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.

Friday, December 10, 2021
Asheville Gallery of Art’s December Exhibit, Joyful Light
Dec 10 all-day
Asheville Gallery of Art

Asheville Gallery of Art

December 2021 Exhibit

“Joyful Light”

Each of us would benefit by having more joy and light into our lives and our world, after the last two difficult years. The December exhibit at the Asheville Gallery of Art focuses on visual images that remind us to welcome the joy and light of the season into our hearts and homes.

“Joyful Light” runs from December 1-31 during gallery hours, 11am-6pm, and features works by numerous artists in a variety of mediums. A gathering to meet the artists will be held on First Friday, December 3 from 5-8pm at the gallery at 82 Patton Avenue. Please join us during this special time of year to view the wonderful medley of offerings!

Patricia Veatch – “Merry Berry”, Oil
“Christmas has always been my favorite time of year. I love Christmas most of all for the opportunity to be with family and share our traditions. After a very isolated zoom Christmas last year, our family is going to celebrate with gusto!”

Sally Lordeon – “Sunlight Thru the Trees”, Acrylic

“As the days shorten, we are reminded of nature’s eternal gift of gleaming sunlight that shines through the thickest forest and brings us the joy of another beautiful day.”

Raquel Egosi – “Terpsichore”, Acrylic

“While mostly abstract, this painting is inspired by the dynamic flow of the joy of dance, the exuberance of life, and the creativity of performance and stage lights.”

Robin Altman – “Mountain Sunflower”, Acrylic
“This little painting is a reminder to get up each day with the intent to shine a light on the world in some way. Just as nothing stops nature, we must stand up and be counted.”

The Asheville Gallery of Art is open 7 days a week. For more information about this show, contact the gallery at (828) 251-5796, visit the gallery website at www.ashevillegallery-of-art.com, or go to the gallery’s Facebook page.

Be an Arts Ally Raffle
Dec 10 all-day
online

Be an Arts Ally

Join or renew your arts council membership between now and December 31st for your chance to win this raffle package, including a Wheel Thrown Shape vase from East Fork, truffles from Chocolate Fetish, a card set from Noir Collective, and two bottles wine from Marked Tree vineyard.

Elida Homes: Sponsor A Child for the Holidays
Dec 10 all-day
online
Eliada works hard to make the holidays a special time for the children in our care. This year, due to the ongoing pandemic and job insecurity, our children and youth need support more than ever.
Many children who are living at Eliada may be restricted to campus and won’t have the opportunity to go home for the holidays. Families in our child development center face financial hardship. Our older youth transitioning to adulthood have children of their own, and are struggling to find work and safe housing during this time.
With community support, Eliada can help parents and guardians provide a bright and joy-filled Christmas to their kids. For most of Eliada’s children and youth, the gifts they receive from sponsors are the only gifts they will get during the holiday season.
How to sponsor a child:
When you sign up to sponsor a child for the holidays, you’ll receive a wish list. Wish lists include information that help you get to know the child such as their favorite sports team, color, and movie. Wish lists also include their top three most need and most wanted items. Needed items include winter clothing, shoes, and hygiene products. Wanted items often include things like music, art supplies, and developmentally appropriate toys and games.
The value of a wish list is around $150. You can divide that cost with friends, or even sponsor several children.
To sign up to sponsor, please contact Rebecca Boline by email at [email protected].
Sponsor multiple children with a program wish list:
We also have wish lists which include items that children will need here at Eliada throughout 2022.
Cottage wish lists are for youth living at Eliada. They include toiletries, bedding and towels, books, games, art supplies, suitcases, and kitchen utensils. Many children will arrive at Eliada in 2021 with a few clothes in a garbage bag. Together we can ensure they feel at home at Eliada.
Other wish lists are for our Child Development, Day Treatment, Campus Farm and Equine Therapy programs with needed classroom and playground supplies.
Sponsor a last minute wish:
Some youth living at Eliada won’t arrive until right before the holidays! We won’t receive their wish lists until late November-early December. If you can shop at the last minute, we can use your support.
If you don’t have time to shop, Eliada will use your donation to purchase gifts for children who may arrive at Eliada very close to Christmas or right after Christmas. It shouldn’t matter when you arrive at Eliada–your wishes should be fulfilled! You can make a donation here. In the comment field, write “holiday wishes.”
To sign up to sponsor multiple children or a teen at the last minute, please contact Rebecca Boline by email at [email protected] or by phone at (828) 254-5356, ext. 306.
GivingTuesday with Homeward Bound
Dec 10 all-day
online
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Giving Tuesday 2021 is only two weeks away. This year, every dollar you donate on Giving Tuesday will be matched up to $50,000.

Let me tell you about Zach.

