Straw Flower Wreath Jubilee
If you have been in the maker world for more than a minute, you have probably dealt with the ongoing debate of craft versus art. If it has a practical use, can it be art? If it is only aesthetic, is it no longer craft?
After attending the opening of the current exhibit at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, I think the real answer is that it’s both.
The Renwick’s newest exhibit, State Fairs: Growing American Craft, open now through Sept. 7, 2026, shows the work of makers through many generations. Although many exhibit contributors don’t consider themselves artists in the traditional sense, the Smithsonian argues otherwise. How do I know? I had the unique opportunity to attend the exhibit’s opening reception as a guest of one of the featured makers, my 95-year-old mother, Donna Hall.
The opening reception was only open to exhibit contributors and their guests, which gave me plenty of time to meet and talk with many people in the room.
Some absolutely thought of themselves as artists, particularly those who regularly made and sold their work to collectors or had other pieces in respected institutions. But they were the minority. Most, like my mom, considered their craft to be a hobby. But in every piece, old and new, the attention to detail and passion of an artisan were impossible to miss.
State Fairs: Growing American Craft is a celebration of award-winning handmade works from State Fairs across the nation. Nearly every craft you can think of was represented in some manner. And every piece was stunning in its own right. In pondering which pieces to highlight here, I decided to come up with my own categories:
Most Unusual
The Hair Wreath made by Josephine Daly over 8 years, which won first prize in the 1888 California State Fair. Each element of the wreath was made by wrapping strands of hair around a wire core — nothing goes to waste.
Most Unbelievable
The Flower Basket Petit Point Quilt by Grace Snyder, which won Best in Show at the 1944 Nebraska State Fair. Note the half-square triangles that make up the individual rose inset, and then see how small that inset element is within the whole quilt. The squares were about a half-inch per side with an estimated 87,000 triangles.
Most Meta
The “O Fair New Mexico Quilt” by Carol St. Clair Johnson, which won Best of Category at the 2023 New Mexico State Fair. A winner made from 41 years of prize-winning state fair entries in over 11 different major categories and featuring the state flag’s Zia sun symbol in the center. You can’t get much more meta than that!
Most Life-Like
Luna Giant Silk Moth by Mikelle Hickman-Romine, which won a first prize in the professional division of the Ohio State Fair in 2023. The tiny seed beads create a level of detail that makes you believe the moth is moments from flapping its wings to fly away.
Most Highly Rated
Blue-Ribbon Afghan by Ruth Ellen Lug received a perfect score in 2001 for the stitching applied to the Tunisian crochet afghan squares. Given the technique used, it was judged under the needlepoint category even though the base fabric is crocheted.
So, is it craft or is it art?
Standing in that gallery, surrounded by generations of makers and their extraordinary work, I realized the question itself misses the point. The distinction between craft and art is artificial — created by institutions and critics, not by the makers themselves.
What matters is the impulse to create something beautiful, functional, or both. What matters is the dedication to mastering a technique, the patience to stitch together 87,000 tiny triangles, or the innovation to transform hair into flowers. What matters is the community of makers who show up at fairs year after year, sharing what they’ve made.
My mother has been entering her work in fairs for decades, and at 95, she’s still creating. Seeing other creators like her reminded me why this exhibit is so important. It validates what makers have always known: the work we do with our hands has value, whether it hangs in the Smithsonian or decorates our homes.
State Fairs: Growing American Craft doesn’t answer the craft-versus-art debate. It celebrates something more fundamental: the enduring human need to make things with our hands and share them with our communities. And that, I think, transcends any label we might apply.
Gwen Bortner
contributor
Gwen Bortner, a former professional knitting instructor, is a business advisor who has spent more than four decades providing business owners with outside perspective and real accountability. To find out more, check out Gwen’s podcast at thebusinessyoureallywant.com.
