L to R: University of the Arts students Emma Salamon and Alexandra Lozier with Jessica Julius, glass instructor, in fairy tale-inspired costumes.
After a five-year hiatus, the craft department of the University of the Arts in Center City Philadelphia has resuscitated its holiday craft sale spectacle, this year taking the Brothers Grimm fairy tales as a theme. The event’s opening party took place yesterday evening in the university’s grand hall, billed as “A Grimm Wandering” banquet. Students and faculty donned elaborate costumes inspired by characters from the Brothers Grimm oeuvre. All over the artfully decorated atrium, food and desserts were put out on exotic dishes on tables that also showcased functional and decorative work in craft media including glass. Everything was for sale, with proceeds going directly to the student artists.
Alexandra Lozier's wineglasses with a plant stem encased in its stem were integrated into the banquet theme of the event.
Textiles and ceramics were best-represented, but there were several glass pieces of note, including Alexandra Lozier’s novel wineglasses, the stem of which encased a plant stem in a clever pun. With no foot to put the wineglass down, it is a drinking vessel that requires “a certain level of commitment,” says Lozier.
The sales event continues until 4 PM today, though the eclectic foodstuffs were reserved for the event opening. In this season of student craft sales (read more about this phenomenon here), the imagination and pure spectacle of the University of the Arts contribution stands out. The approximately 150 people who paid the $5 admission to attend the opening night party seemed to agree.
The reimagined grand atrium at the University of the Arts was transformed for the opening night banquet.
IF YOU GO:
“A Grimm Wandering” The University of the Arts320 South Broad Street Philadelphia, PA 19102 www.uarts.edu