When Zach was 23 he was involved in a horrific car crash. He sustained a traumatic brain injury, severed his spinal cord, and was paralyzed from the neck down. Along with tremendous pain came addiction to prescription pain-killers, depression and anxiety. Eventually Zach lost his job, his marriage, and soon after he was homeless.

$27 a day will provide housing and case management support for one person for a year. Your Giving Tuesday donation to Homeward Bound will help folks like Zach get into their own homes this holiday season.

Here’s how you can best prepare to help folks like Zach this year:

 

Mark your calendar. Giving Tuesday is two weeks from today, on November 30, 2021.

 

Give! Now through December 31, 2021, your gift will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $50,000 as part of our Creating Hope and Homes Matching Gift Challenge! 

 

Spread the word! Encourage friends, family, and colleagues to join you in Giving Tuesday 2021. Share on social media what our mission means to you, and tag us on Facebook [@homewardboundwnc] or Instagram [@homeward_bound_wnc] so we can share it!

Hop on Board the Flavor Flight! Pre-order Your 2022 AIR Passport
Dec 10 all-day
online
The tastiest ticket in town returns with buy-one-get-one deals from 50 independently owned restaurants in Buncombe County.

The 2022 AIR Passport is ready to take flight and bring you BOGO offers with discounts up to $15 per participating restaurants. A huge thank you to this year’s sponsor BB Barns!!!

It’s the perfect way to visit an old favorite with a friend or dine & discover new restaurants in our area’s vibrant independent eateries.

Pre-order today and it will be ready to ship on Dec. 17!

“The Passport is the single largest fundraiser for the organization.  Last year, due to Covid, the project was suspended.  It’s back and so are some great opportunities to dine around Asheville.” – Jane Anderson, AIR Executive Director 
All proceeds from the AIR Passport go to benefit the ongoing efforts of AIR to keep Asheville’s food scene eclectic and authentic. Makes great gifts for your favorite foodie friends! Click on the button to see a full list of participating restaurants. Limited supply available and they go fast!

*Please note: The 2022 AIR Passport is currently available for pre-order only. We will begin shipping pre-orders on Dec. 17. It will also be available for purchase at the Visitor Center in the Asheville Shop at 36 Montford Ave. starting Dec. 17.

Make the Holidays Brighter for a Senior, Adult with a Disability, or a Child in Foster Care
Dec 10 all-day
online

Your favorite giving opportunity is back! Help make this holiday special for a child in Foster Care or a Senior in Buncombe County by becoming a Holiday Sponsor.

Foster Care Wish List

Foster Care Wish List

Each year, the Buncombe County Foster Care Team organizes a gift drive for children in foster care in Buncombe County. Bringing a smile to a child’s face this year is easier than ever. Just follow the link below, select the child you would like to sponsor, and check your email for confirmation, a reminder of what your child would like this holiday season, and drop-off instructions. We are taking extra precautions due to COVID-19 so be sure to read the follow-up email in its entirety.

Click here to sponsor a child.

Senior Wish Tree

Senior Wish Tree

There are a lot of seniors and adults with disabilities in Buncombe County who look forward to the sense of community the holiday season brings. Spread the love this year by supporting one of our adults or seniors. Signing up to sponsor an adult is easy. Just follow the link below, select the adult you would like to sponsor, and check your email for confirmation, a reminder of what your adult would like this holiday season, and drop-off instructions. We are taking extra precautions due to COVID-19 so be sure to read the follow-up email in its entirety.

Click here to sponsor a Senior or Adult with a Disability.

Give the gift of community this year by becoming a Holiday Sponsor for a child in foster care or a senior in Buncombe County. Nearly 2 years of limited social opportunity has left many feeling isolated this holiday season. Your sponsorship is more than a few gifts under the tree, it’s a sense of belonging for those in our community who need it the most. Thank you for your generosity and for bringing the spirit of the season to our community.

Van Gogh Alive at Biltmore Estate
Dec 10 all-day
Biltmore Estate

See the source image

Various times

His masterworks have been displayed around the world for over a century… but never like this. Described as “an unforgettable multi-sensory experience,” Van Gogh Alive is a powerful and vibrant symphony of light, color, sound, and scent that compels you to leave the world behind and immerse yourself in Van Gogh’s paintings. Simultaneously enchanting, entertaining, and educational, Van Gogh Alive stimulates all the senses and opens the mind.

Virtual Angel Giving Tree
Dec 10 all-day
online

Our virtual angel tree is up for this holiday season. This gift tree provides our broader YWCA community a path to join us as we aim to support our program participants and their families with a holiday season full of love and support.

If you are able to, please select a gift from our Amazon wish list by December 10, 2021. Gifts from the list will be mailed directly to our building and will be sorted and distributed by our YWCA elves. All items on the list have been selected by the families and are items they are wishing for or are in need of this holiday season.

