Work of the Week at the Asheville Art Museum

May 24 - 30, Asheville Art Museum, 2 S Pack Square, Asheville North Carolina. Kenn Kotara creates landscape studies from impromptu sketches he makes as he drives or bicycles around the countryside. His stilllifes and landscapes focus more and more on the abstract and geometrical aspects of the landscape.

This painting was given to the Asheville Art Museum by the artist. It is currently located in our second floor galleries as part of the exhibition Looking Back: Celebrating 60 Years of Collecting at the Asheville Art Museum , an installation of works drawn from the permanent collection. It highlights some of the Museum's holdings in Southeastern and Western North Carolina artists, while also celebrating the generosity of collectors and community supporters who have helped to develop the collection over the past 60 years. Read more...

Jackson County Recreation Center receives Quilt of Jackson County

Cullowhee  North Carolina. On Thursday, May 27th, Catch the Spirit of Appalachia (CSA) and the Appalachian Homestead Farm & Preserve presented the Jackson County Recreation Center a hand pieced, appliquéd quilt of Jackson County in appreciation for the past five years assisting the Patchwork Folk and Fabric Festival. The Center staff  have assisted with anything needed before, during and after the annual show. The quilt has been in the making since the beginning of the year, and will now be on display at the Center located at 88 Cullowhee Mountain Road in Cullowhee.
The 5th annual Patchwork Folk & Fabric Festival will be June 5th at the Jackson County Recreation Center. Come and check out the quilt and take advantage of the handmade arts & crafts show from 9am until 4pm.  For more information, call the Recreation Center at 828-293-3053.

Memorial Day Weekend Events: Heritage Festival in Bryson CIty

May 28-29  Bryson City  North Carolina.  Heritage Festival   Two day festival features local musicians offering old-time gospel, classic country and bluegrass, a highlands pipe and drum corps and high energy "newgrass". Family activities, crafts and food will also be included.

Annual Art and Craft Show in Highlands

May 30   HIGHLANDS  North Carolina.   Village Square Art & Craft Show   Highlands Civic Center & Recreation Park. Regional artists selling fine art, folk art, jewelry, rustic furniture, birdhouses, pottery, fabric art, baskets and more.

Women of These Hills: Female Artists of Appalachia in Brevard

May 28, 2010 - Transylvania Community Arts Council, 349 S. Caldwell Street, Brevard North Carolina. Artwork by Western North Carolina Appalachian women. Mediums include baskets, fiber, clay, paintings, glass, brooms, rugs, photography, sculpture, moss, jewelry, and much more.

Pre-Registration Ticket Discount: HandMade: The Western North Carolina Craft, Architecture & Design Expo

June 25 - 26, The North Carolina Arboretum, Asheville North Carolina. Register now for HandMade: The Western North Carolina Craft, Architecture & Design Expo and save money. Tickets are only $15 for a single day Friday or Saturday, and $25 for both days. All tickets purchased by June 21st include admission and parking at the Arboretum. After June 21st tickets may only be purchased on site at the Arboretum and require an additional $8 parking fee.

HandMade: The Western North Carolina Craft, Architecture & Design Expo is a two-day event inviting the public to join artists, architects, builders and designers to share and learn about successful collaborations between craft artists, homeowners and industry professionals. Drawing from the tremendous craft resources that are a unique and vital part of Western North Carolina, the event will emphasize craftsmanship in architectural elements and design for both high-end and mid-range home markets. READ MORE...

2010 CRAFT RESEARCH FUND GUIDELINES & APPLICATION

Deadline July 1, 2010.  THE MISSION of the Craft Research Fund is to advance, expand and support scholarship about United States craft.
GOALS
• To support innovative research on artistic and critical issues in craft theory and history
• To explore the inter-relationship among craft, art, design and contemporary culture
• To foster new cross-disciplinary approaches to scholarship in the craft field in America
• To advance investigation of neglected questions in U.S. craft history and criticism
HISTORY
This program and other projects developed from discussions by craft leaders during annual Think-Tanks hosted each spring beginning in 2002 at the Center for Craft, Creativity and Design (CCCD) in Hendersonville, North Carolina. This is the sixth year of the grant program. A list and description of the 2005 – 2009 Project and Graduate Research Grants can be found on the CCCD website. www.craftcreativitydesign.org/research/grants.php.
2010 Craft Research Fund – PROJECT GRANT Application & Guidelines
2010 Craft Research Fund – GRADUATE RESEARCH GRANT Application & Guidelines

Pincu Pottery Open House and Ribbon Cutting

May 23, noon to 5PM, Pincu Pottery, 80 HWY South, Bryson City North Carolina. Join owner & artist Elise Delfield for an afternoon of studio tours and fantastic refreshments featuring Yellow Branch Pottery & Cheese. ALL TOOLS 10% off! Register for a Friday Night Goes to Pot class and bring a friend for free!  Up to 4 people (meaning 2 pay, 2 for free!) These specials are only available on Sunday during the Grand Opening!

