Ooh La La Curiosity Market is an artist’s market that takes place in Pritchard Park, located in the center of beautiful downtown Asheville and will showcase the work of more than a dozen local artists. Taking place on Saturdays throughout Summer and every Saturday in October. Ooh La La will feature works by local painters, leather smiths, jewelry makers, potters, up-cycled crafters, and other curious delights, all beneath the colored canopies of large market umbrellas. In addition to the artists, the market will also feature live local music with three musical acts performing each Saturday and will include everything from a solo saxophonist to folk, blues, acoustic and jazz acts.

Do you feel a deep connection to the elements and the natural world, and yearn to unlock the hidden wisdom within them?

Hi, my name is Adora, and I am a modern alchemist, healer, and teacher. I’ve spent the past 30 years studying and practicing the art of harnessing the power of the elements to create sacred spaces for meditation, reflection, and personal transformation. And now, I want to share these life-changing teachings with you.

Are you ready to unleash the modern alchemist within you and transform your life?

Discover the ancient wisdom of the elements and create your sacred space to manifest abundance, harmony, and focus faster than ever before.

In this complimentary online workshop, you will:

• Discover the secrets of how modern alchemy and The Love Frequency can transform your life
• Learn the ancient wisdom of the elements and how to access their unique energies
• Understand how you can use the five primary elements – Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Ether – to balance your body, mind, and spirit
• Use the elements to increase your ability to create and manifest faster
• Create your own sacred space for meditation, reflection, and intentional creation
• Receive direct guidance from Adora on how to choose element-rich objects for your sacred space
• Access the Power of the Elements to Create Your Sacred Space

Imagine a space in your home that serves as a sanctuary for meditation, reflection, prayer, journaling, and other healing practices. A space that not only honors your commitment to transformation but also accelerates your intentional creation process.

In this transformative workshop, you’ll learn how to tap into the alchemy of the natural world and wield the power of the elements to create a sanctuary for your sacred intentional practices. This will help you manifest greater abundance, harmony, and focus in your life, expediting the manifestation process.

Together, we’ll explore the power of the elements – Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Ether – and learn how to harness their energies to create balance, harmony, and abundance in our lives.

By working with the elements and creating your own sacred space, you’ll be able to:

• Balance your emotions and purify your spirit with the power of water
• Inspire your thinking and elevate your communication with the power of air
• Ignite your passion and radiate purpose with the power of fire
• Anchor your life purpose and enhance your vitality with the power of earth
• Create from effortless intention and connect with All That Is with the power of ether
Embrace The Love Frequency™

These acts of sacred alchemy help you more deeply embrace The Love Frequency®, a spiritual accelerator for the modern alchemist. It awakens your inner power and guides you toward living an authentic and abundant life.

The Love Frequency is a flow state of conscious creation that you have been called to as a reminder of your infinite nature. Your sacred heart, the source of all creation, is ready to open to new potentials and to remember the truth of who you are. How are you called to live life to the fullest? What is bubbling up to the surface of your consciousness to be created?

How to Prepare for This Workshop

To prepare for this workshop, please gather objects that symbolize each of the elements and hold personal significance for you:

• Water: a bowl of water, seashell, or a chalice
• Air: a feather, incense, a bell, or photo of winged creatures (butterfly, bird)
• Fire: a candle, incense, or an image of a dragon or phoenix
• Earth: a crystal, salt, a bowl of soil or coins
• Ether: an image of sacred geometry, the cosmos, or a pyramid crystal
Additionally, please bring two photos of yourself – one from your childhood, and one where you felt strong, clear, capable, beautiful, or empowered. If you do not have these photos, you may sketch an image or bring a physical representation that holds significance for you.

By the end of this workshop, you will have created a powerful sacred space that invites balance, harmony, and abundance into your life. Your connection to the elements will be strengthened, and your manifestation process will be accelerated.

Are You a Modern Alchemist?

Have you ever felt that there’s more to life than what meets the eye? That beneath the surface of our everyday existence lies a hidden world of magic, mystery, and limitless potential? If you answered yes, then you are probably a modern alchemist.