If you would like to go further and adopt a family this holiday season please email Katie Zambrano in our Women’s Empowerment Department to get the details of how you can fulfill a family’s holiday wish.

All gifts must be ordered by December 10.


Programs Served by the Angel Tree

MotherLove
YWCA’s MotherLove program supports pregnant and parenting teens throughout Buncombe County. Our goals are to help young parents to stay in school and graduate, access higher education and vocational training, develop the skills and knowledge needed to become strong parents, and delay another teen pregnancy.

Getting Ahead In a Just Getting By World
YWCA’s Getting Ahead program aims to provide financial empowerment for low-income women of all ages and backgrounds to make choices that positively impact themselves, their families, and their community.

Early Learning Program
YWCA’s Early Learning Program provides 5-star childcare for children ages 6 weeks to 5 years. Our experienced and compassionate teachers not only provide exceptional care for little ones, but also prepare young children to succeed cognitively, physically, socially, and emotionally. We prioritize families using childcare vouchers or caring for children in the foster care system.

Empowerment Childcare
The YWCA provides up to 12 hours of free childcare per week for parents who are in transition, continuing their education, accessing social services, or looking for employment. ECC works closely with the Family Justice Center, Buncombe County Health and Human Services, A-B Tech, Green Opportunities, and Mary Benson House.

Volunteer at MANNA during the holidays
Dec 10 all-day
MANNA’s Volunteer Center

Holiday Season Volunteering

During the holiday season, our volunteer shifts usually fill up very quickly. If you are interested in volunteering during the holidays, please contact us as early as possible (at least 6-8 weeks in advance). Due to increased call and email volumes at this time, please allow for 4-5 business days to receive a reply.

Hunger does exist year-round, and we often have a greater need for volunteers during January and February. If you have flexibility in your volunteering schedule, please consider volunteering after the holidays.

Wine and Wolves! Donate to Full Moon Farm Wolf Sanctuary
Dec 10 all-day
online w/ Full Moon Farm

Full Moon Farm is an organization dedicated to the well being of the wolfdog (wolf hybrid). Situated on 17 beautiful mountain acres in Black Mountain, NC, we operate as a federally recognized 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization for abused and refused wolfdogs who find themselves in need of love, shelter, and care through no fault of their own.

Full Moon Farm provides a safe haven for animals that cannot be placed into homes for the rest of their lives.  Our rescued wolfdogs come from animal control agencies, closed breeding situations and occasionally, an owner in crisis.  We evaluate each animal upon intake and work with them at their level of comfort.

Some animals are “hands off” and we respect their choice, as well as that of the animals that crave human interaction.  Our goal is to enrich the lives of the residents, allowing them to reach their highest potential.  Your support by donation or sponsorship makes our task possible.

Though they may be abused or neglected, homeless because of death or divorce, they are all God’s Creatures and worthy of a lifetime of respect. We are here to serve them.

  • Nancy Brown

It’s Memorable, Fast, and Easy! Also, 15% of your purchase will directly be applied to Full Moon Farm, not only will mom be getting great wines, but you will also be supporting a great cause.

Use code GBFULLMOON19 at checkout to donate 15% to Full Moon Farm.

Food Lion Feeds For the Holidays
Dec 10 @ 7:00 am – 11:00 pm
various Food Lions in the area
From November 10th to December 14th, Food Lion is hosting their Food Lion Feeds For the Holidays campaign.
Customers have the opportunity to participate in the in-store food drive at Food Lion stores by purchasing and donating a Food Lion Feeds For the Holidays box of food, which will then be donated to MANNA.
When you are next at Food Lion be on the lookout for their Food Lion Feeds For the Holidays food boxes.
Arbor Huescapes: Paintings by Michael Fowler
Dec 10 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
The North Carolina Arboretum

Artist Michael Fowler creates evocative abstract landscape paintings by incorporating vibrant colors with subtle, complex details. His semi-large-scale approach invites viewers to step into his work and build a sense of wonder and contemplation surrounding the natural world. Fowler’s artistic response in contemplating nature is to capture something of a landscape’s pleasantness, which is often unexpected harmonies of color and shape. In his latest exhibit, Arbor Huescapes, Fowler highlights the distinctive vegetation – primarily trees – and topography of North and South Carolina’s midlands and piedmont regions.

Fowler received his Bachelor of Arts from Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas with a focus in Advertising Design. He then attended the University of Nebraska where he received a Master’s degree in Fine Arts in Painting and Drawing with a minor in Art History. From there, he attended the University of Memphis where he earned a Doctorate in Higher Education. Based in North Augusta, South Carolina, Fowler is currently an associate professor of design and computer graphics and serves as the Mary Durban Toole Chair of Art at the University of South Carolina in Aiken. His paintings are in a number of public and private collections nationally, and he actively exhibits in regional and national shows.

