A Macon County husband and wife already providing financial support of the Western Carolina University Fine Art Museum in Cullowhee and its effort to expand the range of artists represented in its galleries are now backing the endeavor in a new way — through a gift of artwork from their personal collection. 

Franklin residents William Banks Hinshaw and Robin Markle Hinshaw recently donated a total of 18 artworks and artifacts to the holdings of WCU’s Fine Art Museum, Mountain Heritage Center and Tali Tsisgwayahi Archaeological Collections and Curation Facility.

In the new documentary, “Papertown,” a film that immerses itself into the mountain community of Canton as it dealt with the closure of its 115-year-old paper mill in 2023, features a scene with Gail Mull — the town’s mayor pro tem and secretary of the local millworkers union — that sums it all up. 

“The mill has provided, and there is going to be life after the mill,” Mull said. “Billionaires come and go, we’re going to be here forever. We have to make something of it.  We have to have the backbone. We have to have the grit. We have got to stay here and make something of it — and we will.” 

Editor’s note: This is the second in a three-part review of “Buddha.” The first installment can be found here.

In Part I, we followed the young spiritual seeker Siddhatta Gotama, practicing disciplined meditation and extreme self-denial in order to achieve happiness. Disappointed with the results of his efforts and the message of his teachers, he believed that there had to be a better way, a more healthy and joyful way, to be content. 

The annual “Arts & Crafts Drive-About Tour” will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 26-27 at featured studios in Bryson City, Stecoah and Robbinsville.

With their studios open to the public, the self-guided driving tour highlights artisans who have built a livelihood with their creative talents.