Arts Council list upcoming exhibitions

Thoughts of Home – Cultural Identity and the Evolution of an Artist Showcasing works by the late VADIM BORA and a sampling from colleagues in the Caucasus Mountains of Russia (the late Murat Kaboulov, Natalia Abaeva, and Akhsar Esenov) – Sculpture, Paintings, Applied Arts An exhibition in partnership with Asheville Sister Cities, Inc. Opening receptions: February 26, 5:00 - 8:00pm and March 4, 5:00 - 8:00pm   This exploratory exhibition examines the narrative work of Vadim Bora and three fellow-Vladikavkaz artists (Asheville’s first Sister City in the Caucasus Mountains of Southern Russia). The exhibition will include several never-before seen works that have been in private collections, as well as large commissioned pieces, sculptures, stained glass design, and jewelry — some appearing for the first time — each thematically connect to Thoughts of Home. Curated by the artist’s widow, the exhibition explores “what is home” to an artist who has physically left “home.” Is it simply a place, a state of mind? And how does the concept change the longer one is away and when does the new physical settlement become home? The exhibition is a look at the notion of home through the eyes of those who have wandered far…and compared to those who never left. While Vadim Bora was known for his public art sculptures, expressive oil portraits, satirical pen and ink drawings, lush landscapes and nudes, it is his exuberant narrative works depicting allegorical village scenes, informed by his growing up in the Caucasus Mountains of Russia, that are recalled by many. This body of work referenced memories, village tales, traditions, fables and the mythos of the North Ossetia region where Bora lived for much of his life. While Bora left his home briefly for higher learning (St. Petersburg, then called Leningrad) and ultimately for the U.S., settling in Asheville in 1993, the exploration of the “home” theme continued until his untimely passing in 2011. Likewise, the connection to home appeared often in colleague Murat Kaboulov’s work. Some 17 years Bora’s senior, the artist had moved from Vladikavkaz to Nashville in 1992. Passing only five months before Bora, Kaboulov also left a formidable legacy of artworks, curated largely now by his widow Marina Kaboulova. Several large-scale works depicting village celebration and reverie are showcased in the exhibition. Curator Constance Richards invited two additional artists to participate in the exhibition, Natalia Abaeva and Akhsar Esenov, both of whom visited Asheville ten years ago with a grant through the Open World program via Asheville Sister Cities that Richards helped organize. These young artists decades younger than the two aforementioned masters, explore Thoughts of Home from a different point of view. Abaeva now lives in Bulgaria, but easily traverses the borders, having moved only recently. Esenov lives in Vladikavkaz and exhibits his paintings throughout Europe. Their world of home is a different world entirely than that of Bora and Kaboulov at the time they left. Thoughts of Home – Cultural Identity and the Evolution of an Artist examines how all these factors affect the artists work, process and lifeblood.  A Painting Exhibition by Perry Houlditch in the Artist Resource Center Gallery Opening reception: March 11, 5:00 - 8:00pm   Perry Houlditch was born in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Western North Carolina. He began studying art at Cleveland Community College and graduated in 2004 with an A.A. In 2007 he graduated from the University of North Carolina at Asheville with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. During his studies, he showcased two solo exhibitions, Repast for the Ouroboros and With Improbably Velocity.   In 2009, his desire to explore led him to live in the United Kingdom, where he studied at London’s Atelier of Representational Art. In England, Perry lectured at the University of Essex on "The History of Artist Pigments and their Origin" and led workshops on "Traditional Paint Making and Colour Theory" for the Painter’s Palette. Further, he contributed works in the local exhibition entitled, Scenes of Essex. An exhibition of oil paintings that depict the natural beauty of the Central Appalachian landscape by Perry Houlditch will be on view February 26 - April 2, 2016 at the Asheville Area Arts Council ARC Gallery. During the exhibition’s reception on March 11 the artist will demonstrate his paint making process used to produce the works on exhibit. “When you make your own paint you start to see everything a little differently, things connect a bit more. Perhaps, for me, I simply started to understand a little bit of chemistry and saw how art materials connect to nature, but I came to find over many years that this study is only the necessary foundation for something much more profound. Now, even further down the rabbit hole, it is no longer just an intrigue into what paint and paintings are made out of. It is my curiosity of this organic connection the artist can cultivate with their medium that drives me to continue crafting my own materials; ever tuning the instrument of my expression”. -Perry Houlditch These works will be on exhibit February 26 - April 2, 2016 at the Asheville Area Arts Council located at 1 Page Avenue, Suite 143A, Asheville, NC 28801 in the historic Grove Arcade. Receptions for Thoughts of Home will be held on February 26 from 5:00 - 8:00 pm and March 4 from 5:00 - 8:00 pm.  A Russian tea and curator talk will also be held in March. A reception and Paint Making Demonstration by Perry Houlditch will be held on March 11, 5:00 - 8:00pm. For more information please visit atwww.ashevillearts.com or call us at 828.258.0710.   IMAGE CREDITS: (top image) Vadim Bora, Sweet Dreams, Appalachia | (bottom image) Perry Houlditch Winds of Appalachia