Mountain Arts  

 At least once every summer, we drive from our home in the heart of Charlotte, North Carolina, to Little Switzerland, a small town in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

We usually stay at the Switzerland Inn, a chalet-style lodge located on the Blue Ridge Parkway approximately halfway between Boone and Asheville. In the morning, we take our coffee on the inn’s great lawn, watching the sun rise over the mountains. During the day we hike or explore historical sites along the Parkway. At dusk, we drift to the inn’s outdoor bar to enjoy the mountain views and toast the sunset over the dancing flames of a firepit.

This summer, we decided to explore nearby Burnsville, one of our favorite lunch stops, in more depth.

Burnsville is a charming, history-rich mountain town whose shops, galleries and eateries appeal to all ages. Like better-known Asheville, its neighbor to the south, Burnsville is a base for both lovers of nature (hikers, fisherman, river rafters—even star gazers) and lovers of the arts. In fact, the area supports a close-knit, thriving community of artists.

Dwell in History

At the northeast corner of Burnsville’s grassy, tree-lined town square stands the NuWray Hotel, the town’s 192-year-old “Grand Dame.”

On our last visit to the NuWray, in 2021, the hotel felt dull and worn. But now it was all “spit and polish,” thanks to the efforts of new owners Amanda and James Keith, who’ve spent the last three years fixing up the property from basement to attic. In addition to the main building and restaurant, the couple transformed the old smoke house into a garden bar (Rolands) and the carriage house into a convivial all-day restaurant and gourmet market (Carriage House Sundries), with modern guest rooms upstairs.

We learned that the couple had preserved many of the original elements, including hardwood floors, doors and windows. They even left exposed certain parts of the original 1833 building, so guests could appreciate the vintage studs, joists and wallpaper. The ironwork around the fireplace was forged in the 1930s by the legendary Appalachian blacksmith, Daniel Boone VI. “My favorite re-use of materials by far,” says Amanda, “is a fence we made from the original radiators used to heat the rooms” She’s also excited about a pending project: “A local artist is making a fence out of the old boiler plates!”

A Walk Down Main Street

As is our custom, we visited the Garden Deli across the square for a light soup and salad to energize us for an afternoon of walking. Then we strolled to the Colorful Gypsy, whose owners, Jami and Jack Prince, source treasures from both North Carolina and across the globe. On any day, the shop might display vintage glass, Guatemalan textiles, Italian crucifixes or Persian rugs. When we arrived, the Princes were in Italy, so shop assistant and jewelry designer Abby Kramer assisted us. One of her designs instantly caught our eye. It was a pair of earrings made from the large crescent-shaped seed pods of the Sandbox Tree, found in South America’s rainforests.

“Are there many artists like yourself around Burnsville?” we asked. “Are you kidding?” she exclaimed, “This area has one of the highest concentrations of artists in the state! Check out Tow River Arts, the area’s arts council.” This got us thinking … Where might we find these artists and Is it possible to visit their studios? We made a note to call Toe River Arts later.

Meanwhile, we wandered down Main Street to check in on our other haunts. Appalachian Java, a popular spot for coffee and pastries was still in full swing. But the ice cream shop down the street had a new look. Cheryl Martin, a woman with a passion for the medicinal benefits of tea, took it over last year, combining it with a tea emporium she had previously opened next door. Her new shop,  Tulsi Rose Tea, sells over 130 varieties of tea (fruit and herbal blends and hard-to-find Asian varieties) as well as ice cream flavors, with enticing names like Birch Beer, Honey Lavender and, of course, Matcha Green Tea.

A few steps away we found Plott Hound books, an independent bookstore opened in 1922 by James Beard Award-winning author Ronni Lundy. The store carries all genres of books, not just cookbooks. For more information about Lundy, the store, and her take on the area, read this interview.

Our last stop of the afternoon was Homeplace Beer Company, which has 18 brews on tap and live entertainment, including Irish music on Tuesday nights. On September 13, the brewery will host the annual Music in the Mountains Folk Festival, promoted by Toe River Arts.

Follow the Artists

Clearly, all roads were leading us to Toe River Arts, which turned out to be an excellent source of information about artists and arts events in the area.  We called up Nealy Andrews, the executive director, who explained that the council sponsors studio tours twice a year, in June and November. Maps are available for tour participants and are  also archived on Toe River Arts’ website.  For those visiting at other times of year, a web page lists many members’ contact information and examples of their work. Beyond that the council has exhibits in their Spruce Pine (a town 20 minutes down the road)  galleries throughout the year.

About a month before the tour, Toe River Arts  hosts a group exhibit of all artists on the tour in its gallery in nearby Spruce Pine. (A Burnsville gallery is coming soon.) It’s a great way to learn about the artists.

Currently, Toe River Arts has about 265 members, but only 150 juried members are allowed to show and sell their work in the Arts Council’s retail spaces in Spruce Pine. Artists work in clay, glass, metal, fiber and wood. There are also photographers, bookmakers, printmakers, and crafters of musical instruments.

The Play’s the Thing

But Burnsville’s arts scene doesn’t stop there. The  78-year-old Parkway Playhouse, founded in 1947, is the oldest continually operating summer theater in North Carolina. In addition to staging musicals and dramas, the Playhouse offers camps for children. It also encourages playwrights to show off their talents through its annual three-day Appalachian Playwriting Festival. The winning play is staged at the Playhouse the following season.

We hope to return to Burnsville this fall for the classic crime comedy Arsenic and Old Lace. You can be sure we’ll take advantage of the Stay and Play discount for both accommodations and tickets offered by the NuWray Hotel.

USEFUL LINKS

• Visit Explore Burnsville for information about things to see and do in and around Burnsville.
• To learn more about the NuWray Hotel’s renovations and its new chef, go here. And don’t miss this video tour lead by Amanda Keith herself.
• For up-to-date information about post-hurricane Helene access to the Blue Ridge Parkway, click here. For a map of closed areas, click  here.