| The Artists Who Came in from the Cold |
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A Brief History of C'ville Arts, formerly Transient Crafters Transient Crafters was born out of a desire to get out of the cold! A group of vendors at the holiday market on the Downtown Mall wanted an alternative to selling their crafts in the cold and wind. The landlord at York Place offered a short-term lease on an empty space. The result was a temporary (transient!) cooperative of 14 artists who opened the doors of Transient Crafters for 3 weeks in December 1997. The next fall, the group found another space, this time at 313 E. Main St. right on the Downtown Mall. By 1999, the cooperative had grown to 20 members and Transient Crafters was open for 7 weeks in a larger York Place location. The success of that holiday season led to the desire to pursue a permanent, year-round store. Throughout 2000, the group met regularly and laid the foundation for a cooperative retail business. Space was obtained in the Terraces building on 1st Street, which was still under renovation. The doors opened in November of that year and despite the construction challenges, the cooperative continued to grow and succeed. When the opportunity arose the next fall to move to a larger, more visible location on the mall, the group took the leap. Transient Crafters has been in its present location at 118 E Main St. since September 2001. Over the years the cooperative has had the pleasure of including many wonderful artists from a wide variety of mediums in our gallery. The changing nature of our membership continued to give some relevance to the Transient name. We presently show the work of more than 60 artists from across Virginia, including six of the founding members from the early seasonal shops: Bead Brothers, Gillsies, Strata Gems, Jane Meniktos, Barbara Albert, and Art-A-Metal. As we prepared to celebrate the 10th anniversary of that first holiday shop, the time was right to find a new name that better reflects what the cooperative has become. We look forward to the next 10 years of success as C'ville Arts: A Cooperative Gallery. |
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