News

Budget cuts force craft center's move from Kellogg

By Bill Moss, Published: August 11, 2013

The Center for Craft, Creativity & Design is moving from the Kellogg Center in Hendersonville to downtown Asheville, a victim of budget cuts at UNC-Asheville.

The center, which has been located in the Kellogg Center for 15 years, must move because it is losing its affiliation with UNC-Asheville, said Stephanie Moore, the center's executive director. The nonprofit organization encourages and supports research, scholarship and professional development in the field of crafts.
"We have been facing budget cuts for several years now but we were able to continue our support for the center nonetheless," said Edward Katz, UNC Asheville associate provost and dean of university programs. "However, as we faced further budget cuts or having expectations of further budget cuts this year, we're no longer in a position to protect the center at the expense of our core academic programs and undergraduate students. We need to make sure we're devoting our resources to our students as opposed to our peripheral areas of the university."

Opened in 2001 through the efforts of attorney Sam Neill, the design center was created to highlight the region's contributions to craft, creativity and design in America. Neill, who is now serving prison time for stealing from estates, had spearheaded the effort for a UNCA connection in Hendersonville when he served on the UNC Board of Governors.

Despite losing its affiliation with UNCA, the center plans to continue supporting crafts in its new location, which it will announce this month.
"The building is larger, so we'll have program expansion as well as the same programs we already offer," Moore said.
The downtown location will also offer more visibility and flexibility for the center.
"We will have more walk-by traffic and the potential for more visibility," Moore said. "We'll have a lot more authority in terms of how we can use and manage the property."
The center has three national granting programs, convenes national meetings, curates exhibitions, programs lectures and workshops and sponsors international residences. Its first show, "Taking Shape," at the new space will open Nov. 15.
"Taking Shape" features a selection of recent objects completed by the center's Windgate Fellows. Participating artists are Tom Alward, Josh Copus, Andrea Donnelly, Dustin Farnsworth, Jenny Fine, Erin Rose Gardner, Kathleen Janvier, JooHyun Lee, Aaron McIntosh, Nate Moren, Alexis Myre, Elizabeth Staiger, Amelia Toelke, and Thoryn Ziemba.
For more information about the center or about the upcoming show, visit www.craftcreativitydesign.org.