Past

Peters Valley School of Craft is excited to announce the return of the Annual High School Student Exhibition for its 13th year. The exhibition will be in the Sally D. Francisco Gallery from February 4th through 27th , with an opening reception to be held in person from 3-5pm on Saturday, February 4th. This annual exhibition showcases work from local high school students in the Delaware Water Gap region, grade 9 – 12, working in 2D and 3D craft media.

The 13th Annual Student Exhibition will feature works from Blair Academy, Delaware Valley, Fort Lee, High Point Regional, Kittatinny Regional, Newton, Randolph, Sayreville War Memorial, Sparta, Wallkill Valley Regional, and Watchung Hills Regional High Schools.

Work ranges from ceramics, painting, photography, collage, textiles, jewelry, to mixed media sculptures providing a well rounded display for viewers. As an educational center, it is Peters Valley’s mission to cultivate the next generation of fine craft artists and supporters. By hosting this exhibition we are encouraging young artists to not only make, but share their work with the world in a professional gallery setting.

Students are welcome to apply for scholarships directly on our website as well. The Sally D. Francisco Gallery is delighted to showcase and promote the students’ work in the distinguished gallery setting it is known for.

In addition, Peters Valley will award one full-tuition Huber-Weyer Scholarship to the “Best in Show” and certificates for 2nd place and 3rd place.

Award Winners

Best in Show & Winner of a Huber-Weyer full-tuition workshop scholarship: Cam Ilavsky – Loss of Self
2nd Place: Cade Martress – Bellator Mortiferum
3rd Place: Bailey Unchester – Totem
Honorable Mention for Concept: Delaney Ekeman – Triggered
Honorable Mention for Craftsmanship: Leo Amsalem – Resting Guardian
Honorable Mention for Uniqueness: Julia Lengen – Love

It’s never too early to start planning your holiday shopping! Set your Calendars for our Gallery’s Upcoming Holiday Market, Starting November 19th, where the gallery opens up it’s exhibition space to bring new artists to the Valley! Get ready for new, unique work, and check back for featured sales, coming soon!⁠ ⁠Shop in-person or online!⁠ ⁠

November 19th – January 31st
Shop online⁠ at www.PetersValleyGallery.org
Gallery open Daily 10am – 6pm⁠
19 Kuhn Road, Layton, NJ, 07851

Peters Valley School of Craft is excited to announce an exhibition featuring work from the North Jersey Modern Quilt Guild (NJMQG).  The exhibition will be displayed in the Sally D. Francisco Gallery from October 1 – November 6, 2022, with an opening reception to be held in person from 3-5pm on Saturday, October 1st.

The North Jersey Modern Quilt Guild is a regional chapter of The Modern Quilt Guild.  They are a group of quilters of all ages and experience levels who gather regularly in the spirit of art, education, and community.

Members of NJMQG were issued a challenge to repurpose a button down shirt and incorporate white or cream cotton fabric to create a finished mini quilt.  The exhibition is a collection of mini quilts created in response to this brief.

GlassRoots Fellowship Exhibition, in the Sally D. Francisco Gallery from August 23rd through September 23rd with an opening reception from 4-6pm on Tuesday, August 23, 2022 with artist presentations following at 7pm.  In its second year, this exhibition is a showcase of the collaboration between GlassRoots and Peters Valley that follows the artistic development of 6 young artists as they take intensive back-to-back workshops at each institution, as well as featuring new work from last year’s cohort.

Giovanna Eley, Jose “Angel” Ruano, Nathaly Tlaseca Verde, Lisandra Wieters, Neftali

Past Cohert Participants Include:
Emmanuel Ogbonnaya, Kayla “Eleven” Muldrow, Serenity Sewell, Inique “NOVA” Bristol

May 28 – August 7

Opening Reception June 4, 2022

Making Matters: Fresh Perspectives in Fine Craft is an annual exhibition showcasing the work of the season’s visiting artist instructors and summer artistic staff. The variety of media, styles and techniques included reflect the diversity in the programming offered at Peters Valley.

