Qualla Arts
Annual Qualla Arts & Crafts SEASON: Open 7 days/week year-round Summer Hours (June-August): 8 a.m.-7 p.m. Mon-Sat. 645 Tsali Blvd. New! Bring your group or organization to the “Qualla Experience”! Founded in 1946 with the purpose of preserving and advancing Cherokee arts and crafts, the Qualla Arts & Crafts Mutual, Inc., is today the oldest and leading Native American Arts cooperative in the United States. If practice makes perfect, the beauty of Cherokee arts and crafts today should come as no surprise. The Cherokees practice of pottery, basket weaving, and tool-making go back ten thousand years. Of course, we all descend from ancestors who made the needed items of daily life and celebration. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be here. Unlike most of us today, the Cherokees are still in touch with their ancient art and craft traditions. Now you can be in touch as well, by bringing home the available, affordable work of contemporary Cherokee masters. A rich scope of arts and crafts is available in Cherokee to admire and acquire. Pottery provides a stunning example. The pottery of the Cherokee is made by two primary methods: the coil method and the pinch method. Both are notable for requiring no tools beyond two skilled hands, a river rock or stone for smoothing the vessels, and patterned stamps to create the incised designs that make Cherokee pottery timeless yet surprisingly modern. Wood firing creates the range of hues in the finished work, from sand and earth tones to burnished ebony. These are not conventional glazes. They are the natural interaction of heat and smoke and clay. In the hands of the Cherokees, oak splints, river cane, honeysuckle, and maple become highly durable and practical containers. But they’re also so sculpturally striking that, today, what they typically hold is simply the attention of their admirers. The great variety of sizes and shapes let you choose baskets to fit your budget and decor. Good thing, too. Because you can start with one or two Cherokee baskets, and the next thing you know, you’re a collector. Cherokee carving has enjoyed a renaissance that reflects the tribe’s longstanding practice of absorbing outside influences and interpreting them in uniquely Cherokee ways. Contemporary Cherokee tool- and doll- and toy-making all deserve their own paragraph. But the point is not to read about these treasures, but to see and hold and own them. Cherokee makes this easy. Within the Qualla Boundary, you’ll find outstanding galleries including the Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual, the shop at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, The Seven Clans Art Guild, and LIFT Contemporary Art Gallery and LIFT cafe. Come, enjoy, and let the spirit of this work speak to your own. "LIFT Contemporary Art Gallery and Coffee Shoppe" is a must on the visitor's list. After taking in a morning of Cherokee culture put your feet up, sip a cappuccino and let your mind wander into a fine work of art. Exhibits include international, national and locally acclaimed artists.
Annual Christmas Sale!Sale Dates: Dec 1-24, 2008 25% off on all Cherokee Items 50% off on all Crafts from other Tribes *This does not include books/publications/postcards/paintings/prints/Pen & Ink
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