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Culture
Tradition Reigns at Center
Learn to make soap or weave a basket at multifaceted Maple Creek
Artists and craftsmen of all ages find an inspirational setting in the Artisan Center’s old log barn.The Artisan Center at Maple Creek is less than two years old, but it’s already making a big impact with its high-end crafts and high-quality workshops.
In fact, owners Steve and Gwen Herndon are already finding it necessary to expand facilities and opportunities for their clients, customers and students.
The 5,000-square-foot gallery in Moscow was previously a historic barn that Steve Herndon spent nearly a year restoring. Today, it is filled with a variety of locally made traditional craft pieces as well as those made in New England, the Carolinas and across the country.
The center is proud of its two primary goals: to provide local traditional artists with a permanent location to display, promote and demonstrate their crafts, and, secondly, to provide “a beautiful, unique location where customers can find traditional handcrafted work for their homes, families and friends,” according to the center’s Web site.
While the retail phase of the business has certainly met expectations, the Herndons are finding a growing interest in workshops in such areas as woodworking, blacksmithing, soap making, pottery and painting.
“What has surprised me most is the demand for workshops,” says Steve Herndon, who had been building furniture for about 10 years and had a log and timber frame construction business prior to opening the center.
Originally, he says, the center was conceived of as a way to market his specialty items, including custom-made doors and staircases. Since then, the staff has grown from the original two to 18, which includes a full range of part-time instructors.
For example, there are three instructors in blacksmithing. Beginners can learn to make wrought-iron decorative items such as clothes hooks, while more advanced students may tackle candleholders, pot racks or even knives.
Some of the classes are as long as six weeks, Herndon says, while others are two-day, weekend events. Pottery classes are ongoing, with as many as four or five each week.
The Herndons travel to arts and crafts shows, and pour over trade magazines to find high-quality artisans who could provide items for the gift shop as well as conduct workshops. The results are impressive and varied, and the real winners are local residents who are introduced to a wide range of unique talents.
At a recent festival, for example, Bobby and Mik Edwards from Jamestown, Tenn., demonstrated the Appalachian craft of White Oak basket making.
To increase the opportunities for visiting artists and craftsmen, Herndon says he is in the process of building guest cabins, ultimately planning to have several available to house up to four people each.
“We are definitely a destination site,” he says, noting that the nearest city with adequate accommodations is Cincinnati, some 18 to 20 miles away.
Story by Sandy Campbell
Photo by Michael W. Bunch
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