2025 National Arts and Crafts Conference Schedule
February 17th – 19th, 2025
Exhibitor Registration
Please note: The 8th floor of the Vanderbilt wing will be taken over by tables, display cases, pegboards and staff preparing booth spaces for exhibitor move-in day on Thursday.
A number of setup suppliers and conference staff will be loading and preparing the space both inside and outside the Grand Ballroom, so unless you are an exhibitor or a helper needing to check in, please avoid the 8th floor space.
Thursday, February 20th
Exhibitor Setup Day, Pre-Conference Workshops and the Craftsman Reception!
8:00 AM – 7:00 PM: Exhibitor setup starts on the 8th and 10th floor of Vanderbilt — in the Grand Ballroom and the surrounding hallways. Unless you are a show dealer, artisan or organization, please avoid these busy areas.
2:00 PM – 5:00 PM: Pre-Conference Workshops Part 1
- Coppersmithing: Arts & Crafts Style with Frank Glapa
- Lineoleum Block Printmaking with Laura Wilder
- Arts & Crafts Embroidery with Natalie Richards
- Creating Your Hand Hammered Cylinder Vase with Ron VanOstrand
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6:00 PM – 8:00 PM – The Craftsman Reception: A Fundraiser Celebration for the Stickley Museum at Craftsman Farms
The Skyline Room, Sammons Wing
featuring a presentation by Asheville residents Conference Director Kate Nixon, Conference Advisor Bruce Johnson, Brian Brace of Brian Brace Fine Furniture and Amy Brandenburg of Amy Brandenburg Studio
Tickets are $140.00 and include drinks and plates provided by the Grove Park Inn catering.
Friday, February 21st
Exhibitor Final Setup Session
8:00am – 12:30pm
While you are enjoying breakfast, attending a hands-on workshop, exploring Asheville, or sitting in on a Small Group Discussion, our exhibitors will be putting the finishing touches on their booths in anticipation of the 1:00pm opening.
PRE-CONFERENCE WORKSHOP: Session 2
Session #2 8:00 AM – 11:00 AM
- Coppersmithing: Arts & Crafts Style with Frank Glapa (pictured above)
- Lineoleum Block Printmaking with Laura Wilder
- Arts & Crafts Embroidery with Natalie Richards
- Creating Your Hand Hammered Cylinder Vase with Ron Van Ostrand
- NEW! Interior Color Workshop with Karen L. Hovde of Interior Vision of the Craftsman Style
Walking Tours of the Historic Grove Park Inn
Hourly Friday: 9:00am – 4:00pm
Join an experienced guide for an informative 45-minute walking tour that will take you to places you might not have found on your own, and will provide you with fascintaing stories about the famous — and infamous — guests, from Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald to presidents from FDR to Obama. A tour not to be missed!
Open to all conference attendees.
Walking Tours of the Historic Biltmore Industries
10:00 – 11:00am
(Once a day, repeats on Saturday and Sunday.)
Hear the story about the 1905 Biltmore Industries, which George and Edith Vanderbilt (of the Biltmore Estate) supported. Founded in 1905, Biltmore Industries was one of the longest lasting Arts and Crafts cottage industries, making and carving furniture, bowls, bookends, trays, picture frames, and much more. In 1917, the workshops were moved onto the grounds of the Grove Park Inn, where the Arts and Crafts buildings have been restored as a museum, gallery, cafe, and artisan studios. Step back in time on one of these daily one-hour tours.
Small Group Discussions: Session #1
11:00am – Noon
One of the most popular aspects of the conference are our daily Small Group Discussions. Here you will have a chance to select a topic to sit down and discuss with other attendees. No advance registration is necessary. These discussions are lead by volunteer attendees.
The 38th National Arts and Crafts Shows Open
1:00pm – 6:00pm
This will be your first opportunity to see and add to your collection some of the finest antiques and new works in the Arts and Crafts style. Our exhibitors save their best pieces for this weekend, so take advantage of this once-a-year opportunity. A live list of exhibitors is included here.
Photo by Ray Stubblebine/GMHS, 2019.
Silent Auction: First Session
Friday 1:00 – 6:00pm
Known as the largest and finest Arts and Crafts silent auction, this two-day event serves as a fund-raiser for the non-profit Arts and Crafts Research Fund. The ACRF funds research trips and expenses associated with new studies on the movement and its revival. Have something to donate for a tax deduction? Contact us using this form.