Please note: Arbor Huescapes has been rescheduled due to the COVID-19 crisis and will now open in fall 2021. The exhibit is on display daily September 18, 2021 – January 9, 2022, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. inside the Baker Exhibit Center. All works are available for purchase and a portion of sales will be donated to The North Carolina Arboretum Society.

BLACK + WHITE 4
Dec 10 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Folk Art Center

Main Gallery show featuring members of the Southern Highland Craft Guild.

Handmade Holiday Sale at Grovewood Gallery
Dec 10 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Grovewood Gallery

‘Tis the season to give handmade gifts! On December 10-12 from 10 am – 5 pm, Grovewood Gallery will be offering a refreshing alternative to big-box retail chains during their annual Handmade Holiday Sale. Shoppers can enjoy three days of artist demonstrations and 10% off American-made gifts and merchandise (excluding artwork by Lyman Whitaker).

Dancing Rabbi Menorah by Scott Nelles.Dancing Rabbi Menorah by Scott Nelles.

Heart of Health Art and Social Science Exhibit: WNC African American Lives
Dec 10 @ 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
John Cram Partner Gallery at the Center for Craft
“He”, by artist Ann Miller Woodford, will be on display as part of the Black in Black on Black exhibit in downtown Asheville, NC’s John Cram Partner Gallery at the Center for Craft

Black in Black on Black: Making the Invisible Visible 

On September 6th, UNC Asheville, the Asheville Buncombe Institute of Parity Achievement (ABIPA), and partners will launch a new exhibit, Black in Black on Black: Making the Invisible Visible in the John Cram Partner Gallery at the Center for Craft. The new exhibit is a visual conversation about the lives and contributions of Black/African American communities in Western North Carolina (WNC).

Bringing together stunning artwork and visual design by WNC-based artists Ann Miller Woodford, Ronda Birtha, Viola Spells, and Reggie Tidwell, with social science data and stories, this exhibit invites audiences into an often invisible history of our region. As Woodford states, “My emphasis has been on people who have dedicated their lives to humanity, but have been overlooked, ignored, and often forgotten.”

Deeply personal art is integrated with charts and quotes from the Heart of Health: Race, Place, and Faith in Western North Carolina project. Heart of Health is a three-year community-participatory research study that seeks to better understand the role and impact of race and racism on health through secondary data analyses and interviews. It is co-led by researchers from UNC Asheville, ABIPA, and Sparrow Research, and community partners from around WNC. “One of our first findings was that much of the data on African Americans and drivers of health and inequities, for example, land and business ownership, have been suppressed due to small populations or other reasons. This collaborative research seeks to highlight and encourage responsible collection and use of data and stories,” said Ameena Batada, UNC Asheville professor of health and wellness and one of the co-leads on the Heart of Health project.

Visitors to the exhibit, both in-person and online, are invited to a multisensory and interactive experience, including paintings, photographs, narrative text, quotes and graphics, sculptural pieces, digital data visualization, and music. The exhibit also invites visitors to learn about the ways in which African Americans and others in WNC are working to reduce racism and build community through grassroots and organizational efforts. JéWana Grier McEachin, executive director of ABIPA, co-lead on the Heart of Health project, and member of exhibit partner The LINKS Incorporated, remarked, “The gathering of data and translation of research through Black in Black on Black has been influenced by the connections of the Artists, WNC Research Team and Community Advisory Board. This sort of six degrees of separation between the research exhibit and active change agents through Organizations in Western North Carolina is impactful and invaluable.”

Black in Black on Black: Making the Invisible Visible will be up in the John Cram Partner Gallery at the Center for Craft at 67 Broadway Street in Asheville, NC from September 6, 2021 – January 7, 2021, and a virtual tour soon online. Support for this project was provided by a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Interdisciplinary Research Leaders program. Interdisciplinary Research Leaders is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation led by the University of Minnesota. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of the Foundation or the University of Minnesota.

Learn more about the exhibit, artists, and research at: heartofhealthwnc.wordpress.com/annstree.comthinlyfoldedegg.comwww.facebook.com/ZenobiaStudio/, and pro16productions.com.

Winter Wonderland
Dec 10 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
North Carolina Glass Center

Come celebrate the season at our first Winter Wonderland! Our D Space Gallery, will be adorned with glass ornaments, snowflakes, snowmen, candy canes, and whatever else Asheville area glassblowers dream up. Shop for holiday gifts or festive decor for your home while watching live glassblowing in our studio. Winter Wonderland will be open during our normal gallery hours. The opening of this show coincides with River Arts District Studio Stroll, so there will be plenty to do and see in the area. NCGC is a non-profit glassblowing studio and gallery. Your purchases help to support local artists and our mission of education, exploration, and collaboration in all forms of glass.

Brunch B’yahad Virtual
Dec 10 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
Online w/ Asheville Jewish Community Center

Brunch B’Yahad is now available through Zoom meeting here.   

