From time to time I visit the Circle Craft Store on Vancouver’s Granville Island, a co-op featuring the creations of B.C. craftspeople, to ignite and delight the senses. Then once a year, the Circle Craft Fair at the sprawling Vancouver Convention Centre presents more than 300 artisans from across the country over five days.
I caught the last day and was overwhelmed by the creativity. On entry, I was drawn to the work of the Stinson Studios from Tamworth, Ontario, as shown in the photo above. Their handcrafted wooden bowls and sculptural burls from red and sugar maples, yellow birch and white oak are really fine art.
I love wood, as reflected in the floors, furniture and masks in my home. I treasure the purple heartwood salad bowl that a close family member brought back from volunteering in Guyana right after high school. Which reminds me to get up from the keyboard now and oil it.
There are too many standouts from the market to mention here but let me picture a few.
From Steidle Woodworking in Vancouver. The canoe, wow, and the exquisite paddles. Even bee hives.
While it rained heavily outside, these colour-drenched glass bowls brightened my day.
More colour! Hand-dyed yarn by Yuriko Ito from Fibre Art Studio on Granville Island.
Beautiful English and Hebrew calligraphy by printmaker Ian Kochberg of Richmond Hill, Ontario.
Finally, a favourite saying by Oscar Wilde, in wooden wall art by Big Bear and the Wolf from Salt Spring Island.