Calendar of Events
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.
Bargain Hendo Thrift Store will be permanently closing its doors on December 13th.
• WNCSource operates the small thrift store which is located on the corner of King Street
and 2nd Avenue in Hendersonville.
• Bargain Hendo first opened in December of 2020 and was meant to support the programs
and services WNCSource provides in 4 western North Carolina Counties. Unfortunately,
low sales and competition from other local thrift stores has made the store less than
profitable.
• But don’t worry, starting Thursday, November 2nd, Bargain Hendo will be open
Wednesdays through Fridays 10AM to 4PM and Saturdays from 10AM to 2PM with some
incredible bargains and sales to clear the shelves.
• Bargain Hendo’s last day is December 13th
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Join us for a fun and interactive story time designed for children ages 18 months to 3 years.
Throughout the history of painting from the mid-19th century forward, artists have used an
endless variety of approaches to record their world. Beyond the Lens: Photorealist Perspectives on Looking, Seeing, and Painting continues this thread, offering an opportunity to explore a singular and still forceful aspect of American art. Photorealism shares many of the approaches of historical and modernist realism, with a twist. The use of the camera as a basic tool for organizing visual information in advance of painterly expression is now quite common, but Photorealists embraced the camera as the focal point in their creative process.
Beyond the Lens presents key works from the collection of Louis K. and Susan Pear Meisel,
bringing together paintings and works on paper dating from the 1970s to the present to focus on this profoundly influential art movement. The exhibition includes work by highly acclaimed formative artists of the movement such as Charles Bell, Robert Bechtle, Tom Blackwell, Richard Estes, Audrey Flack, and Ralph Goings as well as paintings by the successive generations of Photorealist artists Anthony Brunelli, Davis Cone, Bertrand Meniel, Rod Penner, and Raphaella Spence. Featured artworks in the exhibition include diverse subject matters, but the primary focus is on the common and every day: urban scenes, “portraits” of cars, trucks, and motorcycles, still life compositions using toys, food, candy wrappers, and salt and pepper shakers. All provide opportunities for virtuoso studies in how light, reflection, and the camera as intermediary shapes our perception of the material world.
This multigenerational survey demonstrates how the 35-mm camera, and later technological
advances in digital image-making, informed and impacted the painterly gesture. Taken together, the paintings and works on paper in Beyond the Lens show how simply spellbinding these virtuosic works of art can be.
“Beyond the Lens offers a fascinating look into the Photorealism movement and delves into the profound connection between the artists’ observation and creative process,” says Pamela L. Myers, Executive Director of Asheville Art Museum. “We are delighted to present this curated collection of artworks encapsulating the creative vision and technical precision that defines this artistic genre.”
Photorealism found its roots in the late 1960s in California and New York, coexisting with an explosion of new ideas in art-making that included Conceptual, Pop, Minimalism, Land and Performance Art. At first, representational realism coexisted with the thematic and conceptual explosion but was eventually relegated to the margins regarding critical and curatorial attention. Often misunderstood and sometimes negatively criticized or lampooned as a betrayal of modernism’s commitment to abstraction, the artists involved in Photorealism remained committed explorers of the trail they had blazed. In the decades of the late twentieth century and early twenty-first century, realistic and symbolic painting experienced a renaissance, as contemporary artists are increasingly drawn to narrative and storytelling. Concurrently, using a camera as a preparatory tool equally legitimate and valuable as pencils and pens has made the rubric of Photorealism increasingly relevant.
This exhibition is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and guest curated by Terrie Sultan.
This exhibition is sponsored in part by Jim and Julia Calkins Peterson.
Opening Reception for the Artist Nov. 3, 6-8PM.
Tracey Morgan Gallery is pleased to present A Mirror, Not a Window, an exhibition of new and recent work by artist Hannah Cole. This is Cole’s second solo exhibition with the gallery. A reception for the artist will be held Friday, November 3 from 6-8PM.
