State Fairs: Growing American Craft

State Fairs: Growing American Craft is the first exhibition dedicated to artists’ contributions to the great U.S. tradition of state fairs with more than 240 artworks on view, dating from the mid-nineteenth century to the present.

Each gallery in this exhibition considers personal stories of craft found in different areas of the fairgrounds, from the art exhibits and heritage villages to the parades, dairy barns, and rodeos. Ribbon-winning artworks and engaging craft demonstrations illuminate the lives of the artists—their families, memories, honors, and struggles. It offers a perspective on the social power of fairgrounds across the United States and dispels stereotypes about rural communities. Artists and 4-H clubs from 43 states and tribal nations are represented, with all 50 states and Puerto Rico represented in a photo gallery. 

Visitors will enjoy show-stopping spectacles like the iconic size 96 boots of Big Tex® from the State Fair of Texas®, a life-size butter cow created on-site by the Iowa State Fair’s official butter sculptor Sarah Pratt, and a display featuring a pyramid of more than 700 glass jars of preserved fruits and vegetables by canning superstar Rod Zeitler.

State Fairs: Growing American Craft is curated by Mary Savig, the Fleur and Charles Bresler Curator-in-Charge for the Renwick Gallery.