Welcome to our very first blog post! We are excited to finally add a blog to our website. This is a place where we hope to share our excitement for bringing creativity of all kinds to others who are interested in the arts and crafts. I would like to start by giving a bit of background on how we came to be. Our Guild was founded 32 yrs ago in 1988 by Jamie Evans, her daughter Debbie and her daughter in law, Sarah. These women had passion for creating and saw a need in the community to bring other creatives together to create and share their ideas and passions. With their minds stirring on how to go about this, an ad was placed in the local newspaper. It was a "search " to find enough people interested in starting a Guild. A few folks responded, and the first meeting was held on the Grass at the Hayesville Square, and the guild was born. Later, meetings were held at various other locations (Blue Ridge EMC, Young Harris Library, Hayesville Senior Citizens Bldg. and their Library, & Union County Bank to accommodate those who lived in Hayesville or Blairsville. The original logo was drawn by Lynn London. It has since been recreated in color by our 2019 scholarship recipient Karah Shea. Karah is currently attending Young Harris College as a double major in Graphic Design and Fine Arts. The Guild began doing shows almost immediately, usually outdoors for 1 day on the Hiawassee Square for members only. "We had good crowds and lots of sales". recalls a founding member Anne Thompson. "We also had a booth at Hayesville's first Festival on the Square and the first Fall Festival at the Towns Co. Fairgrounds".
Early members included, Mildred & C.C. Wilson/pressed flower pictures (deceased), Pat Ellington/painter, Lynn London/leather craft, Anne Wolf/ weaving, Milla Parker/portrait painter-pastels, Sarah Nichols (deceased)/decoy and watercolor painting, Lena Murphy (deceased)/well known doll maker, mostly babies, Jane Snowden/dried flower arrangements, Jean Pollock/baskets, Clarence (dec.) & Riki Hartley/glass and Anne Thompson. Anne Thompson and Anne Wolf are still active members today.
While the Guild has grown to over 50 members and has gone through much change, and now includes a Gallery called Artworks Artisan Center which is located at 232B Chatuge Way in Hiawassee Ga, we remain grounded in our roots and are proud of our humble beginnings.
At this current time, we are working with the Citys Business Development Team to become an Art Center not only for our community but for visitors as well. We Sponsor two Juried Art shows a yr., we offer classes, we have a gallery where members can showcase their work, and hope to soon carry Art Supplies.
Much like the founding members 32 yrs. ago, we have BIG DREAMS!
Mountain Regional Arts and Crafts Guild, Inc. is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit charitable organization.
Contact us at mracg.artworks@gmail.com