Asheville – The Beaverdam Studio Tour takes place the last weekend of October every year. This year, the dates for the 6th annual event will be Saturday, October 28th from 10 AM to 5 PM and Sunday, October 29th, 10 AM to 4 PM. Twenty-four artists in various media will be showing and explaining their craft to the visitors, as they stop in to visit the studios and see the items. Going from one studio to another is an easy walk. One will be able to find beautiful pieces, all crafted by 24 talented artists: jewelry, sculpture, textiles, paper art, photography, ceramic pieces, and many styles of paintings. All are in the homes and studios of the artists who live or have a studio, off Beaverdam Road in North Asheville. A map with easy identification of the streets and locations of the artists studios can be found on the website: www.beaverdamstudiotour.com, or can be picked up at BlackBird Frame & Art at 365 Merrimon Avenue in Asheville. Many of the artists have shown before, but six are new to the tour. It is a wonderful opportunity to purchase your holiday items for friends and family.
Beautiful hand crafted jewelry in various styles are being shown. Amy Brandenburg creates earrings, pendants and bracelets in a number of designs, using cutting edge technology to shape the metal. Some adorable birdhouse silver pendants will be available. Cathy Stryker has some unusual, delicate pieces of jewelry and handmade small sculptures, made from wood, metals, and stone. Joanna Gollberg is well known in the area for the fantastic jewelry she creates. She received a jewelry design degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. She has written four books on making handcrafted jewelry, teaches jewelry making, and was voted Best Jewelry Artist/Designer in Asheville for 2014.
There will be a wide array of paintings, all interesting and unique. Many styles, sizes and mediums can be seen. Susana Abell has been a professional performing and teaching artist for many years. In describing the process she says “The current pieces are made using the printmaking process of encaustic monotype. Each print is completely unique and cannot be replicated. These are made by creating a reverse image in pigmented beeswax melted onto a heated aluminum plate. Paper pressed onto the plate absorbs the wax image.”…. “I hope to offer the viewer an experience with my art that is as peaceful, mysterious and meditative as the process of creating it is for me.” Lynne Harty will only be showing her photo encaustic work at this tour, which is using layers of wax and sometimes photos to create a more ethereal look than framed prints. She is currently experimenting with various styles and techniques as she goes forward. Colorful landscape, pet and portrait paintings in acrylic and pen and ink by Annette McAlister can be seen. Works in acrylic and striking paintings of buildings, people and pets by Nancy Dunn can be seen. Colorful paintings with vibrant and bold brushstrokes can be seen by Pat Barratt. Her distinctive style–somewhat impressionistic-—is dramatic with glowing color combinations. She has shown in many galleries and received many awards.Susan Sinyai creates classical pastel and oil landscapes, flowers, and still lifes. George Handy has some oil paintings, paintings on sculptural wood forms, as well as hand painted landscape photography. His work can be found at the prestigious Smithsonian Museum of American Art and other venues.
Remarkable handblown glass vessels, sculptures and functional products can be seen by Joe Nielander. Earlier this year the North Carolina Glass Center featured his work with a retrospective of his 40 year career. He said, “I have many styles mostly dealing with color patterns and a three-color theme. Most of my blown work is either free-form sculptures and vessel form as a canvas for my color usage.” He was coordinator of Penland’s glass studio for 5 years and has run his own studio for 29 years.
Again this year you will be able to see some of the stunning textile designs by Judy Ott, who missed last year’s tour. She started her career in New York City with a textile firm and wanted to be involved with the colors and patterns she saw in the design department. She says, “I worked for Springs Industries, headquartered in Fort Mill, S.C. but I worked in Rock Hill at the Bleachery. I moved down South 27 years ago as Vice President of Design for one the the printed fabric divisions. I have had my own weaving business for 20 years before I sold it to one of my weavers. We wove trims for decorators and showed them at fine fabric showrooms to the interior design industry. Right now I weave, dye and felt my scarves and wall art.” Her fashion sense and style will certainly appeal to many of the lady visitors.
Some amazing earthenware forms by Robert Milnes will be shown. This ceramic artist creates sculptures and vessels out of clay and other materials, notably copper. He has other functional useful ceramic vessels as well. Milnes moved to Asheville after retiring as Dean of the College of Visual Arts and Design at the University of North Texas in 2014. Other earthenware pieces can be found in various studios on the tour. Whimsical hand built clay creations–delightful colorful ceramic box forms–can be found by Susan Query. Julie Calhoun-Roepnack has collectable stoneware inspired by North Caroline’s flora and fauna, some with appealing bee designs. And Kathy Mack is showing her wheel-thrown and hand-built pottery for home or garden
Indeed the Beaverdam Studio Tour offers an opportunity for the many talented artists who live and produce their art in North Asheville to open their doors for visitors to see their creations. This is an opportunity to come into the studios of these creative artists to see their artworks, talk with them, and purchase beautiful handmade art and crafts. Be sure to find the time to take the Beaverdam Studio Tour this weekend.