Craft Alliance facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Craft Alliance
Address
5080 Delmar Blvd. St. Louis , Missouri United States
Information
School type	501(c)(3) Arts Education
Founded	1964
President	Jackie Levin
Director	Bryan Knicely
Campus type	Urban - City
Website	https://craftalliance.org
Craft Alliance on Delmar Blvd
Craft Alliance in Grand Center

Craft Alliance is a special place in St. Louis, Missouri, USA, where people learn about art and crafts. It's a nonprofit organization, which means it's not trying to make money. Instead, its goal is to "enrich and empower communities through craft." This means they want to help people and neighborhoods grow stronger and more creative through art. Craft Alliance started in 1964 and has been teaching and sharing art ever since.

Craft Alliance: A Look Back at Its Journey

Craft Alliance began in 1964. It started as a small art gallery run by artists in St. Louis. By 1966, it was already offering art classes to the community. It also showed amazing contemporary craft art in its gallery.

Moving to the Delmar Loop

In 1969, Craft Alliance moved to a new spot. This was on the western side of the Delmar Loop in University City, Missouri. At that time, this street was not very busy. But over the years, local businesses and the community worked hard to make it better. By 2007, the Delmar Loop was even named one of the "10 Great Streets in America." This shows how much the area improved!

Expanding to Grand Center

Also in 2007, Craft Alliance decided to open a second location. This new spot was in Grand Center, St. Louis. This area is known as the arts and entertainment district of St. Louis city. The Grand Center location helped Craft Alliance offer more programs. They started reaching out to children and teens in St. Louis City. They also offered classes for everyone in clay, metals, graphics, and textiles.

A New Home on Delmar Blvd

In 2020, Craft Alliance brought its two locations together. They moved to a new, custom-designed building at 5080 Delmar Blvd. This new home is part of the Delmar Maker District. It's a creative hub alongside places like Third Degree Glass Factory and MADE. At their new location, Craft Alliance offers many exciting things. These include classes, camps, workshops, and art shows. They also have a lovely gift shop filled with handmade art.

A Recent Event in 2024

In 2024, Craft Alliance had a challenging situation. Two artists had an exhibit called “Planting Seeds, Sprouting Hope.” This exhibit featured images and ideas from certain art movements. However, some of these images and phrases were also linked to groups that promoted harmful ideas.

The exhibit was closed shortly after it opened. The artists and the organization had different ideas about what happened. An open letter from the community called for a boycott of Craft Alliance. They felt the closing was unfair. The artists later reopened their exhibit at another gallery in St. Louis. Leaders at Craft Alliance said they didn't fully understand the exhibit's message before it opened. They wished they had more time to help the community understand the art better.

What Craft Alliance Offers

Craft Alliance is known across the country for its focus on traditional crafts. They teach these crafts in new and exciting ways. They are similar to other well-known art schools like Penland and Arrowmont.

Programs and Activities

Craft Alliance offers many programs each year. They have art shows that feature modern craft art. They also offer classes and workshops in many different areas, such as:

• Ceramic art (working with clay)
• Metal-smithing (shaping metal)
• Fibers (like weaving and felting)
• Glassworking
• Blacksmithing
• Woodturning (shaping wood on a lathe)

They also have programs where artists can live and work there for a time. These are called artist residencies. Craft Alliance also provides free programs for families and schools in the area. And don't forget their gallery shop, where you can find unique handmade art! Every year, Craft Alliance helps more than 50,000 people learn and create.

Talented Artists at Craft Alliance

Many famous artists have taught, studied, or shown their work at Craft Alliance over the past 50 years.

Artists Who Have Exhibited Their Work

• Kate Anderson
• Rudy Autio
• Howard Ben Tre
• Wendell Castle
• Sonya Clark
• Cynthia Consentino
• Lia Cook
• Richard DeVore
• Paul Dresang
• Ruth Duckworth
• Chris Gustin
• Michael Lucero
• Ed Moulthrop
• Richard Notkin
• Albert Paley
• Guerra de la Paz
• Ed Rossbach
• Joyce Scott
• Heikki Seppä
• Therman Statom
• Jane Sauer
• Ester Shimazu
• Helen Shirk
• Victor Spinski
• Aiko Takamori
• Patti Warashina
• Beatrice Wood
• Betty Woodman

Artists Who Teach at Craft Alliance

• Tom McCarthy
• Peg Fetter
• Qun Liu
• Melissa Schmidt
• Lisa Colby