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.

Wednesday, August 13, 2025
viewshed
Aug 13 @ 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Black Mountain College

viewshed illuminates the enduring impact of Black Mountain College as a crucible of artistic experimentation and exchange, tracing the transmission of ideas across generations and exploring how BMC’s radical pedagogical approaches continue to shape contemporary artistic practice. The exhibition stages a dynamic dialogue between past and present, featuring contemporary artists Richard Garet, Jennie MaryTai Liu, Deanna Sirlin, and Susie Taylor alongside seminal BMC figures such as Dorothea Rockburne, Sewell (Si) Sillman, and Jacob Lawrence. By engaging with transparency, structure, color, collaboration, and expanded forms, viewshed brings into focus the porous boundaries between disciplines, unfolding as a sensorial and conceptual investigation into the shifting terrain of artistic influence. The exhibition highlights works that span painting, textile, sound, and performance, inviting viewers to consider the ways in which artistic methodologies evolve and reverberate across time. At its core, viewshed underscores the ways in which BMC’s experimental ethos continues to inspire artists to challenge, reinterpret, and expand the possibilities of creative expression.

Thursday, August 14, 2025
Asheville Quilt Show 2025
Aug 14 all-day
WNC AG Center

Asheville Quilt Show 2025
Thursday, August 14 9-5
Friday, August 15 9-5
Saturday, August 16 9-4
*Over 300 quilts on display
*$12,000 in prize money
*more than 25 Vendors
*Gift Shop
*Silent Auction
*Quilts for Sale
*2025 Opportunity Quilt Raffle
*Demonstrations by Expert Quilters
*Special Exhibits
*Sewing Station for Kids
Admission $10
Students (13-18) $5
Children 12 and under free
Credit Cards accepted
WNC Ag Center,
Davis Event Center
765 Boylston Hwy
Fletcher NC 28732
Handicap Accessible
Free Parking
Sponsored by the Asheville Quilt Guild and Moda Fabrics and Aurifil

2025 Asheville Quilt Show
Aug 14 @ 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
WNC Agricultural Center - Davis Event Center

*Over 300 quilts on display
*$12,000 in prize money
*more than 25 Vendors
*Gift Shop
*Silent Auction
*Quilts for Sale
*2025 Opportunity Quilt Raffle
*Demonstrations by Expert Quilters
*Special Exhibits
*Sewing Station for Kids
Admission $10
Students (13-18) $5
Children 12 and under free
Credit Cards accepted
Handicap Accessible
Free Parking
Venue details: WNC Agricultural Center – Davis Event Center, 765 Boylston Hwy, Fletcher, North Carolina, 28732, United States

Prices:
General Admission: USD 10.00,
Students 13-18: USD 5.00,
12 and under: USD 0.00

Returning to the Ridge: Blue Ridge Craft Trails Exhibition
Aug 14 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Mars Landing Galleries

The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area (BRNHA) is proud to announce its first-ever craft exhibit: Returning to the Ridge: Blue Ridge Craft Trails Exhibition. This landmark event will bring together the exceptional talents of 33 artists featured on the Blue Ridge Craft Trails (BRCT), showcasing the vibrant artistic landscape of Western North Carolina. Mars Landing Galleries, owned by Miryam Rojas and located at 37 Library Street, Mars Hill, NC 28754, will serve as the venue for this celebration of craft from July 2 to September 28, 2025.

Southern Appalachia’s artistic spirit, deeply rooted in its beautiful natural environment, will be on full display. From the intricate details of pottery to the masterful craftsmanship of woodworking, the exhibition will feature 60 pieces spanning a diverse range of traditional mediums, including fiber art, printmaking, metalworking (including jewelry), and basketry. This celebration of local artistry comes at a crucial time, as Hurricane Helene impacted many artists. Artists participating are from the central and western sections of BRNHA’s 25-county footprint, encompassing the NC mountains and the Qualla Boundary.