Modern alchemists are spiritual seekers who recognize they are co-creators of their reality and have developed the power to transform their lives and the world around them. They dedicate themselves to a development path that continually reveals the hidden mysteries of Universal Laws and The Love Frequency.

Modern alchemists understand how to use these powers to improve their everyday life. They recognize their multidimensional nature and know that they have a gift and light within them that can change the world, first by healing themselves.

If you resonate with these traits, then you’re already on the path of a modern alchemist. And this workshop is the perfect opportunity to take the first step toward unlocking your full potential.

Reserve Your Spot Now and Begin Your Journey as a Modern Alchemist

Don’t miss this chance to learn the ancient secrets of modern alchemy and harness the power of the elements to create your sacred space at no cost. Join me, Adora, in this free online workshop and discover the magic and transformation that awaits you.

Acorns’ Annual season of trunk shows highlights the talented creators of fine art, designer jewelry, and home goods.
As a child, Theresa Forman had a passion for art and the process of creating something beautiful. However, it was not until later in life that she was able to pursue fine art and painting. Theresa greatly enjoys drawing inspiration from life where she can observe both the colors and subtle nuances in the landscape or in a still life. Working primarily in oils, she uses the Plein Air studies and photographic references to produce studio pieces that reveal the harmony found in nature.

Policies in effect at our Market:

• Walk-in service with vendors with proper distancing.
Once in the market, please distance from other customers while in line. Only one customer at a booth at one time.

The market will continue the following practices:
• Hand sanitizer will be available for shoppers and vendors throughout the market;
• A hand washing station is available;
• All vendor tents will be spaced to allow for physical distancing;
• Vendors will wear gloves and/or sanitize regularly when will handle open food products for customers;
• Vendors may sample their product but we ask that customers let the vendor provide a single sample and then step to the side, away from others, to try that product;
• No member of Market staff or Market vendors will be allowed to attend the Market if they are experiencing illness;
• If you have any questions or need the Market’s assistance in any way, please email us at  [email protected] and we will help any way we can.

We take the health and wellness of our community very seriously. Fresh local food is an important part of a healthy lifestyle and we want our community to have consistent and safe access to our local produce and products.

Thank you all for your cooperation and for your support of our Market.

Walt Cottingham will be demonstrating the techniques he uses to create his birdhouse ornaments, employing both modern and more traditional tools in the process. Walt will be in the lobby of the Folk Art Center on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

“Shine and Dine” on the railway! We cordially invite you to hop on board The Carolina Shine, GSMR’s All-Adult First Class Moonshine Car! We will be proudly serving hand crafted, triple-distilled, craft moonshine. Some of the smoothest tasting moonshine in the Carolinas! Offered on the Nantahala Gorge excursion, this shine and dine experience begins in a renovated First Class train fleet car, The Carolina Shine. The interior features copper lined walls filled with the history of moonshining in North Carolina. Learn about the proud tradition that the Appalachians established when bootlegging was an acceptable way of life and local home brews were the best in town. Read about Swain County’s very own Major Redmond, the most famous mountain moonshine outlaw of the 19th century. Once your appetite for knowledge is satisfied, enjoy sample tastings of flavors like Apple Pie, Blackberry, Blueberry, Cherry, Peach, and Strawberry moonshine. If the samples are not enough, there will be plenty of Moonshine infused cocktails like Copper Cola or Moonshiner’s Mimosa available for purchase. GSMR is excited to feature multiple craft NC based distilleries to serve our guests only the best! Each jar is handcrafted and authentically infused with real fruit, the way moonshine was meant to be made. Passengers will also enjoy a full service All-Adult First Class ride with an attendant and our popular Cajun seasoned Pulled Pork BBQ with Sweet Baby Ray’s sauce cooked in our special spices and slow roasted to perfection! During the month of October, 9am departures will feature the option of a delicious Cheesy Shrimp & Grits or Cheesy Ham Hash Brown Casserole while 2pm departures will be served the popular BBQ meal.

