Jamie Goldenberg, owner of Hart GB, holding a large 20-dollar BerkShares. Photo by Katy Sparks
By Katy Sparks
Jamie Goldenberg, a textile artist and founder of Hart GB in Great Barrington believes that anyone can learn to knit or sew and be creative. What matters is being engaged with the world around us in a meaningful way. To Jamie, that’s what art is about.
KS: Jamie, how long have you been here on Railroad Street?
JG: We’ve been a retail shop for about 4 ½ years- we started above the co-op and were there for about a year. That location was a little off the beaten path, so we first moved to 16 Railroad Street for 2 ½ years before landing in our current location at 34 Railroad 1 year ago. We’re so happy with this new space- we have light coming in the front and back, a ramp for easier access and somehow our heating bill is smaller. It’s been a wonderfulevolution.
KS: Did you grow up in this area?
JG: I moved to the Berkshires in 2001 to attend Simon’s Rock where I earned my BA degree. I left the area for a while but came back to work at Orion magazine that creates great pieces on writing and art that explore the connection between nature and culture and what it is to live in the world. And interestingly, Orion was at that time the meeting place for the BerkShares board of directors!
KS: I’ve always been intrigued by the subtle differences between art and craft. Where do you think that line is and how do you identify yourself.
JG: I don’t think there should be a difference between the two. I feel that anyone can make art. We’re a textile shop so we sell yarn and fabric and consider ourselves a soft hardware store– we provide the materials for people to be creative. There’s an aspect of craft that is tied to utility-I’m repairing something or fixing something. I made the sweater I’m wearing right now, and I like to be making things and repairing things so whether that is craft, or art doesn’t matter so much to me. What does matter is that I’m using my mind and my hands to figure out the world around me by interacting with it. And I think that is an artful concept.
KS: You hold classes here. How do you welcome in people who may have a strong emotional block around getting started in making or fixing something themselves?
JG: I have so many answers to that question, and we hold classes here for people who think they can’t sew on a button or knit to save their lives. My belief is that anyone can do these things. As humans we have been creatively interacting with the materials around us for millennia. We are working through a lot of things when we learn new skills. My students often tell me things like “my mom tried to teach me, and I just couldn’t learn this skill.” I joke that this large table we gather around is a little like therapy!
And here at the shop we engage regularly in learning new things so we are not always just the experts but also experience the world as beginners. I recently learned about an ancient technique from Norway using a special needle for nalebinding (needle binding which predates both knitting and crochet as an art form and is essentially knotless knitting). So, I know it is a big deal to try something new as an adult and to be willing to be bad at it in the beginning.
KS: What is appealing to you about accepting BerkShares?
JG: I’ve accepted them since we first opened. I can’t pay my rent with BerkShares but it is a part of personal profit in terms of where my values are. I made the choice to have a small business in a small town- I would probably make more money elsewhere but I’m a parent of local school childrenand I love my community.