This collection of paintings and sculptures continues Cole’s interest in creating, completely by hand, reproductions of small details and objects culled from her everyday life, turning the viewer’s attention to often overlooked aspects of our surrounding environment and reframing the very definition of representational art. With nods to pop art, trompe l’oeil, and modern American painters, Cole poses big questions about the nature of the artist’s hand, and the drive to (re)create.
A grouping of wall sculptures of nearly exact replicas of books which are hand-painted on wood blocks are included in the exhibition. These books are all non-fiction, mostly art related, though now un-readable. Instead of looking to books for answers, these objects force the viewer to provide the substance. The most self-referential of the group is Jean Baudrillard’s Simulacra and Simulation in which the French philosopher talks in dense prose about our culture of signs and signals eventually becoming copies without any originals. In Cole’s tongue-in-cheek nod, her faithful replica of Baudriallard’s philosophical work becomes an art object whose meaning has shifted completely from the original. Cole’s painted wood block cannot be read and has no actual utility at all, except as an object to contemplate.
A recurring element in Cole’s paintings is a hand-rendered tape measure running along the edge of her canvases. By including this common, easily recognizable object, Cole calls to question the “truth” of representation. Can we trust these measurements simply because they have identifiable markings? Other paintings on Styrofoam show painted wood grain edges, subverting the viewer’s expectation of where the painting itself is, and what it’s made of. We expect a painting to be on the outward-facing surface, but what if the faithful representation is painted on the sides?
In this contemporary age of Artificial Intelligence flooding us with copies, reproductions, fakes, and deliberate decep-tions, anxieties regarding authenticity and authorship run high. Cole’s work invites contemplation of these deeply philosophical issues with a playful tone, presenting serious questions by way of common objects.
Hannah Cole studied at Yale University and Boston University. Her work has been exhibited at The Turchin Center for Visual Arts, NC; the Drawing Center, NY; the University of Maine Museum of Art; the Sherman Gallery at Boston University, MA; Tiger Strikes Asteroid, Greenville, NC; and the North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, among other national and international institutions. She currently lives and works in Asheville, NC.
Workshop Goals
- Become familiar with some of the shared language and concepts related to racial justice
- Develop an understanding of how racism shows up in each of our lives
- Become familiar with the YWCA’s racial justice framework
- Explore the history of racial (in)justice in the United States and beyond
Romare Bearden (Charlotte, NC 1911–1988 New York, NY), African American writer and artist, is renowned for his collages. He constantly experimented with various techniques to achieve his artistic goals throughout his career. This exhibition highlights works on paper and explores his most frequently used mediums, including screen-printing, lithography, hand-colored etching, collagraph, monotype, relief print, photomontage, and collage.
Bearden’s work reflects his improvisational approach to his practice. He considered his process akin to that of jazz and blues composers. Starting with an open mind, he would let an idea evolve spontaneously.
“Romare Bearden: Ways of Working highlights Bearden’s unique artistic practice and masterful storytelling through art,” says Pamela L. Myers, Executive Director of the Asheville Art Museum. “We are thrilled to collaborate with Jerald Melberg Gallery to present these extraordinary works on paper in conversation with Bearden’s collage Sunset Express, 1984 in the Museum Collection (on view in the Museum’s SECU Collection Hall). This exhibition will also provide a glimpse into the cultural histories and personal interests that influenced his art-making practice, and we hope it encourages introspection and dialogue with our visitors.”
Jerald Melberg states, “Romare Bearden’s groundbreaking artistic practice continues to captivate audiences worldwide. With an unparalleled legacy of creativity and innovation, Bearden’s contributions to art remain deeply influential years beyond his life.” We have enjoyed organizing this exhibition with the Asheville Art Museum to showcase his artistic genius and inspire visitors from the Western North Carolina region and beyond.”
This exhibition is made possible in part by the Judy Appleton Fund. Many thanks to the Jerald Melberg Gallery for the loan of these important artworks and to Mary and Jerald Melberg for their long-standing support of the arts, artists, and the Asheville Art Museum.
