The League of New Hampshire Craftsmen will showcase two exhibitions, Mentors & Apprentices: Work from Maine + New Hampshire’s 2024 Craft Apprentice Program and Crafting Joy: The Art of Optimism, at its Headquarters Exhibition Gallery in Concord. These displays run through Dec. 6.

Mentors & Apprentices highlights the creative output of seven pairs of mentor craft artists and apprentices from the 2024 Craft Apprentice Program (CAP). Established in 2016 by the Maine Crafts Association, with support from the Maine Arts Commission, CAP expanded to New Hampshire in 2023 through a partnership with the League of NH Craftsmen, creating new opportunities for artists in New England to experience the mentorship process. The program covers diverse crafts, including green wood furniture making, basket weaving, natural dye and hand weaving, wood instrument creation, pottery, wood firing, and sustainable textiles. This exhibition celebrates the seven-month journey of learning and skill-sharing that culminates in the display of each pair’s final project.

Kate Saunders, Interim Executive Director of the League of NH Craftsmen, expressed enthusiasm for hosting the CAP exhibition in New Hampshire for the first time. “We are excited to share the diversity of work and thought with our League community and honor the importance of passing craft traditions from maker to maker,” she said.

Alongside Mentors & Apprentices, the League presents Crafting Joy: The Art of Optimism, which asked member artists to submit work that emphasizes positive perspectives. Featuring 38 artists across mediums including glass, fiber, printmaking, photography, clay, jewelry, metal, mixed media, and wood, Crafting Joy reflects the artists' efforts to find hope amid challenges. “Sometimes joy can be that quiet moment when you know in your heart that good things may be coming,” said League printmaker Catherine Green. Her work, like that of her fellow artists, showcases the optimism embedded in the creative process.

Both exhibitions will be on display Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the League’s gallery, located at 49 South Main St., Concord, and will be open during Concord’s Midnight Merriment event on Dec. 6. For more information, visit League of NH Craftsmen's website.