TFAC invites all artists: painters, sculptors, writers, performers & more — to a casual weekly drop-in gathering on Saturday mornings at 9 AM to share your works in progress, alert others, and chat about art and what’s happening in your community. The first weekly Coffee is Saturday, August 20 at 9 am. No RSVP needed, just drop by! Free parking available on Melrose Avenue, behind and alongside TFAC.

Come out to watch an agricultural tradition: antique tractor pulls! Folks will be pulling models as
old as 1964, Bring a chair, sunscreen and cheer on your favorite tractor every 2nd Saturday April-September, Free, Organized by
the Apple Country Engine & Tractor Association, 2298 S Mills Gap Rd, Hendersonville, Facebook.com/AppleCountryWNC

Black Mountain College and Mexico (BMC/MX): Exhibition, Publication, and Public Programming

Black Mountain College (1933–1957), a small but remarkably influential liberal arts school in rural North Carolina, had important links to Mexico that until now have been little investigated. A crucible of twentieth-century creativity, BMC galvanized and inspired artists and intellectuals from around the world, while Mexico’s innovations and age-old traditions—in fine and applied arts, architecture, poetry, music, performance, and more—dovetailed with, and indeed drove, global impulses toward modernism and beyond. Among the many key BMC figures whose lives were importantly touched by experiences in Mexico were Anni and Josef Albers, Ruth Asawa, John Cage, Jean Charlot, Elaine de Kooning, Buckminster Fuller, Carlos Mérida, Robert Motherwell, Charles Olson, Clara Porset, M.C. Richards, and Aaron Siskind. In turn, engagements with BMC and its legacy have played a significant role in shaping contemporary approaches to art in Mexico, evident in the works of Jorge Méndez Blake, Iñaki Bonillas, Abraham Cruzvillegas, Jose Dávila, Gerda Gruber, Lake Verea, Gabriel Orozco, and Damián Ortega, among others.

The exhibition BMC/MX features works by these and other prominent contemporary Mexican artists alongside a selection of historic works by BMC artists, highlighting the ways in which ideas and modalities are translated across materials, space, and time.

Related programming, planned in collaboration with Mexican artists, features a series of public events, including a performance by artist (and BMC/MX co-curator) David Miranda to take place at Different Wrld; an exhibition visit (in Spanish and English) with BMC/MX Project Director Eric Baden; and a series of experiential art events in the BMCM+AC library.

The exhibition is accompanied by the book Black Mountain College and Mexico (forthcoming late summer 2023), which investigates the people, ideas, and practices linking BMC and Mexico during the life of the school, as well as resonances between BMC and the work of contemporary Mexican artists. With contributions by BMC/MX’s curators, as well as by artist Abraham Cruzvillegas, design scholar Ana Elena Mallet, and author and activist Margaret Randall, this fully illustrated volume brings new light to this complex and underexplored subject.

BMC/MX is an investigation into modes of communication—the arenas in which new ideas and alliances may come to be—between Black Mountain College and Mexico, between past and present, between form and idea.

About the Curators

BMC/MX’s Project Director Eric Baden is a photographer and from 1994 to 2022 was professor of photography at Warren Wilson College in Swannanoa, North Carolina. He is the founding director of photo+, a multidisciplinary arts event held in Asheville, North Carolina.

Artist and educator David Miranda is curator at the Museo Experimental El Eco (Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, UNAM), and teaches at the Escuela Nacional de Pintura, Escultura y Grabado “La Esmeralda” in Mexico City.

Diana Stoll is an editor, writer and curator who works with institutions such as The Museum of Modern Art and the J. Paul Getty Museum. She has served as an editor at Aperture and Artforum magazines, and contributes writings to prominent arts publications.

Kids’ Comedy Tour: Wildly funny, this educational and entertaining tour features the perfect blend of Asheville’s history and kid-centric comedy. Geared specifically toward the 5–12 year old crowd, you’ll explore the town with our famously outlandish tour guides leading the way.

