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Robert Alan Grand

@robertalangrand

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💗 big hearted betty covering southern art + culture
📓 carolinas editor @burnaway
✍️ @gardenandgun, @craftcouncil @artinamerica +others
📍Asheville, NC

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In the first half of the 20th century, two different experiments in adult education, both rooted in the same ideological foundation, were established in Appalachia to address mounting social issues. So why did they turn out so differently?

For @burnaway , I wrote about the Danish folk school model, its origins as a way to foster and promote democracy during times of political upheaval, and how the model could serve (and is serving) many different purposes today for communities looking to connect outside of digital spheres. Campbell and Highlander, both founded in similar regions and during the same period, developed into almost polar opposites—the perfect way, I think, to examine the benefits and pitfalls of the model.

I hope that, by recognizing the original intentions of the folk school and viewing a more accurate, non-mythologized history of regional development, we can see the folk school’s radical potential—with art, craft, dance, and music working in harmony with social activism and generational change.

Grateful to the many people who, through numerous conversations over several years, helped shape this piece into what it is now. (And it’s still just the tip of the iceberg!)

Extremely thankful to the @burnaway team, especially the ever-patient @courtneylmcclellan , who encouraged me to keep untangling threads and loosening knots until I created something on the page that reflected the convictions of my ramblings 💘 by @robertalangrand

Beyond thrilled to share that I have received a 2025 Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant for short-form writing!

Over the next year, this funding will help as I write a series of articles on contemporary art in southern and central Appalachia, focusing on artist-run spaces that promote a holistic view of cultural life in the mountains.

I’m planning on a lot of driving, a lot of studio visits, and a lot of writing about as much as I can. ❤️

I’m honored to be among so many distinguished colleagues and talented writers with this year’s award. This grant is a dream come true in so many ways! Unbelievable, really, as I take the leap into a year of writing.

Huge thanks to the @warholfoundation, @artswriters, the panelists, and the many editors who have helped me forge this path! ❤️❤️❤️ by @robertalangrand

icymi: I am now the Carolinas Editor-at-Large for @burnaway which means writing more but commissioning too!

pitching guidelines for reviews and interviews about visual art are in the following slides—please share! looking for punchy, evocative writing about major museum shows, artists-run spaces, creatives on the brink of a breakthrough, and other happenings that will speak to the south but appeal to readers on a national scale.

photo by @cory.marie.photography 💗

#writingcommunity #callforwriters #nc #sc #ncwriters #scwriters #artcriticism #artwriting by @robertalangrand

Burnaway is excited to announce our next pick for Open Book, our first editorial book club. Selected by Carolinas Editor at Large Robert Alan Grand (@robertalangrand), our next Open Book pick is "Biography of X" by Catherine Lacey.

Robert will lead a virtual book club on Monday, November 23 from 6-7PM EST and an in-person book club in Asheville at DayTrip (@daytrip.avl) on Wednesday, December 2 from 6-8PM EST.

Register for and learn more about the book clubs at the link in bio! 🖇

📘 Copies of "Biography of X" can be purchased via Firestorm Books (@firestormcoop) for 10% off with code BURNAWAY.
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Held in-person and virtually, Open Book is a literary program for curious readers who are interested in engaging with stories touching on both art and our coverage region of the South and Caribbean. At a time marked by AI-generated content and declining reading habits, Open Book serves as a space for critical thinking, thoughtful discussion, and gathering. Through this program, we hope to continue fostering a community of engaged readers across our coverage region and beyond. by @robertalangrand

📕 For @brooklynrail’s September issue, I reviewed ‘Entirely Preventable: The Toxic Legacy of Silica Dust from Hawks Nest to Black Lung’ at the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum @wvminewars

The small-but-mighty exhibition serves as a witness to significant environmental and industrial disasters in American history, becomes a testament to decades of workers’ resilience, and is a call to action for a better future.

On my Substack, I talk a little bit more about the museum’s permanent exhibition and how the whole thing feels like an artwork unto itself.

Coal mining remains at the center of regional discussions and debates over the proper approach to environmental stewardship, climate collapse, intergenerational poverty, and the area’s economic vitality.

This tension has also spilled into the art world, raising a key question I’ve been pondering for years, too.

How does one accurately represent a region that has long suffered from the destructive impacts of extractive industries without replicating that same extraction through photography itself?

💫 Big thanks to @pickle33 for trusting me to write about art across the country and for helping it shine. Grateful also for @artswriters for the support in making this experience possible.

Photos above by Stacy Kranitz, Earl Dotter, and Raymond Thompson Jr. by @robertalangrand

Artists, exhibitions, and endeavors I’ve had the honor to write about lately for the @craftcouncil 🤲 Grateful for my editor Shivaun who helps me improve with each piece while also keeping up the pace! ❤️ by @robertalangrand

