Piedmont Craftsmen Guild embraces western NC artists impacted by Helene

The guild of makers behind the annual Piedmont Craftsmen’s Fair is taking steps to help artists from western North Carolina who were impacted by Helene. 

The Piedmont Craftsmen’s Guild currently includes more than 70 artists based in the mountains, and shortly after the storm passed, the phones began ringing. The Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands in Asheville — a city devastated by Helene —  was called off, artist studios lost, shows canceled, venues closed, and income streams dried up for months. Piedmont Craftsmen President and CEO Jane Doub says it was clear they needed to act.

"It became a domino effect," she says. "And so I went to my board and said, ‘We need to let more artists come from the Southern Highlands Guild, and then, if anybody has a recommendation of another artist — that they are not members of either of our guilds — can we take them?’"  

The board said yes and agreed to cut fees for hosting a booth at the upcoming 61st annual Piedmont Craftsmen’s Fair in half and it also signed off on arranging housing for those in need to help keep travel costs down. Fairs like these are important for local artists and their livelihood.

"It’s huge," says jewelry maker Erica Stankwytch Bailey. The longtime guild member says that while her studios just south of Asheville near the French Broad River were spared damage from Helene, many of her colleagues were not so lucky. She adds that moves by Doub and her board will help.  

"Because when you're considering, what am I going to go do? Can I go do this thing? Is it going to be worth it? Meaning am I going to make some money, if it costs you hundreds of dollars less to do that? Because we don’t start to make any money until we get above all those costs and things that we incur to sell our work."

So far, 108 craftspeople are on board for this year’s Piedmont Craftsmen’s Fair. It will run November 23-24 at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem with 40 new artists, including 28 from the Southern Highland Craft Guild. The fair will also include live demonstrations of pottery wheel throwing, clay building, weaving and more.