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Where Art Meets Craft

Veronica Bosley

June 2008

The Berkshires has a long history of expert local artisans making top-quality products—from the Shakers to the paper makers and beyond. Embracing that history, several galleries in the area specialize in the intersection of art and craft. The result is unique galleries that create wonderful, on-of-a-kind, handmade objects from the Berkshires and elsewhere, proving that the art of craft is still alive and well in Berkshire County.

Tucked away at 103 Great Barrington Road (Route 41) in West Stockbridge you can find a delightful gallery specializing in ceramics—Hoffman Pottery. Everything in the gallery is handmade by the artist and proprietor, Elaine Hoffman who also had a studio and two kilns on-site. Elaine’s work is very colorful, sometimes whimsical and always spectacular.

Hoffman Pottery produces all types of ceramics, from versatile dining collections to artful teapots to gremlins, frogs and other creatures for your garden. Everything seen in the gallery is handmade and made entirely in-house, from beginning to end. “I even used to go dig my own clay, but now I just buy it,” Elaine conceded.

While Elaine was in college her family bought the house and property that eventually became Hoffman Pottery and Elaine began spending her summers in the Berkshires. After living for a long period of time in the Pacific Northwest, she decided to come to the Berkshires to open up her business. “Hoffman Pottery is tranquil and tucked away and a little off the beaten path, which is exactly what I wanted,” Elaine said.

Hoffman Pottery even offers visitors the opportunity to make their own artwork in the very popular plate-painting activities that the gallery offers.

“People can use my colorful under glazes to paint some of the pieces I have and then I will put on a finishing glaze and fire their work,” said Elaine. “Depending on my firing schedule, the work can usually be complete within the week and then either picked up or shipped from the gallery. It’s a great way for people to take something of their own home with them.”

The gallery is planning several special events for the summer, including an open house the weekend of July 4-7. People can explore the grounds, paint their own unique ceramic works of art and enjoy discounted prices. Hoffman Pottery is located at 103 Great Barrington Road// Rte 41 in West Stockbridge.

Also in West Stockbridge is the Hotchkiss Mobiles Gallery, which specializes in hand-crafted, high-end mobiles. Artist Joel Hotchkiss has been designing and creating contemporary kinetic art and hanging mobiles since 1976. His art mobiles have been sold in numerous museum stores including the Guggenheim Museum, the SFMOMA and the Art Institute in Chicago. Many of Joel's kinetic designs have been displayed in movies and TV productions, including The Witches of Eastwick, The Ascent and Baby Boom.

Joel's interest in designing mobiles began in the late 1970s in Boston, where he was working at an advertising firm. Seeking a more satisfying "hands on" creative experience, he started making mobiles. His studio apartment was soon filled with hanging mobiles and he's been looking up ever since.

Joel explained that making mobiles “is a uniquely American art form and each mobile is a mystery—a puzzle involving things like balance and figuring out how to transport it and put it back together.”

Joel attended Pratt Institute from 1967 through 1971 and received a BFA in Visual Design and Communication. In 1993, Joel and his wife, Sandra, returned east from California with their two young daughters, Shaina Marie and Larisa Grace. They settled in rural West Stockbridge, where they currently operate their studio as well as Hotchkiss Mobiles Gallery and Perks in the Berk café. The gallery features Hotchkiss mobiles as well as various crafts and art pieces representative of artists throughout the country.

Both of the businesses—the gallery and the café—are run by Joel and Sandra Hotchkiss and their two daughters.

“I can’t stress enough how much my family helps with the business,” said Joel. “My wife and daughters do the buying for the gallery and do most of the baking for the café.”

Perks in the Berk Café has a large window that looks directly into Joel’s workshop, allowing customers to see the mobile-making process in action.

“People find us both ways—they come to the café and wind up in the gallery or they come by the gallery and go get a cappuccino afterward,” said Joel. “Having a café connected to the gallery gives it the relaxed feeling that we wanted. People aren’t nervous about wandering back and forth between the two and we like the laid-back nature of both businesses.”

Hotchkiss Mobiles Gallery is located at 8 Center Street in West Stockbridge.

If you like crafts of all kinds, here are some other galleries to check out this month:

American Craftsman, 36 Main Street, Stockbridge. Creative artistry by America's top glass, wood, jewelry makers featuring Boxology by gallery owner Richard Rothbard. Near the Red Lion Inn.

The Ferrin Gallery, 439 North Street, Pittsfield. Featuring contemporary furniture and pottery on display through the month of June

The Harrison Gallery, Spring Street, Williamstown. The gallery has recently added American crafts to its collection and will begin to exhibit eight new artists who work in fabrics, wood, glass and ceramics.

Veronica Bosley holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Art History from Mount Holyoke College and is currently program coordinator for the Massachusetts College of Liberal Art's Berkshire Cultural Resource Center. A native of the Berkshires who has worked in the area art scene for several years, Veronica is excited by the growth of the creative economy and cultural community in the region. She lives in the first apartment house built in the city of North Adams, which she shares with her fiancé, Tyler, and two cats, Veronicat and Station. Veronica can be contacted at: bvbgalleries@gmail.com.