Scarecrow

Ah, the favourite of the crows - the lowly scarecrow. Originally made to scare crows away from the fields of corn he has become a faux being, a joke to be cawed at by the crows. One of the earliest mention of this being is found in Japanese literature, known as a Kuebiko. Alternative names are mawpin, moggy, shay, guy and bogeyman.

Scarecrow Gothic, with apologies to Grant Wood.....

Most crows will recognize the Tin Man trying to be a scarecrow.

This one is probably taking it a bit too far...

Marshall, NC

Madison County Courthouse located in downtown Marshall which is located along the French Broad River in extreme North Carolina. Marshall is experiencing a revival with artist studios in the old high school, located on an island in the river, and new businesses on Main Street.

A house with some history along the main street in Marshall.

This building has been remodeled with a grocery store on the first floor and apartments on the second floor.

Heritage Weekend

Bark baskets, spinning, woodcarving, weaving, chair making, clogging, bluegrass music and much more. Heritage Weekend was the activity this weekend at the Folk Art Center located on the Blue Ridge Parkway in Asheville. Folk art is being kept alive by some very dedicated artists and several of these folk artists were on hand to demonstrate their art. The Folk Art Center has a very good display of regional artists; see more at http://southernhighlandguild.org/

This artist makes about 8 chairs per year and no two are alike. The wood determines the "look" of each chair and artist Jim McGie incorporates antlers in some of his creations. I sat in this rocker and it was very comfortable. See http://www.buckhornridgestudio.com/Jim_McGie_Chairs.html for more of his chairs.

Tom Gow, Pine Hill Studio, will take a piece of wood and transform it into a cabin, tree or lighthouse. He does not change the essential shape of the wood but transforms it into something that shows its original configuration, always leaving part of the bark to show where it came from.

Brooms of every shape and size. Here some young-uns are learning the art of how to make a broom.

Do you have an apple tree but haven't a clue as to the variety of apple? Tom Brown can help you identify that apple; check him out at http://www.applesearch.org/

West Asheville Garden Stroll (WAGS)

The first West Asheville Garden Stroll took place this past Saturday - September 12. 2009; it featured many different garden styles, free food and a large dose of funky. Green thumbs are not the only thing different about gardeners. They are artists and their palette is as varied as the plant types. The gardens ran the gamut from community spaces like the one pictured above to the garden that supplies food for a restaurant.

This deck (upper and lower) provides an excellent vantage to view this garden - I could hang out there all day.

An old sink has been recycled into a container for several plants - some of the funky stuff.

This house and garden features recycled bottles, marbles, golf balls and other discards as sculpture and foils for plants in the front, side and rear yard.

Wamboldtopia is a work in progress - 10 years so far. Stone and brick masonry has been used for the studio in front and for the many architectural elements in this garden as shown in this view from the street.

A small magical garden tower to the side of the steps to the house.

A seating area in the rear yard on top of the hill with another architectural element to the right.

The tower from the previous picture - pure whimsy at work here.

Heading back down the steps to the street after quite a tour.

LAAFF (Lexington Avenue Arts and Fun Festival)

LAAFF is a local festival that is held on Lexington Avenue in Asheville every year. Except for three paid positions it is organized and run by volunteers and serves as an example to other cities of what can be done if you live amongst really talented people. This trio of musicians are VERY good and often perform on the sidewalk on Friday nights in the downtown area.

Many people dress up for the festival and it's a gas to see the different "costumes." Here big hoop lady holds court on the sidewalk.

Not to be outdone this chap is nattily attired in striped green socks, a white skirt and a red bolero-ish jacket topped with a hat.

The dancing girls were very good and the crowd was most appreciative....

Not quite sure what this fellow was looking for with his music- making megafone but I offered up my sandal shod foot for inspection and it seemed to satisfy his quest.

Mr Tiki man from the rear with his two female companions. A most enjoyable Sunday afternoon; I will definitely have to dress up for the affair next year.

Goombay Festival

Goombay Festival took place this weekend in Asheville, NC and featured African and Caribbean arts and crafts, music and food! Several reggae bands performed as well as the Heather Hayes Band, headlined by the daughter of the late Isaac Hayes.

Food is always an integral part of any festival and Goombay was no exception. This stand is run by a Jamaican and the food is authentic with patties, cocoa bread, ackee and codfish, rice and peas, plantain - you get the idea. Really good stuff!

One Love Jamaican restaurant is located on Market Street and in the area of the festival. They were doing a good business on Friday evening and I intend to check them out soon.

A Sunday Drive in the Country

Yesterday my wife and I decided to visit several open studios that were taking part in the Leicester (pronounced Lester) Studio Tour. Leicester is located in Buncombe County in western North Carolina and about 10 - 20 miles from Asheville. These studios are located in the residences of artists and run the gamut from pottery to jewelry, metalwork and "regular" oil/watercolour artwork.

Due to the distances between the various studios (and the late hour we started the tour) we only visited three studios and a Bed and Breakfast that had an example of each artist's work. The picture above was taken from the deck of the B & B.

Standing there on the deck and looking across the valley I was reminded of the countryside in Jamaica. With a little imagination it could be taken between Browns Town and Alexandria if you forget about the missing stone walls that run alongside the road and between the different properties. The B & B would be the "great house" on top of the hill. The owners even had goats grazing on the hillside! Ah, the thoughts of an expat....