Growing up on Sunset Beach with the Atlantic Ocean as his front yard, Scott Summerfield spent his childhood sketching shrimp boats and building model planes — early signs of a maker’s mind. After taking a flame work course at Penland School of Craft in 1997, his path became clear: He would dedicate his life to shaping molten glass into elegant, expressive forms. Summerfield and his wife Liz Zlot Summerfield, a ceramicist, built their studio in Mitchell County in 2004. “We were young and optimistic,” he recalls. “We woke up each day with a task and got it done as a team.” Today, their workspace is a cornerstone of the Toe River Arts Spring Studio Tour, returning June 6, 7, and 8. The self-guided driving tour showcases nearly 100 artists spread across Yancey and Mitchell counties. “I feel the tour this year will be very healing for the artists as well as the customers who feel so connected to these mountain communities,” says Summerfield. “They need to see that we did suffer a lot of damage [from Hurricane Helene] but that we are survivors, and we will rebuild and hopefully come back stronger.”
The Toe River Arts Spring Studio Tour happens June 6-8, 10am-5pm each day. A reception will be held on Friday, June 6, from 5:30-7:30pm in the Kokol Gallery (269 Oak Ave., Spruce Pine). See more at toeriverarts.org.