Dee (St. Louis, MO) is an abstract artist working in encaustic, cold wax and oil, and fiber. She studied graphic design at California Institute of the Arts, and has been teaching encaustic and fiber workshops since 2015.

Patrick (Norfork, AR) has owned and operated Heritage Springs Forge in Mountain View, AR since 2005. During that time he has been a member of the Arkansas Craft Guild, the Off the Beaten Path Studio Tour, Blacksmiths of Arkansas (BOA) and on the founding board of the Arkansas Craft School.  Most recently, Patrick was the Resident Blacksmith at the Ozark Folk Center State Park (Retired in 2017).  

Harold (Marble Falls, AR) became interested in carving quite young and became serious about carving when he was stationed with the US Army, in Okinawa. Harold began carving professionally in the early 1960’s and is considered the “Godfather” of caricature carving in the United States. Harold has given much of his life to promoting the art of caricature carving, sharing his skills and love with thousands of students. Harold has written ten wood carving books and is a founding member of Caricature Carvers of America and a member of the National Wood Carvers’ Association, and several other carving groups around the country.

Alicia (Springfield, MO) has been included and recognized in numerous national and international exhibits. She recently received signature status in the prestigious National Watercolor Society, based in Los Angeles, CA. She was commissioned to create nine large acrylic paintings for the new Museum of the Bible in Washington D.C.

Lisa (Guthrie, OK) is a cowboy boot maker in Oklahoma. She writes, speaks, and teaches to promote cowboy boot making and working with fine leather. She is the author of “The Art of Leather Inlay and Overlay” Schiffer Publishing 2016.

Bert (Bentonville, AR) started his interest in blacksmithing while attending the grand opening of ESSA’s blacksmithing studio in 2014. He now has his own forging shop, The Smithin’ Jones Backyard Blacksmith Company, and is an active member of The Blacksmithing Organization of Arkansas. Bert joined ESSA’s Board of Directors in 2016. He also owns Gaskin’s Cabin Steakhouse in the Eureka Springs area.

William (Boston, MA) is an artist who utilizes traditional silversmithing techniques and untraditional materials to create jewelry. William earned his BFA from MassART in 2012, and his MFA in 2016 from the University of Massachusetts: Dartmouth.

Tim (Greenville, NC) is a Professor in the Metals Design program at East Carolina University in Greenville, NC. He received his BFA at Rochester Institute of Technology and his MFA at the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. Tim shows his jewelry, silversmithing and furniture in both national and international exhibits.

Cynthia (Dardanelle, AR) was educated at Arkansas Tech University, National Park Community College. Cynthia has conducted workshops with national artists on NBC and CBS, and was a guest instructor on international cruise lines. She has been an Arkansas Arts on Tour artist since 2003 and was 2016 Artist in Residence at Hot Springs National Park. She received several awards at the Steelville, MO Plein Air Event.

Ed (Melbourne, AR) has been exploring the wilds of Arkansas most of his life, and almost always with a camera in hand. After 34 years as a music educator, he retired to the Ozark hills with more time to concentrate on his photography. Ed is currently President of the Arkansas Craft Guild, Instructor for the Arkansas Craft School, and has been an artist on the Off The Beaten Path Studio Tour for 15 years.