Kristin Muller, Abby Mechanic, Raechel Bihler, Po Wen Liu, Erika Hewston, Emily Haag, Anna Koplik, Jamie Herman, Talya Kantro, Lindsay Davis, Jacklyn Scott, Emery Hall, Sean Fitzsimmons, Jason Swienckowski, Megan Brooks, Elizabeth Belz, James Viste, Nathanael Weiss, Marc Maiorana, Thomas Maiorana, Makena Henriksen, Paul Wandless, Dallas Wooten, Antra Sinha, Tegan e. Frisino, Kate Sarah Mitchell, Wendy Weiss, Kachina Leigh, Karin Persan, Meghan Kelly, Caroline Silverman, Dawn Lombard, Thomas Mann, Valerie James, Elizabeth Tokoly, Maureen Duffy, Lisa G. Westheimer, Geoffrey Goran, Hanna Vogel, Robert Territo, Rick Wright, Joe Guerriero, Douglas Finkel, Kate Hawes, Kimberly Winkle, Robert F. Lyon, Mark Tan, Natalie Stopka, Clare Murray Adams, Czashka Ross

Solo Exhibition

“I have no answer as to why I make this art. In the late 1970’s, on an inexplicable impulse, I began cutting up and reassembling some books from my childhood. I had just left The Paul Taylor Dance Company and was at loose ends. Those early experiments  with paper were compelling to me. And I have yet to grow tired of exploring ways to cut and assemble images of all sorts. It was in the mid 1980’s that I began working almost exclusively with antique printed matter and developed a fascination with the beautiful material available from The Gilded Age to Art Deco.

I work with archival boards, acid-free glues and surgical knives. Only recently have I begun focusing on period and vintage frames which, for me, take my work to a place of final completeness.

My love of modern dance is the greatest influence on how I approach paper montage. I like to say, “The page is the stage and the paper dances.” As in choreography, I begin with one “movement” (one cut) as a leap of faith and see where it guides me next. And, as it was when I built dances, I’m never certain where I’ll be led.”

EH² is an exhibition to showcase Erika Hewston and Emily Haag, the new Gallery Director and Gallery Assistant.

Erika Hewston is a textile artist from Reading, Pennsylvania who focuses in weaving.  She creates richly colored textural wall hangings as well as fine woven wearable scarves and ties:

“I work primarily as a handweaver making both fine woven wearables and texturally saturated wall pieces.  All of my work focuses on the interaction of vibrant colors to create striking statement pieces.  My scarves and ties are all comprised of cotton, bamboo rayon, and tencel to ensure a soft product with beautiful drape.  My wall pieces are a mixture of any fibrous materials I can gather within the desired color range: cotton, fleece, felt, twine, tule, acrylic, burlap, and others.  This vast array of materials allows me to create pieces that are immersed in texture creating both a visual and tactile exploration for the viewer.”

Emily Haag is a contemporary abstract expressionist from Sparta, New Jersey with a focus in painting and printmaking. Her works center around the physicality of the material (mixing sand with her paint) and how it plays with light and shadow.

“I begin each work impulsively and spontaneously. Mixing the sand into acrylic has become as much a part of the art as the piece itself; the composition comes 2nd to the process of manipulating the materials. Sand is a very provocative material, soft and inviting, while simultaneously abrasive and irritating. It often evokes enjoyable memories and experiences of family vacations to the beach, and the rhythmic motion of the crashing waves gives a sense of comfort and familiarity. Jacques Benveniste theorized that water holds memory. Now a widespread cliché made known through the popular Disney film, the theory still rings true to my process. Memory is very important to my work, and can often be blurred or distorted by time. While the oceanic water has yet to hold a physical presence in my works, sand is its placeholder.

Opening Reception delayed to March 26th 3-5 PM due to inclement weather.

The 10^th Annual Student Exhibition will feature works from Newton High School, Wallkill High School, Fort Lee High School, Watchung Hills Regional High School, High Point Regional High School, Delaware Valley High School, and Roxbury High School.

Work ranges from ceramics, painting, photography, collage, textiles, jewelry, to mixed media sculptures providing a well rounded display for viewers.  As an educational center, it is Peters Valley’s mission to cultivate the next generation of fine craft artists and supporters. By hosting this exhibition we are encouraging young artists to not only make, but share their work with the world in a professional gallery setting.

The sampling of work included in this show is representative of the creative power of our local youth.

