Upcoming events and things to do in Asheville, NC. Below is a list of events for festivals, concerts, art exhibitions, group meetups and more.

Interested in adding an event to our calendar? Please click the green “Post Your Event” button below.

Sunday, August 8, 2021
Summer at Biltmore
Aug 8 @ 9:30 am – 6:00 pm
Biltmore

See the source image

Summer at Biltmore offers an abundance of opportunities to explore our 8,000-acre Blue Ridge Mountain backyard and create the kind of memories that last a lifetime. Wander through historic gardens, along winding trails, and within the spacious halls of America’s Largest Home®. Enjoy extraordinary experiences and peace of mind in one spectacular setting: only at Biltmore.

Art on the Farm | “Classic Modernist Workshop”
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
The Gallery at Flat Rock
Art on the Farm | "Classic Modernist Workshop"

In partnership with The Gallery at Flat Rock, join international artist Marsha Hammel for a 3-day workshop hosted by The Horse Shoe Farm.

Imagine a mashup of Modigliani, Matisse and Picasso- that might describe my style of figurative painting. Old School, perhaps, but with an awareness of contemporary techniques this approach has served my studio practice for almost fifty years.

My workshop will focus on the fundamentals; composition, line and gesture, color. We will explore these elements in depth over 3 days of morning and afternoon sessions.

My prejudice is that Big is Better- we will work on canvases no smaller than 24×30 inches. My own canvas will be a 30×40 inches.

Our subject will be a seated or reclining model arranged in a “tableau” with potted plants and/or flowers in a vase or with bowl of fruit. Participants may choose to focus only on the figure or the still life or both.

The result of these three days will produce a finished painting and provide participants with an invigorated perspective of their own approach to canvas painting.

– Marsha Hammel

Daily gourmet lunches and afternoon wine & cheese spread are included

Aston Park Tennis Center
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 7:30 pm
Aston Park Tennis Center
people playing on the courts at aston park tennis center

 

Asheville Parks & Recreation is pleased to announce the opening of Aston Park Tennis Center on April 1 for the 2021 season.  The tennis facility will be open seven days a week with two sessions of court availability — a morning session from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and an afternoon session from 3 to 7:30 p.m. with a one-hour break for midday cleaning.

Visitors can expect some changes to typical operations to meet current state and local health guidelines including enhanced cleaning, social distancing and mandatory mask wearing except while actively engaged in tennis activity on the court.  The Pro Shop will remain closed to foot traffic, however basic tennis supplies, drinks, and racquet drop-off for restringing will be available at the window.  Court fees will also be accepted at the window by credit card only and water fountains and showers will not be available.

 

Tennis Center prices are the same as they were in 2019, with hourly rates beginning at $6 and $7 and season passes starting at $299 and $399 for City of Asheville residents.  For more information and to purchase a season pass, visit the City’s Parks & Recreation website at www.ashevillenc.gov/parks.

 

The Aston Park Tennis Center, 336 Hilliard Ave.,  is one of the finest public clay tennis court facilities in the US.  The complex is open from April through November and offers 12 lighted courts for play.

 

The City of Asheville Parks & Recreation Department is committed to providing quality facilities and programs in a safe environment for everyone in our community.  For more information about everything Asheville Parks & Recreation offers, visit the website at www.ashevillenc.gov/parks,  Facebook page at www.facebook.com/APRCA or call 828-259-5800.

Friends of Hominy Creek Greenway Workday
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Hominy Creek Greenway

Join Asheville GreenWorks and Friends of Hominy Creek Greenway for a workday of tail maintenance, milkweed planting, invasive removal, and more. All gear and supplies will be provided. Please wear pants and close toed shoes and prepare to be among vegetation, including possible briars. Bring water and sun protection. Contact [email protected] with any questions.

We work with groups of all ages and abilities. Minors under 14 years old must be accompanied by an adult on all workdays. Minors 14-17 can volunteer unaccompanied but must have a parent or guardian submit a minor waiver. Contact [email protected] to learn more.

