Easter is Just Around the Corner

We've got rabbits!! Wonderful stoneware, hand built rabbits in every size have just come in.

And from Sarah Grant & Sticks these beautiful crosses have just arrived.

In addition to Easter items Brenda Behr has painted some wonderful local paintings for us. Check them out!

Our home and studio are going to be on the home tour this year April 11 & 12. We're excited about it! We just moved in the fall and still have a lot to do. With only 7 weeks to go I guess we better hurry. Michael and I will be working in the pottery. For more information on that go to http://www.newbernhistorical.org/springtour.html

That evening will be a reception at Carolina Creations from 5-8 along with the ArtWalk! Jim Bisbee will be demonstrating his pottery there and we'll have new painting by gallery artists like Mike Rooney, Janet Adkins, Ruth Heppler, Myself (Jan Francoeur) Sally Anger, TRader and others. We hope you'll come downtown.

If you haven't been downtown lately it's getting better & better, only 21 months until the new bridge opens!

You may have noticed that Pollock Street is being dug up. A long awaited sewer replacement program is underway. We hate having the street torn up but there is no good time to do it.

The sewer is VERY old, like 100 years and we've been having problems with it the past few years. The project is supposed to take 6 weeks and Danny has promised that it will be done before the Home Tour.

I'm going to try to post 2 or 3 times a week. I hope you'll check back often!

Paper Making Workshop with Claudia Lee March 14 & 15

Claudia Lee leads a two-day workshop on paper making, limited to 12 participants, on March 14 and 15 at the New Bern, NC studio of artist Janet Francoeur.

This workshop will introduce the student to the pleasure of making paper by hand. Students will learn such fundamentals as setting up a home studio, how to use pulp to create a wide range of papers by sheet forming, laminating, embossing, embedding, and adding inclusions. There will be an assortment of handmade papers for students to see, as well as books, resource materials, and a video. Students will complete the workshop by making a wet-bound portfolio to hold their beautiful finished papers.

Lee has been making paper by hand for 25 years and has spent much of that time sharing her knowledge with others through workshops and published articles. She is the author of Papermaking, from Lark books, and a freelance designer whose work can be seen in more than 20 books, including 500 Handmade Books, due out this fall. All supplies are included in the workshop fee of $185, as well as a box lunch for each day. Contact Craven Arts Council & Gallery at 252-638-2577 for information, and reserve your spot by March 1.

This is the first workshop to be held in Michael & my new studio! We hope you'll join us!

New Work! New Artists! New Ideas!

We're just returned from shows in Philadelphia and Baltimore. We found some wonderful new work for the gallery - check our blog regularly to see what's come in.

We got home just in time to view the lunar eclipse! It was amazing. I kept thinking what must the ancient civilizations have thought when they saw this! Here is a photo I found on the NASA Website. It looked just like this from my porch in New Bern.

Another thing that happened at the show in Philadelphia - I was awarded the Martin Rishty Award from the Craft Retailers Association for Tomorrow! I am on the Board of this Organization, our mission is to promote American Craft, Craft Artists, and Galleries. Our group is made up of Gallery owners from across the country. I was totally suprised and honored by the Award.

My plans for this Blog, now that I'm back at it, is to post the new work that Michael and I are doing, post new work that is coming in to the gallery, tell you about shows we're having, talk about techniques and keep you up to date on what is going on in our Downtown.

- Jan Francoeur