Inside the creative worlds of Asheville’s master builders
In the early 20th century, Asheville earned the nickname “the Paris of the South,” thanks in large part to its striking architecture. Hand-hewn cottages, terracotta towers, and stately churches rose against the Blue Ridge backdrop, reflecting both ambition and artistry. A new exhibition at the Asheville Art Museum, Lasting Legacies, traces this architectural flowering through the work of three visionaries: Richard Sharp Smith, Albert Heath Carrier, and Douglas D. Ellington. Smith and Carrier, operating under the firm Smith & Carrier, brought the rustic elegance of the British Arts and Crafts movement to Western North Carolina, adapting it for landmarks like St. Mary’s Episcopal Church and the storybook cottages of Biltmore Village. Two decades later, Ellington championed Asheville’s embrace of Art Deco, leaving behind the tiered, terracotta city building that still anchors Pack Square. On view September 19 through January 18, 2026, Lasting Legacies goes beyond blueprints. Visitors will see site plans, drawings, and even whimsical personal artifacts on loan from the Ellington family, alongside decorative works by Biltmore Industries, the Brasstown Carvers, and Dodge Silver. Together, these objects reveal how architecture and craft intertwined to shape not only a skyline but also Asheville’s cultural identity.
Lasting Legacies: Architecture in Asheville by Richard Sharp Smith, Albert Heath Carrier, and Douglas D. Ellington: September 19-January 18, 2026
Asheville Art Museum / 2 South Pack Square, Asheville / ashevilleart.org