Please note: Nature Connects^®: Art with LEGO^® Bricks has been postponed until July; however, the exhibit will have an extended schedule and will be open until November 1. We look forward to seeing you!

The Arboretum is excited to welcome back the widely popular traveling exhibit, Nature Connects^®: Art with LEGO^® Bricks by Sean Kenney. Featuring 14 larger-than-life-size sculptures place created with nearly 500,000 LEGO Bricks, this family-friendly exhibit draws inspiration from the living world and combines art, play and science to create an inspiring intersection of education, entertainment and the environment. New sculptures include a 5-foot tall colorful peacock, giant dragonfly, bonsai tree and more!

The Fairy trail is open Monday thru Saturday, 9am-4pm. We encourage all visitors to be patient as there will be limits to the number of people allowed on the trail at the same time. While the trail is outdoors, there are some small spaces and we want to ensure our guests and fairies are safe. Please practice appropriate social distancing and bring a mask in case. Masks are not required, but are considerate in a close area. Our restrooms are not open to the public at this time. Please make arrangements prior to visiting.

Rules of the trail:

Do not move or rearrange fairy displays. The fairies are very fond of their own decorating.

Do not leave trash on the trail. Fairies do not like litter in their town.

Please ensure children and pets are supervised at all times. Dogs and loud noises can scare the fairies into hiding.

Do not disturb wildlife or vegetation. The fairies depend on the vegetation to build their homes.

The trail is one way only. Please stay on the trail at all times.

The Fairies can’t wait to see you all here!

P.S. the Fairies would like us to remind you that we are a non-profit and donations are greatly appreciated. Help us keep the fairies living in the style with which they’ve become accustomed.

In this virtual program offering we will be experimenting with common household materials. Be prepared to get messy as we want some cool chemical reactions! If you try this at home you will need adult supervision. This video is best suited for elementary aged children. Access this virtual program video beginning August 12 at https://haywoodlibrary.org/696/Virtual-Programming and on the Haywood County YouTube Channel.

A panel of successful craft entrepreneurs will present on how they have adapted their businesses in order to meet the challenges of COVID-19, from the actual operational and production changes, to how they have diversified their revenue to reach new customers. Learn how these various creative businesses have pivoted to thrive and grow during the pandemic.

Presenters:

• Connie and Alex Matisse from East Fork Pottery
• Melanie and Brian Boggs from Brian Boggs Chairmakers
• Jael Rattigan from French Broad Chocolates

When a friend gave Toland Sand a stained glass studio in 1977, he embarked upon a journey that would lead him to explore the myriad qualities that define glass as a medium. Sand’s 43 years as a sculptor has resulted in works of stained glass, blown glass, and every combination in between. A pioneer in utilizing the unique properties of dichroic glass, Sand begins his current sculpture with optical crystal and dichroic coated glass, hand worked by grinding in ever finer stages until a polish is achieved. Seeking balance, harmony, and symmetry, with an accent on deconstructed form, his work inhabits the symbolic, the cosmic, and the mystery. Sand is inspired by his peers as well as artists such as Isamu Noguchi, David Smith, Henry Moore, and Mark Rothko.
Sand’s work can be found numerous public and private collections including the Bergstrom-Mahler Museum of Glass, Neenah, WI, Hunter Museum of American Art, Chattanooga, TN, Imagine Museum, Sarasota, FL, and others.

Bender Gallery continues to be open and welcoming visitors into our gallery in limited numbers and with facemasks, of course. We remain dedicated to supporting our artists during these unprecedented times by making ourselves available almost anytime you wish to speak with us to answer questions and sharing their work online and through social media. We and our artists thank you for your support!

“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 serving GSMR’s freshly cooked pulled pork barbeque rubbed with Cajun spices then slow-roasted to perfection served with southern sweet cornbread muffin with honey butter, coleslaw, and cinnamon apples then finish with a delicious piece of Sea Salt Caramel Cheesecake. Riders will also receive their very own Carolina Shine mason drinking jar, refillable with soda beverages and tea throughout the day, and a souvenir GSMR tote bag (1 per couple/party).

• What we’ll do
Network and have lunch with new and old friends while you promote your business products and services. Bring a big stack of business cards and a friend if you like. ALL are invited, no cost to attend the meeting, we just ask that you support our host restaurant and buy your lunch (the buffet is amazing!).

• What to bring
Business Cards, Positive Attitudes, Smiles.

• Important to know
Perfect your one minute speech – make sure people know who you are and most importantly, how you can help them. Networking events are a great place to practice your pitch!

• Thanks to our Sponsors!
– Radius Chiropractic
– Montreat College School of Adult and Graduate Studies
– College Nannies+Sitters
– Charlotte Sheppard, Realtor
– The Super Signguy

Shakespeare Spotlight: John Douglas Thompson
Award-winning actor John Douglas Thompson leads a conversation on Shakespeare on Wednesday, August 12 at 1:00pm ET. Hosted by the National Arts Club, this event is free but requires pre-registration for access to the Zoom meeting. Thompson will be discussing his roles with John Andrews, NAC member and head of The Shakespeare Guild.

