PENLAND SCHOOL OF CRAFTS
We drove along the Blue Ridge Parkway for an hour past Craggy Gardens and Mount Mitchell to Little Switzerland where we turned off and were suddenly back in the clutter of fake tourist castles and gem mining promises but by the time we got to Spuce Pine the clutter was beginning to clear. We had a good lunch in Spruce Pine at Live Oak Gastro Pub and then drove on to nearby Penland School of Crafts.
The beautiful campus in the woods is a place for outstanding craftspeople of all kinds to teach classes for a week or two months to students who come from all over the United States. It is also a place where craftspeople can come for short residences of several months to work in the presence of other craftspeople. There are dormitories for students and a dining hall and silence. These photographs show you a few of the buildings and the display of the artists‘ best work in the Penland Gallery. We spent quiet hour there and then drove on.
BILLYBABA’S WANDERING 