The Annual Juried Quilts and Wall Hangings Exhibition is featured in the Great Hall each year from Memorial Day to Labor Day

Operating Hours

Open Tuesday through Saturday

9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Closed
Sundays and Mondays

Admission is free.

Contact

Main: (304) 558-0220
TDD: (304) 558-3562

WV Department of Arts, Culture and History
Capitol Complex
1900 Kanawha Boulevard East
Charleston, WV 25305-0300

Artists’ Register

Museum Events

Importance of Arts to Our Cultural History

When we talk about the value of arts and culture to society, we always start with its intrinsic value: how arts and culture can illuminate our inner lives and enrich our emotional world. This activity encompasses a broad range of disciplines that ranges from performing arts production and presentation, to visual arts exhibition, to arts education and arts in healthcare, to preservation and interpretation of our collective heritage. This is what we cherish.

However, we also understand that arts and culture have a wider, more measurable impact on our economy, health and wellbeing, society, and education. It is important we also recognize this impact to help people think of our arts and culture for what they are: a strategic national resource.

Essentially, life without the collective resources of our arts communities would be static and sterile—no creative arguments about the past, no diverse and stimulating present and no dreams of the future.

For more information about our current, upcoming or past exhibitions, contact Sidney Duncan, Exhibits Coordinator for the department at (304) 558-0220 or Sidney.L.Duncan@wv.gov.

Current Exhibitions

2025 Youth Congressional Art Competition

The West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History (WVDACH) opened the 2025 Youth Congressional Art Competition Exhibit at the Culture Center on Friday, February 21, 2025 with an arts workshop and awards ceremony. This exhibition is sponsored by the West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History, in partnership with the West Virginia Congressional Delegation.

The winner from each congressional district will have their artwork displayed at the United States Capitol for one year in the Congressional Art Competition, as well as receive a $100 Blick Art Materials gift card. The first place winners will be framed by the WVDACH for display at the U.S. Capitol. A $50 Blick Art Materials gift card is also awarded to five second place winners.

Each spring, the Congressional Institute sponsors a nationwide high school visual-art competition to recognize and encourage artistic talent in the nation and in each congressional district. Since the competition began in 1982, more than 650,000 high school students have participated. The competition is sponsored by members of the United States Congress.

For questions and more information, contact Sidney Duncan, Exhibits Coordinator for the department, at (304) 558-0220 ext. 175 or Sidney.L.Duncan@wv.gov.

The Governor’s Annual “Almost Heaven” Art Exhibition

The annual Governor’s Art Exhibition is designed to showcase student creativity and the arts. This year’s exhibition was a call for one-of-a-kind postcard designs illustrating favorite West Virginia waterways. The office of the Governor, West Virginia Department of Tourism, and West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History invited all K through 12 West Virginia students to participate in the exhibition.

The exhibition display opened at the State Capitol on February 12, 2025. For questions and more information, contact Sidney Duncan, WVDACH Exhibits Coordinator, at (304) 558-0220 ext. 175 or Sidney.L.Duncan@wv.gov.

The Artwork of Susan Poffenbarger

West Virginia artist Susan Gidley Poffenbarger was the recipient of numerous West Virginia Juried Art Exhibition awards over the years. In 1999, her painting, titled Blue Ridge and Cedars was awarded the D. Gene Jordon Memorial Award, the highest possible honor. She was also the recipient of the Governor’s Award and the Award of Excellence—each award prestigious enough for her works to become part of the West Virginia State Museum collection. View beautiful creations made by the award-winning artist on exhibit now by the West Virginia State Museum and Department of Arts, Culture and History in her memory.

West Virginia Wildlife

This exhibit is the third installation of Inspired: A West Virginia Series of Juried Exhibitions and highlights the theme of West Virginia Wildlife. Twenty-six West Virginia artists, representing fifteen counties were selected for the show, which features 32 pieces including painting, drawing, ceramics, photography, digital illustration, and mixed media. The exhibit will remain on display in the Commissioner’s Gallery and Lower Lobby until early May 2025.

Inspired: A West Virginia Series of Juried Exhibitions is a four-part series in honor of the upcoming 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, highlighting visual representations of West Virginia themes. 

For questions and more information, please contact WVDACH Exhibits Coordinator Sidney Duncan at (304) 558-0220 ext. 175 or Sidney.L.Duncan@wv.gov.

Upcoming Exhibits

Inspired: A West Virginia Series of Juried Exhibitions

This 4-part series of juried exhibitions featuring West Virginia themes will be featured over the next two years in honor of the upcoming 250th anniversary, or Semiquincentennial, of the United States of America. All parts of the series will be displayed in the Commissioner’s Gallery of the Culture Center. The final exhibit in the series will be titled West Virginia Historic Figures. Previous shows have focused on landscapes, historic buildings and structures, and wildlife.

For questions and more information, contact Sidney Duncan, Exhibits Coordinator for the department, at (304) 558-0220 or Sidney.L.Duncan@wv.gov.

2025 Annual Juried Quilts and Wall Hangings Juried Exhibition

The West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History (WVDACH) will begin accepting submissions for the 2025 Quilt and Wall Hangings Juried Exhibition on Friday, March 14, 2025 until Friday, April 25, 2025.

This is the 44th year for the exhibition, which will open on Friday, May 23 with an awards ceremony at the annual Vandalia Gathering at the Culture Center, State Capitol Complex. The free summer-long exhibition will be displayed in the Great Hall of the Culture Center.

Quilts and wall hangings can be mailed or hand delivered to the Culture Center. Quilts and wall hangings, handmade or machine made, by West Virginia residents are eligible for the exhibition.  Special consideration will be given to hand-quilted entries. Entrants may submit one quilt and one wall hanging. There is a nonrefundable fee of $20 per entry. Quilts and wall hangings shown previously in a Department of Arts, Culture and History Quilts and Wall Hangings juried exhibition are not eligible.

A quilting workshop will be held on May 9 by Mary Zesiger, NACQJ Certified Quilt Judge, titled “Quilt a Story.” There are limited spaces available, and an RSVP is required.

The prospectus and entry information for the 2025 Quilts and Wall Hangings Juried Exhibition can be found at https://bit.ly/3T6QZpy.     

For more information about the exhibit, workshop, or to request a printed prospectus, contact Sidney Duncan, WVDACH Exhibits Coordinator at (304) 558-0220 ext. 175 or Sidney.L.Duncan@wv.gov.

Past Exhibits

Click here to view current and past Department of Arts, Culture and History exhibits and exhibitions. The Department of Arts, Culture and History youth programs exhibits can be viewed here.