• Perfect for birthday parties
• Makes for memorable school field trips
• Tickets are $27 per person
• Beverages available for purchase at the LaZoom Room
• Departs from 76 Biltmore Avenue

Paul Wong, Carbon, silver and gold, 2016, pigmented linen and cotton pulp, publisher: Dieu Donné, New York, edition 3/25, 18 × 11 inches. Gift of Dieu Donné, New York, 2022.27.06. © Paul Wong.

On View March 8 through July 24, 2023
The Van Winkle Law Firm Gallery • Level 1

Paper is an essential part of the art-making process for many artists, serving as the base for drawing, painting, printmaking, and other forms of art. As a substrate, paper can vary in weight, absorbency, color, size, and other aspects. Since industrialization, paper has primarily been produced through mechanical means that allow for consistency and affordability.

What happens, then, when an artist chooses to return to the foundations of paper, wherein it is made by hand using pulps, fibers, and dyes that reflect the human element through variations, inconsistencies, flaws, and surprises? Certain artists have sought out these qualities and embraced them, making paper not just a support on which to work, but fully a medium in and of itself.

Pulp Potential: Works in Handmade Paper is organized by the Asheville Art Museum and curated by Hilary Schroeder, former assistant curator, with assistance from Alexis Meldrum, curatorial assistant. Special thanks to Dieu Donné, New York, NY.

Sandburg Home Tours – Thursday to Sunday at 11am, 1pm, 2pm.

*As of April 2022, tours are free until further notice. See rates below if they change before your visit. Online reservations are available at recreation.gov.

The Sandburg Home is a great place to start your visit! The ground floor of the home contains visitor information, exhibits, tour ticket sales, the park store, and you can watch the park video. The main and top level of the home are furnished with the Sandburg family belongings. Visitors may only access the furnished ares of the home on a guided tour.

• Tour Reservations: Reserving in advance lets you pick your preferred house tour time. Tours fill up quickly. Last-minute, in-person tickets may not be available on the day you visit. Plan ahead and reserve house tour tickets at recreation.gov.

• Passes: The park does not currently sell the America the Beautiful– National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Passes.
  *These passes do not waive the house tour fee, but do provide a discount.
  *You can purchase a pass online at America the Beautiful – National Parks & Federal Recreational Lands Annual Pass | USGS Store.
• 30-minute house tours are offered year-round, schedule varies by season. Visit recreation.gov for the current schedule.
• Visitors may only tour the Sandburg Home on a guided tour.
• Tours are limited to 6 persons.
• Strollers are not permitted on the house tour, but there is a place to leave them for storage. Infants and small children should be carried through the house while on tour.

  Sandburg Home Guided Tour Fee
  *Tours are free until further notice, this chart is the rate when fees resume.
  (credit card only)
  $10.00 for Adults 16 and older
  $6.00 for Adults age 62 and older and all interagency pass holders
  Free for Children age 15 and under

The Art of Food features works from important postwar artists, like Robert Rauschenberg, Roy Lichtenstein, John Baldessari, Wayne Thiebaud, Ed Ruscha, Andy Warhol, David Hockney, and Jasper Johns, alongside the work of contemporary artists, like Alison Saar, Lorna Simpson, Enrique Chagoya, Rachel Whiteread, and Jenny Holzer, among others. The Art of Food features more than 100 works in mediums that include drawings, paintings, photographs, prints, sculptures, and ceramics by 37 artists. Each artist has a unique means of depicting food in their work that, when seen alongside others, creates a nuanced representation of the complex place food holds in everyday life. Cross-historical resonances between artists in the exhibition spark novel meditations on food and its discontents, while speaking to a broad range of audiences.

Included with admission

Back by popular demand, The Vanderbilts at Home and Abroad exhibition offers guests:

• An opportunity to view rarely-seen treasures from the Biltmore collection
• A first-hand look at the Vanderbilts’ lifestyle
• Deeper insights into George, Edith, and Cornelia’s personalities, both at home and on their extensive travels

Access to exhibitions at The Biltmore Legacy is included with Biltmore daytime admission.

