Historically speaking, salons have been about much more than haircuts and blowouts. In 1667, during the reign of King Louis XIV, the French monarchy exhibited works by members of the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture at Salon Carré. This marked what would later become a regular exhibition known simply as the Salon. Building on this legacy, the Asheville Art Museum will debut The New Salon: A Contemporary View this March. According to a press release, the show will “act in the convention of the Parisian salon while opening up a dialogue about the deep need for integrated and varied spaces representative of the diverse offerings of the modern art world.” Visitors can expect artists from multiple mediums and genres, such as surrealism, magical realism, and street art. Later in the month, the Museum will unveil Honoring Nature: Early Southern Appalachian Landscape Painting. Curated by Andrew Glasgow, former executive director of the American Craft Council in New York, the show will feature late 19th- and early-20th-century paintings depicting scenes from Western North Carolina and the greater Southern Appalachian area.
The New Salon: A Contemporary View: March 8-August 19
Honoring Nature: Early Southern Appalachian Landscape Painting: March 26-October
Asheville Art Museum / 2 South Pack Square, Asheville