Arts and Crafts Demonstrations
2:00pm & 3:30pm – “Creating Motifs for Arts & Crafts Ceramics: Grueby Pottery ” by Scott Draves
2:30pm & 4:00pm – “The Wide World of Mortise & Tenon Joinery” by David Van Epps
(Repeat on Saturday and Sunday.)
Conference Book Club Discussion
Friday 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Led by Pat Bartinique
“What The Mountains Remember”
by Joy Callaway
In 1913 Asheville, North Carolina, Belle Newbold is unexpectedly thrust into a role researching and writing about the building of the Grove Park Inn—a construction the locals are calling The Eighth Wonder of the World— and she quickly realizes that these mountains are no different from the ones she once called home. As Belle peels back the facade of Grove Park Inn, of Worth, of the society she’s come to claim as her own, and the truth of her heart, she begins to see that perhaps her part in Grove Park’s story isn’t a coincidence after all.
View our book club selections here.
Opening Night Friday Seminars
The Heritage Ballroom, Sammons Wing of the Grove Park Inn
8:00pm – 8:10pm: Opening remarks from National Arts & Crafts Director Kate Nixon
“Are You Being Served?
The Bounty of the Arts and Crafts Dining Room”
by Kevin Tucker
Chief Curator, High Museum of Art, Atlanta, GA
8:10pm – 9:00pm
“The Artistic Achievement of Dard Hunter: A Personal Perspective”
by Dard Hunter III of Dard Hunter Studios
9:00pm – 9:50pm
Saturday, February 22nd
SATURDAY SEMINARS
The Heritage Ballroom, Sammons Wing of the Grove Park Inn
9:00am – 9:50am
“China Painting Redeemed: The Art and Craft of Chicago’s Florence Pratt Steward”
by Sharon Darling
10:00am – 10:50am
“Denman Ross and the Science of Beauty”
by Marie Frank
Day 2 of the National Arts and Crafts Shows
Saturday, February 22nd
12:00pm – 6:00pm
Silent Auction: Second and Final Session
Saturday 12:00pm – 6:00pm
Known as the largest and finest Arts and Crafts silent auction, this two-day event serves as a fund-raiser for the non-profit Arts and Crafts Research Fund.
Have something to donate for a tax deduction? See the ACRF page.
Arts and Crafts Demonstrations
2:00pm & 3:30pm – “Creating Motifs for Arts & Crafts Ceramics: Rookwood demo (2:00pm) and Frederick Rhead Squeeze bag (3:30pm)” by Scott Draves
1:30pm & 4:00pm – “The Wide World of Mortise & Tenon Joinery” by David Van Epps
(Repeat on Sunday.)
The Arts & Crafts Historic House Tour
A Fundraiser for the Preservation Society of Asheville & Buncombe County
1:00pm – 5:00pm (trolley continuously leaves from the Sammons wing sliding glass doors)
2025 Theme: North Liberty Street
Buy tickets online HERE!
The Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County is excited to offer 5 charming homes on North Liberty Street this year.
Chestnut Hill is a relatively compact late-19th century and early-20th century residential neighborhood that was once an extension of the residential streets that began north of downtown Asheville.
Book Club Discussion
Saturday 2:00pm – 3:00pm
Led by Pat Bartinique
The Art of Seeing Things:
Essays by John Burroughs
A collection of essays by noted naturalist John Burroughs in which he contemplates a wide array of topics including farming, religion, and conservation. A departure from previous John Burroughs anthologies, this volume celebrates the surprising range of his writing to include religion, philosophy, conservation, and farming.
Special Lecture at the Asheville Art Museum:
In Conversation with Elizabeth Brauneis, Visiting Researcher
3:00pm – 4:00pm
Held at The Asheville Art Museum (2 South Pack Square, Asheville, NC 28801)
Includes admission to the Asheville Art Museum. Transportation will not be included in 2025.
Revisit the two-year project of documenting more than 6,000 records of Asheville architects Richard Sharp Smith and Douglas Ellington with researcher Elizabeth Brauneis and learn about the rich architectural history of Asheville.
Walking Tours of the Historic Biltmore Industries
Saturday 3:00pm – 4:00pm
(Repeats Sunday.)
Founded in 1905 and supported by George and Edith Vanderbilt, Biltmore Industries was one of the longest lasting Arts and Crafts cottage industries, making and carving furniture, bowls, bookends, trays, picture frames, and more. In 1917, the workshops were moved onto the grounds of the Grove Park Inn, where the Arts and Crafts buildings have been restored as a museum, gallery, cafe, and artisan studios. Step back in time on one of these daily one-hour tours.