Blue Ridge Humane Society and Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site are partnering to provide a new series of videos for pet owners to guide them through the steps and preparation for safe and fun hiking with their dog.

The videos will feature recommendations from Crystal Tysz, CPDT-KA, the Training and Behavior Manager for the Blue Ridge Humane Society. The series will begin on Wednesday, August 12, 2020 with a special Virtual Visitors Center Q&A hosted on Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site’s Facebook page. Videos will be released weekly, with subjects ranging from how to know if you and your dog are ready to hike, hiking in the heat, trail etiquette, and more.

“We’re excited to partner with the Blue Ridge Humane Society so dogs and their humans can have safe, fun, and “pawsitive” experiences on public trails,” said Park Superintendent Polly Angelakis.

“Hiking is a great activity for everyone. We are happy to do our part to educate pet owners on the small steps they can take to make hiking a safe and enjoyable activity for themselves, their pets, and other trail users.” said Blue Ridge Humane Society Executive Director Angela Prodrick.

Join us online on Wednesday, August 12^th , 1pm-3pm EST, on the Carl Sandburg Home NHS’s Facebook page and start, or learn more about ways to improve, your pet hiking adventure!

Artists Steve Locke and Ben Hall will discuss Locke’s current work, Homage to the Auction Block, a series informed by Josef Albers’ Homage to the Square. Much of Locke’s earlier work deals with the human body and the grid. With his newest work he has moved from the anonymous, embattled body to the very specific body of the individual. In Homage to the Auction Block, Locke brings color theory to his ongoing dialogue on images of racial exploitation in American history including the conflicted past Locke explored in the Auction Block Hall Proposal and the Three Deliberate Grays for Freddie at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Steve Locke was born in Cleveland, Ohio, and raised in Detroit, Michigan. He received his M.F.A. in 2001 from Massachusetts College of Art and Design and attended Skowhegan in 2002. He has had residencies with the City of Boston (2018), the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (2016), and The MacDowell Colony (2015). He has received grants from Pollock-Krasner Foundation, Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation, and Art Matters Foundation. He has had solo exhibitions at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston, and the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit.

Locke has done projects with ForFreedoms, Kickstarter, the Boston Public Library, the Gardner Museum, and P.S. Satellites/Prospect IV in New Orleans and has had gallery exhibitions with yours mine & ours, Samsøñ, Gallery Kayafas, and Mendes Wood. His work has been reviewed in ARTFORUM, Art in America, Art New England, JUXTAPOZ, The Boston Globe, and The New Yorker. Currently a Professor at Pratt Institute, Steve is a painter whose work lives at the intersections of portraiture, identity, and modernism. He uses painting’s ability to direct the gaze to help us look critically and unflinchingly at our shared history. His work can be seen at www.stevelocke.com  

Ben Hall, Detroit-based artist and composer. He received his undergraduate degree from Bennington College where he focused on Quaker-based mediation and conflict resolution and studied drums with Milford Graves. Hall produces new American improvisation on his record labels brokenresearch and Ornette Coleman Fiend Club, including the last small group recordings of visionary trumpeter and composer Bill Dixon. His practice also includes curating Bap-tizum.com, the world’s largest online Black American spiritual collection.

Hall has written for The Wire and BOMB and was profiled in Fred Moten’s book Black and Blur (Consent not to be a single being). Hall contributed the essay “Face Changer” to BMCM+AC 2018 exhibition catalogue Between Form and Content: Perspectives on Jacob Lawrence and Black Mountain College. His upcoming exhibition 2021 exhibition at Essex Flowers is titled Jives n Gambles and focuses on the work of Philip Guston and William Faulkner as interlocutors of racism.

LWVUS Chief Executive Officer Virginia Kase will sit down with LWVUS President Deborah Turner for a one-hour discussion on what lies ahead for democracy in America, and how all women can be active participants.  

This powerful discussion will examine how women voters can better elevate the voices and perspectives of women of color, how we can protect current voting rights while continuing to expand access, and what role we all play in the racial justice movement.   

As we approach the anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment on August 18, LWVUS will dig into the work we need to do over the next 100 years to ensure fair elections with participation by all, particularly those who have been marginalized in the past. 

This conversation will be streamed live on the LWVUS Facebook page and will include a live question and answer portion to provide an opportunity for viewers across the country to pose questions through social media.

#WomenPowertheVote

Be Red Cross Ready is designed to help adults understand, prepare for, and respond appropriately to disasters by focusing on a step-by-step approach that is manageable, action-oriented, and affordable. The program introduces basic emergency preparedness skills, goes through the current causes, signs and prevention of COVID-19 and goes over the risks inherent to local disasters such as floods, wildfires and home fires. We will then discuss how to prepare, respond appropriately, and the basic steps to stay safe after any of these disasters.

New to Medicare and confused by the options? Been on Medicare for a while but feel like you could use a refresher? Sign up below to attend a FREE Medicare Information Session.