Culture and Museums
Asheville Art Museum
2 South Pack Square
828-253-3227
Located in Pack Place Education, Arts & Science Center. Accredited by the American Association of Museums.
Colburn Earth Science Museum
2 South Pack Square
828-254-7162
Fax: 828-251-5652
E-mail: info@colburnmuseum.org
This museum, called a"mini-Smithsonian of gems: is located in the Pack Place Education, Arts & Science Center.
Estes-Winn Auto Museum
828-253-7651
If you are a car buff, this collection of 20 classics will delight you. Open April – December. Check hours. Behind the Grove Park Inn. Free admission.
Smith-McDowell House Museum
Relive the romantic Victorian era in Asheville's oldest house (circa 1840). Explore opulent period rooms, history exhibits and grounds designed by the renowned Olmsted Brothers. (828) 253-9231, or e-mail us at info@wnchistory.org
Open year round, 1st floor is wheelchair-accessible, 1.5 miles from downtown Asheville.
Thomas Wolfe Memorial
This is the novelist's boyhood home and setting for "Look Homeward, Angel." The home is currently closed as repairs are made to fire damage. The visitor's center remains open with exhibits. Open daily April-October. Closed Mondays November-March. Located downtown at 52 North Market Street. Check hours.
http://www.ah.dcr.state.nc.us/sections/hs/wolfe/wolfe.htm
YMI Cultural Center
39 South Market Street
828-252-4614
The Center houses numerous exhibits, many dealing with the history of African Americans in WNC. Events: Goombay Festival, Kwanzaa Celebration and Martin Luther King Jr. birthday celebration.
Grove Arcade Arts and Heritage Gallery
The gallery features a state-of-the-art, interactive exhibition that uses a solid terrain model animated with regional voices, video, music and lasers to bring the culture and history of Western North Carolina to life. The gallery features the crafts, music and stories of the Blue Ridge. Visit the gallery and experience the places, objects and activities that authentically represent the people of Western North Carolina.
Woolworth Walk
25 Haywood Street, Asheville, NC. 828- 254-9234.
F.W. Woolworth,” established in 1938 and restored in 2001.
More than 150 exhibiting artists and artisans selling and making jewelry, fine art, decorative art and crafts in it’s nearly 20,000 square feet of studio space. A fully operational Soda Fountain with a 50’s flair built to resemble the original Woolworth Luncheonette.
Kress Emporium
828-281-2252
19 Patton Avenue
Downtown Asheville
Built in 1928 by the H.S. Kress Company, today the floor is filled not with five and dime fare but fine art, beautiful photography, handcrafted finery, and unusual conversation pieces. Some of the most recognizable artists in the region have a booth at the Kress Emporium, which is operated in much the same style as a craft cooperative.