The CBU Art Gallery and Reloved Design are excited to present A Handmade Holiday, the first local holiday artisan market to take in the Great Hall, at the entrance to the CBU Art Gallery, on Monday, December 5, from 11 am to 6 pm.
A Handmade Holiday will provide a chance for community members to shop locally and support regional crafters. Contemporary artisans take on traditional crafts like pottery, jewellery, hand bags, bath and body goods, art, baking and more.
Laura Schneider, Director/Curator of the CBU Art Gallery sees the event as an important way to draw attention to cultural producers in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality. “We’re always trying to expose the community, both within and outside of the university, to the broadest range of cultural production we can,” says Schneider. “This event gives us the opportunity to present beautiful works by artisans whose pieces wouldn’t necessarily fit into the art gallery’s regular exhibition programming, but whose contributions to the creative climate on the island are just as important.”
Co-organizer Morningstar Pinto, owner of Reloved Design, is dedicated to supporting the handmade movement and is a firm believer in the importance of shopping locally. “Subsidizing your holiday gift list with a few locally made delights will not only make your heart sing, it will support Cape Breton at a base level,” says Pinto. “If you take out one quarter of your mass produced, out-of-country purchases you will be directly contributing to a thriving economy at home.”
Shoppers are encouraged to bring a non-perishable food item as a donation to Loaves and Fishes. The Art Gallery will be supplying shoppers with refreshments, and a diverse range of musical guests from the CBU community will be on hand to provide entertainment throughout the day.
