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We Love Fabulous Downtown Asheville! Grounded in Art
BY
GREG VINEYARD
More of What Makes Asheville Special The Best Shops, Galleries & Restaurants Pack Square Park, downtown Asheville. The sculptural railing on Reuter Terrace was designed and built by Black Mountain artist Julia Burr.
INSPIRATIONS HIGH AND LOW
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When I was younger (a long time ago, in a state far, far away), I would gaze up into the sky and locate the ever-present Big Dipper, a constellation completely unaware of its role in my typically human, but also wondrous, connective ritual. In this part of the country, my stabilizer is the three stars of Orion’s Belt. Much like back then with the Dipper, I can find Orion quite easily with just a quick turn or two of my head. On nights when the stars aren’t visible, I’m reassured from having seen them enough to know that they’re still present. At one point, I lived in a large city with so much light pollution that the stars weren’t visible unless a major earthquake knocked out all the power, shockingly revealing a Milky Way that was indeed still enveloping us. A more tangible steadying force in our lives can be to seek inspirations throughout any given day (but only one, huge star is visible; don’t look up!). In addition to us each plugging-in to activities related to our professional preoccupations, we also need stuff that contributes to a fun, varied, balanced life.
Ode to Orion and Vicente, 2014. Mixed-media illustration by Greg Vineyard
A recent visit to the Asheville Art Museum (for me, museums are both business and pleasure) turned out to be a joltingly connected moment kicking off my artistic 2014. There’s always something fascinating to see. And it’s RIGHT HERE. What a refreshing visit I had when I finally made it in to see a show that I knew would, for me, be like connecting the dots of stars. As an artist and designer, color and its history play a very important role in my endeavors, so the Esteban Vicente installation was vital to see in person. I entered continued on page 17
PG. 32
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Vol. 17, No. 6 — RAPID RIVER ARTS & CULTURE MAGAZINE — February 2014 15