Delaware Valley High School: Isabelle Pearn, Rachel Richter, Stella Weir, Tiffany Francois, Sophia Miller, Mirabelle Demmo

Fort Lee High School: Sophia Park, Ran Wei

High Point Regional High School: Chauncey Gebauer, Brianna Dunn, Esther Schweinberg, Carney Wyble, Hailey Dykstra, Emma Leto, Kylie Donofrio, Madelyn McCurdy, Cade Martress, Quinn Strangeway

Newton High School: Benjamin Weissensee, Demarius Posey, Grace Matullo, Nicholas Christensen, Emily Ferri, Lillie Gould, Johnny Fagerlin, Madison Chymiy, Jade Megna

Roxbury High School: Elysha Magat, Jacob Stewart

Wallkill Valley Regional High School: Anthony Lubrano, Kyndel Whiteford, Rayon Pourshariati, Chase Rosarin, Nicole Lorencovitz, Lily Guthrie, Megan LeTellier

Watchung Hills Regional High School: Joshua Caxton, Loren Eskeen, Nicolas Miller, Clara Chen

Award Winners

Best in Show & Winner of a Huber-Weyer full-tuition workshop scholarship: Anthony Lubrano – Concentric
2nd Place: Madelyn McCurdy – Eden
3rd Place: Brianna Dunn – Deucalion and the Flood
Honorable Mention: Clara Chen – Trypophobia
Honorable Mention: Elysha Magat – Blue Dove

Articles:
Advertiser-News North
New Jersey Herald
Sparta Independent
NJ Monthly
Yahoo News
Morristown Green
Morristown Green Calendar
NJ Herald (Winners Annouced)

Printed Articles:
Sparta Independent – February 24-March 2, 2022 – Page 14

Featuring Handmade work by more than one hundred local and national crafts people. Selections include decorative and functional pottery, jewelry, glass, wood, wearable fiber arts, photography, toys, books, and more.

Ends January 31st, 2022

Purchase the Catalog to learn more about each artist and their experiences with Peters Valley.

Making Matters: Fresh Perspectives in Fine Craft is an annual exhibition showcasing the work of the season’s visiting artist instructors and summer artistic staff. The variety of media, styles and techniques included reflect the diversity in the programming offered at Peters Valley.

Participating artists include:

Jeanne Brady, Jane Brennan, Ken Burton, Steve Cook, Janis Cutler-Gear, Bruce Dehnert, Cynthia Fisher, Donald Friedlich, Mollykate Geddis, Joe Guerriero, Kate Hawes, Jamie Herman, Caryn L. Hetherston, Talya Kantro, Ellen Kaspern, Kulvinder Kaur Dhew, Grace Kerr, Anna Koplik, Jay Kreimer, Daryl Lancaster, Madeline Maier, Tianna McGregor, Kat Nash, Matt Nolen, Sophia Park, Czashka Ross, Mollie Schaidt, Maggie Seinfeld, Wyatt Severs, Celia Shaheen, Natalie Stopka, Elizabeth Tokoly, Shawn Vales, Wendy Weiss, Lisa Westheimer, Kimberly Winkle, Rick Wright

Virtually tour the installed exhibition and hear from a number of participating artists:

Peters Valley School of Craft is pleased to announce its 2021 High School Student Exhibition, this year online only from April 11 – May 9. The show includes work by students in grade 9-12.

The exhibition features two- and three-dimensional artwork by students from participating schools in the area. It will include ceramics, drawing, painting, jewelry, sculpture, photography, and other mixed media. We are excited that 2021 marks the 11^th year of this annual event. This focus on showcasing the types of media represented at the school, and its national online audience, make Peters Valley’s exhibition unique among the many shows these schools participate in.

The exhibition includes work by students from Blair Academy, Byram Hills, Delaware Valley, High Point Regional, Kittatinny Regional, Montville, Randolph, Sparta, and Wallkill Valley Regional.

Award Winners

Best in Show, winner of a Huber-Weyer full-tuition workshop scholarship: Kaitlyn Czifra “Reckoning”
Second Place: Sophia Papadopoulo “My Imperfect Cracks”
Third Place: Kevin Dau “Chasing the Dream”
Honorable Mention: Cameron Minetti “Infinity”