Lots of changes are underfoot in the burg of Black Mountain. Late last year, board members of the Swannanoa Valley Fine Arts League voted to drop the “Fine” and adopt a trimmed-down moniker: the Swannanoa Valley Art League (SVAL). “We aren’t really a ‘fine’ arts league, but an inclusive league that supports all different kinds of artists and mediums,” explains Denise Waldick, publicity chair. In February, the League also left its location of 12 years and moved down the road to 101 Cherry Street. With three stories, the new facility gives members more studio space and a dedicated main-floor gallery. To commemorate these shifts, the League’s first group exhibition of 2024 is aptly dubbed Making Changes. Asheville photographer Woody Eisenberg sees the show as an opportunity to reflect on how his craft has evolved since relocating from urban New York to rural Western North Carolina in 2017. “Over a period of about two years,” he notes, “I shifted my focus to the beauties of the mountains and streams and to the desolation of deserted farms and barns.”
Making Changes: March 15-May 13; Opening Reception: Friday, March 15, 4-7pm
Swannanoa Valley Art League and The Red House Gallery and Studios / 101 Cherry St., Black Mountain