Handcrafted in New England | 10 More Artists & Artisans
There’s no end to the kinds of modern heirlooms now being created by the next generation of New England crafters. These 10 artists and artisans, originally featured in Yankee’s Open Studio column, are just a few of our favorites.
By Yankee Magazine|Dec 12 2018|
Handcrafted in New England 10 More Artists & Artisans
Britt and Matt Witt | Red House Bags Burlington, Vermont
In a former mill building along Vermont’s Winooski River, Britt and Matt Witt create elegantly simple waxed canvas bags in earthy colors for every conceivable purpose: book bags, day bags, weekenders, lunch bags, rucksacks, and beach totes.
Photo Credit : Greta Rybus
Jon Gibson | Gibson Pewter Washington, New Hampshire
From bowls and candlesticks to tea sets and martini glasses, New Hampshire’s Jon Gibson transforms pewter into instant family heirlooms. Of special gifting note is Gibson’s collection of Christmas ornaments, including one special limited-edition design each year (see the 2018 hammered maple leaf below).
Photo Credit : Greta Rybus
Adrienne Ginter | Hand-Cut Paper Brattleboro, Vermont
Adrienne Ginter is a wizard with an X-Acto knife, creating hand-cut visions that are lacy, mystical, and more fragile and elaborate than a paper doily, with multiple receding layers that create 3-D effects. Available in cards, shadow boxes, and hanging wall pieces.
Photo Credit : Mark Fleming
Read More: Open Studio | Adrienne Ginter Purchase Info: adrienneginter.com
Roland LaVallee | Crow Tracks Woodcarvings Eastport, Maine
Using X-Acto knives, delicate chisels, small paintbrushes, and a refined wood-burning tool for adding details like feathers, Roland LaVallee transforms raw chunks of pine into colorful birds in his studio near the Maine-Canada border.
Photo Credit : Kindra Clineff
Erin Flett | Textiles Westbrook, Maine
Maine-based textile designer Erin Flett creates her gorgeous and wildly popular prints with a nod to New England’s great outdoors. Choose from hand-printed and hand-sewn bags, pillows, wall art, linen tea towels, napkins, and more.
Photo Credit : Heather McGrath
Tessa Morgan | Flying Pig Pottery Woods Hole, Massachusetts
Tessa Morgan’s platters, lamps, and mugs are all steeped in the ocean essence of her Cape Cod surroundings. The decorative technique she uses to create her fish, mermaids, squid, and turtle designs is called sgraffito, from the Italian graffito, meaning “to scratch.”
Photo Credit : Elizabeth Cecil
Kathleen Buchanan | Grey Seal Press Rockport, Maine
Kathleen Buchanan’s handmade prints reveal a misty world of islands, seabirds, and coastal sheep inspired by a combination of photos, field sketches, and “a healthy dose of imagination.”
Photo Credit : Mark Fleming
Craig Altobello | Marquetry Peterborough, New Hampshire
A slice of walnut wood suggests a dark mountain, outlined against a rippling sky of spruce… chickadees rendered with bits of black acacia flit across a background of pale sugar maple… a heron poses, a study in spruce and sycamore. Such is the magic of Craig Altobello’s woodworking technique, called marquetry.
Photo Credit : Mark Fleming
Zoe and James Zilian | Farmhouse Pottery Woodstock, Vermont
At Farmhouse Pottery in the classic Vermont village of Woodstock, you’ll find an eye-catching collection of goods inspired by a rural lifestyle, including handmade bowls, pitchers, tumblers, and crocks.
Photo Credit : Corey Hendrickson
Michael Updike | Slate Carvings Newbury, Massachusetts
Michael Updike, the artistic younger son of novelist John Updike, uses a mallet and chisel to carve out “little stories” on recycled slate roof shingles and to create one-of-a-kind memorial stones.
Photo Credit : Pat Piasecki
Love supporting New England artists and makers? Don’t miss our January/February 2019 feature “The New Makers,” featuring 10 rising stars. Do you have a favorite (or two, or three) New England artisan? Let us know in the comments below.
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