This special event will offer opportunities to visit some of the less well-known arts venues in the Piedmont. These excursions will consist of four, daylong outings in May. Each week we will visit two of the smaller gems in our regional art world. The tours at each of the venues will be led by owners, guides, curators, docents, and directors. Between tours, we’ll enjoy lunch reservations at local eateries. Transportation and lunch are not included in course fees, but carpooling is encouraged.
The course fee includes the cost of admission/donation to the venues.
Walking & Attendance
This cultural experience will involve considerable amounts of walking. If a class member cannot attend a session, substitutions will not be allowed.
CAM (Contemporary Art Museum) Raleigh is a non-collecting museum that provides an environment for transformation through educational programs, cultural experiences, and bold, non-traditional exhibitions by living artists.
The Gregg Museum of Art & Design at NC State focuses on outstanding examples of art, craft, and design. The museum was created when a former NC State chancellor and dean sought to enhance the university's mission by acquiring and exhibiting art that reflects the university’s curricula.
The Weatherspoon Art Museum at UNC-G presents, interprets, and collects modern and contemporary art. Besides having an introduction to the museum, we will tour the exhibition of photos by Lalla Essaydi: the Moroccan-born artist grapples with Orientalism and how it contributes to misconceptions about Arab women.
The Blandwood Mansion was begun in 1795. The beginning of Romanticism in North Carolina, and the progressive ideals of Governor John Motley Morehead, are illustrated through the architecture, landscape and decorative arts of Blandwood. The museum features a collection of period furnishings and art, including key pieces original to the house.
Mark Hewitt Pottery specializes in very large planters and jars, along with finely made smaller items. Born in Stoke-on-Trent, England, Mark is the son and grandson of directors of the Spode manufacturers of fine china. In 1983 he moved to Pittsboro NC and built a very large wood kiln. He began making distinctive functional pots using local clays, blending different NC folk traditions into a contemporary style.
Paperhand Puppets was founded in 1998 by Donovan Zimmerman and Jan Burger to create a collaboration of epic proportions. The team uses papier-mâché, cardboard, bamboo, your old house paints, cloth, and other assorted junk to create incredible giant puppets, masks, shadow plays and spectacle performances for all ages.
Cassilhaus is a home, a singular piece of architecture, a lifelong arts project, and a partnership between Ellen Cassilly and Frank Konhaus. Cassilhaus was born as a dream home/art gallery/artist studio and residency and has grown into an exciting nexus for arts activity and community in the Triangle region. Cassilhaus hosts a diverse exhibition program and a multi-disciplinary residency program which brings extraordinary artists from our region and around the world.
Frank Gallery was founded in 2010 as the result of a partnership between the Town of Chapel Hill and a group of local artists who came together with a shared vision to create an arts organization that features work by local artists and enriches the community through exhibitions, events, and arts education.