This event will take place outside. Unvaccinated individuals are required to wear a mask at all times. Review our Communicable Disease Guidelines for Volunteers

Graduate Show 2021: Haywood Community College Professional Crafts Program
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Folk Art Center

Graduate Show 2021: Haywood Community College Professional Crafts Program

New in the Focus Gallery- “Sparkle”
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Folk Art Center

Sparkle – Aug. 7 – Nov. 9, 2021

1 Dawn Hinesley – Jones – glass
2 Teresa Hays –wearable textile
3 Robin Ford – wall textile (batik)
4 Erin Janow – clay
5 Jason Janow – jewelry

Shop at Second Gear + Support RiverLink
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Second Gear

During the month of August Second Gear has selected RiverLink as their monthly non-profit partner! They will be donating 1% of all the proceed they receive throughout the month. We are so thankful for their generous support of our mission to protect the French Broad River! Both of our organizations share a passion for the environment and helping our community experience it’s beauty. Their support will help us ensure that the French Broad River continues to be an excellent source of outdoor recreation.

Second Gear is a locally owned, independently run store based out of Asheville, North Carolina where they’ve been proudly serving the community since 2004. They buy and sell outdoor gear and help people prepare for their next outdoor adventure. So go get some gear this month and help support clean water!

Volunteer Opportunities at Blue Ridge Humane Society
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Blue Ridge Humane Society

Our volunteers:

  • Improve the quality of living for animals in Henderson County.
  • Make a difference in their community through our community programs like our Spay/Neuter Incentive Program and Meals on Wheels Pet Pals.
  • Provide support for all departments and serve on our board and committees.
  • Help raise crucial funds in our Thrift Store.

It’s easy to get started!

  1. Fill out the Volunteer Application.
  2. Attend a Virtual Volunteer Information Session to learn more about Blue Ridge Humane Society and current volunteer opportunities.
  3. Pick a Volunteer Assignment! Decide what volunteer position works best for you! Some assignments can get started right away and some require prior orientation and training such as animal handling training that you can get started on.
  4. Start Volunteering! Get started in your position. Our volunteers make a huge impact in Henderson County to ensure both pets and their people are happy, healthy, and thriving. We wouldn’t be able to accomplish all we do without them.
Wooden Boxes | Live Demo
Aug 8 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Folk Art Center

Woodworker David Crandall will be demonstrating box making techniques in the lobby of the Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Call ahead for the latest updates: 828-298-7928.

Asheville Art Museum Presents Huffman Gifts of Contemporary Southern Folk Art
Aug 8 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum
Addie James, Big Mama Demp, 2002, acrylic and pen on foamcore, 20 × 16 inches. Asheville Art Museum. © Estate of Addie James.
Asheville, N.C.Huffman Gifts of Contemporary Southern Folk Art features gifts of contemporary southern folk art including paintings, ceramics, and more from the collection of Allen and Barry Huffman. The exhibition will be on view in the Asheville Art Museum’s Judith S. Moore Gallery from April 7 through September 13, 2021.

Allen and Barry Huffman have been collecting contemporary southern folk art for the past 40 years. Both collectors are originally from the South, and their journey together has led them around the southeastern United States, from Florida to Alabama to their hometown of Hickory, NC. In each place, they formed bonds with regional artists and learned first-hand the narratives of each artwork. Within their collection are subsets of folk art, including self-taught artists driven to share their messages, crafts for the tourist market, and southern pottery. The guiding principle evident throughout their collection and the generous donation of contemporary southern folk art that they have gifted to the Asheville Art Museum is the story told by each of these artists through their artworks.

“The Asheville Art Museum is fortunate to have friends like the Huffmans; not only are they prolific collectors who have generously shared gifts with the Museum, but their knowledge about southern contemporary folk art and its artists enriches the region,” says Whitney Richardson, associate curator. “I have such respect for the curious nature with which Allen and Barry have approached adding each artwork to their collection. They formed a friendship with almost every artist they bought from and have a genuine interest in the stories being told by the art and its artist.”

