Beau Haddock   Media Communications / Marketing

(502) 564-9738

Each year the Kentucky Craft Marketing Program (KCMP), a division of the Kentucky Arts Council (KAC), produces Kentucky Crafted: The MARKET, a state sponsored wholesale/retail event at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center, featuring over 300 exhibitors of the state’s finest contemporary and traditional crafts producers, writers and publishers, two-dimensional artists, performers, folk artists, and agricultural specialty producers. Several statewide craft and art related organizations are represented with informational booths.

             For the past three years a professional development seminar has been presented by the KAC aiding Kentucky teachers in creative writing, language arts, social studies, arts and humanities, vocational agriculture, and practical living connecting these areas of the curriculum to the real world of Kentucky’s traditions and economy. This year’s seminar, Crafts and Beyond - Teaching Core Content through Kentucky Traditions, will focus on interacting with people who are earning their livings as writers, craftspeople, artists, musicians, and farmers; learning hands-on arts and writing activities that they can take back to their classrooms; and learning about grant resources that can help bring artists and guest speakers to their schools.

The teachers’ seminar will be held Friday, March 4, 2005 from 9:00 a.m.- 3:00 p.m. at the Fair and Exposition Center. Gourd artists Chad Scott and CeCe Thomas will open the workshop by leading hands-on activities using gourds they have raised to make musical instruments and decorative items.  They will discuss economic concepts like value-added agriculture.  They will talk about gourd arts from diverse cultures and the prehistoric past.  KAC circuit rider, Judy Sizemore, will demonstrate how to connect portfolio-appropriate writing in genres from poetry to feature articles to the hands-on activity. Guest speakers will help participants learn the economic importance of specialty items such as buffalo meat, country cheese, and salsa in Kentucky’s agricultural market.  They will also learn how family farms have provided inspiration for successful artists and children’s authors. The afternoon session includes a field trip into The MARKET.

            Kentucky Crafted: The Market, 2005 will be open to the general public March 5, Saturday, 9am - 6pm and March 6, Sunday, 10am - 5pm, (EST) at the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center, South Wing A, Louisville. Admission for adults is $8.00 and children ages 15 and under are free.  Kentucky cultural entertainment and children’s craft activities (ages 4-12) will be included plus The One-of-a-kind Gallery Section (returning for 2005) and The premier of The Designer Showcase! Parking is $5.00. Don’t miss this award-winning annual Kentucky handcrafted gift market, now in its 24th year.

The Kentucky Craft Marketing Program is a division of the Kentucky Arts Council, Commerce Cabinet, Commonwealth of Kentucky.  For more information, call 888 KY CRAFT (592-7238); or visit the Program's site at www.kycraft.ky.gov.

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Since 1981, the Craft Marketing Program's mission is to develop the state's craft industry, support and empower Kentucky artisans and craftspeople, create an economically viable environment for craft entrepreneurs, preserve the state's craft traditions, stimulate and support product development, and generate public awareness, public support and public/private partnerships.

The Program provides assistance to Kentucky residents, individuals, or groups wanting to develop as craft professionals through economic opportunities and training, to other outside entities (e.g., craft retailers, craft and art organizations, community and government agencies), and the general public. The craft industry in Kentucky contributes 252 million dollars in annual sales and Kentucky is recognized as a model state for its craft programs and its role in the $14 billion national craft industry.