The 17th Annual Art in Autumn is September 21st, 2024
Join us for this juried Art and Crafts festival, Saturday the 21st, 2024 from 10am – 6pm.
This will be our 17th annual Art in Autumn Outdoor Arts and Crafts Festival. This much loved event is held on Main Street in downtown Weaverville, North Carolina, located in Buncombe county 7 miles from downtown Asheville.
The event features over 100 juried artists and craftspeople, and live music performed by beloved local artists.
Every year, we invite a Judge from the local Art scene to join us. Our guest judge for 2024 is Robert Blanton. Robert recently retired after working for over 20 years as a Jewelry/Metals from Haywood Community College.
During the show, artists are juried by our esteemed Judge to receive awards of $1000 for best of show, $500 for second place, and $250 for third, as well as 4 $50 honorable mentions.
Our Judge for 2024 is Robert Blanton. Robert joined the Professional Crafts’ faculty at Haywood Community College in 2002 as the Jewelry/Metals instructor and retired in 2023. Originally from Mooresville, North Carolina, Robert now resides in Waynesville, North Carolina with his wife Connie. Their children and grandchildren live close
by enabling the family to spend much time together. Robert began pursuing the art of metal smithing in 1981 and opened a studio for his business, RBlanton Metals the following year. He taught at Central Piedmont Community College in Charlotte for seventeen years (1984-2000) and also spent seven years (1994-2000) as adjunct professor of metals at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte. In 1993 he earned his MFA in Jewelry/Metals from Winthrop University where he was mentored by the renowned international goldsmith Alfred (Alf) Ward, a native of London, England and a former appointee to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II as a designer of presentation pieces for the Royal family.
As a designer and craftsman Robert is inspired by the materials with which he works and the labor of creation involved in the process. However, he maintains that his real passion is for teaching and communicating his experience with those who are eager to learn. For Robert, in the end it is all about relationships, mentoring, and the daily pushing, tugging, and occasionally dragging a student to the summit of their capabilities…and sometimes beyond. He continually encouraged his students to
remember that: “Art is important but it’s not brain surgery and nobody dies…usually”
Weaverville has established itself as a culturally rich destination, with its now well-established street festival each September. The Town has earned a reputation for its quaint atmosphere, artistic spirit, and distinctive shops and restaurants.
The annual Art in Autumn festival brings a jovial celebration of community and fine art and craft to the Main Street of this lovely small town.
Merchandise
T-shirts and posters will be available for sale at the Information Booth.
Every year, we sell Art in Autumn t-shirts and posters featuring the unique year’s logo at the Information Booth during the festival.
A limited number of shirts and posters from previous festivals may be available. T-shirts from past festivals can be found at Curtis Wright Outfitters throughout the year.
Email us to inquire about past years Posters.
2024 Posters $10
2023 T-shirts $20
Limited sizes and colors of the 2022 t-shirts are still available – check them out at Curtis Wright Outfitters!
Entertainment Schedule
Happening under the covered garage at Rodney’s on Main Street
10:30am – Mitch Hampton
12:00pm – The Cackling Hens
1:30pm – One Leg Up
3:00pm – Steelin’ Time