Artists featured include Barry Gurley Huffman (GA, 1943–Present Hickory, NC), James Cook (Glen Alpine, NC 1934–1984 Lawndale, NC), Albert Hodge (Vale, NC 1941—Present Vale, NC), Howard Finster (Valley Mead, AL 1916–2001 Rome, GA), Addie James (SC 1943–2011 Statesville, NC), James Harold Jennings (Pinnacle, NC 1931–1999 Pinnacle, NC), LaVon Van Williams Jr. (Lakeland, FL 1958–Present Lexington, KY), and more.

This exhibition is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and curated by Whitney Richardson, associate curator. For more information, visit ashevilleart.org/exhibitions/huffman-gifts-of-contemporary-southern-folk-art.

Asheville Art Museum Presents Olympics-Themed Exhibitions for Summer 2021
Aug 8 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum
Walter Iooss Jr., Carl Lewis, Houston, TX, 1991, archival pigment print on paper, 23 ¼ × 29 inches. Asheville Art Museum. © Walter Iooss Jr.
Asheville, N.C.—The Asheville Art Museum is organizing a group of three exhibitions drawn from the Musem’s Collection in conjunction with the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. They will be on view in the Explore Asheville Exhibition Hall from July 9 through October 4, 2021.

“With these three exhibitions, the Asheville Art Museum is looking froward to bringing the Olympics to Asheville,” says Whitney Richardson, associate curator. “Athletes, sports fanatics, and those who enjoy art that captures the human athletic form will, I hope, all find something valuable in visiting these exhibitions. Some of the artworks are by renowned artists and some depict world-famous athletes, but it all speaks to the importance of the Olympics—and sports in general—in our lives and how we honor our athletes.”

Golden Hour: Olympians Photographed by Walter Iooss Jr. highlights dozens of photographer Walter Iooss Jr.’s images from the Museum’s Collection. Over his 60-year career, Iooss (Temple, TX 1943–Present NY) has captured portraits of hundreds of celebrated American athletes in action, and a select few as they prepared for the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. He began his career shooting for Sports Illustrated and has contributed to the magazine for more than 50 years.

Artistic Tribute: Representation of the Athlete pays homage to the historic Olympic tradition of including the arts as a competition. Until 1948, the modern Olympics included artistic representations of the athletes in painting and sculpture, among other media, as the ancient Olympics had done. This exhibition features artworks from the Museum’s Collection that follow this custom by artists including Robert Rauschenberg (Port Arthur, TX 1925–2008 Captiva, FL), Dox Thrash (Griffin, GA 1893–1965 Philadelphia, PA), Gerald van de Wiele (Detroit, MI 1932–Present New York, NY), Ward H. Nichols (Welch, WV 1930–Present NC), Marvin Lipofsky (Elgin, IL 1938–2016 Berkeley, CA), David Levinthal (San Francisco, CA 1949–Present New York, NY), and more.

Precious Medals: Gold, Silver & Bronze highlights works from the Museum’s Collection including glass, ceramic, fashion, and sculpture that use the same metals that are given to the top three placing athletes in an Olympic competition. The precious nature of these three metals is examined in relation to the artworks shown. Artists featured in this exhibition include Virginia Scotchie (Portsmouth, VA 1955–Present Columbia, SC), Mark Stanitz (1949–Present Northern California), William Waldo Dodge Jr. (Washington, D.C. 1895–1971 Asheville, NC), Richard Ritter (Detroit, MI 1940–Present Bakersville, NC), Jan Williams (Bucks County, PA–Present Bakersville, NC), and more.

These three exhibitions are organized by the Asheville Art Museum and curated by Whitney Richardson, associate curator.

Public Domain: Photography and the Preservation of Public Lands Exhibition
Aug 8 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

11am–6pm. Late-night Thursdays until 9pm; closed Tuesdays.

