Craft comes in many forms, and Asheville’s Center for Craft is at the forefront of nurturing contemporary craft alongside scholarship. Matt Peiken of See Hear went to the crowded opening reception for Crafting Variance, an exhibition running through April 2027.
The show brings together nine artists working with natural, living and discarded materials—from clay and plant fibers to fungi, bacteria and recycled plastics. Curator Lola Ben-Alon recruited artists embracing material quirks while pushing the boundaries of craft. Let’s meet Lola and find out more about Crafting Variance.