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VisArts Announces Craft + Design Online for 2021, Cancels In-Person Event at Main Street Station  

October 05, 2021 News

Richmond, Va. (October 5, 2021) The Visual Arts Center of Richmond’s board unanimously voted to cancel the in-person Craft + Design show at Main Street Station in favor of a virtual event that highlights artists’ work and prioritizes the buyer experience. Craft + Design Online will go live November 19 – 21, 2021 and will be complemented with smaller in-person events throughout Richmond. 

VisArts looked closely at the ongoing surge of the COVID-19 Delta variant and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for postponing or canceling mass gatherings within the context of large-scale events like Craft + Design and concluded not to host an indoor event this fall, ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.  

“This was not an easy decision to make and even harder news to share,” says Stefanie Fedor, Executive Director of the Visual Arts Center of Richmond, “We are disappointed to not be able to gather for an in-person program but given the uncertainty that still surrounds COVID-19, we believed it best to pivot to an online show this year. VisArts, like our artists and the city we call home, is resilient and we are excited to create Craft + Design Online, an easy-to-shop online experience that directly supports artists and tells their stories.” 

True to Craft + Design’s history, Craft + Design Online will kick off the holiday shopping season and provide an opportunity to support small businesses and local makers from all over the country. Shoppers will have the opportunity to browse and buy the work of artists who have been selected by a jury to show their work at Craft + Design. The online experience will be complemented with an in-person, outdoor sponsor and patron pick-up parade, VIP programming for an online Patrons’ Preview and Rise + Shine, as well as shopping parties hosted by committee and board members throughout Richmond.  

The Visual Arts Center of Richmond (VisArts) is the largest non-university studio-arts program in Virginia. Each year, VisArts offers more than 1,000 visual and creative arts classes in clay, wood, fiber, painting, photography, printmaking, glass, metal, drawing, writing, decorative arts and other visual media.   

VisArts touches the lives of more than 40,000 adults and children annually by helping them explore their creativity and make art since 1963. It does so through its classes, exhibitions, community outreach programs, camps, workshops and special events.