How welcome this month of October, especially when we western North Carolinians were denied the joy and beauty of last year’s autumn. Embracing the arts for the healing and transformative forces that they are—always the aim here at The Laurel—is more important than ever in these turbulent times. May we find meaning in each other’s stories and an undeniable jubilation in visual art, crafts, music, words and performance. They’re ways of triumphing individually in our daily lives and collectively within our communities. Always have been. Always will be.
Gina Malone, Editor
As this month’s Feature Artist Todd Frahm says, “…we all feel a less parasitic when we invest in our collective appreciation of beauty. The very fact that art is intrinsically worthless and inedible is exactly why its persistence is such a buoy to humanity.” Our Cover Artist Li Newton has encouragement for young artists so that they don’t doubt themselves as she once did. “I want upcoming young artists to be braver than I was, to not give up because of negativity around them,” she says. “I want to see them embrace it all, good, bad and the ugly (stage) and keep blossoming.”
In these pages, find our Fall WNC Crafts section, ever a delightful delving into the skills, creativity and imagination so characteristic of our Blue Ridge Mountains people.
What richness autumn brings—the colors, the smells, the sounds, the memories. A spookiness, too. At American Folk Art & Framing, artists’ work has been collected for a show titled Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. And, though the eeriness has mostly been thrust upon them, owls have become symbols of Halloween and fright. Paula Musto tells us why they are such fascinating creatures apart from our superstitiousness. And read about the always intriguing Brown Mountain Lights in Lauren Stepp’s History feature.
It’s ideal weather for studio tours, markets and festivals, including the long-running Craft Fair of the Southern Highlands, the Beaverdam Studio Tour, the Church Street Art & Craft Show, the Kenilworth Studio Tour, the Spruce Pine Potters Market and the WNC Pottery Festival.
The months can seem so fleeting this time of year. I hope you take time to get out and enjoy October.
Gina Malone can be reached at Gina@thelaurelofasheville.com
