The Hiddenite Arts & Heritage Center’s staff and Board of Directors are very excited to announce the celebration of 40 Years of Arts and Heritage programming in Alexander County and the Northwest North Carolina region. In 1981 R. Y. and Eileen Lackey Sharpe founded the Hiddenite Center to enhance the lives of community citizens. The Center is constructing a “Steps to 40” Exhibit wall celebrating art, music, dance, storytelling, theatre, life-long learning, heritage, people, culture, school performances, artists-in-residence in schools, partnerships with other nonprofits, and the Sharpe Family dream that has been, and continues to be the mission of the Hiddenite Arts & Heritage Center.
“As part of our 40th Anniversary Celebration, we invite Friends, artists, visitors, and community citizens to be a part of our “STEPS to 40”! The Lucas Mansion staircase of 40 steps from the ground floor up to third floor will become our 40 Year Exhibit Wall featuring text and photo panels submitted by you! Each step will represent a year from 1981 through 2021” stated Executive Director Donna Latham. “Think of the experiences you have enjoyed or participated in throughout the Center’s 40 years of events, classes, and programs and submit your memory with perhaps a photo and/or a brief story or paragraph describing the positive impact the Center has made on your life through the ARTS & HERITAGE programming offered at the Hiddenite Center over the past 40 years, “ Latham continued.
Entries for the “Steps to 40” Exhibit may be emailed to hiddeniteartsandheritage@gmail.com, dropped off, or mailed to the Lucas Mansion at 316 Hiddenite Church Rd., Hiddenite, NC. (Please mark all items and place inside an envelope for proper return of items). All Exhibit participants and visitors to the Lucas Mansion will be registered in the Ruby-themed Anniversary Gift drawing to take place periodically throughout the year. Winners will be contacted as the drawings take place and announced on the hiddenitearts.org website and on social media. The Center encourages early submission of items as the Exhibit wall is currently being constructed, although any submissions will be accepted throughout the year.
To learn more about the Hiddenite Arts & Heritage Center call (828) 632-6966, email info@hiddenitearts.org or visit www.hiddenitearts.org This project is supported by the North Carolina Arts Council, a division of the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts. Hiddenite Arts & Heritage Center events, exhibits, and programs are made possible in part through the generous funding of the Alexander County government, the Town of Taylorsville, the Eileen and R. Y. Sharpe Family Foundation, The Winston Salem Foundation, the Unifour Foundation and the Friends of the Center membership program. The Hiddenite Arts & Heritage Center’s Lucas Mansion and Educational Complex are wheelchair accessible.