Lighting

A number of artists at this year's St. Paul show are applying their skills - with ceramics, glass, fiber, metal, and wood - to beautiful lighting. Here's a quick list of some that caught my eye. There's still time to see this fantastic work in person, too: The show is open today until 5 o'clock. If you're not in the area (and even if you are), click on the artists' bolded names to visit their websites.

Our flagship show in Baltimore is now in full swing! We’re all holding our breath, but so far we’ve been spared by the snowstorm, except for a smattering of flurries this morning. Keep your fingers crossed for good weather through the weekend!

The biggest and most joyous craft event of the year is staged every September on a gigantic playa, a clay lakebed over 30,000 years old, in the middle of Black Rock Desert in northern Nevada. This is the site of the Burning Man festival (Aug. 31-Sept. 7, 2009). I have wanted to attend for 10 years. Having regularly read about it and discussed it with veteran “burners,” I thought I had a good idea of what to expect. But it was a hundred times more than I imagined. It cannot be fully explained; it can only be experienced. Here is a snapshot.

In 1965 Duane Bell founded a small steel manufacturing business, Bell Manufacturing, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Using centuries-old blacksmithing techniques the company made radiator covers and security gates. Then in 1990, the furniture company Room and Board approached Bell's children, Jim and Judy, who had taken over the business, and asked if they were interested in creating an entirely different product-furniture. Looking for a new challenge, the pair accepted and began creating hand-welded steel beds, coffee tables and other household items.

Day two and after a dose of rest I hurried back to the convention center, thanks in part to a stiff wind carrying me along, for another look at the fantastic work on display at the American Craft Council's show. After 33 years, word gets around and once again, the crowds showed up, keen to see more high-end craft. The weekend seemed to draw more people so it was a bit of a challenge to navigate through the aisles but the anticipation of meeting and speaking with the artists spurred me on.