Festival Pavilion

It’s been 15 years since the arts and crafts fair that became Celebration of Craftswomen expanded into the Festival Pavilion. Just in time for the 2004 holiday season, the craftswomen return to display and sell beautiful items at Fort Mason Center in November.

More than 150 artists bring precious handcrafted goods to the pavilion on two November weekends before and after Thanksgiving. Fair goers stroll through colorful booths filled with ceramics, glass, jewelry, furniture, sculptures, photographs, and much more. Celebration of Craftswomen also offers gourmet food, entertainment, and fund-raising raffles and auctions.

Glass artist Jeri Goodman is one of the exhibitors. She cuts designs from sheets of hand-rolled glass and fuses the colored pieces onto transparent or translucent forms to create bowls, platters, trays, jewelry, lamps, coasters, and sculptures. Joy Imai makes soda-glazed pottery inscribed with delicate brushstrokes resembling calligraphy.

Inspired by Hawaii, Barbara Hall creates her Pala Pala signature garments with sueded rayon fabric printed with floral motifs in glowing tones. Jeweler Marion Hunzike-Larsen weaves unique necklaces and earrings with silken thread and gemstones, fossils, or crystals.

In 1989, the fair moved to the Festival Pavilion from a smaller space in the Women’s Building on 18th Street in San Francisco’s Mission district. In 1991, the event adopted its current name and continued to grow throughout the 1990s while raising funds for Women’s Building programs and services.

The Women’s Building evolved from a smaller project, San Francisco Women’s Centers, founded in 1971. This year, the Women’s Building celebrates 25 years in its present location on 18th Street, where it has earned recognition as the first women-owned and operated community center in the US.

Contribute to a worthy and enduring cause by attending the Celebration of Craftswomen. See November 20 and www.miramarevents.com for more information.

– Claudia Willen

Image: Gourd sculpture by Lynne Bunt