Public Domain: Photography and the Preservation of Public Lands presents works drawn from the Asheville Art Museum’s Collection by artists looking both regionally and nationally at lands that are either state or federally managed or have become so. This exhibition will be on view in the Asheville Art Museum’s Van Winkle Law Firm Gallery May 19 through August 30, 2021. 

“The Asheville Art Museum’s growing collection of photography features a variety of artworks that consider humankind’s impact on our environment and world,” said Hilary Schroeder, assistant curator. “The imagery featured in Public Domain reminds us of the critical role that artists play in environmental activism and preservation, affecting change at a range of levels”. 

Through images capturing the beauty, changes, and even devastation to the American landscape, photographers have played a vital role in advocating for the preservation of nature via the establishment and maintenance of state parks, national parks and monuments, and other federally protected lands. From George Masa and Timothy McCoy’s photographs of Great Smoky Mountains National Park to a selection of works from Robert Glenn Ketchum’s Overlooked in America: The Success and Failure of Federal Land Management series, these artworks provoke contemplation of both nature’s beauty and a calling to protect it. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Bureau of Land Management whose mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. 

Photographers include Robert Glenn Ketchum, George Masa, Timothy McCoy, Benjamin Porter, Sally Gall, and more. 

This exhibition is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and curated by Hilary Schroeder, assistant curator. 

Walter B. Stephen Pottery: Cameo to Crystalline
Aug 8 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

Artist Walter B. Stephen (Clinton, IA 1875–1961 Asheville, NC) contributed to Western North Carolina’s identity as a flourishing site for pottery production and craftsmanship in the early 20th century. Walter B. Stephen Pottery: Cameo to Crystalline features art pottery and functional vessels from each stage of Stephen’s career, from his origins discovering the medium alongside his mother Nellie C. Randall Stephen in Shelby County, TN from 1901 through 1910 to his multi-decade production just outside of Asheville. This exhibition will be on view in the Asheville Art Museum’s Debra McClinton Gallery July 28, 2021 through January 17, 2022.

In 1926, Stephen founded his third and last pottery studio, Pisgah Forest, in Arden, NC, which he operated until his death in 1961. It was at this studio that the artist perfected the “cameo” decoration technique for which he became best known. His hand-painted images, achieved with layers of white translucent clay, often feature American folk imagery, from covered wagons and livestock to cabins and spinning wheels. A selection of works from the Museum’s Collection showcase his innovation in form and in decorative surface details, including experimentation with crystalline glazing.

$5 Mimosas
Aug 8 @ 12:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Down Dog

$5 Mimosas

$5 Mimosas every Saturday & Sunday

Bluegrass Brunch
Aug 8 @ 12:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Jack of the Wood

Jack’s Bluegrass Brunch is every Sunday! Our menu kicks off at 12Noon with live tunes by Supper Break from 1-3pm. Try our $6 Bloody Mary or Mimosa, or grab a $15 Bottles of Champagne & OJ! Try one of our tasty brunch specials or order from our artisanal sandwich menu. Sláinte Y’all!

Free Admission Western North Carolina Air Museum
Aug 8 @ 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Western North Carolina Air Museum

The Western North Carolina Air Museum is a center of living history in the popular Hendersonville – Flat Rock region of the state. Don’t miss this unique opportunity to remember flying the way it used to be. Bring your kids, your camera, and your leather jacket. You can view the airplanes in an hour or so, or spend the afternoon hanger-flying with our friendly, informative staff. We can’t guarantee fine weather, but our hangar doors are open rain and shine. And we can’t guarantee that we’ll be flying on the day you visit, but we do promise to propel your imagination back to the golden age of general aviation. Come for the airplanes. Stay for the memories. There’s plenty of both right here at the Western North Carolina Air Museum.

Preserving & Promoting

Our

Carolina Flying Heritage

Meadow Market
Aug 8 @ 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Highland Brewing Company
One Day I Will Disappear, a solo exhibition
Aug 8 @ 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Bender Gallery

Bender Gallery is honored to present One Day I Will Disappear, a solo exhibition of current paintings by Czech American artist Tom Pazderka. His captivating work is deeply personal and is an elegant metaphor for life’s darker side: of landscape, of nature, of memory. The exhibition runs from July 3 through August 31 during regular business hours. There will be an opening reception for Pazderka on Saturday July 3, from 6 to 9 PM by RSVP only.

