Forging ahead.

The vast three-story windows of the new Mississippi Craft Center in Ridgeland offer a view of the dense woods to the north and a glimpse of the waters of the Ross Barnett Reservoir to the south, but the views within its walls promise to be equally breathtaking. When the 20,000-$7.2-million-dollar square-foot, $7.2-million-dollar facility opens in late March, the state of Mississippi will once again move to the forefront nationally as a leader in the diversified arts arena.

The new home for the Craftsmen's Guild of Mississippi, which was formed in 1973 as a nonprofit organization to promote traditional, contemporary, and folk art, will offer the group's 400-plus members year-round indoor exhibit space and outdoor demonstration areas. The building, designed by Albert & Associates Architects of Hattiesburg and built by Brandon-based contractor Coleman Hammons, features an industrial aesthetic interlaced with warm maple wood.

An expansive gallery will house the permanent collection and provide storage for individual artists' crafts. The Guild Hall, which is the largest area in the building at 3,500 square feet, features a multi-level glass staircase and opens onto a large patio area, offering access to a footpath leading to the Natchez Trace. On the second floor, catwalks will allow visitors to watch craft demonstrations in progress on the first floor and to access classrooms, a library, and a conference room. A floor-to-ceiling windowed room on the south side provides a stunning view of the harbor and gives one the feeling of being in a treehouse. The top floor includes offices for staff members, including executive director Julia Daily, who assumed leadership of the group in December 2005.

"What will bring this building to life will be the craftsmen and their work," says Daily. "I would put their work above anyone in the country; they are extremely talented. This will be their first home, since they have been visitors for 30 years, first at Millsaps College, and then at the log cabins on the Natchez Trace, as well as at the Ag Museum." The new center is the end result of a 10-year project, Daily says, involving the state Legislature, the city of Ridgeland, and the Mississippi Department of Transportation.

Outside the striking new space, winding sidewalks twist within five acres of tree-shaded beauty. Within the loops, spectators can watch the craftsmen at work. Equipment rooms, opening to the outside, provide easy access to pottery kilns, portable wheels, and woodworking lathes, as well as tools and supplies for basket and bead makers. A separate, smaller building holds forges for blacksmiths.

Demonstrating their crafts, a unifying pursuit of Craftsmen's Guild members, often lends itself to teaching, as is the case with Ridgeland-based jeweler Betsy Liles. "The new building is a dream come true. It took lots of hard work," says Liles, who foresees classes being offered in the mornings for senior citizens, in the afternoons for students, and in the evenings for working adults.

Liles, who recently shared her skills with students at the Tougaloo Art Colony, designs and creates jewelry in a restored cottage that serves as a studio for her and other area artists in varying fields. A former nurse, she began working in the jewelry-making field 10 years ago. She attended the Penland School of Crafts and the John C. Campbell Folk School, both in North Carolina, as well as the Florida Society of Goldsmiths, among others.

Liles' works combine antique and natural shapes with refined elements including gemstones, precious metals, and pearls. This mixture of materials and techniques is a signature element of her designs. Small ovens reaching a temperature of 1,850 degrees give her the ability to create endless designs with a unique versatility provided by the use of hooks that allow the wearer to choose a tailored or a casual look simply by exchanging pieces. Down the street, Betsy's new shop displays handmade jewelry as well as visual art.

Another Craftsmen's Guild member who works with jewels is Jackson artist Dr. Craig Escude, a family physician by day. Escude is known for his small molded lamps, which are composed of multicolored jewels nestled in a hollow of driftwood. He named his first lamp "Anita" after a female patient, and all lamps since have been named. Escude began making crosses from jewels five years ago, but his work evolved when he discovered a curious piece of driftwood. The weatherworn wood gave him the idea of making an electrical lamp which could be tucked inside the natural material.

