The first thought that might come to your mind when you think of craft shows are wooden chickens and hearts painted in country blue and mauve and decorated with lace and beads.

But not all craft shows are the same.

The Amercian Craft Council (ACC) will hold its 16th annual show April 12 to 14 at the River Centre in St. Paul, Minn. And the council has selected an ISU professor to be one of only 12 artists to represent Iowa.

“I’m doing what no one else is doing,” says Chris Martin, one of the exhibitors and an assistant professor of art and design at Iowa State.

“It’s what is true and honest to me.”

Martin mixes metal and wood to create furniture and lighting pieces. These include chairs, desks, chests of drawers and wall sconces, to name a few. He also works with other mediums such as concrete, stone and glass.

Martin says an event like this is important to him because it gives him an opportunity to expose his work to the public and also the art community.

“It’s exciting; I really enjoy doing these shows,” Martin says.

He says his inspiration to design and create art comes from everywhere, including nature, images and dreams.

And although Martin considers his work original, he is inspired by other artists, as he says everyone is.

Martin earned his B.F.A. in craft design at Iowa State in 1990 and his M.F.A. from Rhode Island School of Design in 1994. He lived in Colorado from 1994 to 1998 and worked as a studio furniture artist, creating art for galleries and exhibitions. Martin has been in Iowa since 1998 when he accepted a position at the University.

Martin says being a professor and an artist at the same time isn’t always easy, he does it all the same.

“I would die if I couldn’t make my own work,” Martin says. “I would go nuts.”

He says he tries to create some of his art at school so his students can see what their professor is doing. Martin thinks students enjoy seeing that their professor is not only a teacher but also an artist.

Martin’s hopes for the show include getting good exposure, selling some pieces of art and seeing people he met last year at the exhibit.

“My goal is to continue to get more exposure and seek critical recognition of my work,” Martin says.

Martin says the craft show is like a trade show.

“It’s a competitive show,” says Carolyn Parsons, representative for ACC Craft Show in St. Paul.

The pieces of art are not only exhibited but are also for sale, she says.

People can talk with the artists, learn about their craft and possibly buy a piece to take home with them.

A pair of earrings may sell for $25, whereas a hand-blown, etched-glass vessel will be priced at $80,000.

More than 250 artists from 40 different states and Canada will exhibit their art in nine different mediums such as ceramics, fashion/wearable, fiber decorative, glass, jewelry, leather, metal, mixed/other media and wood.

The exhibit is a juried art show, says Parsons. Artists send in photo samples of their work to be reviewed by a committee of their peers. The committee then selects artists from the nine different mediums and sends out letters congratulating them on being selected as an ACC artist. Parsons says an event like this is important because it showcases an artist’s work.

“It’s very important for artists to get their work out in front of the general public’s eye,” Parsons says.

“It gives them the opportunity to see what talent there is in our region and across the nation.”

The hours for the event are 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m Sunday. Tickets, which are $7 for adults and free for children 12 and under, are available at the door for those willing to make the trek to St. Paul. For questions or information regarding the craft show call their hotline at (952)346-6696.