results in original handicraft. From purses made from album covers to reconstructed cashmere sweaters, crafts today are more sophisticated, artful and creative than ever. Which may be why the crafts movement is white-hot in cities across the country, from Chicago to San Franciso to yes, Pittsburgh.

“Pittsburgh is now a real hotbed,” says Gloria Forouzan, local crafter and craft fair organizer. “Boston's Bizarre Bazaar is the first and the big daddy. But we've got our own here in Pittsburgh."

If there’s a single reason that Pittsburgh is becoming nationally known for its craft industry, it’s Handmade Arcade. This one-day event attracted approximately 5,000 visitors this past November, with more than a hundred local and national vendors who sold crafts of all kinds.

Jessica Manack is one of the eight women who started it three years ago. "It's been an amazing way to show people what Pittsburgh has to offer," says the co-organizer, who notes the convenience of buying unique, handmade goods during the holidays as an alternative to shopping in the mall.

To help spread the word, Manack brings Handmade Arcade flyers to other cities' craft fairs. “People have heard of Handmade Arcade, or done the show and posted pictures on their websites - they see Pittsburgh in a positive light, as a cool scene," she says.

An Economic Driver

As Forouzan points out, Pittsburgh boasts other popular events for crafters, from the Craft Factory and a Union Project event, to Mr. Roboto media swap and a presence at the Gallery Crawl. And now? For the first time, the Craft Congress, scheduled for late March.

With support from the Sprout Fund, Scion and the national Craft: magazine, the crafter-organizers are realizing their dream of a “congress” of key craft leaders to address issues from the economic impact of the craft movement –which is considerable—to boosting online sales with a breakout session hosted by Etsy, the craft online marketplace.

When word of the first ever Craft Congress got out, the event quickly filled, attracting 50 craft leaders from across the country and even Canada, and the U.K. One of the goals is to host the Congress every year, showcasing Pittsburgh as an arts-centered city and establishing it as a center of the craft movement.

In another boost to the Pittsburgh crafting scene, Jennifer Baron, one of the Congress organizers (and Pop City dev news editor), got national attention when her Fresh Popcorn Productions was featured in the Village Voice while Manack's Miss Chief Productions landed a spread in Bust magazine.

Meet you online

Fun finds from crafters include pocket-size handbound journals, screen-printed thank you cards, monster dolls, crocheted scarves and charm bracelets made from old typewriter keys. These enticing goods turn up in interesting places such as Moxie Dada, the Mattress Factory store and of course, the Internet.

In an ironic twist, much of the lo-fi crafter community is found online. "The Internet has created the DIY movement – that’s the place where this movement grew," claims Gloria Forouzan. "In previous times, it would have been sporadic, but the Internet has made all of these connections possible."

Another plus? "The Internet gives us a community,” says Darlene Durrwachter-
Rushing, glass artist and felter, "We have a felters' forum, which is an online community where we can ask questions and share information." She credits the Internet with catapulting handmade wool felt to the front of the line as craft's "next hottest thing," and compares today’s felt community glass beadmaking in the early 90s. The web has supported sprawling collectives such as Church of Craft, the Craft Mafia, and now, a Pittsburgh-based venture, the pending Craft Congress.

“The Internet is huge,” says handbag designer Minette Vaccariello who uses it to locate hard-to-find vintage fabrics for her RayMin bags. “We couldn't do half of what we do without the Internet.” She and her partner, Raymond Morin can, for instance, email stores in New York with a link to their site instead of making a visit. And the global marketplace of the Internet means email inquiries and orders from around the world.

It keeps them busy. "I don't even have time to make my own bag," says Minette, an engineer and product designer, who created RayMin in 2003 with Morin. Their shoulderware line, handmade yet sleek, grew out of a one-time batch of bags sent to a friend's gallery in Kansas. When the bags sold in a flash, they decided to continue their creations.

"In Boston, it's a lot more money to live, and studio and time are at more
of a premium," says native New Englander Morin. "So, the craft there
is either really accessible and not very nice, or rare and expensive. Here,
because the cost of living is less, people live this stuff - they don't have
to go to a high-paying job during the day and then do art at night."

As proof the couple are buying their own home to house a studio, a dream for working artists in cities like Boston, New York, and San Francisco.

While the Internet has vaulted crafting to an industry, local support is always appreciated. Pittsburgh art galleries and performance spaces aid the movement. "Make Shop Rock Show" at Brillobox on April 14, an event organized by Minette and Raymond, will feature crafters and music. And Braddock's gallery, Dorothy 6, recently exhibited original t-shirt designs by crafters and artists while the latest Pittsburgh Cultural Trust Gallery Crawl featured crafters at the Show Here Gallery.

Yet another indication how crafters are gaining ground. Craft on!