Village Squire, 1975-10, Page 16Canadians
are a crafty lot
Tips
on finding crafts
from coast
to coast
Eskimo carvings and other art are among Canada's best known
and most popular handicrafts. [Canadian Government Office of
Tourism Photo]
BY MARION MORRISON
Bad coffee sipped from a handcrafted mug
is still bad coffee.
But if, as you raise the mug to your lips,
you are reminded of the happy circumstances
surrounding its purchase during a visit to
Vancouver or Prince Edward Island, the taste
of the coffee ma not matter.
Souvenirs, especially well made handcraft-
ed souvenirs fashioned by artisans living in
the places you have visited, prolong
vacations.
Canada's early settlers wore craftsmen
from necessity. For them it was a matter of
doing it themselves or doing without. They
used skills they had learned in their
homelands to carve furniture, hook rugs,
weave fabric and pot dishes.
Today, the artisans of Canada are still at
work and their products can be purchased in
stores across the country. Prices range from
as little as five cents for a handscreened
postcard -sized calendar made by an artist in
Manotick, near Ottawa, to thousands of
dollars for an elaborate Eskimo carving.
The tourist industry is an important market
for craftsmen Every year more vacationers in
search of suitable mementos insist on
authentic handicrafts. Miniature Mounties
made in Japan don't have much to db with
Canadla. Wood figurines hand -carved by the
craftsmen of Quebec do. So do batik
wallhangings from Ontario, stoneware bow's
from Calgary, ponchos knit in the outports of
Newfoundland, porcelain dishes from Saskat-
chewan and jade jewelry individually styled in
British Columbia.
Good quality handcrafted souvenirs are not
14, VILLAGE SQUIRE/OCTOBER 1975
necessarily expensive. Not that you are going
to find any authentic Eskimo carvings at
bargain basement prices, but you can find:
•handscreened Indian and Eskimo wall
hangings for under $4;
•a set of six batik coasters for less than $5;
•carved wooden letter openers for as little as
S1;
•pottery mugs from $2;
•hand puppets for children for Tess than $3.
You can also find more expensive items.
The Centrale d'Artisanat du Quebec in
Montreal has a piece of wood sculpture priced
at $1,500. At The Hermitage, a craft shop in
Toronto, you can buy a pine table made by
one of the owners for about $200. Or you may
like a $350 metal sculpture by Jaro Svitorka
of Vancouver.
The range of handcrafted goods available is
growing all the time. Among the most
popular items are: batik and macrame
wallhangings; ceramic bottles, ashtrays and
wall plaques; metal and leather jewelry;
quilts, beadwork and other Indian arts;
pewterware; and pottery of all kinds.
Finding them is no problem. Many artisans
sell their work in their own studios or
workshops. Visit Alta -Glass in Medicine Hat,
Alberta, for example; watch glass sculptors at
work, then choose your souvenir.
Shops specializing in handicrafts are
located in almost every city and town in the
country. Most gift shops and department
stores also handle them. Watch particularly
for shops in airports, railway and bus
stations, art centres (such as the Confedera-
tion Centre of the Arts in Charlottetown),
museums and even hospitals.
The wood sculptures of Quebec and Eskimo
carvings are probably the two crafts for which
Canada is best known. Saint-Jean-Port-Joli,
60 miles east of Quebec City has successfully
promoted the production and sale of wood
sculptures for nearly half a century and is
popularly known, at least among the
residents, as 'the Handcraft Capital of
Canada. The figurines sold in such numbers
there can also be purchased at most other
Quebec centres and to a lesser extent in other
provinces. Some are painted; most are not.
Old men and women in a variety of poses are
among the most popular items.
The Eskimos of Canada have practised the
art of stone and bone carving and skin sewing
since the dawn of history. Their fine
anatomical knowledge of the animals around
them and their keen sense of movement are
easily seen in their carvings of bear, walrus,
seals, caribous, fish and people. They carve
them in various types of stone from soft
soapstone to granite, and in walrus ivory,
horn and bone. Eskimo prints, another
popular art form, exhibit the same kind of
awareness.
The handicraft market in Canada has
undoubtedly improved in the last few years.
This is partly because non-profit groups such
as the Canadian Guild of Crafts and Centrale
d'Artisanat du Quebec have helped artisans
not only to upgrade their skills, but to market
their goods. Craftsmen are advised regarding
the quality of their products, their market
value and methods for selling them.
Most of these groups, in addition to
offering guidance, have their own shops or
display areas and sponsor craft festivals,