You have to take your hat off to Monika Stebbins.
Hers just look so much better.
Monika, a milliner from Madison (repeat three times, fast), is among 158 artisans whose works will be displayed at the 34th annual Morristown CraftMarket from Oct. 15-17 at the Morristown Armory.
One of the creations she will show off is a $1,200 silk-and-wire wasps-nest-and-pine-branch. Anyone dating the wearer of this hat should be alert–any sudden rustling of that pine branch could put a hurt on a wandering eyeball.
“There are headroom issues,” Monika joked last night at the Frelinghuysen Arboretum, where the show was previewed. Sometimes, she explained, an idea starts buzzing in her head “and it wants out.”
The CraftMarket is run by volunteers of the Randolph Kiwanis Club. Proceeds benefit 37 area charities, including the Interfaith Food Pantry.
Exhibits are chosen by a jury of artists. Patrons “can expect extraordinary, one-of-a-kind, limited edition crafts, in all contemporary media,” said Geoffrey Price, show director. Craftspeople from 25 states and Canada are on the roster, which has grown by about 30 percent over the last four years.
New additions include four artists selling children’s clothing, and children’s theatrical face painting all day on Oct. 17, Geoffrey said.
The Arts Council of the Morris Area also will have a booth at the CraftMarket for the first time.
“I think (the Kiwanis) do a great service to the community, both artistically and socially,” said Dr. Lynn Siebert of the Arts Council. “These are juried, fine crafts. They’ve risen to the level of being considered serious art.”
“The most exciting thing about the show is that it attracts artists who want to be in it, and patrons who want to go to it,” said Janine Myer, president of the Randolph Kiwanis Club.
The Kiwanis hope the show will approach last year’s attendance of 5,000. The record, 12,000 visitors, was set in the 1980s when there were fewer craft fairs, Geoffrey said.
Perennial favorites include historical sketches by Morristown realtor-turned-artist Joe Orsag, whose most popular scene is Yankee Stadium Opening Day 1923, and decorative masks carved from gourds by Morristown technical writer-turned-artist Ann Light.
Ann’s husband Martin, who is retired, assists her in various ways but she fumbled for his proper title.
How about Chairman of the Gourd?
