“Cars,” a photograph by Susan Martin of Jackson County, is among work by 40 artists in a variety of media included in the “Fragile Earth” exhibit, part of the Summer Arts Festival on Sunday, July 13, at Western Carolina University. The event features art and music from the state’s far western counties.

Western Carolina University will provide a showcase for the artists and young musicians of the state’s westernmost counties with the inaugural Summer Arts Festival, a free event beginning at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 13, at the Fine and Performing Arts Center on Western’s campus.

“The Summer Arts Festival is an opportunity for us to support our mission of outreach and cultural enrichment,” said Robert Kehrberg, dean of the College of Fine and Performing Arts, the festival’s sponsor.

A reception for an art exhibition titled “Fragile Earth: Reflections on the Environment” will be from 2-4 p.m. at the Fine Art Museum, with an award ceremony beginning at 3 p.m. The exhibition is a response by more than 40 artists in a variety of media to the beauty and vulnerability of the environment, said Martin DeWitt, museum director. Working with the Jackson County Arts Council and other area arts organizations, DeWitt solicited entries from artists on the Qualla Boundary and in the counties of Clay, Cherokee, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, Swain and Transylvania.

“The Fragile Earth exhibit features some of the most innovative and creative expressions by artists from throughout our mountain communities,” DeWitt said. The exhibit will be on display at the museum through Friday, Aug. 15.

A concert featuring 10 acts of musicians, all aged 16 or younger and primarily representing the region’s bluegrass and gospel traditions, will begin at 4 p.m. July 13 in the FAPAC performance hall. Amanda Dills Stewart of the Fiddling Dills Sisters will emcee the concert, which is general admission seating. (A complete list of musicians follows.) The Jackson County nonprofit organization Catch the Spirit of Appalachia, which works with youth to sustain the region’s creative heritage, was instrumental in recruiting musicians, said Paul Lormand, FAPAC director.

“The idea of the concert was to provide all the wonderful young musicians in the area a professional venue to showcase their talent,” Lormand said. 

For more information about the Summer Arts Festival, contact museum director Martin DeWitt at mdewitt@email.wcu.edu or (828) 227-2553 or the Fine & Performing Arts Center box office at (828) 227-2479. The Fine Art Museum’s summer hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday.

Performers scheduled to participate in the 2008 Summer Arts Festival concert are:
- The Blue Ridge Mountain Boys, bluegrass by Ethan Fortner, 14; Brayden McMahan, 14; Michael Morgan, 15; and John Robert Morgan, 12, all of Jackson County.
- Instrumentalist Kevin Bryson, 12, of Jackson County.
- Sibling duo Kayla and Seth Creason, 14 and 9 respectively, of Jackson County.
- The Fairview Bluegrass Club, made up of Kaitlyn Karcher, 10; Rebekah Lovedahl, 10; and Kevin Bryson, 12, of Haywood and Jackson counties.
- Harpist Shelby Ray Meyer, 10, of Jackson County.
- Gospel singer Nathan Parrish, 11, of Jackson County.
- Pianist Shea Roper, 10, of Jackson County.
- The Rye Holler Boys, bluegrass by Allan King, 15; Adam King, 14; Will Phillips, 16; and Will Howell, 14, of Swain County.
- Guitarist and banjo player Seth Taylor, 14, of Swain County.
- The Tuck River Boys, bluegrass by Jacob Jones, 14, and Cody Nations, 15, of Jackson County.

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Last modified Thursday, June 26.