Toe River Studio Tour June 12 to 14

Story by Anna Oakes

Spend a couple hours or an entire day with local art at the Toe River Studio Tour in Mitchell and Yancey counties. The semi-annual tour, featuring more than 100 artisans, has expanded to three days, taking place Friday through Sunday, June 12 to 14.

The event is a free, self-guided tour sponsored by the Toe River Arts Council that allows visitors to meet local artists, admire their works and shop for fashionable and functional pieces of art. Artists invite the public into their studios, and some locations provide refreshments.

Hours are 12:00 to 4:00 p.m. on Friday and 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. On Friday, June 12, the arts council will hold an artists’ reception from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Spruce Pine Toe River Arts Council Gallery. To take the tour, just hop in your vehicle and grab a map from the Toe River Arts Council or a participating studio or business.

The art you’ll encounter along the tour ranges from traditional to contemporary. Art lovers will find glass studios, potters, sculptors, basketmakers, woodworkers, painters, textile makers and more.

An interactive map and a list of participating artists, galleries and sponsors is available online at www.toeriverarts.org/tourmap.shtml. For a printed map, stop by the Toe River Arts Council offices in Spruce Pine or Burnsville, any of the participating studios or galleries, local businesses or the Yancey/Burnsville or Mitchell chambers of commerce. Also, look for signs along the tour route to help guide you along the way.

The Spruce Pine Arts Council Gallery is located at 269 Oak Avenue in downtown Spruce Pine. The Burnsville gallery is located at 102 West Main Street in downtown Burnsville.

For more info, call 828-682-7215 or 828-765-0520, email trac@toeriverarts.org or click to www.toeriverarts.org

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