The arts in West Virginia reflect the state’s rich Appalachian heritage, creative spirit, and thriving talent. From vibrant galleries and community theaters to renowned music festivals and artisan craft shops, West Virginia offers an endless array of ways to experience authentic Appalachian art and culture. Visitors can explore local studios, enjoy live performances of bluegrass, folk, and contemporary music, and discover handmade pottery, quilts, and woodwork that celebrate traditional craftsmanship.
FAIRPLAIN, W.Va. — Carved on a hillside by an eccentric sculptor in the 1950s, a curious rock face near Ripley, West Virginia, is attracting a larger audience than ever, thanks to social media. More travelers than ever are on the hunt for the rock. According to the late historian Mike Ruben, West Virginia’s diminutive Mount … Read more
FRAZIER’S BOTTOM, W.Va. — One of the most scenic pastoral landscapes in the eastern U.S., the valley of the lower Kanawha River in West Virginia is attracting the attention of tourists, according to a landscape painter who’s captured its beauty through her work.Thanks to the completion of a new expressway that’s routed traffic outside the … Read more
WHEELING, W.Va. — After more than 100 years, a West Virginia-based glassware manufacturer is carrying on the legacy inherent in a more-than-century-old pattern—the Moon & Star. Produced since the 1880s by several glassmakers (the L.E. Smith Glass Company, L.G. Wright Glass Company, the Adams Glass Company, and Fenton Art Glass Company), Weishar Enterprises began reproducing … Read more
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — What makes for a good arts community? Good arts communities are those in which affordable housing, entrepreneurial spirit, and the availability of arts venues—such as galleries and coffeehouses—are reversing economic downturn, according to John Villani, the author of “The 100 Best Small Art Towns in America.”“In places that got their start as … Read more
SAINT ALBANS, W.Va. — Might Edgar Allen Poe have written his poem “The Raven” while visiting the Kanawha Valley? Though nothing’s been proven, the mansion in which Poe might have lodged is named Raven’s Court. Jim Mullooly, of Avella, Pa., once reported to the newspaper that on a visit to Georgetown, Pa., he once saw … Read more
BECKLEY, W.Va. — After a five-year pause, the outdoor drama “Honey in the Rock” is returning to the stage at the Cliffside Amphitheatre at Grandview as part of an initiative to reach national park visitors and dedicated local patrons.According to general manager Gayle Oaks, along with “Hatfields & McCoys,” the musical drama will be performed … Read more
SPENCER, W.Va. — Before commercial dyes became readily available to mountain people in West Virginia, homespun yarn was colored with natural materials that could easily be obtained in the woods near any farm. The hulls of walnuts and butternuts were perhaps the most common. Both yielded a dark brown color, which could be rendered almost … Read more
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the West Virginia Makes Festival, scheduled for Oct. 6, 2023, the Marshall Advanced Manufacturing Center is offering $10,000 in cash prizes to winners of this year’s design challenge.According to Kara Mullins, coordinator of the festival, makers of all kinds — artisans, inventors, manufacturers, and students — … Read more
BECKLEY, W.Va. — The figure of a heroic female was proposed to be added to the State Seal of West Virginia in the 1990s, though the effort died in the statehouse, and the matter ended without explanation.West Virginia artist Earl Ferguson, who was commissioned to design the new seal, said he was disappointed never to … Read more
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — “King Coal,” a feature-length documentary by West Virginia-raised and Academy Award-nominated filmmakers Curren Sheldon and Elaine McMillion Sheldon, makes its home-state premiere at the West Virginia Culture Center in Charleston, West Virginia, on July 8 at 6 p.m.The West Virginia International Film Festival presents the event and will feature the 75-minute film … Read more
