Fellowship

Brace yourself. It's BreyerFest TinyPlasticHorseFest week.

Hobbyists from across the country are flocking to Kentucky.

photo by Maggie Schneider Barkovitz

But for a few dedicated China lovers, the path to Kentucky runs through Tennessee.

photo by Maggie Schneider Barkovitz

Last weekend, Hagen-Renaker Tennessee hosted their annual Fellowship event. My good friend, Heather, was in attendance. Here is her account of the proceedings.

Hagen-Renaker Fellowship 2024

by Heather Malone

photos by Heather Malone and Jackie Rossi

For BreyerFest most years, I typically fly into New Jersey from Denver, and then we take a day to drive to Lexington on the Monday before, to set up shop and prep for the week. Jackie and I decided to attend Hagen-Renaker Tennessee’s Fellowship gathering in Dandridge, Tennessee before Breyerfest this year. Fellowship is an open house type gathering that Kristina Lucas Francis has at the HR TN facility for Hagen-Renaker Collector Clubs members. Fellowship was on the Sunday before so we did the big long drive to the Kristina’s studio on Saturday. The drive was beautiful, as most of it was down interstate 81, which skirts the Appalachians all the way. 

We were exhausted when we got there so we checked in, ate and flopped early.

The next day we slept in and then got up and got ready to go to the event. It was from 11am to 11pm and had food and friends and Kristina amazing studio and the Hagen Renaker TN museum. We got there around noon and had lunch with several good friends that were attending as well. There was no real agenda so we rotated through talking several groups of people, toured the actual working area of the studio and gaped at all the wonderful things in Kristina’s museum. 

So many amazing things, it was sensory overload.

Maureen Loves everywhere, original pieces, 

variations,

so MANY BIRDS,

Sue Nikas’ working desk from California,

stoneware and so much more.

The were also archives of all the HR TN productions as well as Kristina’s individual works from Lucas Francis studios.

The was also a whole wall of HR mins. 

The were shelves and shelves of greenware and ephemera and Maureen Love flatwork on the walls. 

Heather Wells and her husband came all the way from California on their way to BF and had a vending table with amazing things. Dawn Sinkovitch was also present with all her publications and art prints. There was also an exclusive special run which was named “Ganache” he Abdullah mold in shaded sunburnt black!

Anna Tacket with Ganache

We had such a great time chatting, wandering, ogling and eating.

Kirsten Wellman, Sarah Wellman, Heather Malone, Maggie Schneider Barkovitz, Jackie Rossi and Anna Tackett

We loved seeing old friends and meeting new people, and most of all we so enjoying seeing the astounding collections and working studio at Hagen-Renaker Tennessee.

the Heathers: Wells, Malone, Jackson-Lain and Miller Mays

Thank you Kristina, for opening your world to us!

Heather and Kristina

And thank you, Heather, for sharing Kristina's world with us. I know I'm not the only one who just added attending H-R Fellowship to my hobby bucket list!