The Little Gallery That Could
Toe River Crafts opening day, 1974.
Tria Turrou is living her best life. Not only does the talented ceramic artist get to sell her whimsy-inspired work at Toe River Crafts in rural Celo, North Carolina, she’s also the co-op gallery’s president who feels distinctly privileged to lead the gallery into its milestone 50th year.
Although Turrou, at age 40, is the co-op’s youngest working-member, she is also its most experienced thanks to a childhood spent helping her then working-member mom, tile-artist Tzadi Turrou. “I grew up loading kilns for my mom and helping out in the shop and at shows,” Turrou says. “If she got sick, I knew how to run the shop. I always loved working there; it was such a fun place to be.”
Eager to kick off her own career, Turrou became a working member when she was only 17.
As Turrou and co-op vice president and potter Carrie DeVee sort through books of archival materials and images, as well as talk with past and current members, they are discovering the co-op’s story is even richer than they imagined. “At its heart, ours is a story of a community coming together to support its neighbors,” DeVee said.
The Celo community, 45 minutes northeast of Asheville, holds a unique place in North Carolina history. It was founded in 1937 as a self-governed land trust by Arthur Morgan, an educator and the first chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority. Its primary purpose was to enable members to “enjoy a life that includes personal expression, neighborly friendship and cooperation, and appreciative care of the natural environment.”
The intentional nature of the community, coupled with its proximity to the Penland School of Craft, attracted artists from across the country. “I helped talk the Celo community into loaning us $6,000 to build something nearby craftspeople could use to exhibit our work and keep people from interrupting us in the midst of creating that work,” says potter Nancy Herman, one of the co-op’s founding working members. “Although there were concerns about how the loan would be repaid, community members stepped up and said they would be responsible should we default,” recalls fiber artist Joyce Johnson, another founding working member.
With funding and a construction supervisor in tow, the real work began.
Founding working-member Wanda Lea Austin, a potter who attended Black Mountain College, sketched the building’s simple but functional design. She also managed all legal documentation. Elpenor Ohle, a revered local physician who had been recruited by Arthur Morgan to open a medical clinic in the South Toe Valley, donated the beams.
“We brought a homemade apple pie with us to help talk Elpenor into donating his cut-but-unused pine logs for the rafters,” says Rob Grenell, the carpenter hired to build the structure with the help of community volunteers. Grenell’s late wife, Barbara, was both a weaver as well as one of the first working members. “I rigged those logs like a North woods logger while Elpenor’s son Charlie drove the green Jeep and towed them out of the woods. Joe Hollis, who would become a renowned medicinal herbalist, wielded the broad ax to shape them. We were such a jolly crew working together.”
The Little Gallery That Could
Following a 1977 flood, co-op members were able to salvage most of the gallery’s wares.
Three years after their joy-filled opening, a torrential rainstorm brought members to near panic. The South Toe River breached, sending floodwater across N.C. 80 and into the gallery. According to a surveyor, the water rose 25 feet above its usual level. In an article from The Arts Journal, gallery designer Austin wrote: “a layer of shiny, dark brown mud covered the floor. Tiny mouse footprints and the trails of some small creature imprinted it like a beach at ebb tide. One of Cindy Bringle’s pots lay in the mud. The lower shelves were emptied—the heavy desk was lying on its side.”
Thankfully, little work was damaged. The artists, many of whom were just returning from a show in Winston-Salem, and other community members quickly mobilized to make repairs. “People still remember,” says DeVee. “When we’re in the midst of heavy storms, we’ll get calls from former members telling us to move work from the lower shelves just in case.”
No matter the storm, Toe River Crafts has made an art of weathering them. When talk of shuttering the gallery and giving the building back to the Celo Community arose, Turrou, who had previously served as vice president, threw her passion into becoming the organization’s president. While Covid 19 delayed their spring 2020 opening, the team worked together, vowing to remain open as long as they could do so safely.
As Turrou looks around at the colorful glass, jewelry, paintings, ceramics, books and more that surround her, the majority crafted by artists living within 12 miles of the gallery, she says, “there was simply no way we were closing. This place is too special.”
With an eye on the future, the working members implemented new guidelines, installed an automated point-of-sale system, and opted to stay open seven days a week from April 1 until the first week of January. “We also focused more on marketing and social media to let people know we were here, just a stone’s throw from the Blue Ridge Parkway,” Turrou said.
The Little Gallery That Could
“Before we installed the point-of-sale system, one of our working-members had begun discussing the likelihood of retiring,” DeVee remembers. “It wasn’t that she wanted to, but the efforts involved in labeling inventory and calculating sales had become too cumbersome. We’re all delighted her retirement is now off the table.”
Their efforts have literally paid off. “Not only have our profits increased significantly, but we have a waiting list of artists who want to be part of the gallery,” Turrou said. “The community continues to stand behind us as we look at expansion to be able to serve more local artists and better serve the community through creative programming.”
Looking back, both Herman and Johnson agree: “When we started, we took it one year at a time, hoping to be open again the next year. It’s wonderful thinking about how many artists have participated and contributed to its success over the years. We’re delighted Toe River Crafts is still here 50 years later.”
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In July, the Yancey County Library will host a commemorative exhibit featuring photos, articles and more from the gallery’s archives. Additionally, the gallery will host special monthly events throughout the year.Toe River Crafts is located at 6274 N.C. 80 South. For more information, follow on Instagram (@toeriver_crafts) or Facebook (facebook.com/ToeRiverCrafts).