Small Group Discussions: Session #2
Saturday 4:30pm – 5:30pm
One of the most popular aspects of the conference are our daily Small Group Discussions. Here you will have a chance to select a topic to sit down and discuss with other attendees. No advance registration is necessary. These discussions are lead by volunteer attendees. Come ready to listen and to ask questions.
Saturday Night Movie
Held at the Heritage Ballroom, Sammons Wing
8:00pm – 9:30pm
The Saturday Evening Movie with a Special Guest Introduction
“Hurricane Helene: A Preservation Response”
by Jessie Landl, Executive Director of the Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County
After the devastating effects of Helene came and went, the citizens of Western North Carolina were left to pick themselves up and help each other. The Preservation Society of Asheville and Buncombe County heard the call and gathered as many resources as they could to help the historic houses and businesses of the area. Executive Director Jessie Landl will join us before the movie with her story of how her organization provided for the historic houses in need.
Feature documentary presentation:
“The Bungalows of Rockaway”
It’s a story of New York. It’s a story of the fight in historic preservation. It’s a 100-year old story of beach-side Bungalows told in film, photos and candid interviews by the lively New York citizens who made these bungalows their home along New York’s Rockaway Peninsula. Directed by Jennifer Callahan and narrated by Estelle Parsons, this hour-long documentary tells the story of the Rockaway, a summer bungalow colony by the beach boardwalks of New York. The history of this bungalow colony goes through generations of Americans from the early 20th century to the modern day fight to save these historic homes by the sea. An architectural, social, and political history with themes of race, ethnicity, and grassroots activism are shown in this praised documentary.
Nearly 15 years after its completion, The Bungalows of Rockaway will be shown at the Heritage Ballroom.
Admission is paid for by the Arts and Crafts Research Fund.
See the trailer below.
Sunday, February 23rd
Sunday morning seminars
Heritage Ballroom, Sammons wing
9:00am – 9:50am
“Kataro Shirayamadani: Rookwood’s Most Talented and Most Mysterious Artist”
by Riley Humler
10:00am – 10:50am
“A Craftsman Lens: Stories and Photography From Four Decades in Greene & Greene”
by Alexander Vertikoff
All Three Selling Shows Open For Final Day
Sunday 11:00om – 4:00pm
Our annual Arts & Crafts Shows will have its final day on Sunday from 11am to 4pm. Once again, don’t miss this opportunity to see and add to your collection some of the finest antiques and new works in the Arts and Crafts style. Our exhibitors save their best pieces for this weekend, so take advantage of this once-a-year opportunity.
Arts and Crafts Demonstrations
1:00pm – “Creating Motifs for Arts & Crafts Ceramics: Newcomb College ” by Scott Draves
12:30pm & 2:00pm – “The Wide World of Mortise & Tenon Joinery” by David Van Epps
Small Group Discussions: Session #3
Sunday 12:30pm – 1:30pm
One of the most popular aspects of the conference are our daily Small Group Discussions. Here you will have a chance to select a topic to sit down and discuss with other attendees. No advance registration is necessary. These discussions are lead by volunteer attendees.
Historic House Tour
A Fundraiser for the Preservation Society of Asheville & Buncombe County
Saturday 1:00 – 4:00pm
last bus will leave at 3:30
Click here to order tickets online!
Walking Tours of the Historic Biltmore Industries
Sunday 1:00pm – 2:00pm
No, not the 1895 Biltmore House, but the 1905 Biltmore Industries on the grounds of the Grove Park Inn, which George and Edith Vanderbilt supported. Founded in 1905, Biltmore Industries was one of the longest lasting Arts and Crafts cottage industries, making and carving furniture, bowls, bookends, trays, picture frames, and much more. In 1917 the workshops were moved onto the grounds of the Grove Park Inn, where the Arts and Crafts buildings have been restored as a museum, gallery, cafe, and artisan studios. Step back in time on one of these daily one-hour tours.
4:00 pm – The National Arts & Crafts Shows draw to a close…
Sign up for the February 2026 conference if you have a favorite room! You can make reservations over the phone or with the Grove Park Inn staff while you’re here! In the meantime, our shows will immediately close at 4:00pm and exhibitors will begin the long process of teardown, so it’s important that all customers vacate the halls by 4:00 pm. We thank you for your understanding in this matter.
