Step right up to the first major exhibition to survey American state fairs’ extraordinary and unconventional crafts from the nineteenth century to the present. The exhibition includes exceptional examples of American craft, highlighting personal stories and regional and cultural traditions.

A culmination of five years of on-the-ground and behind-the-scenes research, 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 represented in a photo gallery.