Tracey Morgan Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of paintings by artist Stella Alesi in our project space. This is Alesi’s first exhibition with the gallery and is presented in conjunction with Hannah Cole: A Mirror, Not a Window in our main gallery space. A reception for both artists will be held Friday, November 3 from 6-8PM.
The works on view are from the SQUISHY series, a group of geometric, abstract oil on oil paper paintings. With the use of simple shapes and a limited color palette, these works explore the visceral experience of living at this current moment. Alesi’s colorful, “squishy” shapes bend to the demands placed on them by their seemingly heavy, unforgiving counterparts. With this work, Alesi confronts contemporary issues such as climate change and political turmoil, as well as personal trials, using basic shapes, both hard and malleable to express a state of being. The shapes are gestural, fluid, and animated – sometimes resembling body parts even in their minimalism. The effect is a playful interpretation of heavy topics – a visual play on the deep and multi-layer well of human emotions.
Stella Alesi works across several styles and mediums, including drawing, painting, photography, collage, and large wall works. Their practice is characterized by a willingness to try new approaches in the ongoing investigation into new materials and visual languages, always exploring new ways to represent the visceral nature of the human experience. Born on Long Island, New York in 1963, Alesi was raised in New Jersey. They studied at Parsons School of Design, New York City; University Hampshire, Durham; and University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Their work has been purchased by many private and commercial collections. Career highlights include a recent solo exhibit (spring of 2023) at the Northern-Southern gallery, Austin, TX and a large-scale permanent installation in the lobby of The Foundry, Austin TX. Alesi currently lives and works in both Austin, TX and Asheville, NC.
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Western North Carolina is important in the history of American glass art. Several artists of the Studio Glass Movement came to the region, including its founder Harvey K. Littleton. Begun in 1962 in Wisconsin, it was a student of Littleton’s that first came to the area in 1965 and set up a glass studio at the Penland School of Craft in Penland, North Carolina. By 1967, Mark Peiser was the first glass artist resident at the school and taught many notable artists, like Jak Brewer in 1968 and Richard Ritter who came to study in 1971. By 1977, Littleton retired from teaching and moved to nearby Spruce Pine, North Carolina and set up a glass studio at his home. Since that time, glass artists like Ken Carder, Rick and Valerie Beck, Shane Fero, and Yaffa Sikorsky and Jeff Todd—to name only a few—have flocked to the area to reside, collaborate, and teach, making it a significant place for experimentation and education in glass. The next generation of artists like Hayden Wilson and Alex Bernstein continue to create here. The Museum is dedicated to collecting American studio glass and within that umbrella, explores the work of Artists connected to Western North Carolina. Exhibitions, including Intersections of American Art, explore glass art in the context of American Art of the 20th and 21st centuries. A variety of techniques and a willingness to push boundaries of the medium can be seen in this selection of works from the Museum’s Collection. |
Take an express tour of our galleries, then go on an adventure with art, music, or storytelling in our interactive Art PLAYce. For children ages 0-5 years old and their families or caregivers.
Tours will meet in our Windgate Foundation Atrium and begin at 11:30am. Please arrive no later than 11:15am to allow enough time to check-in. Strollers are welcome, and we will have a limited number of strollers available on site. Light refreshments will be provided.
Visitors are invited to spend more time exploring our galleries or having lunch in the Perspective Café after Tot Time concludes at 12:30pm. Online registration for this event is recommended as it is an event with limited capacity.
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Imaginations will soar in this new musical based on Peter H. Reynolds’ best-selling book, The Dot.
DOT DOT DOT: A New Musical is an exciting new musical based on the Creatrilogy trio of award-winning picture books by New York Times bestselling author Peter H. Reynolds (The Dot, Ish and Sky Color). Adapted by Composers Keelay Gipson and Sam Salmond, the musical, like the series, celebrates the power of originality, self-expression, and opening our eyes to look beyond the expected.
