Turning Sanctuary into an Artistic Medium
It was almost dark, and Mikey was still running. He heard sirens and urgent, imploring screams. Still, he ran. First, down the oil-stained highway,…
Losing Her Love Meant Having to Find Herself
The grieving process has no definitive end. Leah Waldo knows this fact all too well. In 2019, she was translating designers’ sketches of cars…
Reporting from Michelangelo’s Journey to Mars
When he was 15, Nick Raynolds decided he needed to see someone naked. But, unlike most teenage boys, his intentions were entirely professional. “I…
Professional Crafts Program puts Local Talent to Work
Four years ago, Annah Bible-Sullivan found her fate in a spoon. She was a junior at Asheville High School, looking for an elective to…
How to Wear the Great Realization
In 2021, 47.4 million American workers quit their jobs. Sala Menaya-Merritt was one of them. The Great Resignation wave followed the 2020 “Great Realization”…
Embracing the Chaos
Edwin Knies says his mind is like “a hand grenade that just keeps exploding.” Once he pulls the pin, he can’t stop thinking. Though…
Making (Negative) Space for Contemporary Quilting
This year, the Western North Carolina Quilters Guild will celebrate its 40th birthday. And, like anyone blowing out the candles on their “Big Four-O,”…
Pink Flamingos, Barbie Arms, and Other Upcycled Destinies
Ray Fawley doesn’t subscribe to “normal.” That’s why, one morning in 2017, he staged a robed mannequin in slippers in his Asheville front yard. …
Putting the Factory Back on Factory Hill
One summer during college, Leigh Anne Hilbert worked the graveyard shift at a Hanes factory in Galax, Virginia. From seven at night to seven…
When the Bubble Won’t Burst, You Get Creative
According to Zumper, an online rental platform, you can expect to fork out $1,453 per month for a one-bedroom apartment in Asheville. That’s a…