Celebrate the Jackson County Arts Council’s 50th Anniversary
Saturday, September 19 | 5:00–7:00 PM | Free & Open to Everyone
For 50 years, creativity has had a home in Jackson County.
It lives in the hands of a potter shaping clay and a glass artist working with heat and color. You can hear it in a fiddle tune passed from one generation to the next, see it woven into fiber and hanging on gallery walls, and feel it when neighbors gather for a performance, workshop, or festival.
This September, we’re bringing all of that together for one big celebration.
Join the Jackson County Arts Council (JCAC) on Saturday, September 19, from 5:00–7:00 PM for an evening of live music, performances, artist demonstrations, local art, food, and community as we celebrate our 50th anniversary.
And because the arts should be something everyone can experience, the entire celebration is free and open to the public.
50 Years of Art, Artists, and Community
The Jackson County Arts Council was chartered as a nonprofit in 1976 with an ambitious idea: bring people together through the arts, create more opportunities for local artists, and make creativity an important part of life in Jackson County. That mission continues today: to promote individual artists, foster appreciation of the arts, provide art education, and inspire creativity in Jackson County.
Our 50th Anniversary Celebration isn’t meant to be an evening where you sit in a chair and listen to us talk about the past.
We want you to experience what JCAC is all about.
Wander through the gallery. Watch an artist work. Listen to the Junior Appalachian Musicians. Catch a performance. Grab something to eat. Talk with artists and neighbors. Learn something new. Stay for ten minutes or spend the whole evening with us.
There will be something happening around every corner.
See Local Artists at Work
Throughout the evening, the Jackson County Public Library Atrium will become a working art walk, with local artists demonstrating their craft in real time.
Watch glass artists, printmaking, ceramics, and weaving come together during artist demonstrations.
Rather than formal presentations, the demonstrations will happen throughout the celebration. Stop by, watch for a while, ask questions, and get a closer look at the skill and creativity behind work being made right here in our community.
Hear the Next Generation of Appalachian Musicians
The spotlight will also turn to Junior Appalachian Musicians (JAM), one of JCAC’s ongoing programs connecting young musicians with the traditional music of our region.
Through JAM, students learn from teaching artists while helping carry Appalachian musical traditions forward. JCAC’s support of the program includes grant funding that helps pay JAM teaching artists and its program director.
JAM students will take the stage during our anniversary celebration for a special live performance.
There may not be a better way to celebrate 50 years of supporting the arts than listening to the next generation make some music of their own.
Music, Comedy, Dance, and a Little Bit of Everything
JAM is only the beginning.
Calliope Stage Company will bring improv comedy and a little unpredictability to the Community Room, while the Cutthroat Radio Players will help keep the celebration moving between performances.
We’ll close out the evening with performers from Studio 505, bringing belly dancing into the Atrium for a lively end to the celebration.
Music, comedy, dance, craft, and visual art, this is exactly the kind of wonderfully varied creative community we’re here to celebrate.
Explore the Fiber Arts Show in the Rotunda Gallery
Don’t miss the Fiber Arts Show in the Rotunda Gallery, featuring work from an incredible group of local fiber artists, including Dave Russell, Mattie Davenport, Shane Bennett, Emily Sharpe, Ellie Chase, Emma Law, Ginna Bouriseau, Hannah Sykes, Kyle Winston, and more.
Fiber art has a way of inviting you to look a little closer. The textures, colors, materials, techniques, and different approaches represented in this exhibition make it especially fun to explore in person. From familiar traditions to unexpected uses of fiber and form, the show demonstrates just how broad and expressive the medium can be.
It also feels particularly fitting for our 50th anniversary, a gallery filled with work that reflects both the deep craft traditions of our region and the artists who continue to interpret, experiment with, and carry those traditions forward.
Food and refreshments will also be available in the Rotunda throughout the evening, so grab a bite, wander through the exhibition, and stay awhile.
Meet the Organizations Supporting the Arts in Jackson County
This celebration is also about the partnerships that make a thriving local arts community possible. Stop by and speak with the Jackson County Arts Council board members to learn about upcoming events, volunteer opportunities, artist sponsorships, supporting local artists, subscribing to our newsletter, or making a donation.
Representatives from the WCU Art Department will share information about arts education in our community, and the Sylva Art & Design Committee (SADC) will highlight its work supporting artists and creating more opportunities for people to experience the arts locally.
JCAC and SADC formalized their partnership around a shared goal of increasing support and visibility for local artists through art shows, events, workshops, demonstrations, and other collaborative programs. That spirit of collaboration is a big part of what this anniversary is really about.
Come Celebrate With Us
Fifty years is a milestone worth celebrating, but this isn’t just a birthday party for an organization.
It’s a celebration of everyone who has made art in Jackson County, taught it, performed it, shared it, volunteered for it, funded it, bought it, applauded it, or simply showed up to experience it.
It’s also a celebration of what comes next.
So bring your family. Bring a friend. Come for a few minutes or make an evening of it. Wander through the gallery, meet an artist, hear some music, laugh at a performance, watch something being made, and help us celebrate five decades of creativity in the place we call home.
Jackson County Arts Council 50th Anniversary Celebration
Saturday, September 19
5:00–7:00 PM
Atrium • Rotunda Gallery • Community Room
Admission is FREE and everyone is welcome.
Can’t Make It? You Can Still Make Art Happen.
You don’t have to attend the celebration to be part of what comes next.
A gift of any size helps keep the arts alive and growing in Jackson County. Your support helps JCAC provide artist sponsorships, educational opportunities for artist members, free arts and craft classes for the community, programs like Junior Appalachian Musicians, and opportunities that celebrate and preserve the visual arts, craft, performance, music, and artistic heritage of our region. JCAC’s grant and sponsorship programs directly support artists and arts organizations working in Jackson County.
For 50 years, this community has shown up for the arts.
Help us build the next 50. Support the arts. Support local artists. Support creativity in Jackson County.