When Marisol (Sky Color), a young artist and curator of the Musee de Marisol, decides that her gallery requires more than her own art, her search for emerging talent leads her to Vashti (The Dot), whose dots inspire Ramon (Ish) to become an artist in his own right.
The musical follows Marisol’s journey to help her new friends, and her entire community, break free from self-criticism and learn to let their imaginations soar. Recommended for grades 1-4.
The Student Series is open to school groups, homeschoolers, community groups and families.
It’s back! Our Kolo Bike Park monthly after-school club runs every Tuesday & Thursday afternoon for ages 6-13 from 3-6 pm.
This club is for our local shredders to keep riding and growing their mountain bike skills all year long. This club is NOT to teach children how to ride and it is a requirement that they enjoy biking and can successfully ride their bike off-road before joining. Our highly skilled and trained staff will help campers working on bike handling and riding all the features and trails our 125-acre park has to offer.
- $350 per camper per month
- Runs Tuesdays and Thursdays in October, and November. Please note that you need to purchase a membership for EACH month!
- $20 discount for either multiple months or for each multiple campers (you may not stack discounts, sorry!)
- We run rain or shine! If it is too muddy to ride, we will adjust programming for bike maintenance lessons, alternative activities, etc.
- Campers must bring their own bike, helmet, water bottle, snack, and any protective gear each day
- A $25 cancellation fee will be charged in canceled less than 2 weeks before the first session.
- No refunds for cancellations made within 2 weeks of the first session!
You may book online or call our office at 828.225.2921. To book online choose October 3 for the October Club and November 2 for the November Club.
Students will receive a solid foundation in beginner Ukulele skills for vocalists. Chords, Rhythm patterns, and basic theory will be introduced through songs with an uplifting message. Students will also learn to play the song that the Songwriting Class will be writing and get to record it in the One Mic Studio.
Queer Music Exploration – Students will explore guitar, bass, drums, singing and piano with a focus on learning music by artists from the LGBTQ+ community. Students will have the chance to interact with their peers and share their experiences through music.
Come join us for Business After Hours at Red Tree Builders!
Feel free to bring a gift to be raffled off as door prizes towards the end of the evening. Bring your business cards for networking and a chance to win prizes!
This event is offered as a benefit for Chamber membership. We welcome you to come and check us out! Please contact Jessica Kanupp, our Member Development Specialist, at [email protected] if you’re considering a Chamber membership.
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– STANDING ROOM ONLY
– RAIN OR SHINE
Dr. George D. Pappas will examine the literary pathways that transformed fiction into U.S. law in order to dispossess Native Americans of their ancient homelands. Using a discursive analysis, Pappas will offer a unique insight into decoding how the U.S. Supreme Court camouflaged its dehumanization of Native Americans to obtain ownership of their land. Known collectively as the Marshall Trilogy, these three decisions issued between 1823 and 1832 “formed the legal basis for the dispossession of indigenous populations,” according to Pappas.
This film screening and discussion is in commemoration of the 85th Anniversary of Kristallnacht.
The evening begins with a pre-movie discussion by the organizers and a panel of local history professionals. Then we will screen the movie: Farewell Mr Haffmann.
PARIS 1941. François Mercier is an ordinary man whose only goal is to start a family with Blanche, the woman he loves. François works for Mr. Haffmann, a talented Jewish jeweler. Under the German occupation, the employer and employee are forced to strike a deal which, over the following months, will upend the fate of all concerned.
Farewell Mr Haffmann is in French with English subtitles.
ICONIC COUNTRY ROCK GROUP, ALABAMA, ANNOUNCES NEW DATE ON 2023 ROLL ON 2 NORTH AMERICA TOUR
THE MULTI-PLATINUM BAND WILL HIT THE STAGE AT
BON SECOURS WELLNESS ARENA ON NOV. 9, 2023
WITH VERY SPECIAL GUEST GRITS AND GLAMOR FEATURING
PAM TILLIS AND LORRIE MORGAN
Multi-platinum selling country rock group ALABAMA has announced an all new 2023 tour “ROLL ON NORTH AMERICA.” The tour will include a stop in Greenville, South Carolina, at Bon Secours Wellness Arena on Nov. 9, 2023, featuring very special guest PAM TILLIS AND LORRIE MORGAN. This will mark the second “Roll On” Tour in the band’s 50+ year history since 1984.