Join new and old friends for light brunch, socialization and lively discussion.  Featured guest speakers, and relevant cultural and timely topics will fill our minds.

Live Holiday Glassblowing Demo
Dec 10 @ 10:30 am – 4:00 pm
Mountain Made Gallery

Here at Mountain Made, we are proud that since 2010 master scientific glass blower, Jason Probstein has been presenting live glassblowing demonstrations here at our art gallery.

And once again we are proud to announce that Jason will be blowing his unique Christmas ornaments here at Mountain Made until December 20th, or until his gas tanks run dry!

A Dance of Images and Words: The Nancy Graves/Pedro Cuperman Tango Portfolio Art Exhibition
Dec 10 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum
Nancy Graves, Parable of Nostalgia from the Tango portfolio, 1991, intaglio on cotton rag paper, edition 12/26, publisher: Iris Editions, New York, image: 26 × 17 5/8 inches, sheet: 35 3/4 × 26 inches. Asheville Art Museum. © Nancy Graves Foundation, Inc. / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Dance of Images and Words: The Nancy Graves/Pedro Cuperman Tango Portfolio features a series of eight intaglio prints that depict plants and animals alongside eleven sheets of prose that explore the steps of the Argentinian dance, the tango. Organized by the Asheville Art Museum from the Museum’s Collection and curated by Hilary Schroeder, assistant curator, this exhibition will be on view in The Van Winkle Law Firm Gallery at the Museum from September 29, 2021 through January 10, 2022.

The common idiom “it takes two to tango” is immediately called into question in both the imagery and words of the Tango portfolio. The portfolio is an expression of artist Nancy Graves (Pittsfield, MA 1939–1995 New York, NY) writer Pedro Cuperman’s (1936–2016 Buenos Aires, Argentina) meditations on the dance. Their imagery and words become paired in an illustrated book though their explorations take different formats and directions. Both Graves and Cuperman look towards humankind and nature as a place where beings come together in the experience of living. This exhibition presents Graves’s eight prints alongside the portfolio frontispiece and a page of Cuperman’s text to immerse visitors in the collaborative dance of the tango.

A Living Language: Cherokee Syllabary and Contemporary Art
Dec 10 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

Rhiannon Skye Tafoya (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), Ul’nigid’, 2020, letterpress (photopolymer and Bembo & Cherokee Syllabary metal type) printed on handmade & color plan paper with paperweaving, closed: 11 × 11 ¼ inches, assembled: 23 ½ × 11 ¼ × 5 ⁵⁄₈ inches. Courtesy the Artist. © Rhiannon Skye Tafoya, image Rhiannon Skye Tafoya.
 Living Language: Cherokee Syllabary and Contemporary Art features over 50 works of art in a variety of media by 30+ Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) and Cherokee Nation artists. The exhibition highlights the use of the written Cherokee language, a syllabary developed by Cherokee innovator Sequoyah (circa 1776–1843). Cherokee syllabary is frequently found in the work of Cherokee artists as a compositional element or the subject matter of the work itself. The exhibition will be on view at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian in Cherokee, NC from June 12, 2021 to October 31, 2021, and in the Asheville Art Museum’s Appleby Foundation Exhibition Hall from November 19, 2021 to March 14, 2022.

The Cherokee Syllabary is a system of writing developed by Sequoyah in the early 1800s prior to the Removal period. Through Sequoyah’s innovative work, Cherokee people embraced the writing system as an expedient form of communication and documentation. During the Removal period, the syllabary was used as a tactic to combat land dispossession. Cherokee people continue to use the syllabary as a form of cultural expression and pride, which is showcased in the contemporary artwork of the Cherokee Citizens in this exhibition.

“We’re pleased to host this gathering of works from contemporary Cherokee artists, who perfectly illustrate how our language is a living and evolving part of who we are. It’s moving to see how each artist finds inspiration in their own way from this language that connects us as Cherokee people,” said Shana Bushyhead Condill, executive director of the Museum of the Cherokee Indian.

“The Asheville Art Museum and the Museum of the Cherokee Indian have been long-term collaborators, and we are delighted to further our partnership by working together to manage an open call to Cherokee artists and subsequently curate this exciting exhibition of contemporary works that take inspiration from, celebrate, preserve and interpret the syllabary,” said Pamela L. Myers, executive director of the Asheville Art Museum. “On view at both museums, we hope the exhibition engages a wide and diverse audience in dialogue with these extraordinary works.”

