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10SmokeSignalsHIGHNOONTCAAtellsusItaintdeadfolksThefuturedidnotappearpromisingforthosewhobuiltcustomhandcraftedtreasuresforhorsemenoftheWest.EvenreveredRenoNevadabitandspurmakerAlTietjenadvisedhisownsontobecomeawelderratherthaneekoutalivingfollowinginhisfootsteps.BUT...TheTraditionalCowboyArtsAssociationrecentlycelebratedtheir15thanniversary.ChuckStormesnotedthatFoundingmembersrecognizedanurgentneedtopreserveanappreciationforfinecraftsmanshipandrespondwithanaggressiveeducationprogramthatcontinuestospurarenaissanceinfunctionalWesternart.SaddlemakerRobertRaberobservedthatthisorganizationhasgivenhimandmanyothercraftsmenarenewedenergy.Thereneverhasbeenatimewhentheresbeenthisamountofinformationcombinedwithsuchopennessamongsaddlemakersandothercraftsmen.Thoughafewcontemporarygearshowshadreceivedpopularacclaimby1998theTCAAfoundersrealizedthattheleadershipofanassociationofcraftsmenmustcomefromwithintohaveanimpactonthefield--themakersneededtoleadandberesponsiblefortheirownorganization.Itisintriguingtonotethatitwasacommoncausethatbroughtthesementogether.Theyallhadsuccessfulcareersandmoreordersthantheycouldfillyeteachfeltanobligationtochangetheprevailingcourseoftheirtrades.AndsotheTCAAwasborn.After15yearstheseWesterncreationshavesetanewstandardandspurredonmanyyoungmenandwomen.Thereisrenewedgrowthinthetime-honoredtradesofsaddlemakingrawhidebraidingbitandspurmakingaswellasWesternsilver-smithing.Atmajorgatheringsorauctionsyounolongerheartalkofthesedyingartsandworkthatjustisntdoneanymore.Youaremorelikelytohearknowledgeablecollectorsreferringtoworktheyhavefoundacrossthecountrythatreflectsnewlevelsofqualityandability.TheannualfallexhibitionattheNationalCowboyWesternHeritageMuseumalsohasbeenviewedasinfluentialastheeducationalprogramming.InafewshortyearsthemembersoftheassociationassertsScottHardytransitionedfromtheirdreamofartisticfreedomareleasefromtheshacklesofthecustomersspecificlikesanddislikestocreatinganartisticexhibitionthatrevealednewdirectionsfortheentireconceptofWesterncraftandequestrianfineries.Firstandforemosttheintentoftheannualexhibitionistoplaceonpublicviewspecialneverbeforeseenworksofnationalimportance.Thisemphasisoneducationisevidencedbythecreationin2012ofanannualTCAAFellowshipprogramandtheEmergingArtistsCompetitionattheHighNoonWesternAmericanaauctionandsale.InJanuary2014thesecondannualcompetitionwillattractrawhidebraidersaswellasbitandspurmakersfromacrosstheWest.CurrentTCAAPresidentErnieMarshobservedthatGivenTCAAsfocusontheeducationofourtradesfromitsinceptionin1998WesternenthusiastsshouldexpecttoseealotofnewtalentouttheresomeofwhommaywishtorepresentthefutureoftheTCAA.BesuretovisittheFUTUREattheHighNoonShowandAuctiononJan25-262014inMesa.Theiraddressesintheshoware1EndoftheTrailCrossingand11DancesWithWolvesPass.DonReevesMcCaslandChairofCowboyCultureNationalCowboyWesternHeritageMuseum