Pazderka is a painter, an installation artist, an intellectual, and a writer who spent his undergraduate years in the Asheville area. He was born near Prague in 1981 during the waning of the Communist era in Czechoslovakia. He lived in a panelák, a Soviet-style concrete apartment block, until emigrating to the US in 1994 at the age of twelve. Contrary to what we may envision in America, Pazderka has fond memories of his time there. Although life was basic and creativity was not encouraged, his family was never in need and they enjoyed regular visits to their family cottage in the country. However, most of Pazderka’s life has been lived in the US and he also considers himself American. His work and life are deeply influenced by what he describes as the “incompleteness of the immigrant experience”. Pazderka explores humanity’s quest for a universal truth. The work reflects his reverence for history and the failed Soviet promise of utopia of his native land. It is thus a balancing act between this history and his assimilation into the capitalist consumer culture of the United States.

The works shown in One Day I Will Disappear consist of oil, ash, and charcoal paintings on burned panel and paper. They feature clouds, mountains, portraits, ephemera, and remnants of nature. They are conceptually dark, yet haunting and beautiful at the same time. Pazderka uses humble materials such as found plywood panels that he burns with a torch before beginning the painting process. He transforms the painting surface with the destructive, yet creative power of fire. He states, “Materials and process are components of the work that are as important as the image and what the work is about”.

Pazderka chooses to work in a colorless palette reminiscent of aged black and white photographs. He explains, “Photographs interest me because it is a tangible memory, but photographs are really residue of the photographic process.”  They are themselves a memory of a memory. Much of Pazderka’s work is based on old family photographs and photos taken from nature and architecture relaying the past, the present, and the hope of a better future. The work appears otherworldly and fleeting, like ghosts of his memories. In Pazderka’s words, “The present is all there is in the end.”

Pazderka holds a BFA from Western Carolina University and an MFA from U.C. Santa Barbara. He has received many awards and fellowships and has held residencies in the US, France, and the Czech Republic. He lives and works in Ojai, CA.

Rocky Cove Railroad Exhibit
Aug 8 @ 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
NC Arboretum

On exhibit Saturdays and Sundays through October from 12 to 4 p.m. (weather permitting), Rocky Cove Railroad is a G-Scale (garden scale) model train that demonstrates the coming of trains to western North Carolina at the turn of the 20th century. The exhibit is located below the Grand Garden Promenade.

Sundays on the Island, Marshall
Aug 8 @ 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Sundays on the Island
JAZZ BRUNCH Free · One World West
Aug 8 @ 1:30 pm – 4:00 pm
One World West Brewing

JAZZ BRUNCH @ ONE WORLD WEST
EVERY SUNDAY FROM 1:30-4PM
FIRST SET BY THE HOUSE BAND & SECOND SET IS A JAZZ JAM
WEEKLY BRUNCH MENU FROM UMAMI MAMI
Coed/Hospitality Softball League
Aug 8 @ 2:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Asheville Parks

Coed/Hospitality Softball League –

Fall ’21 Coed (Hospitality Rules) Softball League Individual Player Registration – Find your team and sign up with them prior to the start of your season!