A Living Language: Cherokee Syllabary and Contemporary Art is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and Museum of the Cherokee Indian, and curated by Hilary Schroeder, assistant curator at the Asheville Art Museum, with assistance from curatorial consultant Joshua Adams (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians). Special thanks to S. Dakota Brown, education director at the Museum of the Cherokee Indian, and Alexis Meldrum, curatorial assistant at the Asheville Art Museum, for their support in the planning of this exhibition. This project is made possible in part by a grant from the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area Partnership, and sponsored in part by the Cherokee Preservation Foundation and Kevin Click & April Liou in memory of Myron E. Click.

Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians artists include Joshua Adams, Jody Lipscomb Bradley, Nathan Bush, Kane Crowe, John Henry Gloyne, Shan Goshorn, Luzene Hill, Christy Long, Louise Bigmeat Maney, Christopher McCoy, Tara McCoy, Joel Queen, Sean Ross, Jakeli Swimmer, Rhiannon Skye Tafoya, Mary Thompson, Stan Tooni Jr.,  Alica Wildcatt, and Fred Wilnoty.

Cherokee Nation artists include Roy Boney Jr., Jeff Edwards, Joseph Erb, Raychel Foster, Kenny Glass, Camilla McGinty, Jessica Mehta, America Meredith, Jane Osti, Lisa Rutherford, Janet L. Smith, Jennifer Thiessen, and Jennie Wilson.

About the Museum of the Cherokee Indian

Established in 1948, the Museum of the Cherokee Indian is one of the longest operating tribal museums. Recognized for its innovative storytelling, the Museum features exhibits, artwork, and hands-on technology that brings over 15,000 years of Cherokee history to life. Located in Cherokee, NC, the Museum is open daily except Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day. Learn more by visiting mci.org.

Art Exhibit “Joyful Light”
Dec 10 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Gallery of Art

The Asheville Gallery of Art greets Winter with the exhibit, “Joyful Light,” a group show featuring images to welcome the joy and light of the season.  “Joyful Light” runs from December 1-31 with a Meet the Artists event on First Friday, December 3, 5-8 pm at the gallery, 82 Patton Avenue.  Please join us!

Each of us would benefit by having more joy and light into our lives and our world, after the last two difficult years.  The December exhibit at the Asheville Gallery of Art focuses on visual images that remind us to welcome the joy and light of the season into our hearts and homes.

“Joyful Light” runs from December 1-31 during gallery hours, 11am-6pm, and features works by numerous artists in a variety of mediums.  A gathering to meet the artists will be held on First Friday, December 3 from 5-8pm at the gallery at 82 Patton Avenue.  Please join us during this special time of year to view the wonderful medley of offerings!

Raquel Egosi – “Terpsichore”, Acrylic

“While mostly abstract, this painting is inspired by the dynamic flow of the joy of dance, the exuberance of life, and the creativity of performance and stage lights.”

Patricia Veatch – “Merry Berry”, Oil

“Christmas has always been my favorite time of year.  I love Christmas most of all for the opportunity to be with family and share our traditions.  After a very isolated zoom Christmas last year, our family is going to celebrate with gusto!”

Robin Altman – “Mountain Sunflower”, Acrylic
“This little painting is a reminder to get up each day with the intent to shine a light on the world in some way. Just as nothing stops nature, we must stand up and be counted.”

Sally Lordeon – “Sunlight Thru the Trees”, Acrylic

“As the days shorten, we are reminded of nature’s eternal gift of gleaming sunlight that shines through the thickest forest and brings us the joy of another beautiful day.”

The Asheville Gallery of Art is open 7 days a week.  For more information about this show, contact the gallery at (828) 251-5796, visit the gallery website at www.ashevillegallery-of-art.com, or go to the gallery’s Facebook page.

December 1st to December 31st, 2021 Daily from 11am to 6 pm

 

BBQ Bears’ Smokehouse Industry Of The Week: Retail
Dec 10 @ 11:00 am – 9:00 pm
BBQ Bears' Smokehouse

Stop by the restaurant to enjoy 15% off of your order!

retail.jpg

Gestures: Mid-Century Abstraction from the Collection and Modernist Design at Black Mountain College to Open at Asheville Art Museum
Dec 10 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum
Claude Stoller, Jalowetz Cottage, 1942, gelatin silver print on paper, 8 × 10 inches. Asheville Art Museum. © Claude Stoller, image David Dietrich.

The Asheville Art Museum is proud to announce two new companion exhibitions highlighting artworks from the Collection. GesturesMid-Century Abstraction from the Collection explores works in a variety of media that speak to the vibrant abstract experiments in American art making during the middle of the 20th century. Modernist Design at Black Mountain College features the Museum’s collection of groundbreaking designs from Black Mountain College (BMC)—including architecture, furniture, ceramics, textiles, and more—and situates them in the context for BMC’s influences and surroundings. Artists featured in the two exhibitions include Anni Albers, Josef Albers, Ruth Asawa, Jorge Fick, Buckminster Fuller, Mary “Molly” Gregory, Karen Karnes, A. Lawrence Kocher, Albert Lanier, Jo Sandman, Mim Sihvonen, Robert Turner, Gerald Van de Wiele, and more. The exhibitions will be on view in the Museum’s Explore Asheville Exhibition Hall from October 22, 2021 through January 24, 2022.

