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Storefront holds a surprise

May 3, 2007 12:37 am

WAYNESBORO-- The Artisans Center of Virginia sits in a nondescript shopping center in the middle of this Shenandoah-region city.

What's inside is not at all what you'd expect in a place called Willow Oak Plaza.

Poke your nose in the door of this six-year-old, nonprofit institution created to "raise awareness of craft and its contribution to the culture of Virginia" and you see a spot alive with 3D art from the Virginia's best artisans and craftsmen.

Large pieces of wooden furniture, brightly burnished desks and cabinets from the exquisite to the whimsical, border rows of eye-popping jewelry.

Wistful creations and shapes of ceramics, metal and more make you reconsider the boundaries of physics.

There are baskets, quilts, instruments, briefcases, hats, jackets, plates, vases, pocketbooks, wall hangings, cabinets, necklaces, wind chimes.

They join art created from paper, gourds and more by artisans from Wytheville to Montross.

The best part of all this, for those who take a shine to a piece of art is that most of it here is for sale.

Sometimes, even pieces that are part of special exhibitions.

"Of course, you couldn't take a piece like that home until its exhibition was finished," said ACV executive director Michael B. Dowell. "Otherwise, it would end earlier than scheduled."

The nonprofit ACV, now in a space roughly the size of a good-sized clothing store, grew out of an effort initiated by the state in the late '80s.

The effort's focus was simple: find ways for the government and artisans groups to enhance the state's rich craft industry.

The effort went through different incarnations before The Artisans Center of Virginia was created in the late '90s, soon getting that official designation from the state.

Today, it has roughly 400 members, the lion's share of them juried craftsmen in different fields. Patrons, collectors, novice craftsmen and others can join as well.

The ACV does research and collects data about artisans and spots where crafts are sold, offers classes for the public and artisans, provides educational exhibitions and operates the retail sales gallery for "quality Virginia craft."

The gallery at the ACV site has a symbiotic relationship with its members.

It provides retail space for those artisans who have been judged by authorities as meeting stringent creative and quality standards.

In return, when a piece is sold the ACV takes 40 percent of the artisan's proceeds to keep the gallery and organization running.

I came into contact with the ACV doing a recent column on furniture craftsman Andy Pitts of Heathsville. He's one of our many area artisans who are ACV members and sell items there from time to time.

Pitts said the center helps artisans many ways.

"First off, they provide a way to become juried and identified as a professional Virginia artisan," he said. "Then there's the gallery, which gives you a place to sell your work and get it in front of people who have an appreciation for fine craftsmanship."

Dowell said that while the gallery in itself draws a steady stream of visitors, special exhibitions do that as well.

He noted that national exhibitions bring the finest work from all across the country, and join displays on a different featured craftsman each month.

Dowell noted that while the ACV is glad to have a lease at its current location, the organization hopes to one day build and own its own building.

Though Waynesboro is now the center of most efforts, Dowell said the ACV has gotten interest about satellite operations in other spots. One has come from Northern Virginia, another from an arts-centered complex being planned in Charlottesville.

Also in the works: an effort ACV's doing for a state agency to identify craftsmen and their sales venues in Virginia's Allegheny region.

"Our hope is that this effort could grow to include other regions or perhaps the whole state," said Dowell. "All an all, it's an exciting time for us."