Studio Stroll Meets Street Art and Skating, May 20-22.

This May visitors to the River Arts District in Asheville can experience an exciting spectrum of artistic and cultural creativity. The always-popular Studio Stroll, with over 180 working artists with open studios in historic buildings, welcomes a nationally recognized performance of art on the street. A fundraiser for a local grass-roots skate park rounds out the weekend of art and energy.

[wppa type=”slideonly” album=”22″]RAD Studio Stroll 2015[/wppa]

Photos by Misha Schmidecke

On Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., the Studio Stroll invites the public to visit artists in their studios, learn about their artistic process through conversations with the artists, live demonstrations and hands-on workshops, and collect art at its source among the amazing displays of creativity from painting to sculpture, glassblowing to ceramics, fiber art, jewelry and more.

The River Arts District of Asheville is a mile-long network of studios, galleries, shops and restaurants in the former industrial section of town, in last-century mill and warehouse buildings near the railroad tracks and along the bank of the French Broad River. During Studio Stroll, the Grey Line Trolley offers free transportation among the studio clusters.

From Friday, May 20 through Sunday, May 22, at the Burners and Barbecue music and street art festival, more than 50 mural artists from all over the country will transform a rusted gray industrial site into a giant mural. Master graffiti artists who are proficient in more complex works of street art are known as Burners; classic mural artists and master street art writers will paint alongside the Burners to transfigure the Asheville Waste Paper Company’s Days Warehouse, at 304 Lyman Street on the French Broad River, into Asheville’s largest public art installation, creating an artistic landmark for the River Arts District.

Rounding out the trio of events is the Foundation Fund(Hell)Raiser on May 21 and 22, an event benefiting the Foundation Art & Skate Park on the site of a former warehouse behind 289 Lyman Street. The park, called the Foundation Spot, is constructed on the concrete slab floor of a long-dismantled warehouse. The event will feature music and skateboarding exhibitions and contests; beer and food will be available on site.

If You Go: Spring Studio Stroll, Saturday, May 21 and Sunday, May 22. Studios open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Friday, May 20 through Sunday, May 22, the Burners and Barbecue music and street art festival. For additional details, please visit www.riverartsdistrict.com