The gallery’s regular hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 10 am – 5 pm. Adding to the visitor experience, the exhibition coincides with three First Friday events in Downtown Mars Hill – July 4, August 1, and September 5. On these evenings, the downtown area, including Mars Landing Galleries (open 5 pm – 8 pm, with live music), will offer extended hours, inviting the community to explore local shops, restaurants, galleries and enjoy the lively atmosphere.

 Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Age
Aug 14 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

Our latest exhibition, Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Agefocuses on a dynamic era in American history when industrialization and advances in technology transformed urban landscapes and redefined the nature of work and leisure nationwide.

Showcasing Collection prints from 1905 to the 1940s, Iron and Ink explores connections between industrial labor, urbanization, and the growing middle class. The exhibition highlights works by Works Progress Administration artists from the 1930s whose powerful images of machinery, skyscrapers, and daily life—both at work and recreation—capture this transformational era in American society.

This exhibition is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and Robin Klaus, PhD, assistant curator.

Native America: In Translation
Aug 14 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

The Asheville Art Museum presents Native America: In Translation, an
exhibition curated by Apsáalooke artist Wendy Red Star, on view from May 22 through November 3,
2025. Featuring work by seven Indigenous photographers and lens-based artists from across North
America, the exhibition explores urgent questions of identity, heritage, land rights, and the ongoing
impact of colonialism.

Building on Red Star’s role as guest editor of the Fall 2020 issue of Aperture magazine, Native
America: In Translation continues the conversation through personal and often experimental visual
storytelling. Using self-portraits, performance-based imagery, and multimedia assemblages, the
artists offer new perspectives on Native life and representation today.

viewshed
Aug 14 @ 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Black Mountain College

viewshed illuminates the enduring impact of Black Mountain College as a crucible of artistic experimentation and exchange, tracing the transmission of ideas across generations and exploring how BMC’s radical pedagogical approaches continue to shape contemporary artistic practice. The exhibition stages a dynamic dialogue between past and present, featuring contemporary artists Richard Garet, Jennie MaryTai Liu, Deanna Sirlin, and Susie Taylor alongside seminal BMC figures such as Dorothea Rockburne, Sewell (Si) Sillman, and Jacob Lawrence. By engaging with transparency, structure, color, collaboration, and expanded forms, viewshed brings into focus the porous boundaries between disciplines, unfolding as a sensorial and conceptual investigation into the shifting terrain of artistic influence. The exhibition highlights works that span painting, textile, sound, and performance, inviting viewers to consider the ways in which artistic methodologies evolve and reverberate across time. At its core, viewshed underscores the ways in which BMC’s experimental ethos continues to inspire artists to challenge, reinterpret, and expand the possibilities of creative expression.

The Jesus Casino + Impending Joy + Sunbearer
Aug 14 @ 8:00 pm
The Orange Peel

The Jesus Casino + Impending Joy + Sunbearer

Thursday, August 14
Show: 8pm | Doors: 7pm

The Orange Peel
All Ages – under 12 requires venue approval
Friday, August 15, 2025
Asheville Quilt Show 2025
Aug 15 all-day
WNC AG Center

Asheville Quilt Show 2025
Thursday, August 14 9-5
Friday, August 15 9-5
Saturday, August 16 9-4
*Over 300 quilts on display
*$12,000 in prize money
*more than 25 Vendors
*Gift Shop
*Silent Auction
*Quilts for Sale
*2025 Opportunity Quilt Raffle
*Demonstrations by Expert Quilters
*Special Exhibits
*Sewing Station for Kids
Admission $10
Students (13-18) $5
Children 12 and under free
Credit Cards accepted
WNC Ag Center,
Davis Event Center
765 Boylston Hwy
Fletcher NC 28732
Handicap Accessible
Free Parking
Sponsored by the Asheville Quilt Guild and Moda Fabrics and Aurifil

Returning to the Ridge: Blue Ridge Craft Trails Exhibition
Aug 15 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Mars Landing Galleries

The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area (BRNHA) is proud to announce its first-ever craft exhibit: Returning to the Ridge: Blue Ridge Craft Trails Exhibition. This landmark event will bring together the exceptional talents of 33 artists featured on the Blue Ridge Craft Trails (BRCT), showcasing the vibrant artistic landscape of Western North Carolina. Mars Landing Galleries, owned by Miryam Rojas and located at 37 Library Street, Mars Hill, NC 28754, will serve as the venue for this celebration of craft from July 2 to September 28, 2025.

