Header image: Tift Merritt (L) and Rissi Palmer (R). Photos courtesy of the artists
This Independence Day, come to downtown Raleigh to celebrate the best of North Carolina. Capitol 250: North Carolina Freedom Fest is a free all-day festival hosted by the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources. Held on the state capitol lawn, it will offer entertainment for all ages.
Header image: NCAC staff at ARTS Day. Photo courtesy of Arts NC and NC Arts Council.
Happy spring! As the season unfolds, I hope you’re finding moments to enjoy the beautiful weather and the vibrant arts opportunities in your community. Spring is always a busy time at the Arts Council, highlighted each year by ARTS Day, the annual conference presented by Arts North Carolina.
The North Carolina Arts Council has been working with artists and arts organizations to find ways to recover and build their creative enterprises back stronger after the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene in the fall of 2024. Our series Portraits in Resilience has been highlighting artists from the region to discover how they are responding. This month, we showcase Cindy Biggerstaff, of McDowell County. She’s a veteran and a visual artist who has been bringing joy to her community through teaching.
Header image: Sarah Jones Decker. Photo credit: Lauren Rutton, courtesy of Sarah Jones Decker.
Header image: Anna Bryant working in her studio. Photo credit: John DuPre, courtesy of Anna Bryant.
Last fall, Hurricane Helene brought devastation to western North Carolina, threatening the state’s culture and economy. Artists affected by the damage are reflecting on their experiences and finding ways to support one another and the community at large as they find their way forward. Art Matters is shining a light on some of these artists. Meet Anna Bryant, the subject of our first profile in a series we’ve titled “Portraits in Resilience.”
Header image: Dare Coulter. Photo by Lauren Lindley Photography, courtesy of Dare Coulter.
To celebrate Women’s History Month, we’re highlighting some of the extraordinary female artists we have featured in the past. This list represents a small sample of the women who have shaped and continue to shape the arts in our state.
Photo: Connye Florance by Graham Gerdeman
The General Jackson, a modern-day replica of the flat-bottomed steamers of the nineteenth century, has been paddling the waters of Tennessee’s Cumberland River since 1985.
Photo by Sandra Davidson.
Today Governor Roy Cooper will officially induct Jaki Shelton Green as North Carolina’s Poet Laureate. In November of last year, Jaki added the music of her poetry to the Oxford American’s North Carolina Song Circle at Fletcher Music Hall in downtown Raleigh. We are happy to share that moment in honor of her special day!
Elizabeth “Libba” Cotten will be posthumously inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame on October 17, 2019.