A Free Interactive Art Show in West Asheville Was Almost a Year in the Making

By Jon Tharp, Broker  ·  September 8, 2026

Nearly a year of building things they did not yet know how to build has paid off for two Asheville artists. Impractical Instruments, the interactive art studio founded by Charlie Huguenard and Jessica Tomasin, opened a free exhibition Sunday at Lamplight AVL, 2 Westwood Place in West Asheville. The show fills the space with interactive artwork, immersive environments, experimental technology, sound installations and miniature worlds, and it costs nothing to walk in.

Lamplight sits in Buncombe County just off Haywood Road, a few minutes from the I-240 and I-26 interchange. That makes it an easy stop for anyone coming up from Hendersonville or over from Waynesville, and about an hour and a half from Franklin by way of US-441 and US-23/74. If you have been meaning to spend an afternoon in West Asheville anyway, September just gave you a reason.

What is the Impractical Instruments exhibit in Asheville?

Huguenard and Tomasin describe themselves as artists and inventors, and the show reflects both halves of that. They built the pieces for you to touch and play with, not to view from behind a rope. Some respond to sound. Some are small enough to fit on a tabletop and pull you in close, while others surround you.

Huguenard told WLOS the project was almost a year in the making, and that much of what they had to do to build it was new to them. That learning process is part of the appeal. This is not a touring installation that rolled in on a truck. People who live here built it here.

Tomasin is a familiar name in the Asheville music world after years at Echo Mountain Recording, and that background shows in the emphasis on sound. Pairing the exhibit with a live performance was a natural move.

When can you see the free art exhibit at Lamplight AVL?

The studio has posted three public dates so far. On Sept. 12 the exhibit is open from 3 to 5:30 p.m., and at 5:30 the space shifts to a live set from Shana Tucker, the North Carolina cellist and singer-songwriter whose blend of jazz, soul and folk should suit a room full of sound installations.

On Sept. 17 there is a game design workshop from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. On Sept. 19 a diorama workshop runs from noon to 3 p.m., which is a good match for the miniature worlds in the show and a good window for families. Everything is free and open to all ages.

Because the hours are tied to specific dates rather than a standing weekly schedule, check the Impractical Instruments Instagram page before you drive in from Sylva or Brevard. The studio may add dates, and the workshops could fill up.

Why does West Asheville keep producing events like this?

Two years after Helene sent the French Broad over its banks, the neighborhoods along the river are still rebuilding, and the River Arts District in particular lost studios that had been there for decades. What has come back looks different. Smaller, scrappier projects are filling in, often in spaces that were not galleries before.

Lamplight is a good example. West Asheville has spent the last decade turning into one of the most walkable corners of the city, and Haywood Road now supports the kind of foot traffic that lets a free, experimental art show draw a crowd on a Saturday afternoon. You can see the exhibit, walk to dinner, and be back on I-26 before dark.

That is also part of why so many buyers ask about West Asheville. People who move here want to live somewhere that makes things, and this show is a small, concrete piece of evidence that it still does.

Is it worth the drive from Franklin, Waynesville or Highlands?

For the Sept. 12 date, yes, especially with the Shana Tucker performance attached. From Waynesville it is a half hour. From Franklin or Highlands it is closer to an hour and a half, which is a reasonable trade for a free show with a concert attached, plus dinner in West Asheville on a September evening when the mountain air finally starts to cool off.

If you have kids who lean toward building and tinkering, the diorama workshop on the 19th might be the better trip. Either way, bring some patience. Interactive shows reward the people who slow down and try things, and the whole point of this one is that nobody built it to be looked at from a distance.

If stories like this one have you picturing weekends that end in a place like Lamplight, Jon Tharp is always glad to talk about what living in the mountains actually looks like.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is the free interactive art exhibit in Asheville?

The exhibition is at Lamplight AVL, 2 Westwood Place, in West Asheville, Buncombe County. That puts it just off Haywood Road and a few minutes from the I-240 and I-26 interchange, so it is easy to reach from Waynesville, Hendersonville or anywhere along the corridor. From Franklin, plan on roughly an hour and a half by way of US-441 and US-23/74. The show was created by Impractical Instruments, a local studio founded by Charlie Huguenard and Jessica Tomasin. It opened Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026, and admission is free. Because open hours are limited to specific dates, check the Impractical Instruments Instagram page before making the drive.

What are the dates and hours for the Impractical Instruments exhibition?

The studio posted three public dates for September 2026. On Sept. 12 the exhibit is open from 3 to 5:30 p.m., followed at 5:30 by a live performance from cellist and singer-songwriter Shana Tucker. On Sept. 17 there is a game design workshop from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. On Sept. 19 a diorama workshop runs from noon to 3 p.m. All of it is free and open to all ages. The studio may add dates, so the Instagram page is the best place to confirm hours before you go, especially if you are coming from outside Buncombe County.

Is the Asheville interactive art exhibit good for kids?

Yes. The organizers describe the event as free and open to all ages, and the content leans heavily toward things kids respond to: interactive pieces you can touch and trigger, immersive environments you walk through, sound installations and miniature worlds. The diorama workshop on Sept. 19 runs from noon to 3 p.m., a friendly window for families, and the game design workshop on Sept. 17 in the evening may suit older kids and teens. As with any gallery, you will want to keep an eye on younger children around the technology, but this is one of the more kid-friendly art events in Asheville this month.

What is there to do in West Asheville besides the art exhibit?

West Asheville has become one of the most walkable and lively neighborhoods in the city. Haywood Road is the spine of it, lined with independent restaurants, coffee shops, breweries, a vintage record store and a neighborhood bookstore. The River Arts District sits just across the French Broad, where dozens of working studios are open to visitors most days. Carrier Park and the French Broad River Greenway offer a flat walk or bike ride along the water. If you are making the trip from Franklin, Waynesville or Brevard for the exhibit, it is easy to build a full afternoon and dinner around it.