Southern Appalachia’s artistic spirit, deeply rooted in its beautiful natural environment, will be on full display. From the intricate details of pottery to the masterful craftsmanship of woodworking, the exhibition will feature 60 pieces spanning a diverse range of traditional mediums, including fiber art, printmaking, metalworking (including jewelry), and basketry. This celebration of local artistry comes at a crucial time, as Hurricane Helene impacted many artists. Artists participating are from the central and western sections of BRNHA’s 25-county footprint, encompassing the NC mountains and the Qualla Boundary.

The gallery’s regular hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 10 am – 5 pm. Adding to the visitor experience, the exhibition coincides with three First Friday events in Downtown Mars Hill – July 4, August 1, and September 5. On these evenings, the downtown area, including Mars Landing Galleries (open 5 pm – 8 pm, with live music), will offer extended hours, inviting the community to explore local shops, restaurants, galleries and enjoy the lively atmosphere.

 Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Age
Aug 15 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

Our latest exhibition, Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Agefocuses on a dynamic era in American history when industrialization and advances in technology transformed urban landscapes and redefined the nature of work and leisure nationwide.

Showcasing Collection prints from 1905 to the 1940s, Iron and Ink explores connections between industrial labor, urbanization, and the growing middle class. The exhibition highlights works by Works Progress Administration artists from the 1930s whose powerful images of machinery, skyscrapers, and daily life—both at work and recreation—capture this transformational era in American society.

This exhibition is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and Robin Klaus, PhD, assistant curator.

Native America: In Translation
Aug 15 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

The Asheville Art Museum presents Native America: In Translation, an
exhibition curated by Apsáalooke artist Wendy Red Star, on view from May 22 through November 3,
2025. Featuring work by seven Indigenous photographers and lens-based artists from across North
America, the exhibition explores urgent questions of identity, heritage, land rights, and the ongoing
impact of colonialism.

Building on Red Star’s role as guest editor of the Fall 2020 issue of Aperture magazine, Native
America: In Translation continues the conversation through personal and often experimental visual
storytelling. Using self-portraits, performance-based imagery, and multimedia assemblages, the
artists offer new perspectives on Native life and representation today.

viewshed
Aug 15 @ 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Black Mountain College

viewshed illuminates the enduring impact of Black Mountain College as a crucible of artistic experimentation and exchange, tracing the transmission of ideas across generations and exploring how BMC’s radical pedagogical approaches continue to shape contemporary artistic practice. The exhibition stages a dynamic dialogue between past and present, featuring contemporary artists Richard Garet, Jennie MaryTai Liu, Deanna Sirlin, and Susie Taylor alongside seminal BMC figures such as Dorothea Rockburne, Sewell (Si) Sillman, and Jacob Lawrence. By engaging with transparency, structure, color, collaboration, and expanded forms, viewshed brings into focus the porous boundaries between disciplines, unfolding as a sensorial and conceptual investigation into the shifting terrain of artistic influence. The exhibition highlights works that span painting, textile, sound, and performance, inviting viewers to consider the ways in which artistic methodologies evolve and reverberate across time. At its core, viewshed underscores the ways in which BMC’s experimental ethos continues to inspire artists to challenge, reinterpret, and expand the possibilities of creative expression.

CRITTERS AND CREATURES IN CLAY WITH SARAH GELLENY
Aug 15 @ 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Odyssey Clayworks

Join us for a summer full of creativity in our fun and festive studio. Ages 6-10. Every camper will get at least one day on the potter’s wheel. Wheel camps will use the wheel each day in addition to other cool projects. Are you ready? Let’s start the show!

