Mica’s Featured Artist for October

Mica, the members owned cooperative fine craft gallery in downtown Bakersville, continues its monthly special “Featured Artist Spotlight” series exhibiting the work of its member artists.

In October, Mica will feature the work of Vicki Essig in a display of her small, handmade books in an exhibit entitled “Bookstone.” The term, ‘bookstone' is a very old name for the gallery’s namesake, ‘mica' - the silicate mineral which has been mined and processed for hundreds of years in the Spruce Pine Mining District. She notes, "Each one of my small handmade books is constructed incorporating mica. I love how my hand bound sculptural pieces and small journals represent and signify the geologic and mining history of our mountain culture."

Essig grew up in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. Her move to Appalachia allowed her to join and pursue the long craft tradition of hand weaving. Exploring textiles throughout Europe and parts of the East and Middle East she brought with her to the Smokey Mountains the love of textiles.

Mica is located at 37 Mitchell Ave, Bakersville, NC. Mica is open daily, Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 12–5 p.m. For more information call 828.688.6422 or visit micagallerync.com. Follow the gallery on Facebook at Mica Gallery NC, or on Instagram at micagallerync.