April 2024

"Art Explorations" sees College of the Albemarle art students of artists and instructors Christina Weisner and Patrick Berran exhibiting works that are the product of their semester of learning. This multimedia presentation encompasses drawings, paintings, sculptures, and more by 10+ developing artists. Let their creativity fill your mind and inspire your own imagination when you experience their unique styles and thoughtful compositions.

March 2024

Celebrate the creativity of the younger generation in this exhibition of K-12 artists from local public schools! Watch our gallery come to life as these students proudly share the products of their school art classes, which includes a range of projects, prompts, and mediums.

February 2—March 30, 2024

The common threads between ceramics and flowers—both born from the soil—weave themselves into a narrative of beauty in this exhibition of work featuring students enrolled in the College of The Albemarle’s Continuing Education painting and ceramics courses. Floral compositions, sculpted vessels, and activations where the two subjects collide can be found on view, featuring the work from the following classes: 

-Watercolors, Intermediate and Beyond with Peggy West  
-Acrylic and Mixed Media Painting with Margie Sawyer 
-Advanced Wheel Throwing with Jerry Murray  -Beginner Wheel Throwing with Christine Henniger 
-Wheel Throwing with Ashley Paskov 
-Beginning Watercolor Painting I & II with JudyLynn Hooser 

January 5—February 24, 2024

Escape the cold and the post-holiday blues while enjoying the cozy atmosphere and warm textures fostered by works made from and inspired by the earth’s very own art supplies—wood and fibers. At the center of this group exhibition, AOA is thrilled to unveil its newest acquisition, a piece of history near and dear to us, the Capt'n Henry Chesson Quilt.

Generously donated by the Chesson family, the former owners of our beloved home on Main Street during its days as a department store, the quilt epitomizes the exhibition’s tactile, earthen theme. Joining this historical focal point are contemporary works by regional artists, ranging from screen printing and photography to sculpture, wood turning, and beyond—including creations by Lynn James, Adam White, Bill Isel, Leslie Cornett, Mary Crutchfield, Tom Brennan, Trudy Riggens, Mark Hughes, Rebecca Davis, Peggy West, and Lina Ahs. 

October-December, 2023

The event of the COVID-19 pandemic led artist Barbara Wachter to a time of play and experimentation that allowed her to stray from her typical style. The works produced during this period come together to make up the exhibition “Breaking the Rules.”

Wachter’s practice is one influenced by the ability to convey emotion through form. The artist works with the belief that art is a collaboration between the heart and the mind, thus exposing a piece of the soul.

October 5—6, 2023

Enjoy a rare opportunity to see an exhibition of original vintage prints by the internationally acclaimed photographer Vivian Maier. Maier bought her first camera in France in 1950 and began in earnest a photographic practice encompassing over 150,000 images, mostly unprinted, left as negatives or undeveloped rolls of film. Of these, she left only about 6,000 lifetime prints. This exhibition represents an overview of her work and demonstrates her early penchant for themes she would explore throughout her life. 

Curated by Christine Benoodt, Collection Manager, the Jeffrey Goldstein Vivian Maier Vintage Print Collection. 

September-October, 2023

In Jeff Weekley’s “Illumination” exhibition at Arts of the Albemarle his oil paintings were the embodiment of a lifetime designing and painting. As an image maker Jeff’s process if intuitive. He never has a story in mind, he prefers to leave that to the audience. In listening to the viewer he has found that no two stories/interpretations are ever the same. But always fascinating.

Jeff utilizes photography to capture his models and Photoshop to create the concepts. This allows the process to be fluid often changing the concepts and elements many times until satisfied with the design, model pose, signifiers and color. Then he says, “the fun begins.”

September 2023

“Generate Prompt” is an exploration of material sciences, utilizing the art studio as a testing laboratory. By intersecting fine handcraft with the study of the structures, performance, and chemical properties of various matter, this exhibition investigates an arena in which artist and material collaborate. The raw materials are provided a level of autonomy to contribute to the formal aesthetic qualities in individual situations or experiments established; generating specimen, phenomenon, or illustration. Hand-fabricated glass is employed in this exhibition as an adaptable media, acting as reaction vessels, substrates, or specimen jars.

August 2023
Experience the vibrant, expressive art of five regional East Coast artists working in areas of abstraction in this exhibition of works on canvas by Dale Corbin, Lynn Nash, Debbie Sauls, Laura Hughes, and Nora Crouch.

Each featured artist intrigues through their own signature of markings, textures, gestures, and colors, creating a visual realm that leaves much room for the viewer's own imagination and interpretation.