The Alternative Press

Milford ceramic artist, Greg Hicho, will be making his second appearance at this year’s 42^nd Annual Peters Valley Craft Fair, September 29^th and 30^th. The prestigious juried fine craft fair will be held at the Sussex County Fairgrounds in nearby Augusta, NJ. Of all the shows Hicho participates in, he considers the Peters Valley Craft Fair his “home show.”

Hicho, originally from Ft. Wayne, Indiana, only recently left his lucrative “nine-to-five” textile design job in NYC of fifteen years where he was designing for Ralph Lauren, Liz Claiborne and Banana Republic to pursue a more creative outlet. He chose to relocate to his vacation home in Milford where he had space for a studio and kiln.

Fairly new to the craft show circuit Hicho has embraced the sometimes difficult and unconventional lifestyle. Hicho says, “It’s hard work traveling to different towns and, in effect, setting up a complete store with lighting, display, and merchandising in a matter of hours. The cost of supplies, and show expenses is high. All of that, coupled with the time consuming process of creating one-of-a-kind items, will be reflected in the price an artist‘s work.” Friend and local artist, Ricky Boscarino of Luna Parc, has been a guide to the artist, helping him understand the secrets to success of exhibiting and selling his work via craft fairs. For many artisans like Hicho and Boscarino, craft fairs are their livelihood.

Despite the hard work, the artist enjoys the interaction with people, both customers and other artists, that results by presenting at craft fairs. Not only does he have the opportunity to sell his work but he also gets the chance to discuss the process behind it and draw inspiration from other exhibitor’s work. Another fringe benefit of Hicho’s artistic vocation is the ability to work in his PJ’s in the isolation of his own studio.

Hicho’s foray into ceramics is relatively recent and draws on early 20^th century American art tiles. The artist’s oeuvre includes glazed reliefs of flora, fauna, and rolling landscapes contrasted by more contemporary subject matter such as toasters, TV dinners, Troll Dolls, Rock’Em Sock’Em Robots, and beauty parlor scenes. When asked about his artwork, Hicho described it as “detailed, whimsical, unique”. The influence of his design background comes through in his ability to successfully incorporate dynamic images into the square format of a tile.

Greg Hicho attended Otis/Parsons Art institute in Los Angeles and is a member of the PA Guild of Craftsmen, the Freelancers Union, and the Tile Heritage Foundation. The artist has earned numerous acceptances into fine art and craft fairs very early in his fine art career. You can see Hicho’s work locally in the Milford Theatre’s women’s lounge or online at www.greghichostudio.com and at the Peters Valley Craft Fair. The fair runs Saturday from 10 – 6pm and Sunday, 10 – 5pm. Tickets are $9 (children under 12 FREE). For more information visit www.petersvalley.org.

You can enter to win one of two pairs of complimentary tickets at the TraillWorks Gallery’s (Newton, NJ) opening reception of FRESH, on September 22^nd from 5 – 8pm. For more information visit www.traillworks.com.

Peters Valley Craft Center is a non-profit educational center for the exploration, promotion and practice of the craft arts, located in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area. Funding for Peters Valley is provided by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a partner agency of the NEA, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Hudson Farm Foundation and by the generosity of its members and individual donors.