Asheville Art Museum acquires 15 works from Appalachia Now! artists

ASHEVILLE, NC.- The Asheville Art Museum shared that seven artists from the opening exhibition Appalachia Now! An Interdisciplinary Survey of Contemporary Art in Southern Appalachia have entered the Museum's Collection of American Art of the 20th and 21st centuries.

Appalachia Now! was the inaugural exhibition of the newly renovated Museum that celebrated contemporary artists living and working in Southern Appalachia.

Considering available funds, the Museum's curatorial team selected a range of works that reflect the diversity of Appalachia Now! These works were then presented to the Collectors' Circle who voted to acquire them.

"It’s such an honor to be a part of the Asheville Art Museum’s expansion into new media," says Lei Han, who is Professor of New Media at UNC Asheville. "My collaborators and I are grateful for this recognition and we look forward to future collaborations with the Museum.”

"The Museum looks forward to following the careers of all the Appalachia Now! artists," says Asheville Art Museum Executive Director Pamela Myers. "We are also very thankful for the Collectors' Circle—for their generosity and ongoing support of the Museum, and their dedication to building the Museum's important Collection for the enjoyment of all of our visitors."

The following 15 works have been approved for acquisition into the Museum's Collection:

• Carolyn Ford, Southernisms: Grinnin’ like a Fox Crappin’ a Peach Seed, 2017, black slip, low-relief stoneware on wood, 11 x 11 x 1 ½ in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.01.01. © Carolyn Ford

• Carolyn Ford, Southern Skills: Quilting, 2017, black slip, low-relief stoneware on wood, 11 x 11 x 1 ½ in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.01.02. © Carolyn Ford

• Carolyn Ford, Southernisms: Nervous as a Long-Tailed Cat in a Rockin’ Chair Factory, 2017, black slip, low-relief stoneware on wood, 11 x 11 x 1 ½ in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.01.03. © Carolyn Ford

• Carolyn Ford, Southern Skills: Moonshinin’, 2017, black slip, low-relief stoneware on wood, 11 x 11 x 1 ½ in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.01.04. © Carolyn Ford

• Carolyn Ford, Southernisms: That Dog’ll Hunt, 2017, black slip, low-relief stoneware on wood, 11 x 11 x 1 ½ in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.01.05. © Carolyn Ford

• Carolyn Ford, Southern Skills: Pottery, 2017, black slip, low-relief stoneware on wood, 11 x 11 x 1 ½ in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.01.06. © Carolyn Ford

• Cornwagon Thunder, SkateNGames from the Wonder Series, 2017, archival print on Epson Ultra Premium Presentation Matte paper, 10 x 15 in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.02.01. © Cornwagon Thunder

• Cornwagon Thunder, Laundromat from the Wonder Series, 2017, archival print on Epson Ultra Premium Presentation Matte paper, 10 x 15 in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.02.02. © Cornwagon Thunder

• Bear Allison, Place of Legends from the Booger series, 2017, dye sublimation print on aluminum, 24 x 36 in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.03.01. © Bear Allison

• Bear Allison, Frozen Above from the Booger series, 2017, dye sublimation print on aluminum, 24 x 36 in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.03.02. © Bear Allison

• Bear Allison, Frog Eater from the Booger series, 2017, dye sublimation print on aluminum, 24 x 36 in. Museum purchase with funds provided by 2019 Collectors’ Circle member Bill Lenoci, 2020.03.03. © Bear Allison

• Lei Han, Core, 2018, edition of 2, digital video, sound by Wayne Kirby and Roy Wooten (Future Man), multichannel audiovisual installation, 5.1 surround sound, filmed with Canon 5D Mark III and Panasonic GH4 on a Canon 100 millimeter macro lens, 5 minutes, 12 seconds. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.04.01. © Lei Han

• Wayne Hewell, Devil candelabra face jug, 2017, applied earthenware and porcelain chips on stoneware with tobacco spit glaze, 11 x 8 x 9 in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.05.01. © Wayne Hewell

• Jerry Maxey, Babel/Babble, 2018, wicker-weave basket, fiber-reactive dye, rattan, seagrass, and lathe-turned sweetgum on wood base, 24 x 20 x 20 in. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle, 2020.06.01. © Jerry Maxey

• Akira Satake, artwork to be determined. Museum purchase with funds provided by the 2019 Collectors’ Circle.