Thank you to @robertalangrand for the short and sweet review of our soon-closing exhibition, Black Mountain COLL(A)GE! September 5th, 2026, will be the last day to explore all things collage at BMC, view some amazing contemporary works situated within the BMC legacy, and make your own collage at our Material Exploration Station. ⁠
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"Before irony became contemporary art’s M.O., Ray Johnson was the king of cutting up—evident in his campy, whip-smart paper medleys, ones often snail-mailed to fellow creatives as an invitation or part of the punch line. The exhibition ‘Black Mountain COLL(A)GE’ in downtown Asheville is a testament to and a thank-you for his biting commentary, which brought levity and play to a group of astute modern artists who maybe took themselves too seriously. (Johnson’s 1974 collage, featuring brutish, brooding Ad Reinhardt as a greeting card Cupid, is a highlight here.) What else counts as COLL(A)GE? Class notes from Mary Parks Washington—one of 1946’s two Black students—scrapbooked into posters alongside Franz Kline’s paint-splattered work table constructed from curbside trash. Most inspiring, though, are the present-day works on view. In two over-embellished beekeeper costumes made by local artist collective Swannatopia, hodgepodged remnants of an absurdist performance, one can see how this ragtag bunch conceptually connects to the College’s legacy. Across generations, the works on view show creatives adopting a more speculative approach to avant-garde art and drawing inspiration from the ecological wonders of western North Carolina, all while reminding us that making art also means having fun with it."⁠
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Text is from Robert Grand’s Substack exhibition review, 200 Words on Black Mountain COLL(A)GE, Asheville, NC. @robertalangrand on Substack. by @robertalangrand

Asheville! Sunday morning, I’m kicking off the second day of the CRAFT: MAKING & THINKING CONFERENCE at the @craftguild @folkartcenter with an extended presentation on my @burnaway essay from earlier this summer: “What is a Folk School?”

My essay looks at the original inspiration and thinking behind the Danish Folk School model and its American applications, primarily through a case study of two early 20th century Appalachian adopters: the John C. Campbell Folk School in western North Carolina and the Highlander Folk School in eastern Tennessee.

Campbell and Highlander took drastically different approaches while underpinned by the same idea. I hope to show how a folk school reflecting a combination of their approaches—one that weaves together craft, politics, activism, in-person discussion, and social dancing—could be a useful tool for today. It would, in essence, harken back to the original Danish idea of folk schools as central to the health of democracy.

Come say hello! Honored to be involved with such a great array of speakers and viewpoints. Deeply grateful to @crafthatch for the invitation! by @robertalangrand

Teaching at @haystack_school was beyond words—ironic, given that writing was the focus of our whole week.

I came to the coast of Maine with writer’s block, career frustrations, and exhaustion teetering on burnout. But this group rekindled my spirit and reminded me why writing, telling your story, and looking at the world with art as your anchor can be so powerful and fulfilling.

They taught me that the best writing comes when you get out of your own way and face your fears, insecurities, and vulnerabilities head on. Their pivotal, tectonic reflections, many coming after simple 15-minute prompts (!!), inspired me greatly and are still swimming around my head.

We also visited (and wrote about) the talented folks working in studios across campus, hand-bound a book of our collected writings, marveled at the lunar eclipse while standing in the roaring Atlantic Ocean, daydreamed of what we’d pocket in our sneak-a-treat dresses, and thought to ourselves, “Will that dog bone chair fit my butt?”

I hardly took any photos but I’ve filled plenty of journal pages and plan to keep going. Forever grateful to everyone who made this experience possible.

And yes, I persisted among a competitive bidding war to bring @zibarajabi ’s incredible egg tempera portrait of Dolly (RIP), bringing it home to my love @mostlyholybasil who took care of our home and furry family while also promoting his chapbook and getting a new job!!! Every day this man helps me become a better writer, partner, person, and human; again, words fail me.

TL;DR – Haystack was incredible, it made me weep, and, yes, they have the best food by far. (Missing the extra-garlic hummus, the tuna salad as a side, the garden teas and lemonades, the steak and noodle salad. Can you tell I love lists of four?) by @robertalangrand

Had an amazing, sweaty, magical, life-changing, waffle-filled, and transformative two weeks documenting, cutting up, and learning from legendary writers at @sewaneewriters

I’ve long been enamored with craft schools and art retreats, but to find a space that channels the same uplifting spirit and motivating energy for writers—fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and playwrights—has helped me see my work and purpose in new ways.

Leaving with so much to read, parse through, work on, write about, delve into. Can’t even put all this mushy feelings into coherent words okay!!! #Sappy by @robertalangrand

Extended Family Two | Robert Alan Grand

Robert Alan Grand is a writer and photographer based in Asheville, North Carolina. Working across both mediums, Grand is interested in the quotidian moments that shape everyday life, finding humor and ingenuity in the unexpected. His writing explores contemporary art, craft, and the communities that sustain them—from Appalachian folk schools and contemporary artists across the region to those rebuilding their lives after Hurricane Helene—while his photographs bring that same attention to the people, objects, and places that describe a region from within. Rather than separating writing from photography, Grand approaches each as a different way of looking. Together they offer a fuller understanding of a place and the lives unfolding inside it.

Image 1: ROBERT ALAN GRAND
Dollhouse Settee, Murphy, NC, 2022
digital print 20 x 16 in (50.8 x 40.6 cm) Edition of 5

Image 2: ROBERT ALAN GRAND
Cutworms Corral, Hayesville, NC , 2021
digital print 20 x 16 in (50.8 x 40.6 cm) Edition of 5

Image 3: ROBERT ALAN GRAND
Zak Hangs the Banner, Brasstown, NC, 2022 digital print 20 x 16 in (50.8 x 40.6 cm) Edition of 5

Image 4: ROBERT ALAN GRAND
Tri-County Racetrack, Brasstown, NC, 2023 digital print 20 x 16 in (50.8 x 40.6 cm )Edition of 5

Link in bio with more information. DM or email for pricing or to set up a time to see the work in person.

#robertalangrand
#chozickfamilyartgallery
#extendedfamily
#contemporaryphotography by @robertalangrand

Recent pieces for @craftcouncil 💌 Grateful for the opportunity to chat with innovative artists, curators, and makers across the southeast who contribute to a rich visual culture! 🌻 link in bio by @robertalangrand