Modernist Design at Black Mountain College Art Exhibit
Dec 10 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum
Mary “Molly” Gregory, Lazy-J Chair, circa 1945, ash, leather, and brass, 26 3/4 × 17 1/8 × 24 1/2 inches. Asheville Art Museum. © Estate of Mary Gregory, image David Dietrich. | Mary “Molly” Gregory, Stool, circa 1941–1945, stained oak, 15 1/2 × 18 × 15 inches each. Asheville Art Museum. © Estate of Mary Gregory, image David Dietrich.
Asheville, N.C.Modernist Design at Black Mountain College will feature works of design from the Asheville Art Museum’s Collection by Black Mountain College artists including Anni Albers, Josef Albers, A. Lawrence Kocher, Buckminster Fuller, Karen Karnes, Robert Turner, Mary “Molly” Gregory, Ruth Asawa, Albert Lanier, Mim Sihvonen, and more. The exhibition will be on view in the Museum’s Explore Asheville Exhibition Hall from October 22, 2021 through January 24, 2022.

The experiment known as Black Mountain College (BMC) began in 1933 in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina. The country was in the midst of the Great Depression and headed towards World War II; budgets were low, but creativity was high. When Josef & Anni Albers emigrated from Germany to the United States, they left the Bauhaus school of art and design behind but brought with them their modern aesthetic and design prowess. As faculty leaders at BMC, they attracted well known architects like A. Lawrence Kocher and Buckminster Fuller, among others, to teach architecture and design.

Perhaps most progressive of their actions was to hire a woman, Mary “Molly” Gregory, to head the furniture workshop. An openness to creativity and a smart resourcefulness—on the part of both faculty and students (like Ruth Asawa, Albert Lanier, and Mim Sihvonen)—meant an artistic output of groundbreaking designs including architecture, furniture, ceramics, textiles, and more that has yet to be fully assessed. This exhibition highlights the Asheville Art Museum’s collection of design from BMC, like the rarely seen Gregory furniture, and situates it in the context of its influences and surroundings at BMC.

“This exhibition combines artworks from the Museum’s Collection and on loan to explore a particular aspect of Black Mountain College that hasn’t been considered in depth: its design,” says Asheville Art Museum’s Associate Curator Whitney Richardson. “From the chairs used at the Blue Ridge Assembly to the architecture built at the Lake Eden Campus, the story of the design elements utilized by the faculty and students, and what they created within those contexts and environments, helps us look back at this place and time to proclaim BMC’s importance in the historical timeline of design. The aspect of this exhibition that excites me the most is displaying all of the Museum’s Molly Gregory furniture together for the first time since the Museum acquired it in 2017. Gregory’s ability to instruct BMC students on how to make their own furniture—mixed with her resourcefulness in using what the inadequately funded college could provide and the production of simple, modernistic furniture that has stood the test of time—astounds me.”

Ruminations on Memory Exhibition
Dec 10 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum
Robert Rauschenberg, John from the Ruminations series, 1999, photogravure on paper, edition 3/46, publisher: Universal Limited Art Editions, Bay Shore, NY, 29 ½ × 38 7/8 inches. Asheville Art Museum. © Robert Rauschenberg Foundation / VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York.

Ruminations on Memory contends with the act of remembrance and reflection, featuring a rare presentation of all nine prints from Robert Rauschenberg’s Ruminations portfolio, Judy Chicago’s Retrospective in a Box portfolio, and selections from the Museum’s Collection. Organized by the Asheville Art Museum and curated by Hilary Schroeder, assistant curator, this exhibition will be on view in Appleby Foundation Exhibition Hall at the Museum from November 19, 2021 through March 14, 2022 in conjunction with A Living Language: Cherokee Syllabary and Contemporary Art

Artworks are vessels for processing, recalling, and reflecting on the past. Artists often draw upon materials from their own pasts and grasp at fleeting moments in time in the creation of an object. For the viewer, observation of an artwork can draw out personal memories.

Artworks in a variety of media explore various ways of remembering, including individual memories that focus on the moments from an artist’s past; generational memory that looks back to one’s ancestors, whether recent or long past; and collective memory, wherein in an image might evoke bygone times that balance between constructed and real. Through these artworks that ruminate upon the past, viewers may discover the stirrings of their own thoughts and recollections prompted by the works before them.