Toybox’s (mostly) Monthly Puppetry Series
Presented by Toybox Theatre, with special guest artists
Toybox Theatre, in collaboration with The Magnetic Theatre, presents a new puppetry series for ALL AGES. This new series will feature original works by acclaimed award-winning puppeteer and clown Toybox, and will bring some of the best puppeteers in the nation as special guests!
Toybox Theatre has been entertaining audiences from coast to coast with their unique brand of humor and art for over 20 years! Garnishing many “fan favorite” and “funniest show” awards, Toybox has also received an UNIMA Citation for Excellence in the Art of Puppetry, and funding from The Jim Henson Foundation.
Saturday May 06, 2023 at 11:00am: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=177146
Saturday June 10, 2023 at 11:00am: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=179633
Saturday July 8, 2023 at 11:00am: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=179634
Saturday Aug 19, 2023 at 11:00am: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=179635
Saturday Oct 14, 2023 at 11:00am: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=179637
Saturday Nov 11, 2023 at 11:00am: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=179638
Saturday Dec 16, 2023 at 11:00am: https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=179639
PRICING
Adults $20; Children (12 and under) $10
All children must be accompanied by an adult.

Toybox Theatre, in collaboration with The Magnetic Theatre, presents a new puppetry series for ALL AGES. This new series will feature original works by acclaimed award-winning puppeteer and clown Toybox, and will bring some of the best puppeteers in the nation as special guests!

Toybox Theatre has been entertaining audiences from coast to coast with their unique brand of humor and art for over 20 years! Garnishing many “fan favorite” and “funniest show” awards, Toybox has also received an UNIMA Citation for Excellence in the Art of Puppetry, and funding from The Jim Henson Foundation.

Gather bathing suits and sunscreen, Buncombe County’s outdoor pools are getting ready to open. The County’s five outdoor pools will open for the 2023 season on May 27. This includes the pools at Cane Creek, Erwin, Hominy Valley, North Buncombe, and Owen.

Outdoor pools will be open on weekends only until area schools are out for the summer. Starting on June 10, Pools will be open seven days a week.

Pool hours are Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Cost for pool entry is $3 per person.

Private lessons at the outdoor pools are available for different age groups from 3-year-olds and up. For more information on lessons or to register for a class, click here.

The pools can also be booked for private parties 14 days in advance and must have a minimum of 50 patrons. Pool bookings are available Monday through Friday from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 6:15 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. Click here for more information on booking pools.

Buncombe County Pool Locations:

• Cane Creek Pool – 590 Lower Brush Creek Road, Fletcher
• Erwin Pool – 58 Lees Creek Road, Asheville
• Hominy Valley Pool – 25 Twin Lakes Road, Candler
• North Buncombe Pool – 734 Clarks Chapel Road, Weaverville
• Owen Pool – 117 Stone Drive, Swannanoa

In addition, lap swimming is available year-round at the Buncombe County Schools Aquatics Center, a 10-lane pool managed by the YMCA of Western North Carolina and Buncombe County Schools.

For more information on outdoor pools, visit the County’s pool website or call (828) 348-4770.

Starting April 8th, you can ride ArtAVL’s new free ArtsAVL Connect Trolley – connecting the Downtown and River Arts Districts with two overlapping routes. The initiative is a partnership between ArtsAVL and Gray Line Asheville. Beginning April 8th, two chartered Gray Line trolleys will circulate on 20-30 minute intervals from 12-8 pm on every Second Saturday. Riders are welcome to hop on and off anywhere along the trolley routes. The Downtown Trolley connects the main areas of the Central Business District to the River Arts District. The River Arts Trolley loops throughout the River Arts District. Residents and visitors can view stops and current location of trolleys through the interactive trolley map on ArtsAVL’s website and the new ArtsAVL app.

