River Arts District.

Stretched along the French Broad River, Asheville’s River Arts District has transformed a gritty industrial corridor of former tanneries and cotton mills into a sprawling creative engine. What sets this neighborhood apart is its focus on the creative process; this is a working district where visitors wander into active studios to watch painters stretch canvases, glassblowers shape molten glass, and potters throw clay. While the area continues its resilient recovery from Hurricane Helene, sections like the North RAD remain active hubs of resilience. Here, you can chat with some of the hundreds of resident makers, sign up for a class, or grab a craft beer and a bite to eat. It is a wonderfully unpretentious place to buy art directly from the hands that made it.