Being an artist in this region has its benefits, namely a community that embraces creativity and fellowship among the wealth of imaginative professionals who live here. While there is strength in numbers, it can also be difficult to break away from the crowd. That’s why WNC magazine and the Asheville Area Arts Council collaborated to establish our first On the Verge competition, a contest to shine light on Western North Carolina’s top up-and-coming visual artists.

Submissions from more than 150 local artists who work in a multitude of media flooded our office during November/December 2008. And in 2009, we reviewed each piece with a jury of local arts professionals and settled—with no shortage of debate and discussion—on 10 winners to be featured in a May show at the AAAC’s gallery. Though many of these artists support themselves solely with their talents, none had yet hosted their own major solo exhibition.

Click here to view sample submissions from all the On the Verge artist entries.

- The 2009 On the Verge winners -

WNC Magazine would like to thank the following people
for volunteering their time to help make On the Verge possible:
Angela Martinez Executive Director, Asheville Area Arts Council
Rob Pulleyn Curator of the exhibit; Director, Marshall High Studios
Sarah Meyer Gallery Associate, Asheville Area Arts Council

Jurists:
Anne Batchelder Arts Writer; Independent Curator
Anne Rawson Executive Director, Fine Arts League of North Carolina
Brent Skidmore Director, University of North Carolina Asheville Crafts Campus
Yona Wade Outreach Coordinator, Qualla Arts and Crafts Mutual