GROWING AMERICAN CRAFT

When Lillian Colton of Owatonna began crafting crop art in 1965, she had no idea her art would someday be showcased in the world’s largest museum.

Lillian, who died in 2007 at the age of 95, isn’t around any longer to share in the excitement surrounding her art. But the legacy continues through her daughter, Linda Paulson, who also picked up the talent. The mother-daughter duo’s art is currently being showcased at the Smithsonian’s Renwick Gallery in Washington, D.C. for the next year.

Paulson, of Hackensack, Minn., traveled to the Smithsonian last month along with several other family members for a special reception showcasing state fair theme to kick off the year-long exhibit. “Instead of something on a stick, we had pictures of the crop art tied around our necks to go with the state fair theme,” she said, adding they enjoyed everything from corn dogs to corn whiskey.

For Paulson, the enormity of the honor didn’t really sink in until she got to the reception where she was joined by 200 other people decked out in costumes. The top prize winner was a woman with a wooden Ferris wheel in her hair. Another woman had three corndogs on a hair band.

Acknowledging this is the biggest honor she has ever received, Paulson said: “I’m just amazed that they recognized our crop art.” She noted her mother showed crop art at one time years ago at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, but nothing ever on the national level.

The Smithsonian is featuring the first major exhibition to survey American state fairs’ extraordinary and unconventional crafts from the 19^th century to the present. The exhibition includes more than 240 artworks of American craft, highlighting personal stories and regional and cultural traditions.

Paulson has six of her crop arts featured while her mother has 17. A couple of Paulson’s personal favorites are Lucille Ball and Betty White. Paulson focuses mostly on portraits of celebrities and some animals.

The exhibit considers personal stories of craft found in different area of the fairgrounds, from the art exhibits and heritage villages to the parades, dairy barns and rodeos. Ribbon-winning artworks and engaging craft demonstrations illuminate the lives of the artists—their families, memories, honors and struggles. It offers a perspective on the social power of fairs across the U.S. and dispels stereotypes about rural communities.

Paulson, 81, said a team of four people from the Smithsonian came to Minnesota to choose what they wanted to feature in the fair exhibit. “Minnesota is noted for its crop arts,” she said. “They wanted something from every state fair, 4-H group and Indian fairs,” she added.

Crop art is a type of folk art, unique to the Minnesota State Fair, that involves creating mosaics and collages from seeds, plant parts and other natural materials grown in Minnesota. Artists glue the materials onto a board to form images in a process that requires careful seed selection and meticulous placement.

Paulson recalled that she was the one who got her mother interested in crop art in 1965. “I saw it on TV and told her about it,” she said. Once Colton got going, she turned around to get her daughter involved. “I gave in to her after her persistence, and I got hooked on it,” Paulson said.

She admits it was difficult at best when she started crop art. After trying several methods, Paulson developed a knack for making it work. The hardest part she found was learning how to control the glue.

During Colton’s lifetime, she created more than 200 pieces and actively exhibited them at the Steele County Free Fair and the State Fair, Paulson said. Colton won many grand champions throughout her life. In her later years, Colton demonstrated crop arts at the State Fair, and in fact did so just a few weeks before her death.

Paulson, who is retired, estimated she has created about 60 crop arts, mostly done during the winter months. “It’s my hobby. I do it when I have time,” she said, noting she is often planning on art pieces several years ahead.

The greatest reward she gets out of it is simply to see if she can do a specific crop art. Paulson takes great pleasure in people commenting about her work.

The origins of crop art date back to the 1800s where people were more focused on making pictures of landscape and other scenery, according to Paulson. “People were more rural and didn’t get out as much,” she said. She added that crop art has grown in popularity in recent years. For example, this year’s State Fair featured 451 crop art entries.

Asked what her mother would say about all the fuss over her art, Paulson said: “She would just think it’s amazing that they chose the artwork she did. But she quickly added, mom was no stranger to fame. One time she flew to New York to appear on the Rosie O’Donnell Show, who has become famous for her long-running, Emmy award-winning talk show.

Paulson said she can’t believe she has done crop art for the past 56 years. She said she finds it’s pastime where “you forget about time and everything around you.”

Coming up this winter, Paulson hopes to do a crop art on Jane Goodall, a renowned conservationist and humanitarian who died last week.

The crop artist is excited to “continue a family legacy” that her mother started six decades ago.

As for being on display at the Smithsonian, Paulson said it’s one of the greatest highlights of her life. The only regret is that mother can’t enjoy it with her.