Forest of the Heart
Artist Shelly Hehenberger presents last High Country exhibit before moving

By Jeff Eason

They say that parting is such sweet sorrow. Sorrowful because you will miss the things you love about a certain place. Sweet, because of the excitement that comes with traveling to new locales.

One of the High Country’s most popular artists, Shelly Hehenberger, will be leaving the area this summer when her husband, Tom, starts his new job as hospital chaplain at the University of North Carolina Medical Center in Chapel Hill.

Hehenberger will put on one final art exhibit at the Mazie Jones Gallery in Boone before she and her family relocates. The exhibit is titled Forest of the Heart and will include 29 recent pieces of artwork.

A public reception for Shelly Hehenberger’s Forest of the Heart exhibit will be held at the Jones House Community and Cultural Center on Friday, May 2nd from 6:30 to 8 p.m. The event is sponsored by the Watauga Arts Council and is free and open to the public.

“These pieces are like spiritual mirrors,” said Hehenberger. “Each one represents the uniqueness of individuals as seen through the interaction between the mysterious trio of land, tree and sky. These simplified and abstracted elements symbolize the individuality that exists within people despite the outward similarities.”
Hehenberger’s artistic technique involves creating colorful images utilizing the bright pigments of acrylic paint along with paper collage. The final images are mounted on wood.

“Within the consistent framework I’ve described, I like to see how many different ways I can use the mediums of paint, wood and paper to show the greatest diversity among the pieces. I find it exciting to see the potential of variety that can exist even with the simplest of forms, and I hope this work will help others to appreciate their own uniqueness.”

Hehenberger noted that she will also have a collection of illustrations for sale at the Mazie Jones Gallery. She has produced numerous book covers and illustrations for books such as the popular children’s book Jesus: The Word.

Hehenberger has worked as a painter and community art teacher since graduating from Indiana University in 1990 with a degree in fine arts. She received her Masters of Fine Arts degree from the University of Cincinnati in 1994.

All of the works in Hehenberger’s new show are for sale and range from $100 to $300.

Mother & Daughter Art Show

To commemorate Mother’s Day, High Country artist Wendy Warren will co-host an art exhibit with her daughter Danielle Clark in the Open Door Community Gallery of the Jones House during May.

Wendy’s vibrant oil paintings are extremely fluid and the way she takes familiar objects and infuses them with color and life is breathtaking. Daughter Danielle’s work is an eclectic mix of colorful oil paintings and pen and ink drawings.

Wendy Warren, co-owner of Split Endz Hair Salon in Boone and a resident of Watauga County for the past two decades, discovered painting as a pastime in 1995. Danielle, a 2008 graduate of Watauga High School, will be studying graphic design at Appalachian State University in the fall.

Shooting Stars Art Show

For the past decade Shooting Stars has been a showcase for displaying the visual and performing arts talent in the Watauga County School System. In addition to a powerhouse talent show put on at Farthing Auditorium last weekend, Shooting Stars is presenting its visual arts component at the Jones House Community Center in Boone.

“Over 150 pieces of artwork were submitted to Shooting Stars this year,” said a spokesperson for the visual arts show. “Four local artists served as judges and chose 45 pieces to showcase in the show.”

The Shooting Stars artwork will be on display at the Jones House from now until May 23rd.

Proceeds from Shooting Stars benefits the Watauga Education Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to enriching learning opportunities for all Watauga County public school students by “promoting innovative educational experiences that will inspire each of them to achieve their highest potential.”

Over the past two decades, the WEF has allocated more than $600,000 for projects that support the teachers and students of Watauga County.

All three exhibits at the Jones House are on display Tuesday through Friday, from noon to 5 p.m. The Arts Council galleries are also open during the acoustic jams at the Jones House each Thursday from 7:30 to 11 p.m.

Friday’s art reception is being held in conjunction with Downtown Boone’s First Friday Art Crawl.

The Watauga Arts Council galleries are sponsored in part by Cheap Joe’s Art Stuff and Grassroots Funds of the North Carolina Arts Council. For more information on these art exhibits, contact the Watauga Arts Council at (828) 264-1789.