Over 50 years ago, cousins Teddy Gentry, Randy Owen and the late Jeff Cook left the cotton farms of Fort Payne, Alabama to spend the summer playing music in a Myrtle Beach, South Carolina bar called The Bowery. It’s a classic American tale of rags to riches. From humble beginnings picking cotton in the fields to international stars, ALABAMA went on to sell 80 million albums and change the face and sound of country music.
Quality songs that have become the soundtrack for American life are the foundation for ALABAMA’s stellar career. The group introduced rock style guitars, lights, pyrotechnics and sounds to the country audience that has inspired many of today’s brightest country stars including Kenny Chesney, Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan. While their music continues to stand the test of time, their numbers and stats are beyond compare.
Five decades since starting the band, ALABAMA has charted 43 #1 singles, including 21 #1 singles in a row, and have won dozens of CMA, GRAMMY®, and ACM Awards. They are members of the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Musicians Hall of Fame and have their own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In addition, they are world-class philanthropists who have raised millions of dollars for various charities.
GHOST COMEDY BUS TOUR
Grab a local beer, crucifix and a rubber chicken* —You might survive this hour long hilarious haunted ghost tour of Asheville.
- Guided comedy bus tour of Haunted Asheville
- 60 minutes; tours run nightly after dark
- $33 per person (Ages 17+ only)
- Departs from 76 Biltmore Avenue
*Legal Note: Crucifix not required to board the bus; we do not condone exorcisms, chickens, rubber, or any combination of the three.
Join the Balsam Mountain Inn and Mountain Memories Productions along with musical guest William Ritter as we present an evening of traditional mountain ballads and folk tunes!
– SEATED SHOW
BEN K. LOCHENBen K. Lochen is a songwriter from Asheville, North Carolina. His debut album, Ingrates, is his attempt at making and honoring the kind of music he loves. He hopes you’ll enjoy it.
Steve Simon & The Kings of Jazz are Brevard’s newest and most exciting and entertaining jazz band with a sound that combines the funkiness of George Benson, the soulfulness of Ray Charles and the smoothness of Diana Krall all wrapped together in big Count Basie style arrangements of American and Latin jazz classics. If you are looking for an amazing live jazz experience then check out the hottest jazz band in the coolest city in North Carolina performing every Thursday at The DFR Lounge from 7pm to 9pm
Russian pianist and composer Arsentiy Kharitonov has achieved fame and accolades for his “sumptuous tone, technical mastery, broad dramatic range, and elegant phrasing” (Fanfare Magazine). He is the first-prize winner of the Franz Liszt International Piano Competition and won the Rachmaninov Competition in the Russian Federation. He has appeared at major concert halls in Europe and America.
PROGRAM
Arsentiy Kharitonov, Piano
Bach/Siloti 2 Preludes
R.Schumann Arabesque
F. Chopin Sonata #2
– Intermission –
S.Rachmaninoff (Preludes in D major, Gb major, Etude-Tableau op.39 #5)
A.Kharitonov Selective works (Sonata (I,II movements), Morceau, Waltz)
M.Ravel “Alborada del Gracioso”
Program Description
Brevard Music Center presents an evening treat for cinephiles and music aficionados alike. Following “White Lotus,” Min Xiao-Fen‘s acclaimed score for the 1934 classic Chinese silent film “The Goddess,” she received a commission from the Smithsonian Institution to compose new original soundtracks for “Romance of the Fruit Peddler” and “Romance of the Western Chamber,” two historical Chinese silent films from the 1920s. Known for her innovative approach to traditional music and her ability to seamlessly integrate diverse musical styles, Ms. Min will perform with master percussionist River Guerguerian, a leading figure in classical, jazz and world music. Together they bring a unique cross-cultural expression and artistic vision to the stage. Both films will be shown during the performance.