Have you ever made your own paper? How about making your own paper with invasive plants? That’s what we will be doing for this workshop! Nica Rabinowitz, Founder of Fiberhouse Collective, will be showing us how to take from our environment in a way that gives back. Fiberhouse Collective is dedicated to closing the loop when it comes to all things fiber, so this workshop will begin with an information session before we get our hands dirty. Learn more about Fiberhouse Collective

Have you ever made your own paper? How about making your own paper with invasive plants? That’s what we will be doing for this workshop! Nica Rabinowitz, Founder of Fiberhouse Collective, will be showing us how to take from our environment in a way that gives back. Fiberhouse Collective is dedicated to closing the loop when it comes to all things fiber, so this workshop will begin with an information session before we get our hands dirty. Learn more about Fiberhouse Collective

Join a certified forest therapy guide for a relaxing 2.5-hour stroll through the forest on the peaceful Arboretum grounds. Through a series of invitations, you’ll have the opportunity to be present in the moment, deepening your connection with nature and community, and enjoying the many gifts nature has to offer. Your guide will share mindfulness practices designed to connect you more deeply to your inner landscapes, as well as the world around you. Inspired by Shinrin-Yoku, the Japanese art of immersing oneself in a forest environment, a forest bathing walk invites you to spend time in nature in a way that invites healing for ourselves, our fraught ecosystems, and our community. It is true nature therapy!

• Special, discounted rate of $45/person (includes parking!)
• Occurs on select dates each month
• Max group size is 15 for a more intimate experience

Hit the trails and learn more about The North Carolina Arboretum’s botanically diverse forest with a guided trail walk! April through October, this free hiking program is led by trained volunteer guides who take small groups of participants along woodland trails and through a variety of forest types. Depending on the season and each guide’s area of expertise, topics of discussion may include wildflowers, plant and tree identification, natural history and more.

Guided trail walks are limited to 15 people, including the guide, and are not recommended for guests under 16 years of age. Groups depart from the Baker Visitor Center Lobby on Tuesdays at 1 p.m. and Saturdays at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m..

Walks last 1.5 – 2.5 hours, are approximately one to two miles in length. As this program is held rain or shine, all participants should dress appropriately for the weather.

There is no pre-registration; walks are first-come first served and sign up sheets are located in the Baker Visitors Center.

Walks are FREE; however, donations to The North Carolina Arboretum Society are appreciated. Regular parking fees apply. Arboretum Society Members always park free.

Know Before You Go

• Guided Trail Walks are not recommended for guests under 16 years of age.
• Guided Trail Walks are rain or shine and all participants should be dressed comfortably and for the weather.
• Hikes cover 1-2 miles and last 1.5-2 hours.
• Well-behaved leashed pets are welcome to accompany their owners. In the rare case that a pet is disruptive or negatively impacts the experience, the pet and its owner may be asked to excuse themselves from the guided walk.
• COVID-19 Safety: In order to hear the guide and fully participate in the trail walk, participants will be in close proximity to one another for extended periods of time. While face coverings are not required, participants should use their best judgement to keep themselves and others safe while enjoying the trails. Individuals who are experiencing flu-like symptoms or suspect they may have been exposed to COVID-19 should not participate.
• At this time, no more than 6 spaces may be filled by a single family/group through pre-registration for any one Guided Trail Walk. If additional spaces are available on the day of the Walk, additional members of the family/group may participate. We apologize for any inconvenience and look forward to welcoming larger groups in the future.

Join us for a relaxing ride through quiet countryside on your way to small town life in western North Carolina on the Tuckasegee River Excursion. Departing from Bryson City, this 4 hour excursion travels 32 miles round-trip to Dillsboro and back to the Bryson City Depot. Pass by the famous movie set of The Fugitive starring Harrison Ford!

The Tuckasegee (tuck-uh-SEE-jee) River Excursion includes an 1 hour and 20 minute layover in the historic town of Dillsboro, where you’ll find more than 50 shops, restaurants, a brewery, and country inns. There is time to shop, snack, and visit the many unique shops before returning to Bryson City.

Here’s what we plan on doing. Refer to this train’s schedule for departures times.

Given the nature of railroading, durations are approximate and subject to change without notice.