Every year, the Plumas-Sierra County Fair selects a new theme representing this unique and energetic two-county community. This year, the theme was “Mountains of Memories.” For many, the home arts exhibition perfectly encapsulates the concept of keeping memories vibrant through the living art forms of quilting, sewing, knitting, canning and baking. These skills are alive and well here in the mountains, and were beautifully showcased over the weekend in the Tulsa Scott Pavilion at the fairgrounds in Quincy.
Walking through the doors, fairgoers were met with a cool and peaceful scene far removed from the heat and bustle of the midway and food court. Elaborate and detailed quilts hung from the walls. Displays featuring textiles, fiber arts, preserved foods, baked goods, beeswax candles, honey and confections were positioned throughout the room.
In coordination with the theme of artistry and memory-making, one area of the pavilion was dedicated to a collection of creative photo backdrops for visitors to use to snap their own pictures. The backgrounds included a night sky with a whimsical crescent moon, an Olympics scene and an imposing Sasquatch looming in the mist — a favorite for many families with young children.
Encouraging families and youth to explore the home arts is a major goal of many of the artists involved. For Quincy resident Lisa Tanner, fair participation is a family tradition. She has entered her baking and sewing projects in county fairs since she was a child, and now submits projects alongside her 12-year-old daughter, Ellie. For the past several years, Tanner has taught sewing to children in a local 4-H group, and facilitated their participation in the home arts exhibition.
“It’s important to teach our children these skills, so that they aren’t lost to the past. … Sewing and baking are not things that are for only a certain generation. They’re for everyone. It’s a way of being and doing,” she said.
Tanner’s enjoyment in watching youth grow through their connection with traditional art forms is shared by Katherine Kinne, a prolific local quilt artist and member of the Quincy Crazy Quilters. She was in the Tulsa Scott Pavilion July 26 selling giveaway tickets and shared her thoughts. Kinne explained that while quilting is often seen as an older person’s craft — and the Quincy Crazy Quilters members themselves are predominantly seniors — events like the Plumas-Sierra County Fair are wonderful for exposing young people to traditional arts. “I love to see kids come by,” she said with a smile.
Kinne also loves seeing the artistry and creative energy that goes into the works displayed. “Quilts in particular have gone from being utilitarian home crafts to art projects,” she said.
The pieces exhibited this year definitely supported her assertion. In addition to intricate and beautifully executed traditional designs, art textiles also showed aquatic scenes, rustic landscapes and delicate florals.
By sharing their work, these talented craftspeople are taking home arts beyond the day-to-day quotidian reality and elevating them in a way that inspires others to learn, explore, connect and make their own memories. Tanner described it: “Learning the home arts is about making memories. Everyone who has those skills learned it from someone.”
Through their work, our local artists are connecting with their past, with their own teachers and ancestral skills, and bringing those skills and cherished memories into the present. As more and more young people are inspired and become involved, these skills form a bridge into a future, where art and utility are integrated across the generations.
This year’s Plumas-Sierra County Fair may be over, but it’s never too early to start planning and working on next year’s submissions. The home arts exhibition welcomes new artists as well as those who have already made participation a tradition. “It doesn’t have to be perfect,” Kinne said.
