From April through June, the Swannanoa Valley Museum will host the traveling exhibit River Cane Renaissance, designed by the Mountain Heritage Center (MHC) of Western Carolina University. To celebrate the opening of this exhibit, the museum will host two events on Friday, April 1st. From 11:00am to 12:15pm at the Black Mountain Public Library, Pam Meister, director of MHC, and Adam Griffith, program director of the Revitalization of Traditional Cherokee Artisan Resources (RTCAR), will present on the the process of creating the exhibit and the importance of river cane. Griffith will discuss river cane ecology and historic Cherokee uses of river cane, and Meister will discuss staff adventures in creating the exhibit, such as exploring cane brakes with Griffith and WCU biologists, and spending time with Cherokee basket makers learning about their crafts.

Then, from 1:00pm to 3:30pm, Cherokee basket maker Ramona Lossie will be demonstrating traditional river cane basket making to visitors at the Swannanoa Valley Museum. Learn more about Ramona Lossie here.

These events are FREE and open to the public. However, attendees to Rivercane Renaissance must reserve a spot. Click on the link below to reserve your spot!

Rivercane Renaissance Talk

Where: Black Mountain Public Library, 105 N. Dougherty St., Black Mountain, 28711

When: 11:00am-12:15pm.

Cost: FREE