"I have always liked rough forms, and having found a rough piece of driftwood, I realized that nature does a better job than I," Escude explains. The one-of-a-kind lamps are now carried by several galleries and stores in Jackson. He encourages clients to choose wood pieces that have meaning, such as a piece found on a grandparent's homestead, then he molds jewels into a form that is attached to the wood and wired.

From his fascination with the Japanese art of bonsai, a second craft eventually emerged: a copper tree, using, once again, a piece of driftwood as its base. The craftsman's crosses, angels, lamps, and copper trees show an appreciation of depth and the power of multidimensional forms.

Escude says he looks forward to sharing his works with a broader group of art lovers at the new Craft Center. "The Craftsmen's Guild has a strong reputation," he says. "This building will get us physically on the map and give us a real presence in the Southeast."

Sheri Marshall, a potter from Holly Springs who serves on the Craftsmen's Guild board, is equally enthusiastic about the new cultural destination. "The new building will be a showcase," Marshall says. "This is an opportunity for craftsmen to teach, to show, and to have events there. The sky is the limit."

Marshall's own story shows that sky's-the-limit mentality as well. After losing her right arm in a childhood accident, she went on to become a professional pilot and now works in flight instruction design for FedEx. When her feet are on the ground, she creates colorful platters, vases, mugs, and bowls on her potter's wheel. In her inspirational book entitled One Can Do It, Sheri gives advice to other disabled people on how to wallpaper, cook, drive a standard-shift car, use a sewing machine, dress babies and small children, and even fly a plane. Intricate details on her handsome, functional pottery become even more beautiful when one considers Sheri's challenge and reflects on the creative process, particularly that of centering, throwing, and trimming clay on a fast-turning potter's wheel.

"From the moment I touched clay at age five, I was fascinated by its plastic qualities," Marshall says. "I have enjoyed a lifelong, rewarding relationship with clay."

The love of the creative process, the art of design, and relentless inspiration also can be seen in Craftsmen's Guild member Bryan Smyda's exotic wood dining room tables, cabinets, and rocking chairs. Smyda, once a general contractor, made a dream come true when he designed and opened his own 5,000-square-foot workshop on one of the state's highest elevations, near Brandon. With triple the space of his previous garage workroom, the large building gives Smyda the opportunity to more thoughtfully consider whether an exotic piece of wood such as leopard, ipe, or ziricote will work best on each furniture design or whether native wood such as walnut, cherry, or curly maple should be chosen. Rocking in one of Smyda's chairs, which are expertly crafted to fit the buyer's leg length and height, provides great comfort and relaxation. Photos of his works can be seen in "Trading Spaces" celebrity designer Laurie Smith's book, Discovering Home, and his business has grown so much that he now employs craftsman Joe Partridge, also a member of the Craftsmen's Guild, as well as two apprentices.

A strong Guild supporter, Smyda says he vividly remembers the first year that he went to the Guild-sponsored Chimneyville Crafts Festival and received commissions of $60,000. "I realized then that Jackson needs something like this," he says. With mentors including Sam Malouf and Jackson wood craftsman Fletcher Cox, who built the reception desk for the Craft Center, Smyda heeds words of inspiration from his father: "If you follow your talents, you'll be happy, successful, and fulfilled."

Following their dreams is the common thread that ties all of these Mississippi craftsmen together. The Mississippi Craft Center itself is a dream come true for the Craftsmen's Guild of Mississippi.

The grand opening and dedication of the Mississippi Craft Center building is tentatively set for the third weekend in March. Opening events are scheduled to include a ticketed preview party March 22, a dedication ceremony and tour March 23, and the Spring Fest show and sale March 24. Times to be set; for updated details, call 601/981-0019 (before March 22). For info after the opening, call 601/856-7546, or see www.mscraftsmensguild.org.

For more information on Betsy Liles' jewelry, see www.blilesstudio.com; on Dr. Craig Escude's lamps and other art, see www.cleARTS.com; on Sheri Marshall's pottery, see www. marshall-pottery.com; and on Bryan Smyda's furniture, see www.smydawoodworking.com.