By Deann Armes – Special to the Standard-Examiner | Nov 18, 2021
The Craft Lake City Holiday Market, held annually the first weekend of December, is returning to The Monarch in Ogden’s Nine Rails Creative District with double the fun for its third year. It has expanded from a one-day to a two-day in-person event, Friday, Dec. 3, from 5-10 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 4, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with over 100 Utah-based artisans, craft foodies, local food trucks and vintage vendors.
After the success of its first year in 2019 that attracted close to 3,000 attendees, a two-day Holiday Market was planned for 2020, but organizers redirected to a virtual market due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“While we’re proud of last year’s online version of the Annual Craft Lake City Holiday Market, we’re delighted to bring back the in-person event,” Executive Director Angela Brown said in a press release issued by Craft Lake City. “We’re expanding into a two-day format which will increase selling time for artisans and give shoppers two opportunities to attend.”
Craft Lake City, founded by Brown, is a 501(c)3 charitable organization that educates, promotes and inspires local artisans with year-round programming mostly well-known for the Annual Craft Lake City DIY Festival in Salt Lake City which began in 2009. Brown said the community had been asking for a holiday market from the beginning.
“We really wanted to take our time to grow the idea and also look at providing something the community needed,” Brown said. “We looked at how we could work on our mission, elevating Utah’s creative community, by expanding the holiday market to the Northern Utah area.”
The Holiday Market draws attendees from Salt Lake and Weber counties, with a mix of artisans from both areas represented at the market. Brown enjoys bringing Salt Lake vendors to meet the Ogden arts community so they can see all that Ogden has to offer. “Ogden is really coming up and I think over the next five to 10 years we’re going to see a lot more artist opportunities happen in Ogden and we’re excited to be a part of that,” she said.
As a photographer whose medium is silver gelatin images, Brown also identifies as an artisan. Part of the inspiration for Craft Lake City came from her past experience as a full-time practicing gallery exhibitor. “There weren’t a lot of opportunities to get my craft out there in the public eye. It was either very elite galleries or the festival circuit, but there weren’t really festivals that supported locals,” she said. “I felt like we needed to provide more opportunities to highlight our creative community.”
Brown saw that Utah had just as many talented makers and creatives, “and probably even more and better,” than in big metropolitan cities, yet many local artists felt pressure to leave the state to be successful. “People should be able to be successful creatives wherever they live, and especially within our state when we have so many passionate people that support each other and love art,” she said.
Brown also sees the importance of having art available for an equitable price; she loves seeing that people can bring $20-$30 to the market and walk out with numerous pieces. “Something antiquated about the gallery or museum scene … it’s not really making art accessible for everyone,” she said. “We help bring makers and artists to all people.”
And it’s a real “labor of love.” Craft Lake City was a 100% volunteer-based organization for its first seven years, including Brown, who said that meeting individuals who the work has impacted in a positive way makes it all worth it. “We like to think we’re a sort of catalyst for the maker movement in Utah and love to see people grow and take their business and evolve.”
Craft Lake City’s annual Holiday Market, according to the organization’s press release, “is an opportunity to help grow and strengthen individual artisans and small business owners in Ogden and the Northern Utah region by promoting DIY culture and providing an opportunity to attract new customers, promote their crafts to new audiences, and grow their sales.”
In 2019, Craft Lake City expanded its Inclusion Program for the Annual Craft Lake City Holiday Market at The Monarch, which aims to provide all Utahns with opportunities to creatively and economically thrive through scholarships, mentorship, application assistance and other services.
A place to shop locally for the holidays all in one beautiful, historic space, the Holiday Market is also a festive experience for friends and family. Free photos with Santa, a toy drive for LGBTQ+ families in need hosted by Project Rainbow, opportunity drawing (bring a toy to enter) for donated gifts from Craft Lake City artisans, a cash bar featuring local beer and spirits, food trucks — Cupbop, Lucky Slice, World’s Best Corn Dogs — and a variety of craft foodies. In addition, The Market features over 30 in-house creative studios, Art Box gift shop and WB’s Eatery located at The Monarch.
The Third Annual Craft Lake City Holiday Market is supported in part by the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation and Utah Arts & Museums, with funding from the state of Utah and the National Endowment for the Arts. Tickets are $5 in advance at 24tix.com, $7 at the door the day of the market and free for children 12 and under.
Craft Lake City will be taking careful precautions to create a safe environment for makers and attendees of the Holiday Market based on COVID-19 guidelines.
The Third Annual Craft Lake City Holiday Market will be held Friday, Dec. 3, from 5-10 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 4, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at The Monarch, located in the Nine Rails Creative District at 455 25th St. in downtown Ogden. More information, including the full list of exhibitors, can be found at craftlakecity.com/holiday-market-2021.
