Pre-Conference Information Packets Coming for the New Year PLUS Special Tours Announced For February

by Kate Nixon

 

The Omni Grove Park Inn: the site of the National Arts and Crafts Conference.

Information is coming at the end of December for attendees of the 35th National Arts and Crafts Conference at the Grove Park Inn on February 18th – 20th in the form of a Pre-Conference Information Packet sent to all National Arts and Crafts Conference registrants. If you made a reservation at the Grove Park Inn, the Pre-Conference Information Packet will be sent to the contact address provided when you made the reservation. Similarly, if you purchased a Conference Event Pass from us or through our website on PayPal, your packets will be sent to the address provided.

In this envelope of information, attendees will receive the 18-page Pre-Conference Information Packet, two conference brochures to send to a friend, and a self-addressed envelope to send back the name badge form. The Name Badge form is the very last step of the registration process where attendees fill out how they would like your name (and optional business) to appear on your name badge.

The Pre-Conference Information Packets will arrive the week of December 27th, 2021. If you have registered for the conference with the Grove Park Inn past December 15th (either with a Grove Park Inn package, online through PayPal or through our office), you can call our office at (828) 628-1915 and provide a confirmation number and your street address, we will have a packet ready to send you in the mail. The packets will contain, among other things, flyers containing registration information for the following special events occurring during the National Arts and Crafts Weekend:

 

The Craftsman Reception – hosted by the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms

On Thursday of our Conference week, celebrate your return to the Grove Park Inn with the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms during The Craftsman Reception, a kick off celebration of the start of the 35th National Arts and Crafts Conference. The reception will once again be held in the Grove Park Inn’s Skyline Room Thursday, February 17th from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Proceeds will benefit the operations of the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms. Craftsman Farms was established by furnituremaker Gustav Stickley in the early 20th century to be a living embodiment of the ideals of the Arts and Crafts Movement. The National Historic Landmark Stickley Museum and Log Cabin are dedicated to preserving the property and the legacy of Gustav Stickley.

For more information about the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms, please visit stickleymuseum.org

 

The Historic House Tour – hosted by the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County

An annual popular tour at the National Arts and Crafts Conference, the historic house tour will be return in 2022 to take attendees to five houses in the National Register-listed Grove Park neighborhood. Named after E.W. Grove, this neighborhood includes several examples of houses with an Arts and Crafts design. Tours will run Saturday the 19th and Sunday the 20th from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM; docents will be available in each home to answer questions. The historic house tour is a fundraiser for the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County, whose mission it is to conserve Asheville and Buncombe County’s heritage through preservation and educating about the region’s historic resources.

For more information about the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County, please visit psabc.org

 

The Asheville Art Museum located in Downtown Asheville. Photo courtesy of the Asheville Art Museum.

A work of silver by local metalsmith William Waldo Dodge featured in the Asheville Art Museum exhibit Useful and Beautiful: Silvercraft by William Waldo Dodge. Photo courtesy of the Asheville Art Museum.

Behind the Scenes: Walter B. Stephen and William Waldo Dodge Jr – hosted by the Asheville Art Museum

On Saturday, February 19th, the Asheville Art Museum presents two special exhibits, each focusing on two beloved Arts and Crafts style artists of Western North Carolina, in this special one hour program from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Curator Alexis Meldrum will present a private tour and talk of the exhibition Walter B. Stephen Pottery: Cameo to Crystalline. Attendees will then be treated to an exclusive behind-the-scenes preview – before the general public – of the upcoming exhibit Useful and Beautiful: Silvercraft by William Waldo Dodge. General admission to the Asheville Art Museum is included.

For more information on the Asheville Art Museum, please visit the Asheville Art Museum website.

 

As a reminder, the Pre-Conference Information Packets – with the sign up information for the above events – will be sent off before Christmas in order to arrive during the last week of the year. Please email [email protected] if you have any questions.

Still haven’t registered for the conference yet? Click here to visit our registration page.