A cherished gathering of locals and visitors alike, “Art After Dark” will continue its 2024 season from 6-9 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6, in downtown Waynesville. 

A cherished gathering of locals and visitors alike, “Art After Dark” will launch its 2024 season from 6-9 p.m. Friday, June 7, in downtown Waynesville. 

Gallery 164 in Waynesville welcomes esteemed woodturner Mike McKinney to its roster of talented artists. In celebration of this exciting addition, Gallery 164 will host a reception for McKinney during Art After Dark from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Friday, May 3, in downtown Waynesville. 

If the litmus test of a community’s health is how strong its art scene is, then, by the looks of it, Waynesville is in tip-top shape.

Hundreds will take to the streets of downtown this Friday evening for the first Art After Dark of the year. For some serious art purveyors, it’s a time to study and muse over the latest works to emerge on gallery walls. For artists, its time to compare notes about the creative process.

The Waynesville Gallery Association will present Art After Dark from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 2, in downtown Waynesville.

Art After Dark takes place the first Friday of each month, May through December. Patrons can stroll through working studios and galleries on Main Street, Depot Street and in Historic Frog Level. Art After Dark flags denote participating galleries. Steve Whiddon will provide music on the street.

Haywood County Arts Council’s Gallery 86 is hosting its newest exhibition, “Donna Rhodes: All Over The Map” celebrating the wide artistic range and whimsy of artist and Tuscola High art teacher, Donna Rhodes.

Twigs and Leaves Gallery will be featuring clay jewelry artist, Jody Funk. Funk will be demonstrating her work in clay.

Gallery 262 is showing the works of Jere Smith and Dan Wright. Smith is a woodworker and furniture maker and Wright is a stained glass artist.

828.452.9284 or www.waynesvillegalleryassociation.com.

Artist draws on lifetime of experience for new show

An exhibition of artist Donna Rhodes’ work called All Over the Map will run through Sept. 17 at the Haywood County Arts Council’s Gallery 86 in downtown Waynesville. An opening reception will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Sept. 2.

The show is a visual journey that criss-crosses the multi-media landscape Rhodes’ unique view of the world.

She holds a degree in music in addition to being a professional artist and art instructor at Tuscola High School, a writer and photographer and a staff writer for The Laurel Magazine in Highlands. She is currently working on three children’s books.

For more information, call 828.452.0593 or visit www.haywoodarts.org.

“For the Love of Color: Mixed-up Media,” an exhibition of works by Sylvia Everett, will take place from Wednesday, Aug. 4, to Saturday, Aug. 21. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through. A special artist’s reception will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 6, in conjunction with the Waynesville Gallery Association’s Art After Dark event.

In 1995, Everett was one of the first artists to exhibit at the Haywood County Arts Council’s newly founded Little Gallery on Church Street. From 1995 to 2001, she was a resident artist at Andover Newton Theological School in Newton, Mass. She maintained a working studio on campus and provided help and guidance to students who chose to use art as a way to explore theological questions.

In addition to the weaving, mosaic, and painting of this exhibition, Everett has created many large banners using painted silk and cut paper as well as seasonal installations for First United Methodist Church in Waynesville.

Everett has also provided worship settings for Lake Junaluska and was an artistic consultant for the Bethea Welcome Center, where her large sculptural installation, “Song of Justice,” is permanently displayed. That sculpture, composed of 27 vintage organ pipes and authentic ethnic fabrics, honors the many cultures of people who come to Lake Junaluska.

www.haywoodarts.org.

The monthly Art After Dark will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. on Aug. 6 in Waynesville. Sponsored by The Waynesville Gallery Association, Art After Dark takes place the first Friday of each month, May through December.

Enjoy a stroll through working studios and galleries on Main Street, Depot Street and in Historic Frog Level. Festive flags identify participating galleries, while Steve Whiddon will provide music on the street.

• The wire-wrapping art of Nadine Fidelman will be featured at The Jeweler’s Workbench from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, Aug. 6, at Waynesville’s Art After Dark.

Fidelman searches out the best gemstones, pearls, fossils and dichroic glass from the world’s top suppliers to use in her one-of-a-kind pendants and earrings.  She “wraps” each one, surrounding it with a minimal amount of wire, to enhance its beauty.

• Burr Studio will be featuring woodcarver Dennis Ruane for the month of August. Many folks will remember Dennis from the Hardwood Gallery previously located on Main Street in Waynesville.

• Earthworks Gallery is proud to feature the work of nationally-acclaimed artist Bonnie Marris and the fanciful creations of Ruth Apter as it celebrates August Art After Dark.

• Ridge Runner Naturals Studio & Gallery will be hosting a Trunk Showing of new creative, one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces by Waynesville artist Keri Anna Kelley. Kelly will be sharing her inspiration and design process. Wine and cheese will be served.

www.waynesvillegalleryassociation.com or 828.452.9284.

Honoring four-legged friends at Twigs and Leaves

Twigs and Leaves Gallery is celebrating our four-legged companions with a special Art After Dark tribute from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, Aug. 6.

Having recently lost its gallery dog, Twigs and Leaves will honor Debbie, who welcomed thousands of customers, with a tree planting on Wall Street. The gallery will also be fundraising for The Francis Fund, which helps injured and sick creatures who are abandoned or homeless and will help the pets of people in financial difficulty.

Clay animal artist “Old Dog” will be in the gallery, and he and Twigs and Leaves Gallery will donate the profit of the sales of Old Dogs dogs to the fund. Munch on “dog treats,” stroll the gallery with its more than 170 artists, and enjoy familiar tunes on the piano.

www.twigsandleaves.com.

Haywood Heritage Trail: Quilts of Bygone Years opening Wednesday, May 12, will feature traditional quilt squares for sale by area quilters and quilting guilds. In addition, several full-sized and heirloom quilts will be displayed alongside tools of the quilting trade like frames, antique sewing machines, and more.

The Haywood County Arts Council gallery show runs through Saturday, June 19.

A special artists’ reception will be held from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday, June 4, at Gallery 86. The reception is being held in conjunction with the Waynesville Gallery Association’s Art After Dark where shops, galleries, and businesses remain open until 9 p.m. Regular gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m,, Monday through Saturday.

Participating artists include members of the Cruso Quilting Guild, the High Country Quilting Guild, and the Shady Ladies Quilting Group, among others. Members of both the High Country Quilt Guild and the Shady Ladies Quilting Group are donating proceeds from the sale of their quilt squares to the Haywood County Arts Council for the Haywood County Quilt Trails project.

The gallery exhibition not only helps reinforce the rich tradition of quilting in Haywood County, it also raises awareness of the newly-launched Haywood County Quilt Trails project. The idea is to develop heritage trails comprised of painted quilt blocks that have been installed on barns and buildings throughout the county. Each block tells a unique story about the location or family history. The Shelton House Museum will receive the first quilt square on the Haywood County trail later this summer.

For more information, visit www.haywoodarts.org.

By Michael Beadle

There’s so much art to see in downtown Waynesville, gallery owners are now offering to keep their businesses open extra hours.

For the first Friday of the month starting this May, the Waynesville Gallery Association is kicking off the fourth season of Art After Dark. The latest evening stroll begins this Friday, May 5, with live music, free snacks and drinks, opening exhibits, and meet-the-artist receptions in a dozen art galleries that line Main Street and adjoining Depot Street.