Support Painting, Drawing & Mixed Media

Virginia studied art at Wichita State University before moving to Kansas City, where she worked as an artist for Hallmark® cards. She attended Kansas City Art Institute and studied with numerous artists. In addition to teaching at the Folk School, she gives private classes in her studio, as well as in Italy. She works in several media, but loves watercolor and considers it perfect for capturing the beauty of mountains and wildflowers. In 2016 she received a NC Arts Council grant to paint studies of trees in the bonsai garden at the NC Arboretum in Asheville, NC. She also received a residency from the Wildacres Retreat Foundation in 2017 to create a book using her paintings. Virginia lives with her husband, John, near Hayesville, NC, and is the Folk School’s Studio Assistant for the Painting program.

Rachel is an interdisciplinary artist working in alternative and traditional photography, printmaking, jewelry, woodworking, book arts, textiles, and installation. After completing her MFA at the University of Georgia in 2020, she digitized the 7,000-piece collection at Newcomb Art Museum in New Orleans.  Originally from Northeast Georgia, Rachel has traveled the world learning alternative photography processes and participating in photography and printmaking conferences. She is currently renovating Elf School, a historic school in Hayesville, NC, where she plans to build studios and continue her art practice while sharing her passion, skills, and experience with others at the Folk School.