Features

Folk Festival Seeks Craftspeople and Committee Members

BY GINA GASPIN, member Folk Festival Committee

The Craft Show of the Takoma Park Folk Festival will return to its roots this year. For the first 20 years of the Folk Festival’s 25, it was located on the basketball court of what is now the Takoma Park Middle School. During those 25 years, the school was transformed, from Takoma Park Junior High, to Takoma Park Intermediate, to Takoma Park Middle School, and then was demolished and rebuilt. The Folk Festival and its Craft Show have been resilient and, like all good traditions, have adapted to changes around them. And this year, on September 7, the Folk Festival will place its Craft Show back in its longtime home. According to Laurie Summers, Craft show coordinator, "I think the basketball area…will allow us to have a high profile quality show, where both craftspeople and viewers will be comfortable and really enjoy the diversity and originality of the show. We hope it will be conducive to purchases as well!"

All craftspeople and artists who design and execute original work are welcome to apply to the juried show. According to Summers, "Every year, the crafts committee seeks to improve and diversify the types of crafts that are showcased". The jury process helps insure that only the finest work is selected. In recent years, media in the show have included ceramics, dolls, fiber art, jewelry, metalwork, photography, wood and others. Summers would love to expand its variety to include baskets, stained glass and kaleidoscopes.

A special note to Takoma Park area folks: We know there is a wealth of talent and accomplishment here. Summers says, "We hope you will apply. Space priority is given to people who have successfully exhibited before and to Takoma Park craftspeople, once we select them in the jury process." The jurying is done from slides submitted by the artists. "Please give extra attention to the quality of your slides. They are all we will have to determine the quality of your work," she adds. The committee has seen excellent work get passed over because the slides just didn’t show its merit.

The Craft Show, like the rest of the Folk Festival, is a communal effort. Summers states that "Working together as colleagues and friends for many years is an exciting and challenging process. Because we love and understand crafts so well, we are determined to produce a high quality and diverse show for the festival-goers to enjoy. It is a true sense of community—from the first contact with a crafts person to the judging and booth placement of crafts to the actual day of the festival."

To receive an application package, or for more information, contact Laurie Summers at 301-434-4991 or Gina Gaspin at 301-891-2549, or email crafts@tpff.org. You may also visit the Folk Festival website at www.tpff.org. The application deadline is June 1, so you have plenty of time to get those slides made!

The Craft Show is just one aspect of the 25 year-old Takoma Park Folk Festival. There will be seven stages of top-notch music and dance performances, a wide variety of international food, an area specifically for family entertainment and games, and tables where representatives of diverse community organizations disseminate information and stimulate discussion. And, as in the past, it’s all free of charge.

While the Folk Festival is still six months away, planning is already underway. One of its remarkable aspects is that this amazing extravaganza of music, dance, crafts, food, etc. is put on each year by a group of community volunteers. Joel Gaspin, who got involved three years ago, came to his first Festival planning meeting "to find out how it was possible for such a large complex undertaking to succeed with a group of volunteers." At his first meeting, he offered to assist the Community Tables coordinator, only to find out later that she had resigned. "Suddenly, there I was, in charge. Responsibility and authority were easy to come by. Now that I’ve done this for three years" he adds, "I still don’t quite see how it’s possible."

While people may not understand just how the festival comes together each year, it certainly does; and each year the festival planners seem to find ways to surpass the previous year’s efforts.

Please consider joining your neighbors in participating in this wonderful community project. There are lots of opportunities for various levels of involvement, from chairing a committee to assisting with small tasks. This is a particularly opportune year for new folks to come on board, because a number of tasks and posts are currently unfilled. Lenore Robinson, Festival Coordinator says, "We invite people to help plan the upcoming Festival by coming to one of our meetings or contacting us." The Festival phone number is 301-589-3717, and email is info@tpff.org. The next planning meeting is on Thursday, April 10 at 8:00 p.m. in the Municipal Building. Robinson adds, "We couldn't put the Festival on without the creative, enthusiastic newcomers who join us each year." We’d love to meet you!