RAAC’s 19th annual Fall Art Tour draws art lovers to Rappahannock County
October 2024
RAAC’s Fall Art Tour is set for Nov. 2-3 throughout Rappahannock County, Va.
During the tour, the public will meet local artists in their studios and galleries. (photos courtesy RAAC)
by Laura Emery, Staff Writer
Art has the power to provoke thought and evoke emotion, and it often represents a community’s cultural identity.
This fascination and love for art draws people from all walks of life to Rappahannock Association for Arts and Community’s Fall Art Tour. The 19th annual Fall Art Tour, produced by RAAC and co-chaired by Andrea Salley and Claire Cassel, will take place this year on Nov. 2-3 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. throughout Rappahannock County, Va.
The self-guided tour is an invitation to do more than view art; it’s an enriching opportunity to experience art, perhaps for the first time. The public is invited to engage with various local artists in their studios and galleries throughout the county.
“We believe that a community infused with the arts is stronger, livelier and more connected,” says Matthew Black, president of RAAC. Net proceeds from the Fall Art Tour provide grants to artist projects and produce community arts events throughout the year through the Claudia Mitchell Arts Fund.
“The heart of the annual Art Tour is the fine art created by so many wonderful artists in so many mediums and styles. There are over 80 artists. You’ll see painters, sculptors, potters, jewelry-makers, printmakers, wood and fabric artists, and photographers,” says Salley, Art Tour co-chair for the last three years.
The Art Tour is the perfect weekend trip, as it’s an easy drive from Washington, D.C., Arlington, Fairfax, Richmond, Charlottesville and other metro-area cities. “It’s also one of the best fall weekends in Rappahannock County, with peak fall colors, the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains, farm stands along the tour route, and many local dining options and even apple-picking at orchards along the way,” explains Salley.
The Fall Art Tour map will be available online, at fallarttour.org, starting Monday, Oct. 28. But, before then, the website can be visited for more details about the tour and pictures of artists’ work.
Glass artist Patricia Brennan, featured in the January-February 2022 issue of Cooperative Living, will be on the Fall Art Tour with Thornton River Art in Sperryville, Va. She says, “We hope local residents come celebrate the wonderful collection of artists in our community. The RAAC Fall Art Tour is a very special event.”
For more information, visit fallarttour.org.
Going With the Flow
SOME MIGHT SAY RUTHIE WINDSOR-MANN HAS PAINT RUNNING THROUGH HER VEINS. The Rappahannock Electric Cooperative member is participating in the Fall Art Tour for the ninth year. According to Windsor-Mann, she showed early signs of being creative. “I got kicked out of dance class at three years old because I was making up my own dances,” she says with a laugh. Still, to this day, she can’t follow a recipe in the kitchen. “I like to make up my own recipes,”she explains.
This desire to create and “go with the flow” spills over into her love of painting —something she’s been doing for 54 years. “I don’t have just one style. I do it all … abstract, impressionistic, pallet-knife work, watercolor, etc. I like being surprised. I don’t force it. I go where the painting leads me,” she explains. On the tour, visitors get the opportunity to visit her in her one-room studio just outside of the town of Washington, Va.
The veteran painter’s personality is as colorful and unique as her art. “I like to say that painting keeps me out of trouble and gives me no time for responsibility,” she says with a laugh. She is most inspired by dramatic lighting. She says, “If the light is good, I’ll paint it.”
Windsor-Mann was awarded a RAAC grant last year to publish her second book, “12 Months on 12 Acres,” a series of art sketches. “RAAC is absolutely fantastic,” she says, “and so is the Fall Art Tour. It brings together people from all over the place who love art.”
The Art of Wood
JASON GOLDMAN, A SELF-DESCRIBED “STORYTELLER,” HAS BEEN ON THE ART TOUR SINCE 2019. He regales visitors with his stories and sells his wood art, each piece telling its own story.
Everything about Goldman is eclectic — from his personality to his works of wooden art. His Flint Hill studio and showroom is his haven. The beloved tools of his trade — chisels, gouges, rasps, carving knives, veiners and hand planes, along with spray paint, inks and dyes — cover every inch of the walls. From within this studio, Goldman creates everything from wood jewelry and cheese boards to wood vases and burial urns.
“I can’t sit still. I love to make things,” he says. The former punk rock band drummer loves discussing his love of wood art. The rewarding part of what he does, according to Goldman, is when he can take something raw from nature and turn it into a beautiful heirloom wooden work of art. Each piece of wood comes to life in vibrant detail — often showcasing the wood’s natural grain and texture variations — under Goldman’s skillful hands.
“Nature gives us incredible designs, colors, textures and even smells, and all of that is hidden inside a piece of wood. It’s my passion to find the best way to present it,” he explains.
Goldman gets his inspiration from mid-century modern furniture, Japanese culture, architecture, skateboarding, ancient pottery, punk rock and more. “I can get inspired by anything,” he says. “Some of my pieces are extremely classic and elegant, but I also do some wild-looking stuff with graffiti and fun colors.”
Being a part of the RAAC Fall Art Tour is something Goldman doesn’t take for granted. “It’s great. It helps artists discover other artists and gives us all a reason to create. Without the Art Tour, I wouldn’t have had a lot of the other opportunities that have come from that,” he explains. Goldman is a RAAC grant recipient.
He has been “getting his juice” from REC for at least 20 years, and says he appreciates being a member of an electric cooperative. “I’ve only lost power for an extended period of time once, during a derecho years ago,” he says.
Of Mud & Magic
SARA ADAMS LIKES MAKING PEOPLE HAPPY — AND SHE GETS TO DO THAT BY BEING PART OF THE FALL ART TOUR. Adams is a potter who displays her work, along with three other potters, at River District Gallery in Sperryville, Va.
“I love playing with clay. You can build most anything with clay, and that’s a lot of fun,” she says.
Adams has plenty of stories to tell about creating unique items for unique people. “People come in with all sorts of requests. A guy came in the other day with a white handlebar mustache, and he said, ‘I want to learn how to make a mug with that little lip on it for my mustache.’ I told him we haven’t made one of those yet, but we could make it for him,” she says with a laugh.
A man whose house had burned down brought in a damaged heirloom piece of pottery that had survived the fire. “He wanted to know if we could recreate that for him. We love being able to do things like that,” she says. Each piece is handcrafted with love.
On Christmas Eve one year, Adams recalls getting a call from a gentleman in a state of panic saying he’d forgotten to get a Christmas present and wanted to come by the gallery. “So, one of us ran over to the gallery and opened it up for him, and he bought the gift he needed,” she says.
Adams is inspired by her love of color. “We have glazes that you can layer and when you layer certain glazes together, it’ll bring out other colors. I also like textured clay. The glaze falls over the ridges in the texture and you can make new colors that way,” she explains. “I love sharing what we do with people on the RAAC Fall Art Tour.”