Member Directory
Craftsmen’s Guild of Mississippi Members
Search our Member Directory by name or medium (Metal, Ceramics, Glass, Mixed Media, Wood, Fiber). Or, scroll down the page to browse our Members.
About Us
We are makers on a mission to preserve and promote, educate and encourage, the highest standard of excellence in regional crafts.
The work of our Members reflects a high degree of competence, professional standards, and artistry in their medium and category. Eligibility is determined by a jury review process which takes place twice each year.
Steve Smith
Steve Smith
Cropwell, AL
Glass, Recycled Bottles
Jewelry, Mosaics
Guild member since 2016
Steve Smith has always been an artist, it just took him about 50 years to realize it! A friend moved, sold him her kiln, and he began experimenting with whatever he could find to melt. Whit Steve’s love of nature and hope to leave this world a better place for those come after us, re- configuring bottles otherwise bound for a landfill seemed a good path to follow. The reflective and sensual nature of the glass invites visual as well as tactile examination. He seeks to create works with balance, harmony, and reflectivity that allows for ever-changing imagery. His pieces are not transparent like stained glass- they look back at you, inviting deeper exploration.
Candace Spurzam
Candace Spurzam
Ridgeland, MS
Glass
Fused Glass
Guild member since 2011
Candace has been exploring color and art for a lifetime. She says, “It doesn’t feel like a ‘calling’ as much as it’s at the core for me. I minored in art in college, not finding the medium that captured me. I’ve trained in painting, pottery, sculpting, and welding. Welding came closest, until I took a course at the Craft Center from Jenny Thomas in fused glass. It’s a more unusual form of expression, but the biggest joy for me is the tactile piece. For me, the most successful pieces of art practically beg to be touched. They invite an authentic and personal interaction. As in writing my dissertation or ‘Occum’s Razor’ the simplest solution is the best. I gravitate towards clean, simple design. My design aesthetic mirrors how I prefer life- straight-forward and intellectually sound.”
Roger Sturdivant
Roger Sturdivant
Florence, MS
Glass
Fused Glass
Guild member since 2014
For Roger Sturdivant, it wasn’t until on his travels around North America that he found his love for fused glass after seeing several pieces of it in shops in New England and Canada. In 2009, he purchased a small kiln to learn the trade, making mostly Christmas ornaments and other small items for gifts or to sell at local shows. Then in 2011, he purchased a much larger kiln to allow him to do larger pieces. While laborious to some, Roger says that to him creating fused glass is a labor of love, hand cutting each piece of glass and creating his own frit to create beautifully colorful and smooth functional and decorative pieces. Whether it’s through the process of pot melting, twisting, or slumping the glass, all of his pieces are bright, colorful, and functional, appealing to all age groups.
Jenny Thomas
Jenny Thomas
Chesterfield, VA
Glass
Fused
Guild member since 2007
Jenny’s process for fused glass is based on her foundation as a painter, usually beginning as a sketch. She then assembles the glass, with different colors and layers, by cutting each piece and assembling them to then place in the kiln. The basis of everything she creates is her belief in God as the ultimate Creator. In Genesis 1:26-27, God says [to Jesus and the Holy Spirit] “Let us create man in our image, in our likeness... So God created man in his own image.” When asked why this is important to her, Jenny responds, “In light of this being spoken on the sixth day of creation, we are all clearly made in the image of One who is quite creative. Our gifts and abilities differ, but each one of us brings glory to God when we shine in the ways He has equipped us.”
Jeanne Wakeman
Jeanne Wakeman
Fort Walton Beach, FL
Glass, Metal
Fused, Jewelry
Guild member since 2016
Ashley Williamson
Ashley Williamson
Brandon, MS
Jewelry
Categories: Beads
Member since 2023
Ashley began learning her craft in 2022. She was influenced by different cultures and began researching jewelry and the process from those cultures. Ashley draws inspiration from everyday life from flowers to television shows. She loves finding the positives in life and making beautiful jewelry from them.
Jane Mullins
Jane Mullins
Raymond, MS
Glass
Stained
Guild member since 1987
Jane is a long-standing member of the Craftsmen’s Guild of Mississippi in the mediums of stained glass and felting. Jane enjoys her part in keeping alive these two ancient art forms. She employs the lead method and copper foiling to create works in glass, and in her wet felting and needle felting she uses wool and silk fibers to fashion designs. Keeping alive traditional craft forms while venturing into diverse and eclectic creations is what Jane most enjoys about her work. She hopes that discriminating seekers of art can capture the essence of fascination that she has for materials and can enjoy the magic she tried to capture in each show piece.
Kit Davis Barksdale
Kit Davis Barksdale
Bay St. Louis, MS
Glass / Beader/Beadmaker: Guild member since 1997
Mixed Media / Mixed Media
Guild member since 2015
One of the founding members for the Craftsmen’s Guild of Mississippi, Kit Davis Barksdale graduated from the University of Mississippi with a bachelor of arts in education. She continued to create art from her personal studio in Jackson and build the Guild until 1993. Just two years after this, the Craftsmen Guild asked her to be its executive director. After having to rethink her plans to build a studio on the Coast after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, Barksdale discovered Mustard Seed in Jackson, a center for developmentally challenged adults, where she became the executive director in 2006. Since then she has continued producing her bead work while also helping enrich the lives of those with disabilities through art at the Mustard Seed.