Featured Instruments
Min Xiao-Fen: pipa, ruan, sanxian, guqin, finger piano, sound effects, and voice.
River Guerguerian: Middle Eastern and Indian frame drums, hand drums, kanjira talking drums, berimbau, doumbek, Chinese gongs, hand-pan, didgeridoo, rain stick, and voice.
About the Artists
One of the key instruments in Chinese music, the pipa has a rich and storied legacy stretching back nearly two thousand years. Few artists have done more to both honor and reinvent that history than renowned pipa soloist, vocalist and composer Min Xiao-Fen. Classically trained in her native China, Ms. Min was an acclaimed traditional music soloist before relocating to the United States and forging a new path for her instrument alongside many of the leading lights in modern jazz, free improvisation, experimental and contemporary classical music.
In Ms. Min’s music, east and west, tradition and innovation, discipline and spontaneity, ancient past and unexplored future all flow together like streams joining in one vibrant river. NPR Weekend Edition lauded Ms. Min as “one of the world’s greatest virtuosos” and JazzTimes hailed her as “a pioneer in integrating her ancient instrument with modern jazz and improvised music.” The New York Times raved that her singular work “has traversed a sweeping musical odyssey.” Min’s expressive, uncategorizable voice has found her collaborating with such inventive luminaries as Wadada Leo Smith, Derek Bailey, Randy Weston, John Zorn, Christian Marclay and Björk.
River Guerguerian has been inspiring audiences with his ecstatic and versatile percussion for over 30 years. Whether collaborating with world-class artists, supporting symphonies or creating his own dynamic explorations of rhythm, River’s devotion and attention to the vibrant life of the drum reverberates through the mind and soul of the listener. In 1988 he began working with Grammy and Oscar-winning composer, Tan Dun. Over the next several years he continued performing with several artists, which placed him in the prestigious concert halls of most major cities of the globe, including Carnegie Hall, The Sydney Opera House, and Lincoln Center.
As a highly regarded studio musician, River has recorded on over 300 albums and film soundtracks, including the John Cage documentary film, “I Have Nothing to Say and I Am Saying It.” Over the whole of his prolific career, he has performed and/or recorded internationally with such individual and groups as the BBC Concert Orchestra, Paul Winter Consort, Lizz Wright, Chuck Berry, Sophie B. Hawkins, Ziggy Marley, Gipsy Kings, New Music Consort, Omar Faruk Tekbilek, Tibetan Singing Bowl Ensemble, and Talujon Percussion Ensemble. River also engineers his own percussion tracks for artists at his recording studio.
ARTISTS
Min Xiao-Fen, pipa
River Guerguerian, percussion
Auditorium seating is reserved.
Michael Fowler, art historian and archaeologist, will give a lecture “Human Sacrifice in Greek Antiquity: Between Myth, Image, and Reality” on November 9 at 7:30 p.m. in the French Broad Room of Highsmith Student Union.
Fowler will look at the visual and anthropological evidence for human sacrifice in the ancient Greek world, focusing on topics related to material religion, iconography, gender, and violence (and their intersections). The event is co-sponsored by the Department of Art and Art History and the Archaeological Institute of America.
Contact Laurel Taylor at [email protected] with any questions.
Genevieve’s. Now in its sixth year, the Fine Arts Center concert series prepares student musicians for a career in the arts and entertainment industry by giving them a resume-building, professional opportunity to perform in paid settings.
Join Tori the Tortoise, in this Appalachian retelling of Aesop’s “Tortoise & the Hare” as she stands up for her beloved town, Fable Farms, and races a big city hare with even bigger plans. In this musical for all ages, Tori and her friends, Ruben the Rooster and Bea the Bee, must learn to embrace what makes them unique and the importance of community.
