June Exhibitions

Juneteenth is celebrated on June 19th every year and commemorates the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in the state of Texas, two and a half years after the Civil War. In honor of this historic celebration of freedom in the South, local African American artists presented artworks with themes showcasing their African American heritage and cultural expression. This year's exhibition was curated by artist Diamond Campbell and featured artists included Crystal Felton, Kandyce Quintero, Tyrone Brown, Chrystal Fonville, Lee Hood, Edward Hood Jr., Tony Graves, Edith Graves, Ceven Bryant, and Diamond Campbell.
Starting off her creative journey painting with watercolor and charcoal sketches as a child, Christina Carroll has always enjoyed being amongst artists, taking classes, and trying different techniques and mediums.
She has most recently been absorbing pastel painting with yummy soft pastels and varieties of sanded
and plain paper. This practice has turned into a passion for her, painting with pastels and the feel of
pastel color gliding across the paper to build up colors in skin and hair, greens and purples in a forest
scene, and lots of blues in the sky and water in an evening scene. Each new surface makes it event more exciting and challenging. Carroll is also a member of TRAA in New Bern, the Piedmont Pastel Society,
and the Appalachian Pastel Society.

May Exhibitions

Main Gallery
ROY G BIV is an exhibition created by Craven Arts Council & Gallery showcasing the use of color. Each artist will receive a 12” x 12” cradled board and draw a random color. Each work will utilize hues, shades, tints and tones of that color as the primary palate for the work. Each panel in the Main Gallery at Bank of the Arts will be filled with works featuring that color, creating a rainbow that moves across the gallery. Colors selected for the exhibition will be red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet (purple), white, and black. Works will be judged for a chance to win one of over twenty prizes, and artist
​ may sell their work on a 60/40 split in the artist’s favor. ​
Director's Gallery
Craven Arts Council & Gallery was proud to present the work of New Bern High School students in the Director’s Gallery for the month of May. This exhibition features exceptional student art work from the art department and Art Honors Society at New Bern High School. Work is selected from students who have shown a great ability and dedication to growing as artists. Artworks represent their thought process for tackling certain thematic goals. Students brainstorm and visually plan for each piece, with the goal of effectively communicating their themes to their viewers. 

April Exhibitions

Main Gallery
Director's Gallery
Craven Arts Council & Gallery is proud to host the 2025 Twin Rivers Artists Association & Craven Community College Judged Exhibition this April at Bank of the Arts. This exhibition is open to current members of the Twin Rivers Artists Association, and students enrolled in arts classes at Craven Community College in the spring 2025 semester. Cash awards for 1st, 2nd, 3rd and Honorable Mention. One cash award for outstanding student.

The Twin Rivers Artists Association (TRAA) exists to promote and encourage the creation, education, and appreciation of fine art in the region. . Skill levels range from beginners to professional artists, in an environment that encourages cooperation and mentorship. Once a year the Craven Arts Council hosts an exhibition of the group’s membership, combined with students from the local  Craven Community College (CCC) , in order to encourage the creation and exhibition of local art. Works on display will include painting, photography, sculpture, pottery, and mixed media.  
As someone who prefers the artwork to speak for itself, Chris Bennett is a lifelong artist and a recently retired art educator at New Bern High School. Bennett’s recent work reflects in his new inspirations in pop surrealism, humor, and social commentary. His work can best be described as featuring cartoonism, eccentricsim, iconography, and deep pulls on art history to inspire his work. Often using bold colors, his artwork titles often includes a play of subject matter. Featured above is his recent work, Specialty of the House.

March Exhibitions

Main Gallery

eARTh celebrated spring beginnings and featured an open call for artworks such as wooden homegoods, canvas landscapes, pastel abstracts,  3D wall sculptures, and more. This exhibition encouraged the use of natural, recycled, or repurposed items ahead of spring, however all artworks must be centered on the Earth theme. eARth featured artwork from all ages and a reception was hosted during the March ArtWalk from 5 – 8 pm on Friday, March 14th at the Bank of the Arts.

Director's Gallery

The annual Private and Home Schooled Student Exhibition features artwork created by students in art classes from local classrooms such as Epiphany Global School, Art House, St. Paul's Catholic School Annunciation Catholic School, and various home schools across the county. Their work will be featured in the Director's Gallery for the month of March, ranging from hanging sculptures, colored drawings, paintings, and more! Art has been shown to have an integral beneficial effect onyouth education in subjects from math and science to literary analysis. Bank of the Arts is pleased to reinforce these ideas by offering the students a ​platform to exhibit their works in a gallery setting. 

February Exhibitions

Main Gallery

Straddling the Line by BF Reed
BF Reed is an award-winning artist originally from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Reed has always been an artist; she began drawing as a preschooler where “she could often be found with a pencil in hand.” Upon completing her BFA at the Tyler School of Art, Reed launched her professional career as a Medical Illustrator at Temple University’s Medical School. There, she created detailed images of animal and human biological and surgical information. Soon after, she started a career as a Graphic Designer and designed marketing logos, brochures, and magazines for an assortment of major entertainment events. As an educator, Reed shared her diverse artistic experience with her students, encouraging them to unlock their imaginations.

Straddling the Line encompassed a variety of styles and mediums, as Reed showcased her watercolor, pastel, and acrylic artworks in this solo exhibition. 

Her work can be found at New Elements Gallery in Wilmington, NC, and Centerpiece Gallery in Raleigh, NC.

Director's Gallery

Put Yourself in My Shoes by Donna Slade
Donna Slade is a contemporary realist artist who works primarily in colored pencils. She has enjoyed a 30-year award-winning career in advertising, art direction, design, and illustration. Donna has earned local and international recognition, recently winning the Grand Prize in People & Figures contest sponsored by the International Artist magazine. She has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions and her work has been published in The International Artist Magazine, The Best of Colored Pencil, Colored Pencil Society of America Signature Showcase, and more, as well as several 
regional and local magazines. 

Put Yourself in My Shoes was an exhibition addressing the differences between individuals and perception to one another. “If we are able to see the whole person without judgment of cultural opinions or situations, listen and have empathy, we might see each other in a different way.” says Slade.

January Exhibitions

Main Gallery

Director's Gallery

ReNew 

2025 Valentine's Card Fundraiser
As we are dedicated to providing artist opportunities and our growing membership base, ReNew, our members-only exhibition was featured in our Main Gallery for the month of January. This exhibition was open to all current members of Craven Arts Council & Gallery, and to any medium, style, or process. ReNew is an opportunity to showcase the creativity and work of our supporters, and highlight their role and importance in helping Craven Arts Council and Gallery to fulfil our mission. 
Craven Arts Council and the Twin Rivers Artists Association are proud to present the 2025 Craven County Valentine’s Day Card Sale in the Director's Gallery for the month of January 2025. Created by art students in all grades in Craven County Schools, all proceeds are donated to Craven County art teachers for purchasing classrooms supplies. This year’s sale will take place in the Main Gallery at Bank of the Arts for the month of January. Priced at $3.50 each, these affordable Valentines gifts help fund arts education in Craven County, by donating all proceeds for the purchase of art supplies. The cards were created by the public school students during their arts class, and include a wide range of grades, skill levels, and techniques. This year’s sale was made possible by funding and support from Craven Arts Council and Twin Rivers Artists Association, a local artist guild. The mission of both organizations believes in the importance of arts education, for students of all levels.