Western North Carolina is forever changed in the wake of Helene’s devastation. The impact to infrastructure and the economy has been staggering, with artists and creative businesses hit especially hard. 

Arts and culture are often mistakenly seen as a “nice to have” extra rather than a vital part of the region’s ecosystem. In 2022, creative industries in this region were responsible for nearly $1.2 billion in sales and more than 17,500 creative jobs, excluding extended proprietors or “gig” workers. Additionally, the area is one of 62 federally designated national heritage areas because of its rich craft and music traditions.

Buncombe County in particular is a leading arts destination. According to a recent study by Americans for the Arts, Buncombe County was home to 483 establishments in the arts and culture sector during 2022, and ranked #1 out of all 100 North Carolina counties for arts and culture establishments per capita. By this same measure, Buncombe County ranked 47th out of all 3,144 US counties.

Many arts businesses, organizations, and individual artists had property damage from flood waters, landslides, wind, and falling trees. More than 250 artist studios, galleries, and venues were lost in the Asheville area alone. Even those spared from direct damage were cut off from work opportunities due to washed-out roads or being unable to open due to extended outages of electricity, water, sewer, and communications.

The timing of business interruption compounded the loss. Buncombe County receives nearly 30% of annual visitor spending in fall and early winter, totaling more than $2 billion during the 2023 fall season. Current data shows that tourism was down by 70% this year, according to Explore Asheville. 

Early assessments by ArtsAVL showed many artists from across the region were suffering from complete income losses and needed immediate funding for things like groceries (54%) and bills (78%). This led ArtsAVL to launch the Emergency Relief Grant offering $500 stipends to impacted artists throughout the 26 county region. Since the grant opened on October 14, ArtsAVL has received over 2,300 applications from artists in need – craft (31%), visual (26%), performing [mostly musicians] (25%), interdisciplinary (11%), media (5%), and literary (3%) artists. A staggering 21% of these applicants reported that they had lost their jobs as a result of the storm forcing a growing number to have to make the difficult decision to leave the area.

A survey of over 200 Buncombe County arts businesses (for profit and nonprofit) showed a strong desire to reopen, but without support, many will be forced to remain closed. Delays in small business support are also forcing many organizations to make the difficult decision to lay off workers.

Even in the face of these devastating challenges, arts and cultural organizations have shown up for the local community. Artists have turned rubble into public art, distribution centers into concert halls and concert halls into distribution centers, captured the beauty in our devastation, and given us the words to express our grief.

ArtsAVL – Buncombe County’s designated arts council and arts advocate for Western North Carolina – immediately sprang into action, providing needed support services and emergency relief funding and becoming the lead partner for arts recovery in WNC. In the last few months, ArtsAVL has awarded nearly $1 million in relief funding, and traveled to Chicago, Raleigh, Wilmington, and Washington D.C. advocating for arts relief aid for the region.

“Arts and culture are what make Western North Carolina a desirable place to live, work, and play,” said ArtsAVL Executive Director Katie Cornell. “These jobs and businesses are vital to economic recovery, resident retention, and the return of tourism. If we don’t act now, we are in danger of losing this substantial economic driver and an important part of our cultural heritage.”

Source: ArtsAVL