The Scottsdale Craftsmen: A 70-Year Legacy

The Scottsdale Craftsmen: A 70-Year Legacy celebrates the historic Arizona Craftsmen Center (1946-1950), and its significant role in the emergence of postwar Scottsdale’s cultural identity. The exhibition showcases the diverse talents of the center’s artists and craftspeople who were the catalyst for establishing the downtown area of the city as an arts epicenter in the American Southwest.

The highly skilled and schooled artisans at the Arizona Craftsmen Center quickly elevated Scottsdale’s cultural standing with their work, gaining recognition nationwide and receiving public support from notable figures such as former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Artworks presented in The Scottsdale Craftsmen: A 70-Year Legacy represent the Arizona Craftsmen Center’s uniquely experiential atmosphere where customers could watch handcrafted items being made-to-order by the craftspeople working within the facility’s studios. This communal, creative environment fostered artists’ collaborations that advanced the development and recognition of the center on local, national and international fronts.

Represented in the exhibition are paintings, sculptures and objects created by six of the original Arizona Craftsmen artisans who reflect the diverse trades and superior quality works that flourished at the center. Featured artists include blacksmith George “Doc” Cavalliere, painter Lew Davis, fashion designer Lloyd Kiva New, woodcarver Raymond Phillips Sanderson, ceramicist Mathilde Schaefer Davis and silversmith Wesley Segner.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website.