On the make

As I write this I’m having trouble breathing through my nose, and my eyes are saturated with allergens. Spring has arrived in Nevada. Among other things, the onset of warm weather is bringing the Sierra’s outstanding snow-sport season to an end. But a new one is upon us: festival season.

After a long winter spent sculpting, photographing and crafting, Tahoe’s artists and musicians are itching to get outdoors and strut their stuff. Thankfully, Squaw Valley’s Made In Tahoe Festival provides an opportunity for locals to do just that. In its seventh consecutive year, the festival hosts a juried art show with over 100 artists and craftspeople, along with numerous musicians, workshops and wellness events over Memorial Day weekend. Most importantly, everyone participating, from the brewers to the yoga instructors, calls the Tahoe Basin home.

“It’s definitely my favorite festival of the year,” said Dan Gaube, who is returning to Made In Tahoe for his fourth year in a row. Gaube is a woodworker with more than a decade of experience who specializes in handmade furniture and fine jewelry.

“The energy of the festival is very special,” he said. “It’s a destination. There is just so much talent, so much love and passion that goes into the art from the local artists up here.”

When I spoke with him, he was enjoying the warm weather at Kings Beach working on new jewelry.

“I’m always inspired by nature, especially up here,” Gaube said. “I try to utilize materials that I find while I’m hiking or at the beach, rather than just buying things, to represent nature and help people remember its importance.”

Gaube is the co-owner of the Mountain Arts Collective Gallery in Truckee, which houses work from 17 local artists, including his own, as well as a rotating guest artist each month. For this year’s festival, Gaube is incorporating his new skills as a silversmith to produce more complex, intricate jewelry than he has before.

“In the past I’ve done mixed media inlays with abalone shells, wood and metal, but now I’m definitely going to be taking it up to another level with the silversmithing,” he explained.

Another artist who will display her work at Made In Tahoe is Marianne Rosenfeld. Rosenfeld is the owner of Forest Furniture. She moved to Lake Tahoe from Pittsburgh nearly 40 years ago. In the last decade, she has perfected her brand of charming, rustic cabin furniture and accessories, many of which she builds using vintage skis.

“I love it. I just love it,” she said. “I have two shows that I just don’t miss. One is the Made In Tahoe Festival, and the other is the Valhalla Holiday Fair. The people who appreciate my work are the ones I’m going to encounter at those shows. The locals who have actually donated my skis and who are interested in my work, I see them every year.”

Although Rosenfeld’s Adirondack style chairs are her most popular pieces, she is most excited to showcase some of her more abstract work, like “The Daphine.” It features one of Rosenfeld’s signature faux granite boulders, which is situated to appear as if it is suspended in the air by an array of tree branches.

Both Rosenfeld and Gaube agree, the Made In Tahoe Festival is organized by locals, for locals and caters to shoppers who share a love of Tahoe’s breathtaking natural beauty and the passionate community of artisans it inspires.