Rad offerings in the RAD

Part of the fun of attending a River Arts District studio stroll is you can’t always predict whom you’ll run into or what new treasures you’ll discover. With more than 100 artists and 20 studio buildings participating, the “typical stroll experience” can be quite varied. For some, the stroll presents an opportunity to kick back and people-watch. Other strollers might be on a supercharged holiday shopping spree, while a different sort meander about looking at demos and wares from which to draw inspiration.

For some newcomers (and even veteran strollers,) what to see can get a bit overwhelming, so Xpress compiled this list of out-of-the-way places, new artists and exhibits to check out while you’re blazing the RAD trail this weekend.

At least one stroll favorite, Wendy Whitson, has changed locations. To see Whitson’s popular impressionistic landscapes, visit her new studio at 357 Depot St. in the building she purchased last year, now christened Northlight Studios. On Friday, Nov. 11, Northlight Studios hosts a pre-stroll party from 5:30-8:30 p.m. featuring work by five Northlight artists.

While on Depot Street, swing by The Artery to see the newest paintings by Virginia Derryberry, professor of art at UNCA. Derryberry’s large-scale narratives are contemporary mash-ups of ancient mythologies, and her ability to capture light is astounding.

Look for a Butoh parade/performance lead by Valeria Watson-Doost that begins at Pink Dog Creative Studios on Depot Street on Saturday, Nov. 12 at 3 p.m.

Venture across the train tracks and down Lyman Street to arrive at the behemoth Riverview Station and 310 Gallery. Owner/painter Fleta Monaghan and Cindy Walton (a recent exhibitor at the Asheville Art Museum) will demonstrate hot and cold wax-painting techniques all weekend. Nearby, the brand-new Village Potters studio will demonstrate wheel-throwing techniques and Raku firing methods.

The Hatchery, located at the corner of Roberts and Haywood streets, currently provides studios for five artists new to the RAD, including encaustic artist Julia Fossen and painter Court McCracken. Be sure to stop by Kirsten Stolle’s studio where she’s been working on a series of gouache, graphite and collage drawings investigating the health and safety ramifications of eating food containing genetically modified organisms.

The Hatchery is also home to Squeaky Wheel Pottery, a start-up, member-owned clay studio for potters of all levels, Memebers of Squeaky Wheel will be demoing techniques and selling wares all weekend.

Swing by The Phil Mechanic Studios on Roberts Street to see the latest colorful bevy of artists located there. Be sure to descend into the Flood Gallery for the current exhibit, Uncharted Waters, which features work by a number of regional contemporary artists. You must see the narrative paintings of Margaret Curtis, and an installation collaboration by Nate Green and Jimmy O’Neal that uses mirror paint (O’Neal’s invention.) O’Neal describes the piece as “a 70-foot spiral that is like a big butterfly tongue chandelier, with the bottom being mirrored paintings of princess tree leaves and a infestation of ladybugs.”