Category: Creative City Stories

Stitching Bonds: A Local Quilter’s Tale of Love and Creativity with Her Mom

By Hannah Caronongan on Apr. 02, 2024

A feeling of fellowship with others, or community, is the basis of any well-rounded organization. While this sense of togetherness is crucial to success, a dedicated person with a genuine love for what they are accomplishing each day is what makes that organization stand out.Becky Glasby, director of learning and engagement at the National Quilt Museum is the perfect example of believing in the work you do and the impact it carries…

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Cooking Up Character: Local Restaurant Owner Finds His Place On Stage

By Caleb Buford on Jan. 18, 2024

As the river shimmers in the bright golden glow of the sunrise, the tinted glass doors of the Gold Rush Cafe unlock and swing open, inviting visitors and locals for a unique breakfast experience. One step in the rustic western cafe on the corner of 4th and Broadway shows a community can thrive. You’re greeted with a smile as the aroma of freshly made bread pudding waffles wafts through the corridor to welcome you. The space is quaint and abuzz as a motley collection of signs along the lattice-laced walls gives you a smile or a laugh. Guests and staff are joyous and kind, making you feel like you’re a part of it all. Inside the lively cafe, you might catch owner Korey Vazquez, the man who revived this little corner cafe and who takes the stage in Native Gardens at Market House Theatre. Korey Vazquez took over Gold Rush Cafe in 2020…

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Creative Pairings: Celebrating Visual (and Drinkable!) Art in Paducah

By Liz Hammonds on Oct. 19, 2023

Paducah is celebrating 10 Years as a UNESCO Creative City and two downtown establishments have taken the artistic experience to new levels in honor of Paducah Creativity. Experience art in downtown Paducah both visually at Yeiser Art Center and in drinkable form at the Foxbriar Cocktail Bar. Creative City Collaborations at Yeiser Art Center…

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Memories of Manises: A Paducah Potter’s Journey to a UNESCO Creative City in Spain

By Rosemarie Steele on Mar. 28, 2023

Living the life of an artist in Paducah Creative City you never know what doors will open—at home or far away in a unique culture somewhere across the globe. In 2022, on the heels of Paducah’s 10-year anniversary as a UNESCO Creative City, opportunity knocked for ceramist/art educator Mitch Kimball to participate in the centuries old Fiesta de la Cerámica [Ceramics Festival] in Manises, Spain, a fellow UNESCO Creative City of Crafts & Folk Art. Mitch poses with Manises ceramic artist Antonio Cordero…

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Paducah Representatives Share Kentucky Folk Music in South Korea

By Liz Hammonds on Feb. 09, 2023

Thanks to Paducah's designation as a UNESCO Creative City of Craft and Folk Art, representatives from Paducah were invited to perform at the Jinju World Folk Arts Biennale in Jinju, South Korea last Fall. Organizer Lexie Millikan and musicians Josh Coffey and Seth Murphy reflect on the Biennale in their own words. The Wheelhouse Rousters and Seth Murphy perform in Jinju, South Korea…

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Local Ceramic Artist Visits Mexico as Part of UNESCO Creative Cities Network

By Michael Terra on Oct. 11, 2022

Paducah's designation as a UNESCO Creative City of Crafts and Folk Art opens opportunities to collaborate with other Creative Cities cities around the globe. Local artists Michael and Victoria Terra traveled to San Cristóbal de las Casas, Mexico, to build connections, install a custom work of art, and teach workshops. Read about their experience in Michael's own words and find out how a piece of Paducah art found its new home in Mexico. The Terras visited a church in Zinacantán as part of their UNESCO Creative City tour…

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UNESCO Creative Cities Network Opens International Doors for Paducah Fiber Artist

By Lexie Millikan on Apr. 29, 2022

Paducah's designation as a UNESCO Creative City has opened doors throughout the world for Paducah artists. In fall of 2021, fiber artist and Yeiser Art Center Executive Director Lexie Millikan traveled to sister city, Jinju, South Korea, to participate in a Contemporary Craft Biennale. Read as Lexie tells about her life-changing experience, made possible by Paducah's rich connections through the UNESCO Creative Cities Network. Millikan in Busan, South Korea…

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The Art of Conversation

By Paducah Life Magazine on Feb. 01, 2022

The Paducah Convention & Visitors Bureau is excited to partner with Paducah Life Magazine to feature articles from their Storied Lives series. “Speech has allowed the communication of ideas, enabling human beings to work together to build the impossible. Our greatest hopes could become reality in the future. All we need to do is make sure we keep talking.” - Stephen Hawking Dorothea Davis…

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Defining Paducah: Honoring the Outstanding Legacy of Local African Americans

Jul. 19, 2021

What started as a way to honor the accomplishments of Paducahans during Black History Month has evolved into a colorful creative experience. The West Kentucky Community & Technical College (WKCTC) Student Art & Design Club invites you to discover the legacy of African Americans who have and continue to define Paducah! The Defining Paducah display debuted in Historic Downtown Paducah…

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Stories of the Human Experience in Quilt and Fiber Art at the National Quilt Museum

By Frank Bennett on Jan. 13, 2021

As one of the world's UNESCO Creative Cities, Paducah, Kentucky celebrates the art of quilting and the contemporary quilt artist year-round! In honor of the National Quilt Museum's 30th anniversary, CEO Frank Bennett reflects on the museum's mission and exhibition schedule for 2021. The 2021 in-facility exhibit schedule features 14 exhibits that will inspire and amaze!​…

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