Non-resident of Asheville fee and free agent (looking for a team) – $25
Game Day Information – Sundays, starting at 2:00pm, regular season & postseason tournament
3 Divisions; Upper, Middle, and Lower (divisions could be combined based on team registrations)

AA21030202-01 Coed/Hospitality Softball – Upper 08/08/2021 –11/07/2021 2:00 pm – 7:00 pm Su Martin Luther King
AA21030202-02 Coed/Hospitality Softball – Middle 08/08/2021 –11/07/2021 2:00 pm – 7:00 pm Su Montford Complex
AA21030202-03 Coed/Hospitality Softball – Lower 08/08/2021 –11/07/2021 2:00 pm – 7:00 pm Su Shiloh Ballfields
Love, Marriage and the Irish!: Two One Acts by J.M. Barrie and G.B. Shaw
Aug 8 @ 2:30 pm
Attic Salt Theatre Company

Fireworks fly in the drawing room as an unexpected visitor sends Harry Sims Into a tailspin on the day before he is to be knighted in J.M Barrie’s delightful play The Twelve Pound Look. And George Bernard Shaw infuses comedy into the terrible experience of war in O’Flaherty, V.C. as he depicts an Irish soldier trying to come to terms with what it means to be a hero.

Clawhammer Celebration, Supporting Conservation
Aug 8 @ 3:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Highland Brewing Company

Tamarya teaching youth camp about chickens on farmSouthern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy

Our Corporate Partners at Highland Brewing Company have planned a jam packed weekend celebrating their newest seasonal release, Clawhammer!
Friday:
Axeville set up outside the tasting room from 5-8pm
The Get Right Band live in the Meadow from 6-8pm
Plus delicious food by Sweet Cheeseus and Baires Food trucks
$1 from every pour of Clawhammer will be donated to our community partner Southern Appalachian Highland Conservancy!
Saturday:
Grab a liter of half liter pour of Clawhammer and enjoy music by Alex Arcana in the meadow from 6-8pm
Sunday:
Rooftop pop up with Clawhammer and donuts for sale by Stay Glazed. Rooftop will be open to anyone 21+
More info at https://highlandbrewing.com/event/clawhammer-celebration/

 

Food Truck Sundays
Aug 8 @ 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Archetype Brewing

In conjunction with Sunday Sessions Live (and virtual) music: Food Truck Sundays will bring a new or rotating “staff favorite” cuisine each week to the Beechams Curve offerings.
Gan Shan West, our main culinary provider 6 days a week, is closed on Sundays. Enjoy the convenience, delicious variety and the music – all in one Sunday Funday stop!

Jack of the Wood : Sunday-Irish Session
Aug 8 @ 3:00 pm
Jack of the Wood

 

Jack of the Wood : Sunday-Irish Session 

Sundays

1 till who knows when?

Traditional Irish music is kept alive at Jack of the Wood with our unplugged Sunday session.

Jack of the Wood

95 Patton ave

Asheville, NC 28801

(828) 252.5445

http://www.jackofthewood.com/

Season Finale: Garrick Ohlsson Plays Beethoven
Aug 8 @ 3:00 pm
Whittington-Pfohl Auditorium

Season Finale: Garrick Ohlsson Plays Beethoven

Maestro Keith Lockhart closes our 85th Anniversary Season with Tchaikovsky’s electrifying Fourth Symphony, and the return of BMC favorite Garrick Ohlsson, a pianist of “magisterial interpretive and technical prowess,” in Beethoven’s 4th Piano Concerto.

PERFORMANCE & ARTIST DETAILS
Brevard Music Center Orchestra
Keith Lockhart, conductor
Garrick Ohlsson, piano

FELIX MENDELSSOHN Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage, Op. 27
LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4
P. I. TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 4

Lead Sponsor: Ingles Markets

Please note: Auditorium seating is reserved.  Lawn seating is general admission.

Richard III –A Montford Moppets Production
Aug 8 @ 5:30 pm
Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre

Richard III – Aug. 6 – 15 at 5:30 pm

by W. Shakespeare

The Moppets close their summer season with this dark and brooding history of one of England’s most treacherous kings.

The Sword in the Stone w/ The Montford Park Players
Aug 8 @ 7:30 pm
Hazel Robinson Amphitheatre

The Sword in the Stone – July 30 – Aug. 28

by Shaan Sharma

The Arthurian legend begins right here, with some family-friendly adventure.

Widespread Panic
Aug 8 @ 8:00 pm
Harrah’s Cherokee Center – Asheville

Widespread Panic