This year’s Roycroft Winter Festival features the work of Roycroft Masters and Artisans, two Roycroft Emerging Artist cohorts and a schedule of live and interactive art demonstrations by Roycroft Artisans and Masters throughout the weekend.

RALA and Park are joined by the Buffalo Society of Artists and the Hunt Gallery, thanks to a new collaboration between RALA and The Buffalo Society of Artists. As part of their presence at the festival, live artists demonstrating will include select exhibiting members of the Buffalo Society of Artists on Sunday. The Buffalo Society of Artists is the oldest continuously operating art society in the nation, whose previous members include such members as Claude Monet and Camille Pisarro. RALA is proud to partner with their peers in the WNY fine art sector to showcase the combined talent of our two respected organizations.

The Roycroft Winter Show is a traditional opening of the gift giving season, and offers a wonderful selection of handcrafted fine art and high craft made with the highest standards in craftsmanship.

This year’s Festival Poster highlights the work of Master CJ Hurley of Oil City, Pennsylvania. “Winter Rose” is a significant work by Hurley and RALA is grateful for the opportunity to spotlight this fine work as a collaborative celebration of the White Rose’s 20th anniversary. A limited series of commemorative posters will be released for purchase at the Winter Festival to festival goers and available to membership following the festival.
NEW to the Roycroft Winter Festival in 2024: Visitors with children can sit with Santa Claus from 11:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday on a Roycroft Antique “Santa’s Throne,” a donation from Board of Directors member Bill Pictor from his private collection. Santa Jim and his winter wonderland is made possible by collaboration with the Park School Student Photography Club.

A nominal admission fee of $5 will be charged for adults. Admission for children and RALA Patrons and members is free of charge. $4 Advance Pre-Sale for parties of two or more is available through the ticketing link or RALA website. Tickets purchased online are non-refundable.

In furtherance of RALA’s mission to educate and foster, the work of Park School student Anna Dyshlova will be highlighted as part of the 2024 Winter Festival as the first Emerging Park Artist. Dyshlova, originally from Ukraine, is a 17 year old painter currently residing in the United States and attending Park School of Buffalo. Roycrofters at Large is proud and touched to have the opportunity to help Dyshlova hone her practice and will work with her to help develop a CV, a portfolio, proper pricing and assistance with sales. A collection of assembled work by Park Students of Note, recommended by Park School of Buffalo art faculty in collaboration with the Roycrofters at Large Emerging Artists Chair will also be on display during festival.

Founded in 1912, The Park School of Buffalo is WNY’s only co-ed, PreK – Grade 12 and Montessori school, and was also ranked #1 Best Private K-12 School in Buffalo and Erie County by Niche for its second consecutive year. Park was founded by a group of Buffalo parents who had met with the influential philosopher John Dewey. Under Dewey’s guidance, Park philosophy draws from Dewey’s key insight that deep learning occurs through constant experimentation and problem solving. The curriculum has always been interdisciplinary, as such, the arts are integrated into all academic subjects. Park students are academically and socially prepared problem solvers equipped with confidence, critical thinking skills, and a desire to make the world a better place. Park’s philosophy and shared tradition in the Arts & Crafts Movement represents significant mission overlap and shared vision, and RALA is pleased to partner with Park to further its charter and to expose what the East Aurora based Roycroft community has to a wider audience. Park School’s proximity to both the northtowns and the City of Buffalo is in keeping with RALA’s mission to promote and further the evolution of Roycroft and the Roycroft Renaissance.

The collaboration with Park continues to an exciting opportunity to connect the Roycroft community with a broader segment of Western New York Arts & Crafts collectors. “We are thrilled to partner with the Roycroft to host their winter art show. Art education is core to the Park educational experience and our students, families and teachers are very lucky to have the opportunity to learn from and be inspired by the wonderful artists who will be showing their work, “ said Keith Frome, President of Park School.

Raffle tickets for the RALA “Goodie Box” will also be available. The Goodie Box is a tradition of the organization for over 20 years, and is the backbone of its non-profit fund-raising initiatives. This year’s box contains items created by Roycroft Artisans and Master Artisans valued at over $9,000. The drawing will be held in February 2025, at the National Arts and Crafts Conference, at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC. The winner need not be present.

The 49th Roycroft Summer Festival will be held on June 28 and 29, 2025 at the Classic Rink on Riley Street in East Aurora. The 2025 commemorative poster will spotlight the work of Master Laura Wilder as featured artist.

Information on the Roycrofters-at-Large and membership options can be found online at www.ralaweb.com. Follow the Roycrofters-At Large Association’s social media pages at Facebook and instagram, @roycroftartisans, for updates and information on the 2024 Winter Show and to experience the Roycroft Artisans’ exceptional work.