Sustaining Craft

The stories of those making a living with their art, craft, or passion.

About the show

Sustaining Craft started in 2016, when Elizabeth Silverstein, a writer, found herself discouraged after a move and a divorce. To find a little encouragement for herself and others, she decided to talk to people building businesses in creative fields.

Sustaining Craft on social media

Episodes

  • Episode 28: Liz Taylor-McMullen: Creating Smiles With Community Music

    May 21st, 2020  |  Season 3  |  32 mins 31 secs
    arkansas, creative stories, music, musician, pandemic stories

    Liz Taylor-McMullen, a part-time musician in Little Rock, had to stop rehearsals and music lessons when the pandemic hit. She was still able to work her 9-5 at the university, and she's found the time to pursue another passion: arranging music.

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    Episode 27: Robert Bean, Part 2: Investigating People Through Visual Arts

    May 1st, 2020  |  Season 3  |  27 mins 52 secs
    arkansas, art classes, artist, central arkansas, coronavirus, covid19, creative, exhibit, painter, poetry

    Robert Bean, a visual storyteller focused on painting and drawing, found that life didn't change much when the pandemic hit. He hopes that others continue their creative endeavors when they return to their normal lives.

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    Episode 26: Chris Swasta: Hearing in 3D

    April 22nd, 2020  |  Season 3  |  17 mins 6 secs
    arkansas, artist, central arkansas, coronavirus, covid19, creative, exhibit, potter, pottery

    Chris Swasta created 6,000 pieces for a collaborative exhibit at the Thea Foundation scheduled for April 3. The show was postponed until 2021. He's been a full-time potter for the past six years and he teaches pottery at the Arkansas Arts Center.

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    Episode 25: Morgan Allain: Discovering New Mediums and Techniques

    April 2nd, 2020  |  Season 3  |  16 mins 14 secs
    artist, creative, creative business, getting creative, hope, hope on the other side, louisiana, making a living from art, painter, painting, pandemic, stories about painters

    Morgan Allain is an artist in rural Louisiana who saw conventions being cancelled early on, which helped her and her family of artists prepare. Morgan creates art on her Instagram, offers special perks through her Patreon, and sells originals and prints through her Etsy shop.

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    Episode 24: Hannah Genevieve Lawrence: Weaving Functional Art

    March 27th, 2020  |  Season 3  |  19 mins 29 secs
    arkansas, artist, central arkansas, coronavirus, covid19, creative, exhibit, macrame

    Hannah Genevieve Lawrence was about to have her collaborative exhibit at the Thea Foundation. Then the pandemic hit. Hannah is a macramé artist with Strands Textiles and an assistant gallery director at M2 Gallery. She moved to Little Rock in 2018. She creates and instructs others on how to make functional art using rope and wool.