Community Calendar

Artist Talk: April 25, 2-3 pm
Workshop: April 30, 6-8 pm

Through the Ether is a group of mixed media works deeply influenced by and connected to film editing. April collects and stores unrelated images from different modalities and mediums—3D modeling, photographs, paintings, advertisements. She removes the color, texture, and context from which they originate. These elements form a visual depository or footage bin, from which she uses the montage process to construct a new landscape independent of their source. This reconstruction process resembles building a scene in a film. However, it creates an emotional landscape unto itself, devoid of the requirements of narrative and story—nullifying the necessity of a beginning, a middle, and an end.

About April Simmons: April received her BFA from the Savannah College of Art and Design and her MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in film. She worked as an experimental non-narrative filmmaker and as a film editor for both nonfiction and fiction films. Her films have screened at the New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center (Views), Anthology Film Archives in New York, the Rotterdam Film Festival, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and the Museum of Contemporary Photography (MoCP) in Chicago, among others. April taught film production, theory, and history at the university level for nearly two decades. She began working in digital photo collage and mixed media in 2022. Her work has been shown at The Galleries at Cabarrus Arts Council (“Liminal”) and at The Mint Museum (“Coined in the South”) in Uptown Charlotte.

Join the Rapha Way Foundation for our 2nd Annual Legacy Lap, a community wellness walk celebrating health, connection, and the power of coming together. What started as an inaugural vision to unite Charlotte and surrounding area has grown into a beloved tradition, and this year we're inviting even more neighbors, families, seniors, and friends to walk with us.

Dive into adventure with our NEW IMMOTION VR Experience: Shark Dive, launching May 22nd at CSC!

Get up close with the incredible sharks of Tiger Beach in this thrilling, immersive underwater experience. No wetsuit required.

Unleash your inner artist and engineer in Brick Masters Studio: Build with LEGO® Bricks Like a Pro, an immersive exhibition by world-renowned artist Sean Kenney.

Produced by Imagine with science content developed by Science North, Brick Masters Studio features over 100 sculptures built with over 2 million LEGO® pieces, inviting guests to explore the intersection of art, science and engineering. Hands-on build challenges, real-world engineering concepts and insights into the artistic process show how imagination and innovation come together to create something extraordinary.

Iron Light is the Western North Carolina Sculpture Center’s signature cast‑iron sculpture residency and public arts gathering, combining intensive artist collaboration with hands‑on community engagement. Held annually, Iron Light brings visiting and resident sculptors together on site for mold‑making, iron pour preparation, fabrication, and installation, culminating in a dramatic public iron pour where visitors can watch molten iron transformed into sculpture in real time. Community participation is central to the event, with opportunities for the public to engage alongside artists through demonstrations, iron tile and mold activities, and artist talks. The event atmosphere is celebratory and inclusive, featuring live music, food trucks, and family‑friendly programming, making Iron Light both an artistic spectacle and a social gathering that connects people to the creative process through fire, metal, and shared experience. The event is free and open to the public.

Event Schedule:
12pm-4pm: Community scratch block mold workshop - create your own cast iron artwork to be poured during the event ($75 per mold)
4pm: Live music and food trucks begin
5pm-8pm: Live iron pour demonstration

Step back 66 million years and journey through the final chapter of the age of dinosaurs in Dinosaur Evolution—a thrilling immersive experience that brings the Cretaceous world to life. Witness feathered raptors on the hunt, armored giants defending their turf, and the mighty T. rex at the top of the food chain. But even these perfectly evolved creatures couldn’t escape Earth’s most devastating extinction event. Stunning visuals and cutting-edge science reveal how evolution shaped the dinosaurs—and how birds, their modern-day descendants, continue their legacy. It's a prehistoric adventure that will inspire the next generation of paleontologists and conservationists alike.

DINOSAUR! has made their way back to CSC! Get ready to come face-to-face with jaw-dropping fossils, thrilling prehistoric discoveries, and hands-on Jurassic fun for explorers of all ages.

The ROAR of prehistoric fun is her, don’t miss it!

The Charlotte Chamber Choir's upcoming concert Coro Accompagnato: An Afternoon of Accompanied Choral Music explores the rich possibilities that emerge when voices and instruments join together. The program highlights how accompaniment has been used to enhance the emotional and artistic depth of choral music through the centuries, uniting works by Shawn Kirchner, Jake Runestad, Elaine Hagenberg and more with beloved classics by Felix Mendelssohn and Johannes Brahms.

From moments of quiet reflection to surges of radiant energy, seasoned audience members and newcomers alike are invited to listen closely and experience the myriad ways accompaniment can uplift, sculpt, and illuminate the choral sound.

Concerts take place Saturday, June 6 at Christ Episcopal Church and Sunday, June 7 at St. John's Episcopal Church, both at 3:30 PM. Tickets are available at the door or in advance at https://www.charlottechamberchoir.com/calendar - $20 General Admission, with $5 tickets available for students.

For more information, please visit https://www.charlottechamberchoir.com or contact us at charlottechamberchoir@gmail.com.

This popular shutterbug weekend includes presentations from top nature photographers, hands-on field courses, a friendly contest and the rare opportunity to photograph the mountain’s spectacular scenery before and after regular business hours.

This popular weekend welcomes all levels of photographers, making it fun and engaging no matter what your skill level is – while better connecting participants with the wonders and unique ecology of Grandfather Mountain. This year, more than ever, we hope to not only help participants learn about photography, but to also inspire them to preserve the natural world. Activities begin Friday evening and conclude Sunday midday. Registration opens April 9 at 10 a.m. and closes June 4 at 12 p.m. or when the event sells out. Advance registration required.

Artist Talk: April 25, 2-3 pm
Workshop: April 30, 6-8 pm

Through the Ether is a group of mixed media works deeply influenced by and connected to film editing. April collects and stores unrelated images from different modalities and mediums—3D modeling, photographs, paintings, advertisements. She removes the color, texture, and context from which they originate. These elements form a visual depository or footage bin, from which she uses the montage process to construct a new landscape independent of their source. This reconstruction process resembles building a scene in a film. However, it creates an emotional landscape unto itself, devoid of the requirements of narrative and story—nullifying the necessity of a beginning, a middle, and an end.

About April Simmons: April received her BFA from the Savannah College of Art and Design and her MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago in film. She worked as an experimental non-narrative filmmaker and as a film editor for both nonfiction and fiction films. Her films have screened at the New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center (Views), Anthology Film Archives in New York, the Rotterdam Film Festival, the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and the Museum of Contemporary Photography (MoCP) in Chicago, among others. April taught film production, theory, and history at the university level for nearly two decades. She began working in digital photo collage and mixed media in 2022. Her work has been shown at The Galleries at Cabarrus Arts Council (“Liminal”) and at The Mint Museum (“Coined in the South”) in Uptown Charlotte.