COMMUNITY
Happy 20th Craftworks
Twenty years ago, Paula Catanese, a professional potter and part-time Vineyard resident, shared a vision with friend Helen Cuff of Pennsylvania: an Island gallery celebrating an eclectic mix of contemporary American crafts. Helen already owned a similar gallery in her home state. All it took was a visit to the Vineyard to clinch the deal. The ambitious duo found what they considered ideal retail space at 42 Circuit Avenue in lively downtown Oak Bluffs and eagerly signed a lease. In May 1991 Craftworks was born.
In 1997 Helen turned her share of the business over to Paula, by then a full-time Island resident. Together they had filled the 1,000-square-foot space with American crafts of every description: glass, jewelry, metal, furn-iture, garden ornaments, wood, fiber, and pottery. During the next 14 years, Paula would continue to seek out talented artisans and their works from across the country, including some from right here on the Vineyard.
“The gallery is always changing,” Paula explains. “Today we represent more than 400 different artists – some have been with since the beginning.” The “us” Paula now refers to is husband Ronald DiOrio, her business partner of the last 12 years. “Craftworks is s a ‘Mom and Pop’ business,” she continues. “Ron and I drive it. We’re always striving to make it better and more exciting. It’s a huge commitment.”
Although she has sacrificed making her own pottery in order to run the gallery, Paula still shows some of her sculptural pieces and hopes to return to the craft in the future. But in the meantime, she and Ron often clock a combined 80 hours of work in the popular Circuit Ave. shopping destination. This past winter was the first that Craftworks closed in January and February, except on Saturdays.
The gallery, Paula says, represents her aesthetic. “I find things I think people will like but I have to enjoy them myself,” she explains. “Ron has a good eye, too.” Handcrafted jewelry is their number one seller, with the modern and feminine “Echo of the Dreamer” line and the work of Carol Joannidi and Lilly Barrack. Paula also points to the stained glass fish (indigenous to the Vineyard) in the windows and local potter Marcia Halperin’s pieces as her personal top picks among the gallery’s many offerings. Sticks’ colorful, whimsical folk art furniture and accessories add to the happy jumble, many pieces featuring inspiring hand-painted messages like “Cherish Family & Treasure Friends,” or “Live Life to the Fullest,” amid an intricate patchwork of vividly imagined detail.
“We’re not pristine. Or pretentious,” Paula says. “We’re chock full of art. We enjoy educating our customers about the value of handcrafted work. We want people to have a visual reaction to the quality of the work we carry and to the vibrant colors.” The couple travels nationwide to shows and artist studios in their constant search for new work. “Artists also come to us, too,” Paula says. She chuckles, adding: “Even their relatives come to us.”
While both Paula and Ron clearly share a passion for artisan creations, they point to their love of people as the heart of their success. “We have a huge commitment to the artists and to our cust-omers,” Paula says. “We build relation-ships. That’s what it’s all about.”
In 1997 Helen turned her share of the business over to Paula, by then a full-time Island resident. Together they had filled the 1,000-square-foot space with American crafts of every description: glass, jewelry, metal, furn-iture, garden ornaments, wood, fiber, and pottery. During the next 14 years, Paula would continue to seek out talented artisans and their works from across the country, including some from right here on the Vineyard.
“The gallery is always changing,” Paula explains. “Today we represent more than 400 different artists – some have been with since the beginning.” The “us” Paula now refers to is husband Ronald DiOrio, her business partner of the last 12 years. “Craftworks is s a ‘Mom and Pop’ business,” she continues. “Ron and I drive it. We’re always striving to make it better and more exciting. It’s a huge commitment.”
Although she has sacrificed making her own pottery in order to run the gallery, Paula still shows some of her sculptural pieces and hopes to return to the craft in the future. But in the meantime, she and Ron often clock a combined 80 hours of work in the popular Circuit Ave. shopping destination. This past winter was the first that Craftworks closed in January and February, except on Saturdays.
The gallery, Paula says, represents her aesthetic. “I find things I think people will like but I have to enjoy them myself,” she explains. “Ron has a good eye, too.” Handcrafted jewelry is their number one seller, with the modern and feminine “Echo of the Dreamer” line and the work of Carol Joannidi and Lilly Barrack. Paula also points to the stained glass fish (indigenous to the Vineyard) in the windows and local potter Marcia Halperin’s pieces as her personal top picks among the gallery’s many offerings. Sticks’ colorful, whimsical folk art furniture and accessories add to the happy jumble, many pieces featuring inspiring hand-painted messages like “Cherish Family & Treasure Friends,” or “Live Life to the Fullest,” amid an intricate patchwork of vividly imagined detail.
“We’re not pristine. Or pretentious,” Paula says. “We’re chock full of art. We enjoy educating our customers about the value of handcrafted work. We want people to have a visual reaction to the quality of the work we carry and to the vibrant colors.” The couple travels nationwide to shows and artist studios in their constant search for new work. “Artists also come to us, too,” Paula says. She chuckles, adding: “Even their relatives come to us.”
While both Paula and Ron clearly share a passion for artisan creations, they point to their love of people as the heart of their success. “We have a huge commitment to the artists and to our cust-omers,” Paula says. “We build relation-ships. That’s what it’s all about.”