Downtown After 5
Aug 15 @ 5:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Pack Square Park

Join us as we partner with Blue Ridge Pride for a 90s Country-themed Downtown After 5! Featuring headliner Mustache the Band and opener Shakey’s Live Band Karaoke. Show off your style in our Best Boots Contest or channel your inner queen in the Dolly Parton Lookalike Competition for a chance to win fun prizes!

Downtown After 5 is more than just a concert series—it’s a community staple that celebrates the diversity and creativity of Asheville. Each event is free to the public, thanks to the generous support of our sponsors and partners, drawing an enthusiastic crowd of between 5,000 to 6,000 attendees. Food and beverage vendors will be on-site alongside a marketplace component where attendees can explore and shop handmade crafts from local makers. Join us at Pack Square Park for these unforgettable evenings of music, community, and celebration.

Art in the Park
Aug 15 @ 5:30 pm
Bill Moore Community Park
🎨 Art in the Park – August 15th at 5:30 PM
Unwind with a guided painting session at Bill Moore Community Park!
✨ All supplies provided
🌟 Relaxed, social vibe
🎟 $20 residents | $25 nonresidents
Spots are limited—sign up today!
Amanda Anne Platt
Aug 15 @ 8:00 pm
The Grey Eagle

Grey Eagle Events Presents: Amanda Anne Platt

Doors: 7pm // Show: 8pm
$16.06

 

Grey Eagle Music Hall – Special Event
ALL AGES
STANDING ROOM ONLY 
Amanda Anne Platt has been writing and performing her original songs in front of live audiences for almost two decades. With her band The Honeycutters she has released nine albums of her own original material and toured extensively in the US and Europe. Her last six studio albums have landed in the top five of WNCW’s annual listener voted top 100 releases, most recently at #5 with her 2024 release, The Ones That Stay. Platt won second place in Merlefest’s Chris Austin songwriting competition in 2011 with her song “Little Bird”, and has been privileged over the years to share the stage with such songwriting greats as Guy Clark, Amy Ray, Billy Joe Shaver, Tift Merrit, and Radney Foster.
80s vs 90s Dance Party
Aug 15 @ 9:00 pm
The Orange Peel

80s vs 90s Dance Party

DJ Oso Rey & DJ Molly Parti

Show: 9pm | Doors: 8pm

The Orange Peel
All Ages
Saturday, August 16, 2025
Asheville Quilt Show 2025
Aug 16 all-day
WNC AG Center

Asheville Quilt Show 2025
Thursday, August 14 9-5
Friday, August 15 9-5
Saturday, August 16 9-4
*Over 300 quilts on display
*$12,000 in prize money
*more than 25 Vendors
*Gift Shop
*Silent Auction
*Quilts for Sale
*2025 Opportunity Quilt Raffle
*Demonstrations by Expert Quilters
*Special Exhibits
*Sewing Station for Kids
Admission $10
Students (13-18) $5
Children 12 and under free
Credit Cards accepted
WNC Ag Center,
Davis Event Center
765 Boylston Hwy
Fletcher NC 28732
Handicap Accessible
Free Parking
Sponsored by the Asheville Quilt Guild and Moda Fabrics and Aurifil

Bodhi Fest
Aug 16 all-day
Asheville Community Theater

The first annual Bodhi Fest, a Buddhist Arts and Film Festival at Asheville Community Theatre on August 16th, 2025 will be a day of illumination as we explore the gladdening qualities of the human spirit ranging from sweet solitude to ecstatic joy. The program will consist of Buddhist films + Q&A, shorts, a dance workshop, a songwriting workshop, musical performances and more. Crafts, art and food from Buddhist sanghas, artists and local vendors will be shared in the front lobby during the festival.

Enjoy an event of immersion in compassionate-wisdom activities that provoke insight and lift the spirit.

Come to Leicester Annual Artist Studio Tour
Aug 16 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Leicester Community Center

We invite you to join us for the annual Come to Leicester (“Les-ter”) studio tour. The Come to Leicester studio tour is held every year on the third weekend in August and will take place this year on August 16 and 17, 2025 (10:00 – 5:00 each day). The Tour is self-guided, and maps are available in the Brochure. Maps may also be picked up at the Leicester Community Center at 2979 New Leicester Highway, Leicester, NC 28748.