HURRY _A few spaces are still available

June 18, 10 AM - 4PM, Random Arts, Saluda North Carolina. Scraps, Fragments & Artifacts Workshop, with Carol Sloan:

Scrap-a small piece or portion; a fragment
Fragment- a part broken off of or detached; an odd piece or scrap
Artifact- an object made by human beings esp. with a view to subsequent use; a hand made object.

Scraps of fabric, Scraps of stories.
Fragments of a memory, or another time.
Artifacts from your family, your loved ones.

Join me as we gather all our random memories and weave them into a mixed media fiber piece. It's going to be a place that you can finally showcase your little treasures instead of hiding them away in a drawer or box somewhere. Be gathering all those bits and pieces, your favorite little scraps of fabric, all those keepsakes from a loved one.

We'll also learn a lot of different mixed media techniques like joining non-traditional pieces to fiber work, making paper fabric, sewing on (and with) paper...Some fabric painting, a little dyeing...You know - a little of this and a little of that. $80 (some supplies required). 828-699-2210

Folk Art Center Focus Galley Exhibit

Folk Art Center, Milepost 382, Blue Ridge Parkway, Asheville North Carolina. The Folk Art Center Focus Gallery will feature the fiber art of Tommye Scanlin and Diane Getty April 24 - June 15.
Tommye Scanlin:  I have always loved the natural world of the southern Appalachian region where I’ve lived all my life. Many of my tapestries in the 1990s were designed with landscapes and plant life as subjects to celebrate the vibrancy of the world around me...

Diane Getty:  As a fabric artist, I work with both natural images and abstract symbols. In my naturalistic pieces, I study plants and landscapes and interpret them in fiber through painting, collage, and stitching, using stylized and idealized images...

Art in Bloom Festival

May 21-23  Columbus, Landrum and Tryon  Art in Bloom - County-wide Festival  Experience the incredible beauty of the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  Six beautiful private gardens in the Columbus, Landrum and Tryon areas will be open from 11:00-3:00 on May 22nd 11:00-2:00 on May 23rd.  Artists will be painting in the gardens.

Art Mob Tomorrow

May 20, 6PM, Phil Mechanic Studio, River Arts District, Asheville North Carolina. ARTmob Presents Hot Glass + Cold Beer  Artist Talk FREE; $5 Beer Donation  - Come explore the world of glass blowing with Asheville artists Alex Greenwood and Logan MacSporran in their studio with Shane Smith. Join us for a cold beer and demos by these experienced glass artists. This event is not to be missed! Call 828.253.3227 for more information.

Open Studio Tour in Asheville

May 22-23   Kenilworth Neighborhood, Asheville North Carolina.  Kenilworth Artists Association Open Studio Tour  23 artists will represent a wide range of media including glass, fabric, wood, paper, pottery, paintings, mixed media and photography. Free rides to studios on Asheville’s Historic Trolley will be available throughout both days. Hourly artist demonstrations will be featured during the two-day event.

Andrews Hosts HandMade in America Class

May 17   ANDREWS North Carolina.   Free Class from HandMade in America: Online Marketing, Technology, Sales, & Arts Business Growth. The classes will start at 6:00pm every third Monday of the month. Andrews Valley Initiative 985 Main St Andrews NC

Craft Registry Update
Check out our new and improved listing of WNC's craft artists and galleries. Update your information or sign up for a FREE listing in our Craft Registry today!

Asheville Restaurant needs your vote TODAY!

ONE DAY VOTING 5/15/10 - Help Asheville restaurant Sunny Point Café win the title of “America’s Best Breakfast” on Good Morning America - ONE DAY VOTING 5/15 - CLICK HERE

 Sunny Point Café offers breakfast, lunch or dinner, with local flavors that come through in creative and delecious dishes with their famous breakfast menu served all day. Enjoy  handmade desserts and al fresco dining on the patio.

