Wilkes Art Gallery

08/28/2026

The Gallery will be closed this Saturday for exhibition prep. We will reopen on Tuesday, September 1st. The upcoming exhibition "Menagerie" featuring works from recent Northwest Artists' Exhibition award winners and "Pickin' the Ridge" with Rob Gonzo (also a Northwest Artists' Exhibition award winner) will open on September 11th! We are very excited to continue to celebrate and advocate for our region's artists and their inspiring talents.

Visit us at wilkesartgallery.org
The Arts. Create. Community.

08/25/2026

We will always love you 🦋
Today, our region lost one of its most powerful artists and advocate for the arts. Dolly Parton brought the Appalachian spirit of generosity, humor, and storytelling into homes across the globe.

You can visit with Dolly at one of Asheville's most beloved public art installations, a mural by Gus Cutty at the corner of Haywood Road and Mildred Avenue in West Asheville.

Photo courtesy of WLOS

08/25/2026

Summer Art Camp Creations 🤩 Wilkes Art Gallery

08/25/2026

Happy (ART) Campers! Wishing you all a wonderful new school year 👏🤩

Just a few of the many awesome creations and happy faces of students who are picking up their pottery from this summer! Campers are welcome to swing by anytime Tues-Fri from 10am-5pm and pick up your fired and handmade creations and treasures!

08/25/2026

Summer Art and Clay Camp success for Skyview Art Club!! 👏 Wilkes Art Gallery

08/25/2026

These smiling faces are officially all back to school! Wishing our SkyView Art Club students a great first week back to school!
Recently at the Back to School Event, students were able to show off their hard work! 👏🤩

North Wilkesboro Housing Resident Services

08/21/2026

🎨🪕 GRANT OPPORTUNITY 🩰🎼

Artist Support Grants fund projects that will impact and further an individual’s professional arts career. Artists at any stage of their careers, emerging or established, can apply for grants in all disciplines, such as visual art and craft, traditional art forms, music composition, film/video, literature and playwriting, and choreography and dance. Wilkes County artists can apply at wilkesartgallery.org/artist-support-grant. Applications are due by October 5th, 2026. Projects must be completed by December 31, 2027. Artist Support Grant is a competitive grant program for the region spanning across the counties of Alleghany, Ashe, Wilkes, and Watauga.

Types of fundable projects:
- Creation of new work
- Purchase of equipment and materials
- Professional development workshops
- Travel support for expenses associated with a professional opportunity such as participating in an exhibition or a conference
- Development or upgrading of promotional materials such as brochures, DVDs, CDs, and websites

08/14/2026

The People's Choice Award for the 47th Annual Northwest Artists' Exhibition goes to Stampede by Julie Layaou! Congratulations Julie!

For the Northwest Artists' Exhibition, we received a total of 156 votes! Thank you to all who stopped in to support our exhibiting artists and a huge thank you to all of our wonderful NAE artists for submitting work this year.

The 47th Annual Northwest Artists' Exhibition runs through August 26th. Make sure to stop in to view the exhibition before it is gone!

08/14/2026

The results are in for the 3rd Annual Minute People's Choice Awards!

First Place: Peek-A-Raccoon by Jessica Barlow
Second Place: Granny's View by Jacey Childress
Third Place: Swamp Lily by Annabelle Potts

Congratulations to the People's Choice Award winners! For Minute, a total of 93 votes were submitted. The 3rd Annual Minute: A Miniature Art Exhibition runs through August 26th. Make sure to stop by the Gallery to see ALL of the wonderful miniatures from artists of all ages!

08/09/2026

CALLING ALL OUR YOUNG ARTISTS from Summer Art Camp!! 📢
We had two pottery students place last year in the Fair! It’s your time to shine before Youth Art Month in March!! 🎨 💪 🏆

🚨 WE NEED YOUR HELP, WILKES COUNTY! 🚨Our exhibit hall is looking a little too quiet… We currently only have 2 entries submitted for the 2026 Wilkes Agricultural Fair!

We know our community is packed with incredible talent—so where are all the bakers, crafters, gardeners, and young artists at? 🧑‍🌾🥧🎨 Winning a ribbon and cash prizes is easier than you think, and entering is FREE!

Whether you bake a mean batch of brownies, have fresh tomatoes in your garden, or your kids love Lego creations, there is a category for EVERYONE (adults & youth)!

🗓️ DEADLINE: Forms must be submitted by September 11 at 5:00 PM. (No walk-in entries allowed on drop-off day this year!)

👉 How to enter: Pick up an entry form at the Extension Office or contact Sam Lusk at 336-651-7335 (or email [email protected]). Fill it out and submit it before Sept. 11.

Bring your items on Drop-Off Day (Oct. 5). Don't let our exhibit hall go empty this year!

All Exhibit Hall information can be found here: https://wilkes.ces.ncsu.edu/news/w/

Help us showcase what makes Wilkes County great ❤️