Ruminations on Memory offers a unique opportunity to experience the entirety of a major print portfolio by American painter Robert Rauschenberg (Port Arthur, TX 1925–2008 Captiva, FL). Rauschenberg was a student at Black Mountain College in NC for the 1948–1949 and 1951–1952 academic sessions and for the 1951 and 1952 summers. His Ruminations series consists of nine color photogravures which were printed in 1999 and reflect on Rauschenberg’s early life, his friends and family, and the memories he held dear. The series represents especially significant mature work by Rauschenberg that looks back to his most formative moments as an artist including his time at Black Mountain College and the friendships and ideas formed there.

Also presented in the exhibition is an important series of prints by Judy Chicago (born Chicago, IL 1939). Five decades into her career, Chicago stands as one of the foremost artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, having committed to socially minded work, uplifting in particular experiences salient to her feminine and Jewish identities. Retrospective in a Box consists of seven prints and a portfolio created in collaboration with the master printers at Landfall Press, and provides an overview of her major motifs and ideas, including the print Spring the Dinner, a nod to her seminal 1979 work The Dinner Party.

In addition to the artworks from the Museum’s Collection, visitors will be able to experience Felix Gonzales-Torres’s “Untitled” (L.A.), on loan from the Art Bridges collection. “Untitled” (L.A.) is one of the artist’s iconic interactive candy installations where memories are engaged not only through sight but through sound, touch, taste, and smell as well.

Learn more about Ruminations on Memory and A Living Language: Cherokee Syllabary and Contemporary Art at ashevilleart.org.

Walter B. Stephen Pottery: Cameo to Crystalline
Dec 10 @ 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.

The Hop releases Bountiful Cities Series Sweet Potato Candied Pecan Ice Cream
Dec 10 @ 1:00 pm – 9:00 pm
The Hop- various locations see below
An Online Store Release!
The Bountiful Cities Series consists of regular, small-batch ice cream flavors made with ingredients grown and harvested from the local elementary school FEAST gardens! It is also meant to be a tool to help promote the food-related programs for the schools/students in Asheville and Buncombe County.
What is the newest flavor?
Sweet Potato w/ Candied Pecans

North Asheville

640 Merrimon Ave
Asheville, NC 28804

828.254.2224

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West Asheville

721 Haywood Rd
Asheville, NC 28806

828.252.5155

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Downtown Asheville

S&W Building
56 Patton Ave
Asheville, NC 28801

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Black Mountain

114 Cherry Street
Black Mountain, NC 28711

828.357.5461

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The Creamery

167 Haywood Road
Asheville, NC 28806

828.774.5058

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‘HOLIDAY’ HEY ASHEVILLE TOUR
Dec 10 @ 2:00 pm – 3:30 pm
LaZoom

Start your new holiday tradition with LaZoom! Our top rated Hey Asheville Tour gets an extra dose of holiday cheer for the season. We’ll laugh all the way as the purple bus roams the historical streets of Asheville as you learn new holiday traditions, and meet colorful characters that are sure to bring joy to the world.

Historical and hysterical, The Hey Asheville tour features outrageously entertaining tour guides, outlandish comedy skits complete with special appearances and loads of Asheville information. You’ll get to see the best of downtown Asheville and the rarely seen but stunningly beautiful Montford neighborhood, not to mention the burgeoning River Arts District! You’ve never had a ride like this. It’s like a vaudeville show on wheels!

Find out what makes Asheville so unique on LaZoom’s City Comedy Tour. It’s the perfect mix of history, comedy, and entertainment. Our guides are trained professional actors working with an original script. It’s like a theatre on wheels! The tour highlights downtown Asheville, historic neighborhoods, the South Slope, and the River Arts District.

“Mini Market” Holiday Pop-Up at the Highland Brewing Downtown Taproom
Dec 10 @ 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Highland Brewing Downtown Taproom
DIY Succulent Tree Workshop
Dec 10 @ 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm
12 Bones Brewing

Deck the Halls with Succulents! DIY Succulent Christmas Tree Workshop presented by Juli of Juli’s Jubilee! You will be walked through step by step to learn how to create these adorable little trees! They make a great table centerpiece for yourself, or wonderful gift for the plant lover in your life! All the materials are provided, and each tree features at least 10 real succulent cuttings. This event is held in an indoor, properly distanced environment.

“Deck the Halls with Succulents! DIY Succulent Christmas Tree Class presented by Juli of Juli’s Jubilee!!! I am so proud to be partnering with 12 Bones Brewing South Asheville to teach y’all how to make these adorable little tree’s! They make a great table centerpiece for yourself, or wonderful gift for the plant lover in your life! All the materials are provided, and each tree features at least 10 real succulent cuttings. There are limited spots available, so don’t hesitate to get your ticket so you don’t miss out! This event is held in an indoor, properly distanced environment. And I will be teaching the class while masked. 12 Bones has an amazing selection of both alcoholic and non alcoholic local beverages for sale. And delicious food served until 7:30pm. Hope to see y’all there, can’t wait to connect with you and get our craft on!