Our community of artists creates in a variety of mediums, including painting, iron work, woodwork, glass, textiles, pottery, jewelry, and brooms. We welcome you to our open studios and community hubs so that you can enjoy our work. Come to Leicester and see for yourself!

Returning to the Ridge: Blue Ridge Craft Trails Exhibition
Aug 16 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Mars Landing Galleries

The Blue Ridge National Heritage Area (BRNHA) is proud to announce its first-ever craft exhibit: Returning to the Ridge: Blue Ridge Craft Trails Exhibition. This landmark event will bring together the exceptional talents of 33 artists featured on the Blue Ridge Craft Trails (BRCT), showcasing the vibrant artistic landscape of Western North Carolina. Mars Landing Galleries, owned by Miryam Rojas and located at 37 Library Street, Mars Hill, NC 28754, will serve as the venue for this celebration of craft from July 2 to September 28, 2025.

Southern Appalachia’s artistic spirit, deeply rooted in its beautiful natural environment, will be on full display. From the intricate details of pottery to the masterful craftsmanship of woodworking, the exhibition will feature 60 pieces spanning a diverse range of traditional mediums, including fiber art, printmaking, metalworking (including jewelry), and basketry. This celebration of local artistry comes at a crucial time, as Hurricane Helene impacted many artists. Artists participating are from the central and western sections of BRNHA’s 25-county footprint, encompassing the NC mountains and the Qualla Boundary.

The gallery’s regular hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 10 am – 5 pm. Adding to the visitor experience, the exhibition coincides with three First Friday events in Downtown Mars Hill – July 4, August 1, and September 5. On these evenings, the downtown area, including Mars Landing Galleries (open 5 pm – 8 pm, with live music), will offer extended hours, inviting the community to explore local shops, restaurants, galleries and enjoy the lively atmosphere.

 Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Age
Aug 16 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

Our latest exhibition, Iron and Ink: Prints from America’s Machine Agefocuses on a dynamic era in American history when industrialization and advances in technology transformed urban landscapes and redefined the nature of work and leisure nationwide.

Showcasing Collection prints from 1905 to the 1940s, Iron and Ink explores connections between industrial labor, urbanization, and the growing middle class. The exhibition highlights works by Works Progress Administration artists from the 1930s whose powerful images of machinery, skyscrapers, and daily life—both at work and recreation—capture this transformational era in American society.

This exhibition is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and Robin Klaus, PhD, assistant curator.

Native America: In Translation
Aug 16 @ 11:00 am – 6:00 pm
Asheville Art Museum

The Asheville Art Museum presents Native America: In Translation, an
exhibition curated by Apsáalooke artist Wendy Red Star, on view from May 22 through November 3,
2025. Featuring work by seven Indigenous photographers and lens-based artists from across North
America, the exhibition explores urgent questions of identity, heritage, land rights, and the ongoing
impact of colonialism.

Building on Red Star’s role as guest editor of the Fall 2020 issue of Aperture magazine, Native
America: In Translation continues the conversation through personal and often experimental visual
storytelling. Using self-portraits, performance-based imagery, and multimedia assemblages, the
artists offer new perspectives on Native life and representation today.

viewshed
Aug 16 @ 11:00 am – 5:00 pm
Black Mountain College

viewshed illuminates the enduring impact of Black Mountain College as a crucible of artistic experimentation and exchange, tracing the transmission of ideas across generations and exploring how BMC’s radical pedagogical approaches continue to shape contemporary artistic practice. The exhibition stages a dynamic dialogue between past and present, featuring contemporary artists Richard Garet, Jennie MaryTai Liu, Deanna Sirlin, and Susie Taylor alongside seminal BMC figures such as Dorothea Rockburne, Sewell (Si) Sillman, and Jacob Lawrence. By engaging with transparency, structure, color, collaboration, and expanded forms, viewshed brings into focus the porous boundaries between disciplines, unfolding as a sensorial and conceptual investigation into the shifting terrain of artistic influence. The exhibition highlights works that span painting, textile, sound, and performance, inviting viewers to consider the ways in which artistic methodologies evolve and reverberate across time. At its core, viewshed underscores the ways in which BMC’s experimental ethos continues to inspire artists to challenge, reinterpret, and expand the possibilities of creative expression.

