A year after flooding, Tryon's Upstairs Artspace set to reopen on Aug. 26

Dean Hensley, Hendersonville Times-News
·3 min read
"Edwards Seafood" is a work by Tryon's John Walters.
"Edwards Seafood" is a work by Tryon's John Walters.

TRYON — In August of last year, Tryon's contemporary art gallery Upstairs Artspace was severely damaged by flooding due to a hot water heater that ruptured, and the artists who were set to show their work weren't able to.

Now they are finally getting that chance.

After a year of hard work and renovations, Upstairs Artspace, located at 49 S. Trade St., is set for a grand reopening, which will be happening in the next few days. According to a press release the Grand Reopening and Artists' Reception is set for 5-7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 26.

Restorationi worker Steve Barker working on the kitchen at Upstairs Artspace.
Restorationi worker Steve Barker working on the kitchen at Upstairs Artspace.

The event will feature catered hors d'oeuvres, wine and other beverages, along with disco music by Dean Trakas. But the main feature will be the art hanging on the walls once again, the release said.

“The artists in these three exhibitions are the same artists who were here when the flood happened,” gallery board member Patti Trobaugh said in the release. “We had their reception (that Saturday night last year), and after everyone left, the hot water heater broke and flooded all three floors of the gallery until it was discovered two days later. We’ve been closed for restorations ever since. We felt it was only fair and fitting to have these same artists back to actually show their work.”

The reopening will feature three exhibitions by seven artists from Tryon, Asheville, Rock Hill (S.C.), and Los Angeles, and the exhibitions are titled "Carefully Placed Lines on Paper," "Human Connections" and "The Thinking Eye".

Edge of Chinatown by Jeff Kinzel.
Edge of Chinatown by Jeff Kinzel.

Tryon architect John Walters will present works from his book, "Carefully Placed Lines on Paper," a collection of drawings of interesting places and buildings from around the world, the release said. He has been one of Tryon’s leading architects since 2002 and is heavily involved in local community service.

Los Angeles artist Catherine Baumhauer and Rock Hill, S.C. artist Caroline Rust will showcase their work titled "Human Connections." Baumhauer was born and reared in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and is a graduate of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and California Institute of the Arts: CalArts. Her background in painting, sculpture, animation, film, and her life as a mother influences her current work, she said. Rust is a native of Charlotte and earned her master’s degree in fine art painting from Winthrop University and her bachelor’s degree in fine art painting from East Carolina University.

"The Thinking Eye" is by four Asheville artists: Jeff Kinzel, Martha Skinner, Ralston Fox Smith and Kevin Hogan. According to the release, the artists are exploring space in fundamentally different ways in the exhibit and are investigating their chosen subjects, paying attention to the dynamic elements that make up a piece of artwork, in particular the third dimension, depth.

The Aug. 26 event coincides with Tryon’s traditional Fourth Friday community event. These three free exhibitions will be on public display through Oct. 14, the release said, and the gallery is open from noon-5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday.

“This really will be a community-wide celebration,”Trobaugh said. “Everyone is invited to come see the gallery, the art, and to have a great time.”

This article originally appeared on Hendersonville Times-News: After flooding repairs, Tryon's Upstairs Artspace set to reopen Aug. 26