“Appalachian Spring” Comes to 8 North Center for the Arts

Appalachian Spring: Words, Music, and Crafts of the Mountains comes to 8 North Center for the Arts for one weekend only!

Experience the heartbeat of this vibrant and uniquely American culture, expressed in poetry, art, craftmanship and song March 6-7-8,

A curated exhibit of various handmade art and crafts will be on display during all open gallery hours. Friday and Saturday hours will include additional programming: an informative presentation, inspirational poetry readings, and toe-tapping music.

Admission for all events and the gallery is free; donations are always appreciated.

Event and performance schedule:

Friday, March 6

6:30-9 pm

Opening night presentation, 7 pm

Matt Wolfinbarger — Appalachian writer and author

Saturday, March 7

2-5 pm

Featured readers, beginning at 3 pm:

Richard Hague — Award-winning Cincinnati writer; Mercantile Library Poet Laureate

Pauletta Hansel — Cincinnati’s first Poet Laureate

Matt Wolfinbarger — Appalachian writer and author

Music, immediately following the readings:

Joe’s Truck Stop — Original Country, Folk, Bluegrass, and more featuring internationally touring songwriter, folk musician, and storyteller Joe Macheret, whose songs are based on true tales of life on the road, temptation, nature, heartbreak and “banjo-pickin’, tobacco-spittin’ women.”

Coffee offered by Christian Coffee Company and homemade pastries offered by Mounce Baked Goods.

Music sponsored by Matt Wolfinbarger.

Sunday, March 8

2-5 pm Gallery Hours

About the artists:

RICHARD HAGUE is an award-winning Appalachian poet, essayist, and educator from Steubenville, Ohio. A longtime Cincinnati teacher, former Purcell Marian English department chair and former Writer-in-Residence at Thomas More University, Richard now serves as the Cincinnati/Mercantile Library poet laureate. His many books include Ripening, Alive in Hard Country, and the Weatherford Award-winning During the Recent Extinctions.

PAULETTA HANSEL is a poet, memoirist, teacher, editor, and author of 11 poetry collections including Understory: A Women’s History of Appalachia (available October 2026). A hybrid of poetry and prose, revealing generations of women whose experiences can only be understood through others’ narratives, Understory is a microcosm of Appalachian, America, and women’s histories. Born and raised in southeastern Kentucky, Pauletta was Cincinnati’s first Poet Laureate.

MATT WOLFINBARGER is an acclaimed Appalachian writer, author, and advocate. His knowledge, support, and sponsorship helped make this exhibit possible.

JOE’S TRUCK STOP — Original Country, Folk, Bluegrass, and more featuring internationally touring songwriter, folk musician, and storyteller Joe Macheret, whose songs are based on true tales of life on the road, temptation, nature, heartbreak and“banjo-pickin’, tobacco-spittin’ women.”