2012 Virginia Highlands Festival: Celebrates its 65th Anniversary as
“The Jewel of the Blue Ridge”
The Virginia Highlands Festival announces their theme for 2013, “The Jewel of the Blue
Ridge” and introduces the creator of this year’s signature art, Nadya Warthen-Gibson.
Festival dates: August 2-11, 2013
Antiques Market dates: August 3-11, 2013
The Virginia Highlands Festival is happy to announce this year’s signature art and theme for the
Festival, “The Jewel of the Blue Ridge.” Signature artist, Nadya Warthen-Gibson, resides in
Abingdon, VA, and is a member of the Arts Depot. Her work can be seen at the Arts Depot and
at Heartwood.
Her signature art piece for the Festival is entitled “The Whole Is Greater Than The Sum Of Its
Parts.” It is a large acrylic painting on plywood and can be seen at the Abingdon Visitors Center,
where it already holds a place of honor on display over the fireplace.
"This piece contains my thoughts on the Virginia Highlands Festival and memories from the
town of Abingdon as a whole,” said Warthen-Gibson. “The snippets of historic narrative, the
wonderful arts scene, the wildlife...the little things to discover and to treasure in the eye of the
mind."
“Nadya’s work was unanimously the committee’s favorite,” said Becky Caldwell, Festival
Producer. “We sought concepts from four different local artists on the theme ‘The Jewel of the
Blue Ridge.’ Nadya captured every detail of the Festival and of Abingdon with intense color and
intricate beauty.”
The Festival’s signature art is an annual commission, which carries a $1,000 prize for the
chosen artist. Local artists are invited for consideration each fall, and the resulting work is used
in all Festival marketing materials as the image of that year’s theme.
More information about the Festival may be found at www.VaHighlandsFestival.org.
More information about Nadya Warthen-Gibson, including a full bio, may be found at www.wargib.com.