Woman-owned art gallery Tyger Tyger will host an opening reception for I Will Tell You Mine, an exhibition of works on paper, Friday, April 19, 6-8 p.m.
Mira Gerard, the gallery’s founder, put out an open call earlier this year as a way to connect with emerging and established artists from around the globe. Their works display a variety of methods and materials centering on the malleability of paper.
The exhibition’s title is a quote from Mary Oliver’s poem “Wild Geese,” which reminds Gerard of the communal aspect of emotional life. “Works on paper can often have a sense of intimacy,” she says, “because for most of us, paper is the first place we had where we could journal our thoughts, and as children, paper is the surface we are usually given to make art upon. It is absorbent, tactile, and it responds to the materials added to it in a beautifully sensitive way.”
Though Gerard admits the curation process was challenging at times, she is proud of the variety and artistry in the collection, as well as the relationships her gallery is able to build with the artists. “The amazing outpouring of artwork we received from around the world, along with the intense process of selecting work, was pretty fantastic,” she says. “The most rewarding thing is happening now: receiving the accepted submissions and seeing them in person, while communicating with the artists one-on-one.”
Featured artists include Navi Naisang, Taro Takizawa, Sue Crawford, Kaysha Siemens, Christopher Burk, Suzanne Dittenber and Petey Brown, among others. The exhibition will remain on display until Sunday, May 26.
Tyger Tyger Gallery is at 191 Lyman St. No. 144. For more information, visit avl.mx/dky or contact Jenna at jenna@tygertygergallery.com.
New memoir from Nancy Dillingham
No Time Like the Present, a new memoir by acclaimed local poet and author Nancy Dillingham, is available for preorder from Redhawk Publications.
The memoir is a first for Dillingham, who has written over 20 novels and has taught writing through the Great Smokies Writing Program. According to a press release, No Time Like the Present dives more deeply into her personal experience than her previous work, including her heritage in the Big Ivy region of Western North Carolina, where her family has lived for six generations. “This memoir is a paean to Dillingham, the small community that shaped me and the remarkable individuals who populated it,” says Dillingham in the release. “Their stories, their vernacular and their storytelling inspired me to become a writer and a reader. No Time Like the Present is a celebration of those cherished memories and the enduring values instilled in me by my upbringing.”
No Time Like the Present is scheduled for release in midspring and is available at avl.mx/dkz.
WNC FiberFest returns
The 12th annual FiberFest will be held at the WNC Farmers Market on Saturday, April 20, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
Originally called Fiber Feel Day, the festival was founded by Local Cloth, a volunteer-led nonprofit network of over 500 small-scale artists, farmers and fiber producers. It serves as an outlet for members to connect with one another and to showcase their textiles and fiber art to the public. Although live animals will not be part of the event, attendees will have the chance to interact with raw wool and experience the fiber-making process with hands-on needle felting. “Folks will leave with local, homegrown fiber that has a name and a story,” says Elizabeth Strub of Hobbyknob Farm. “We believe this connection — between producer and consumer — is essential not only to the sustainability of local fiber farms and fiber arts communities but also to our world.”
The event is free and will offer educational activities for the whole family on the process of fiber production. For children and teens interested in learning more, Local Cloth offers summer day camps on sewing and farm-to-fabric techniques. This year’s FiberFest will coincide with the WNC Farmers Market Spring Festival & Growing in the Mountains Plant Sale, which runs Friday, April 19-Sunday, April 21.
FiberFest will take place in shed No. 3 at 570 Brevard Road. For more information, visit avl.mx/9cg.
Plant pop-up market
The Canopy at Art Garden AVL is hosting its monthly plant pop-up market on Saturday, April 20, this time with a twist. The market, which takes place every third Saturday of the month, features an array of houseplants and native medicinals from local growers as well as handmade pots, art, herbal tea and salves, and more. In honor of 4/20, the market will be marijuana-themed, featuring cannabis-related art, unusual houseplants, local smokables and a new cannabis coloring book unveiled by local painter Annie Kyla. The market is free to join and to attend.
Art Garden AVL is at 191 Lyman St., No. 320. For more information, visit avl.mx/d24.
Benefit concert at RAD Brewing
River Arts District Brewing Co. will host Hope Springs Eternal, a musical benefit in support of BeLoved Asheville, on Tuesday, April 23, 6-10:30 p.m.
The event will feature five live musical acts, with all benefits supporting BeLoved’s work with underserved and homeless communities of Asheville. Alan Graf, guitarist for jazz-infused funk rock trio While Rome Burns, put the benefit together as a way to connect with other activists and members of the community. “I live right near downtown and I wanted to do something for my houseless neighbors,” Graf says. “Melissa McKinney [lead singer with Mama & the Ruckus] suggested that we do a benefit for BeLoved Asheville, as they are very effective in what they do, providing medical, food and housing.”
Other performers include Isaac Hadden, Ovadya — a rock band with Middle Eastern and modal influences — and Peggy Ratusz, who was voted 2016’s Artist Who Gives Back. Tickets cost $22.50.
River Arts District Brewing Co. is at 13 Mystery St. For tickets or more information, visit avl.mx/dl0.
Different Wrld moves out
Different Wrld, a creative venue in West Asheville, is losing its space at the end of the month.
Its space at 701 Haywood Road, also the home of event venue The Mothlight and the ceramic studio Half Light Honey, was purchased last month. The future of the current tenants remains unknown.
Honey Simone, Nettie Fisher and Roxanne Snider opened Different Wrld in 2021 to create a space where underrepresented artists could practice their art, collaborate and build community. Different Wrld announced the move on Facebook along with plans to raise funds for a new location: “We have been grassroots since the beginning & will continue to build on the support of those who have caught the vision & understand the importance of black-owned, queer, trans & femme lead spaces especially in the south.”
The popular Filipinx restaurant Neng Jr.’s is in the same building but has not announced whether it will be relocating.
For more information about the move or to support Different Wrld visit avl.mx/dl1.
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