Oxford Fiber Festival Returns in January to the Powerhouse

The Oxford Fiber Festival will be returning in January to the Powerhouse Community Arts Center.

As the oldest, longest-running, continual festival in Mississippi, Oxford Fiber Festival will present more than 25 in-person vendors during the festival slated for Jan. 18-22.

This year’s featured speakers include Scottish tartan historian Peter MacDonald and interactive fiber artist Jane Tardo of New Orleans.

With Learning Lunches, in-person markets, classes, workshops, interactive exhibits and more this year’s Fiber Festival has something for everyone.

The opening reception will be from 5:30 to 7 p.m. on Jan. 21 at the Powerhouse Arts Center and will feature Tardo – a teacher, maker, quilter, and inventor. They were recently featured in the Washington Post for their mobile art gallery, The Haunted Hearse. Tardo and the Hearse will both be key features of this year’s festival.

“Jane’s work is amazing. But the only way to see it is by cell phone. You insert your phone – on video – into the custom-made RC roller coaster inside the hearse and less than a minute later out pops a video of their work,” said Program Director Stacey Sanford. “The second I saw it, I knew the Oxford Fiber Festival needed it. Not only is Jane’s work interactive and inspirational, but it’s also detailed and beautiful.”

While the core of the festival is over the weekend, the kick-off events will be the Learning Lunch Series starting at noon on Jan. 18 at the Lafayette County & Oxford Public Library.

Guests who register will receive lunch and listen to the virtual lecture presented by Peter MacDonald. The discussion on Jan. 18 focuses on the history and importance of Scottish tartans. This program is provided and supported by the Friends of the Lafayette County and Oxford Public Library.

The second Learning Lunch will be hosted at noon on Jan. 19 at the University Museum. MacDonald’s second lecture will cover the creation and identification of different tartan patterns.

This lecture will feature several of the patterns seen on display inside the Powerhouse Community Arts Center as part of the festival. The Gallery Display will show from Jan. 6-23 and is sponsored by Kilts of Atlanta.

Guests can register for the Learning Lunches at OxfordFiberFestival.com/tartan or become a Friend of the Festival at OxfordFiberFestival.com/Friends. Friends should receive their recorded lectures by late January 2023.

“I am very proud of year 13,” Sanford said. “We learned so much during the pandemic and over the last 12 festivals in general. We added more vendors, changed up our scheduling, and curated a whole new list of classes and workshops. This year’s magazine is completely different and we are still growing. People should expect even more as 2023 continues.”

Many vendors from previous years will be returning for January’s festival.

“We could not do this, year after year, without SPARKLE Studios, Jems Lux Fibers, the Tutwiler Quilters, CWSG-Co Op, DeSoto Arts Council, TranQuill WaterZ, The Foldout Cat, Across Generations, Mawufemor, Holly Dyeworks and more for their continued support. It always feels like a family reunion,” Sanford said.

With so much to see and do, the Oxford Fiber Festival has created a complete magazine with calendars, schedules, and information. These can be picked up at the Powerhouse Community Arts Center, University Museum, Lafayette County and Oxford Public Library or Visit Oxford.

They can be mailed by contacting OxfordFiberFestival@gmail.com.

Staff report