Calendar of Events

Knoxville artist Joe Letitia will open his mixed media works show at the Clayton Center for the Arts. Didymus is inspired by Caravaggio’s painting of The Doubting Thomas. The artist’s process begins with a clear and singular image, which is a symbol of an action. The works are made by the repeated replication of this core image. In some works, the gesture is isolated and in some pieces, there are many layers with transparent glazes painted over them to push each layer back, creating a deeper sense of depth and space. Other paintings focus more on the negative space and shapes, as well as the fragments created by the intersecting lines of the images. The works include, oil on canvas, painting on paper, silk screen and ceramic. The artist has included scripture in reference and inspiration to his paintings including John 20:24-25.

Joe Letitia lives and works in Knoxville, Tenn. He received his Master of Fine Arts in painting and printmaking from the Yale University School of Art. Letitia has received several awards and grants to pursue his work, most notably the Biennial Grant from the Louis Comfort Tiffany Foundation. Mr. Letitia teaches Art at Webb School.

An Artist reception will be held August 26 6-8 PM. The Blackberry Farm Gallery is open 10-5 daily and during Clayton Center for the Arts events.

In the Blackberry Farm Gallery of the Clayton Center for the Arts: 502 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804. Hours: M-F 10-5. Information: 865-981-8590, www.ClaytonArtsCenter.com

Opening reception on July 22, 6:30-8:30 PM. Also showing oils by the students of Aurora Harrison Bull.

Fountain City Art Center, 213 Hotel Ave, Knoxville, TN 37918. Hours: Tuesday & Thursday, 9AM-5PM; Wednesday & Friday, 10AM-5PM; Saturday, 9AM-1PM. Information: 865-357-2787, www.fountaincityartctr.org

The Knoxville Museum of Art presents Art by the Kids, For the Kids in the KMA Education Gallery. The exhibition showcases artworks created by the oncology and hematology patients of East Tennessee Children’s Hospital. Organized by University of Tennessee Dance Marathon, the exhibition is part of a year-long effort to raise funds and awareness for the fight against pediatric cancer and other blood diseases. UTK’s Dance Marathon specifically benefits the oncology and hematology patients at East Tennessee Children’s Hospital. For more information please visit activities.utk.edu/dance-marathon.

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World's Fair Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37916. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10AM-5PM; Sunday, 1-5PM. For information: 865-525-6101, www.knoxart.org

Please join us for an afternoon of refreshments and fine art! Meet the artist, Wendy West, and see her show, “Then and Now: A Retrospective,” featuring her work in glass, pottery, and pastels at the Townsend Artisan Gallery from 4 to 6 pm on Saturday, August 13.

Townsend Artisan Gallery, 7277 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway, Townsend, TN 37882. Information: 865-448-8018, www.townsendartisangallery.com

The Ewing Gallery of Art & Architecture at The University of Tennessee announces its current summer exhibition, About Architecture. This exhibit is comprised of works from the large permanent collectionthat incorporate issues and aspects of architecture, whether it is historical, contemporary, fictional, or for documentation purposes. Some of the works on display have not been shown before. A sample of artists selected include Roy Lichtenstein, Walker Evans, Edward Westcott, and Joseph Delaney. This exhibition is free and open to public. Summer Hours until August 16, 2011: Tuesday-Thursday, 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM; Friday 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM. Ewing Gallery, 1715 Volunteer Blvd, Knoxville, TN 37996. For information: 865-974-3200, www.ewing-gallery.utk.edu

Free and open to the public with an opening reception Friday, July 15, from 6 to 7:30 p.m.; artists' talks at 7 p.m.

Carl Gombert, "Order" - Carl Gombert was born in Brimfield, Ohio in 1959. He started taking painting lessons at the age of 14 with money he earned delivering newspapers. He earned a BFA in Drawing from the University of Akron and an MFA in Painting from Kent State University. He worked as a stagehand before pursuing a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Fine Arts at Texas Tech University. He has exhibited in more than 150 shows throughout the country, and since 1993 has taught painting, drawing and art history at Maryville College in Tennessee.

Ricky Beene, "Salt of the Earth: The Petros Portraits"
Ricky Beene is a painter from Petros, Tennessee, a small town situated in the Cumberland Mountains. A native Appalachian and teacher by training, Ricky is a self-taught artist who works primarily in acrylics on gessoed hardboard. He has had previous exhibits at Carson Newman College, the Oak Ridge Art Center, and the Emporium Center in Knoxville. "For the last ten years I have been painting portraits of people from my home town in a series called Salt of the Earth:The Petros Portraits. These paintings, currently numbering near 150, depict a large cross-section of the people who live in Petros. I also have been working on a smaller series of brushed ink drawings that are called The Wide-Spot Suite. Together all these pieces represent a single vision of the people of our town. There is a shared bravery and trust poured into the making of these portraits, and I hope that they show something of the struggles and joys of life in a small Appalachian town".

Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, 2931 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37919. Gallery hours: Monday-Thursday 9AM-5PM; Friday 9AM-4:30PM; Sunday 9AM-1PM. Information: 865-523-4176, www.tvuuc.org

Classic movies to be shown this summer:
June 24: "North By Northwest" with Cary Grant and Eva Marie Saint
July 8 & 10: "The Sound of Music"
August 5 & 7: "Some Like It Hot"
August 13 & 14: "Gone with the Wind"
August 19: "West Side Story"

Tennessee Theatre, 604 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. For information: 865-684-1200, www.tennesseetheatre.com. For tickets: 865-684-1200, 865-656-4444, www.knoxvilletickets.com

Korean artist Kwang-Young Chun (b. 1944) began work on his series of Aggregations in the 1990s. Today, he is recognized internationally for these sculptural forms. The basis of his work is individual, triangular, Styrofoam shapes. Individually, these shapes are minuscule. Taken together, however, their visual impact is immense. This concept of the aggregate is what drives Chun’s work.

The Styrofoam shapes are covered in Korean mulberry paper. In Korea, the paper is a mainstay and has many utilitarian uses from floor and window coverings to candy and medicinal wrappers. It also resonates with personal meaning for the artist, who recalls trips to an herbalist as a small child. Medicines wrapped in mulberry paper hung from the ceiling of the shop, the paper protecting the contents from dampness and insects.

Chun uses pages recycled from old books to cover the geometric forms. These pages are covered in Korean and Chinese characters, adding another layer of cultural and personal meaning. He hand ties the paper over each shape, twisting pages into string to complete the wrapping. In this way Chun is able to integrate traditional materials into a contemporary context.

There will be an exhibition preview party Thursday, June 9, 2011 from 5:30-7:30pm.
Curated by Susan Moldenhauer. Funded in part by the National Advisory Board of the UW Art Museum and the Wyoming Arts Council through the National Endowment for the Arts and the Wyoming State Legislature.

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World's Fair Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37916. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10AM-5PM; Friday, 10AM-8PM; Sunday, 1-5PM. For information: 865-525-6101, www.knoxart.org

Learn about the plants and animals that come out in the evening! Wear your walking shoes and let us guide you and your family through the Gardens during twilight.
Meet the Flowers - Tuesday, June 7, 6:30 p.m.
Explore your Senses - Tuesday, July 5, 6:30 p.m.
Taste Buds - Tuesday, August 2, 6:30 p.m.
Going on a Bug Hunt - Tuesday, September 6, 6:30 p.m.

The 70 photographs presented in this stunning exhibition are drawn from the recent book, Sudan: The Land and the People, written by U.S. Ambassador Timothy Carney ( the last ambassador to Sudan) and his wife and collaborator, journalist Victoria Butler. Award-winning photographer Michael Freeman spent over two years compiling extraordinary images of the rich ethnic, cultural and geographical diversity of Africa’s largest country. Bordered by nine nations, Sudan holds the key to regional stability and prosperity. It has long had the potential to be the engine of economic development for the whole of northeastern Africa. Sudan’s wealth lies not only in its plentiful natural resources, but in its ethnic and cultural heritage.

For millennia, immigrants and invaders from the Mediterranean and the Middle East have come together and blended with African ethnic groups to produce peoples of great beauty who share a turbulent past and rich cultural heritage. Armed conflict, drought and famine have plagued Sudan since its independence in 1956.

McClung Museum, 1327 Circle Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37996. Hours: Monday-Saturday, 9AM-5PM; Sunday, 1-5PM. For information: 865-974-2144, http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu

K-Town Sound Show Chorus is the NEW chorus in Knoxville that's dedicated to FUN, FELLOWSHIP, AND EXCITING MUSICAL GROWTH!. We are an a cappella show chorus affiliated with Sweet Adelines International. Our members consist of women of all ages and walks of life. If you can carry a tune, WE WANT YOU!

We meet every Tuesday night. Our music selections come from pop, gospel, barbershop, and broadway songs all sung in the 4-part, a cappella, barbershop style. We teach exciting music with good vocal production.

You will find our chorus to be extremely helpful musically and very friendly. We are an easy group to become a part of and we are very supportive of each other. We think you'll like us!!!

Be part of this NEW chorus from the beginning. Come join us at our open rehearsals every Tuesday evening, 6:30pm, at the Fountain City Presbyterian Church, 500 Hotel Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37918. (Near the duck pond)

Learn how to capture a perfect garden photograph while enjoying an early morning walk through the gardens. A member of our staff will lead an hour-long walk focusing on the best lighting and garden location during that particular walk. This event is a unique opportunity to have time with fellow photographers and garden lovers while having some serious photography time in the garden. Photography walks will be held every third Friday: May 20, June 17, July 15 and August 19. Walks begin at 7:30 a.m. and depart from the Friendship Plaza at the entrance to the Gardens.

We are excited to have a variety of monthly walks. Walks are rain or shine, and will be cancelled only in the event of dangerous lightening. All walks are FREE and meet at the entrance to the Gardens. (Advance registration appreciated, but not required.)