We're still here.
Hickory Arts in 2014
As we continued reflecting on the first decade of Hickory Arts, we arrived at 2014—a year defined by collaboration.
By this point, the studio had become more than a place for music lessons, acting lessons, artist development, and creative services. Hickory Arts had become a crossroads where students, performers, theatres, nonprofits, photographers, filmmakers, educators, and community organizations regularly intersected.
Looking back, 2014 feels less like a collection of individual projects and more like a year of shared momentum throughout the local arts community.
Developing Artists
Artist Development continued to grow throughout 2014.
Singer-songwriter Hannah Schweighardt recorded, edited, and mixed her first album live at Hickory Arts. Students continued pursuing opportunities in music, theatre, songwriting, performance, and recording, while private instruction remained the foundation of the studio.
Although most lessons happened quietly behind closed doors, they represented the heart of what Hickory Arts has always been about: personalized mentorship and long-term artistic growth.
Our sponsorship of vocal coaching, recording, and editing sessions for finalists in Hickory Rotary Club's Rotarian Idol competition continued as well. Artists such as Lindsey Jones gained valuable performance experience while supporting an organization that has long invested in the community.
House Concerts and Live Performance
The Hickory Arts House Concert Series continued to expand in 2014.
The year included performances by Wendy Jones, the Rucco-James Classical Guitar Duo, Exodus Choir, and many other artists who shared their work in an intimate listening-room environment.
House concerts have always reflected one of our core beliefs: meaningful artistic experiences often happen in small rooms where artists and audiences can genuinely connect.
Those performances helped strengthen relationships among musicians, audiences, and the broader creative community throughout Hickory and the surrounding region.
Theatre, Photography, and Creative Services
If there was a dominant theme throughout 2014, it was collaboration with local arts organizations.
The year began with extensive promotional photography and video work for Hickory Community Theatre's production of On Golden Pond, starring James Best and Norma Frank.
From there, the work only expanded.
Carol Anne Hartman Photography continued documenting performers, productions, dancers, businesses, nonprofits, and community organizations throughout the region. Projects ranged from NewArts School of Ballet's production of Cinderella to YMCA campaigns, actor headshots, portfolio sessions, and promotional photography for local businesses and organizations.
At the same time, Hickory Arts continued producing video, social media, and promotional content for theatre productions, artists, and community partners throughout Western North Carolina.
Les Misérables and a Community United
Few projects capture the spirit of 2014 better than Hickory Community Theatre's production of Les Misérables.
Hickory Arts contributed extensive photography, video production, promotional content, and performance support throughout the production.
Several Hickory Arts instructors, students, and collaborators participated both on stage and behind the scenes.
Looking back, it remains one of the strongest examples of what happens when artists, organizations, volunteers, educators, and audiences come together in support of a shared creative vision.
The excitement surrounding the production extended far beyond the theatre itself and reflected the strength of the local arts community during that period.
Tastin', Tunes & Tomatoes
The summer of 2014 brought another memorable partnership.
Working alongside the City of Hickory and the Hickory Farmers Market, Hickory Arts helped provide entertainment throughout the season as part of Tastin', Tunes & Tomatoes.
The series featured musicians, singer-songwriters, improvisers, and community performers while creating additional opportunities for artists to share their work with the public.
Events included Broadway Night, Everything Artist Night, Improv Night featuring Now Are The Foxes, Gospel Music Night with Exodus Choir, and performances by numerous regional artists.
The series reflected Hickory Arts' ongoing commitment to creating real-world performance opportunities beyond traditional lesson settings.
Original Work Takes Shape
Original work continued to be a defining part of the studio's culture.
By the summer of 2014, Molly Bass and Jeff Hartman's original musical Junk had been in development for two years. Scripts, songs, revisions, rehearsals, and creative discussions continued as plans moved forward toward what would eventually become its premiere production.
Projects like Junk embodied the studio's belief that artists should be encouraged not only to perform existing works but also to create new ones.
The commitment to original work remains central to Hickory Arts today.
Community Partnerships
Throughout 2014, Hickory Arts continued collaborating with a wide variety of organizations and businesses.
Projects included sound design for Encore Players productions, promotional work for Bass-Smith Funeral Home, fundraising events such as Dueling Divas III and IV, photography projects for local clients, and numerous collaborations throughout the arts community.
One particularly meaningful project involved documenting decades of cast signatures at Hickory Community Theatre before renovations permanently altered portions of the rehearsal space.
Moments like these served as reminders that preserving artistic history is just as important as creating new work.
Students, Artists, and Families
The year concluded much the same way it began: with people.
Students continued performing, recording, auditioning, and growing.
Artists continued collaborating.
Families continued investing in creative education.
As 2014 came to a close, Hickory Arts also said goodbye to the Neilly family, who had been part of the studio since its earliest days before relocating to Boston.
Their departure served as a reminder that the relationships formed through the arts often last far beyond lessons, performances, or productions.
Looking Back
When we reflect on 2014, we see a year filled with collaboration.
Artists supporting artists.
Organizations supporting organizations.
Students finding opportunities to perform.
Original work taking shape.
Theatres, nonprofits, photographers, musicians, educators, and community leaders working together.
Most importantly, we see a creative community continuing to grow.
And through it all, Hickory Arts remained committed to the same mission that guides us today:
Personalized instruction.
Creative collaboration.
Community engagement.
And the belief that home is where the art is.
Continue the Hickory Arts 10th Anniversary Tour
This article is part of our Hickory Arts 10th Anniversary retrospective series documenting the people, projects, performances, and partnerships that helped shape our studio and the local arts community.
Jeff Hartman wrote this piece of music in honor of his grandfather and their time spent together as musicians. We're so happy to see it used here by filmmaker Garrick Lane and Table Rock Creative as a message of hope for small businesses like Hickory Arts, who've been impacted dramatically by this pandemic. #theyshootwescore
