If Kentucky’s claim to fame is its thoroughbreds, its heart is in the hands of its artisans. The state has an arts council to preserve the heritage of the eastern part of the state, comprising forty-nine counties. These are rich in galleries, shops and museums that pay homage to what is known as folk art, which is as hard to define as the sound of Kentucky music. The creative products of the Appalachian Mountains run the gamut from the potholders and painted gourds sold in gift shops to the cutting edge sculpture found in its museums.

There is much to see but one must be willing to spend a bit of time behind the wheel. A car is a necessity. Lexington’s Blue Grass airport is a two hour drive away, but the roads are fine, traffic is generally light and regional maps are widely available. A traveler will be rewarded for long highway stretches bordered by gas stations and billboards by occasional meandering canopy roads, lovely mountain and river views, and pretty white churches, mostly Baptist.

A first stop might be a visit to the Folk Art Museum in Morehead, which has the most comprehensive collection in the area. Much of the art is from the general region and the artists are usually self taught. Many live in isolation and their work is often childlike. (It also varies in quality.) In the permanent collection the Linvel Barker wood animal sculptures are noteworthy as are the carvings of Garland Adkins. So is a large Jesus carrying a cross by James Allan Bloomfield. This is painted wood, as are many works here; catch Minnie Adkins’ folksy wood figures that represent local life or the colorful and glossy walking sticks that seem to be everywhere. They are whimsical, as is one with twin croquet-ball protrusions inspired by Dolly Parton, or elaborate, decorated with rattlers’ markings or other intricate designs. The stairs leading to the second floor of the exhibition space features black and white photos of local artists and a visitor commented they did look the part: “Off the ranch or out of the mine.” The well-stocked shop adjacent to the museum sells items that range from two to dollars to two thousand.

In Hindman, a one-red-light town, is the very modern Artisan Center with its bright workshop, a former grocery store and now a museum/shop. Everything here is locally crafted except for an occasional traveling exhibit. Check out the Thora Sutton Parker pastel works representing the coal miners’ lives, the carved dulcimers, bird houses, wooden toys. Fabric pocketbooks are beautifully made and reasonably priced here.

Also in Hindman is the Marie Stewart Craft Shop, which is chockablock with local creations, guaranteed to be entirely hand-crafted. Available here is everything from a three dollar bar of oatmeal soap to a spectacular wooden dollhouse priced at $371. Outstanding examples of ceramic art are Michael Ware’s lanterns. They hold candles or electric light bulbs, their sides are pierced and cut to peek-a-boo the light and to throw interesting shadows, and their price ranges from about forty to seventy dollars.

On to Whitesburg. The Cozy Corner Craft Shop offers more “true mountain handicrafts” as well as a good collection of books about Appalachian culture and history. This is one of many places in which to see the quilts which are wildly popular and ubiquitous in this area. A hand-stitched and hand-painted glamorous one was priced at $1600 in the shop but prices are generally lower–a queen-size wedding band type was marked $600– and quilts come in various sizes and colors. Adjacent to the craft shop is the Courthouse Cafe. It is the hangout of a local artisan, David Lucas, whose little painted clay figures adorn the tabletops, and whose down-home conversation complements the fare. A ham and Swiss sandwich is $4.50 here and a “peach of a pie”, $1.75.

While Eastern Kentucky might be considered gourmet-challenged, its “country cooking” is generally inexpensive and the payoff comes at dessert. Most places serve up spectacular pies, usually home-made. (At Wilma’s, in Paintsville, order the coconut cream. It’s $1.25, high and fabulous.) And pack your own liquid fire to be sure you’ll have a drink because some counties are dry. It’s a local joke: Bourbon County is dry, Christian County is wet. The state parks are all dry.

And they’re the best bet for lodging. The Jenny Wiley resort is a bargain at sixty dollars a room (less off season) and it offers much more than a standard issue motel. Named for a heroic pioneer woman who endured the slaying of her children by the Cherokees, the lodge is situated on Dewey Lake, is surrounded by wooded trails, and offers resort activities like hiking, birding and pontoon boat rides. Children’s activities are also available.

For visitors who need more than a fix of folk art, other attractions in the area include a visit to Loretta Lynn’s birthplace, in Butcher’s “Holler” which is interesting not only because it’s the home of “The Coal Miner’s Daughter,” but because it is typical of the poverty of its time and place. It’s also fun to read messages left by fans that cover every inch of the wallpaper: “We are a coal miner’s family also,” ” From a coal miner’s granddaughter: You touched my life in a way no other human being ever has,” and “I’ll be back when I’m a country star.”

Also worth a visit is the original “Moonlight school” in Morehead. It was founded in 1911 by Cora Wilson Stewart, who taught the three R’s to farmers and their wives but only on nights bright enough “so the mules wouldn’t go into the creek”; the first night a hundred fifty people were expected to show up, but instead 1200 came and the idea caught on. This school movement is considered the genesis of adult education.

An earlier time is on view at the Mountain Home Place, a “living history museum” in Paintsville. It is a reconstructed settlers’ 1800’s farmstead with costumed interpreters and includes an excellent video overview, featuring Richard Thomas, one of the TV Waltons. Check out the farmhouse kitchen, with its flavoring and medicinal herbs hanging from the ceiling, the hardware store, the small country church, all looking pretty much as they did then.

In Magoffin a collection of log buildings also of the same era have been relocated from various places in surrounding counties and although the interiors have been a bit gussied up and lack authenticity, the cluster of dwellings is still probably worth a visit.
To wrap up the East Kentucky trip, take the winding road to Breaks Interstate Park on the border of Virginia. Check out the view across the Russell Fork River and across the Cumberland Mountains. Called “the Grand Canyon of the South,” it’s not folk art, but it’s nature’s best landscape work, and surely inspired more than one local piece of art.