The Woodstock Costume Contest with Sal Landers Weirdly Woodstock!
Aug 16 @ 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
French Broad Brewing

The Woodstock Costume Contest + Live Music by Weirdly Woodstock!

1st Place: $100

2nd Place: $50

3rd Place: $25

FREE YOUR INNER FLOWER-POWERED HIPPIE!

EVERYONE WELCOME — ALL AGES & FRIENDLY PETS!

NO COVER CHARGE!

Featuring the delightfully unpredictable Weirdly Woodstock! with “SparkPlug Sal,” joined by the insanely talented Mark Tumo on sax, keys, and vocals, and percussionist extraordinaire Dave Halstead on drums and percussion!

Located at the edge of Biltmore Village, French Broad River Brewery is your go-to spot for Asheville live music, delicious pizza, craft beer, wines, ciders, and non-alcoholic drinks.

Live Music, costume contest, beer, dance party, and Silly Willie’s Hot Dogs will keep the fun rolling all night long!

 

Shindig On the Green
Aug 16 @ 7:00 pm
Pack Square Park

2025 will be the 59th Season of Shindig On the Green!

Bring your instruments, families, friends, lawn chairs and blankets and join us for good times at the Bascom Lamar Lunsford Stage. In 2025 Shindig on the Green, which features a stage show and informal jam sessions around the park, continues at its original location — formerly known as City County Plaza, now transformed into the new Pack Square Park. Locals and visitors alike come together downtown “along about sundown,” or at 7:00pm for those who wear a watch, until 10:00p.m. Concessions are available. Come experience the beautiful music and dance traditions of Southern Appalachia on a summer evening in the mountains.

Béla Fleck’s Blue Ridge Banjo Concert
Aug 16 @ 7:30 pm
Brevard Music Center
Béla Fleck’s Blue Ridge Banjo Concert

Hosted by 19-time GRAMMY winner Béla Fleck, this concert is the culmination of our renowned banjo camp. Renowned faculty will join Béla and other special guests for a unique performance displaying the wonderful diversity of the banjo.

 

The Redd Volkaert Trio
Aug 16 @ 7:30 pm
Diana Wortham Theatre

Red Legged Frog Productions Presents: The Redd Volkaert Trio

Saturday August 16, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.

From country and western swing to jazz and rock, Redd Volkaert is considered a true giant of country music and the Telecaster guitar. Redd is a Grammy-winner and a guitar-playing legend who is renowned throughout the country music world and beyond.

Volkaert played in Merle Haggard’s backing band The Strangers in the spot previously staffed by Roy Nichols. In addition, he has recorded and performed with a who’s who of country music stars such as George Jones, Dolly Parton, Brad Paisley, Dwight Yoakam, Buck Owens, Alison Krauss, Rhonda Vincent, and many more.

Redd won a Grammy for his own work in 2009, after making an international name for himself as lead guitarist for Merle Haggard.

He has released five CDs on his own and recorded and/or played guitar live with a host of world-class artists.

Don’t miss this incredible artist with his band.

Sunday, August 17, 2025
Come to Leicester Annual Artist Studio Tour
Aug 17 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Leicester Community Center

We invite you to join us for the annual Come to Leicester (“Les-ter”) studio tour. The Come to Leicester studio tour is held every year on the third weekend in August and will take place this year on August 16 and 17, 2025 (10:00 – 5:00 each day). The Tour is self-guided, and maps are available in the Brochure. Maps may also be picked up at the Leicester Community Center at 2979 New Leicester Highway, Leicester, NC 28748.

Our community of artists creates in a variety of mediums, including painting, iron work, woodwork, glass, textiles, pottery, jewelry, and brooms. We welcome you to our open studios and community hubs so that you can enjoy our work. Come to Leicester and see for yourself!