The Jagged Path: The African Diaspora in Western North Carolina in Craft, Music, and Dance is an exhibit which was produced by the Blowing Rock Art and History Museum in 2022. A traveling version of this exhibit has been created which will have its first stop at the Earl Scruggs Center.

Blue Ridge Music Trails says about the exhibit:

“The Jagged Path seeks to illuminate the obscured history of African contributions to craft, music, and dance in Western North Carolina. Drawing connections across geography and generations, the Jagged Path will demonstrate how African traditions that survived the Middle Passage have helped create the culture of Western North Carolina.

The exhibition is the result of over two years of work by the project manager, Willard Watson, and the curatorial team of Marie T. Cochran (visual arts/craft curator), Laurie Goux (dance curator), Fred J. Hay (music curator), Gabe Wilson (BRAHM executive curator).”

To accompany the traveling exhibit, Assistant Director and Curator of the Earl Scruggs Center Zach Dressel has developed a component that greater expands on the cultural exchange which led to the creation of Bluegrass and Piedmont Blues in the Southern Piedmont region of the United States. In conjunction with the exhibit the Earl Scruggs Center is also hosting a monthly programming series which deals with various themes from the exhibit. Be on the lookout for further updates.