7th Annual Arts and Music Festival Tomorrow in Saluda

May15   SALUDA  North Carolina 7th Annual Saluda Arts  and Music Festival   Showcasing fine arts and crafts from local and regional artists, the Saluda Arts Festival draws thousands of spring tourists visiting Western North Carolina.

Swannanoa Valley Museum Open for 21th Season

April - October, Swannanoa Valley Museum, Black Mountain North Carolina. Check out the many popular events, including hikes and "Daycations" at www.swannanoavalleymuseum.org. The Museum is open  Tues. - Fri. 10 am to 5 pm; Sat. noon to 4 pm, Sun. 2-5 pm. Admission is $2; Museum members and children under 12 free.

Art at the Arboretum

May 23,  11 AM to 4 PM, The North Carolina Arboretum, Asheville North Carolina. The arboretum will host Art at the Arboretum, a special day  featuring demonstrations, book-signings, music, and more by regional artists and craftsmen including Ann Vasilik, Margaret Scanlan, Peter Werner and Tim Barnwell with music by the Mardis Gras Blues Show Band.

2010 CRAFT RESEARCH FUND GUIDELINES & APPLICATION

Deadline for Applications: July 1, 2010
THE MISSION of the Craft Research Fund is to advance, expand and support scholarship about United States craft.
GOALS
• To support innovative research on artistic and critical issues in craft theory and history
• To explore the inter-relationship among craft, art, design and contemporary culture
• To foster new cross-disciplinary approaches to scholarship in the craft field in America
• To advance investigation of neglected questions in U.S. craft history and criticism
HISTORY
This program and other projects developed from discussions by craft leaders during annual Think-Tanks hosted each spring beginning in 2002 at the Center for Craft, Creativity and Design (CCCD) in Hendersonville, North Carolina. This is the sixth year of the grant program. A list and description of the 2005 – 2009 Project and Graduate Research Grants can be found on the CCCD website. www.craftcreativitydesign.org/research/grants.php.
2010 Craft Research Fund – PROJECT GRANT Application & Guidelines
2010 Craft Research Fund – GRADUATE RESEARCH GRANT Application & Guidelines

Mother's Day in the Mountains: Art and Craft Events for Mom

May 7-9  FLAT ROCK  Flat Rock Playhouse Craft Show Expanding its tradition of bringing quality art to Western North Carolina, Flat Rock Playhouse is proud to partner with Inspired Arts to stage the first Flat Rock Playhouse Craft Show. InspiredArts is a collective of craft artists of the highest caliber who want to share their passion and artistry by collaborating with other local and regional artists. The Flat Rock Playhouse Craft Show is their first major endeavor intended to create an event unique to the community while supporting the non-profit Vagabond School of the Drama, parent company to Flat Rock Playhouse

May 8-9 ASHEVILLE Fiber Weekend at the Folk Art Center Fiber artists from the Southern Highland Craft Guild provide hands-on learning about a variety of fiber crafts. Sheep shearing demonstrations are featured throughout the day

May 6-9 BLACK MOUNTAIN Lake Eden Arts Festival L.E.A.F. at Camp Rockmont. Tickets sold on-line in advance. Contact: L.E.A.F. 828)686-8742

May 7-9 ASHEVILLE Mother's Day Juried Arts & Crafts Bazaar  Downtown Market, 45 S. French Broad Ave. The Downtown Market will present its first Mother’s Day Juried Arts & Crafts Bazaar. Select artists and crafters from the southeast will present beautiful spring art, garden treasures and all things “Mother”.

Gallery Minerva Features Rachel Clearfield

Gallery Minerva Fine Art, 8 Biltmore Avenue in Downtown Asheville North Carolina.The Gallery is pleased to represent the infinitely detailed paintings of Rachel Clearfield. The artist calls her work "Classical Visionary" with roots in both the historical and modern eras. Rachel is an avid gardner who paints directly from the beauty which surrounds her home in the mountains of Western North Carolina. Don't hesitate to ask for the Gallery's spyglass to see her work come alive, up close.

Button, Button - Who's got the Button?

May 14-15, Random Arts on the road again at the 2010 North Carolina State Button Show - "Earth and Fire - Celebrating Ceramic Traditions". The show will be held at Wyndham Garden Hotel - Greensboro Airport, 6426 Burnt Poplar Rd, Greensboro. Two full days of buttoning, programs, educational button displays, a button auction, and the ever-popular raffle baskets. Be sure to stop by the Random Arts booth!  ncbuttonsociety.com