Calendar of Events

The Arts & Culture Alliance is pleased to present a new exhibition featuring needlepoint pillows by Coral Grace Turner and monoprint/chine collés by Marilyn Avery Turner.

“Recent Works by Coral Grace Turner & Marilyn Avery Turner” will be on display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, from May 3-31, 2013. An opening reception will take place as part of First Friday activities on May 3 from 5:00-9:00 PM with complimentary hors d’oeuvres. Gallery hours are Monday-Friday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM with additional hours on Saturday, May 4, from 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Please note, the Emporium will be closed on Monday, May 27, for the holiday. For more information, please contact the Arts & Culture Alliance at (865) 523-7543 or visit www.knoxalliance.com.

The Arts & Culture Alliance is pleased to present a new exhibition featuring contemporary Polish printmaking and media art at the Emporium Center in downtown Knoxville from May 3-31, 2013. Artists in the exhibition include professors, tutors and students with the Faculty of Graphic Arts and Media Art from the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Art and Design in Wroclaw, Poland. An opening reception will take place as part of First Friday activities on May 3 from 5:00-9:00 PM with complimentary hors d’oeuvres. Students from the University of Tennessee Print Club will demonstrate screenprinting and relief printing during the May 3 reception.

“The Wroclaw Faculty of Graphic Arts and Media Art Exhibition” will be on display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, from May 3-31, 2013. Gallery hours are Monday-Friday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM with additional hours on Saturday, May 4, from 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Please note, the Emporium will be closed on Monday, May 27, for the holiday. For more information, please contact the Arts & Culture Alliance at (865) 523-7543 or visit www.knoxalliance.com.

Bliss Home is pleased to present Knoxville artist, Jill Sanders, for May's First Friday. Bliss Home, located at 29 Market Square, will host an opening reception on Friday, May 3rd from 6pm to 9pm. Complimentary snacks will be provided and Jill's art will remain for the month of May.

Jill pulls on her experience as a wood printmaker and graphic designer to create art that features richly colored patterns and natural materials. Jill describes her art as 'narrative scenes with objects and figures, richly layered with patterns and embellished with bits of typography'. Jill is often inspired by her dreams and the places she has seen, which gives her art 'rich sensibility'.

A1LabArts presents the Spring 2013 Members Show.
Opening reception: Friday, May 3, 6:00-10:00PM.
Awards: Friday, May 7, 7:00 PM
Closing: Friday May 17, 5:00-9:00 PM

The Center for Creative Minds, 23 Emory Place, Knoxville.

The Art Market Gallery of Knoxville will present an exhibit of recent works by two featured artists for May. Animal artist Victoria Simmons is displaying recent paintings with a focus on bird themes, and furniture-maker Stan Fronczek will show his carefully crafted furniture. Both are Knoxville residents.

A First Friday opening reception for the exhibits is planned for 5:30 to 9 p.m., Friday, May 3, with complimentary refreshments and live music by Sunshine Station, a folk and bluegrass band. Many member artists will be on hand to meet and mingle with visitors.

Member owned and operated by more than 60 professional regional artists, the Art Market Gallery is located at 422 South Gay St., next to the Downtown Grill & Brewery, and a few doors away from Mast General Store. Hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m., Sunday. The gallery is handicapped accessible. For more information, call 865-525-5265, or visit artmarketgallery.net, or facebook.com/Art.Market.Gallery.

Through the Lens 4: New Directions in Print Photography and Enduring Expressions

Opening Reception: Saturday, April 27 from 7 to 9 PM
Gallery Talk: 6:30 PM with a Special Opportunity!!!

Victoria Kryah will lead two "make and take" sessions to create a "zine" (small, personal magazine) during the opening. Sessions will be held at 7:30 and 8 PM. While materials will be provided, you may elect to bring a few images of your own to personalize your zine. The event is free and open to the public.

Oak Ridge Art Center, 201 Badger Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 9AM-5PM; Saturday-Monday, 1-4PM. Information: 865-482-1441, www.oakridgeartcenter.org

By James McLure
Laundry and Bourbon: The setting is the front porch of Roy and Elizabeth's home in Maynard, Texas, on a hot summer afternoon. Elizabeth and her friend Hattie are whiling away the time folding laundry, watching TV, sipping bourbon and Coke, and gossiping about the many open secrets which are so much a part of small-town life. They are joined by the self-righteous Amy Lee who, among other tidbits, can't resist blurting out that Roy has been seen around town with another woman. While the ensuing conversation is increasingly edged with bitter humor, from it emerges a sense of Elizabeth's inner strength and her quiet understanding of the turmoil which has beset her husband since his return from Vietnam. He is wild, and he is unfaithful, but he needs her, and she loves him. And she'll be waiting for him when he comes home—no matter what others may say or think.

Lone Star: The play takes place in the cluttered backyard of a small-town Texas bar. Roy, a brawny, macho type who had once been a local high-school hero, is back in town after a hitch in Vietnam and trying to reestablish his position in the community. Joined by his younger brother, Ray (who worships him), Roy sets about consuming a case of beer while regaling Ray with tales of his military and amorous exploits. Apparently Roy cherishes three things above all; his country, his sexy young wife, and his 1959 pink Thunderbird. With the arrival of Cletis, the fatuous, newlywed son of the local hardware store owner, the underpinnings of Roy's world begin to collapse as it gradually comes out that Ray had slept with his brother's wife during his absence and, horror of horrors, has just demolished his cherished Thunderbird. But, despite all, the high good humor of the play never lapses, and all ends as breezily and happily as it began.

Performances are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8:00 PM and Sunday at 3:00 PM. Tickets are $10 plus fees for Thursday & Sunday performances and $15 plus fees for Friday & Saturday performances. Theatre Knoxville Downtown has open seating. Doors open 30 minutes prior to showtime. Please arrive at least 15 minutes early to pick up your tickets and claim your seats. TKD reserves the right to seat walk-in patrons during the final 15 minutes prior to showtime. For more information on the show, please call Theatre Knoxville Downtown at (865) 544-1999, e-mail info@theatreknoxville.com, or visit www.theatreknoxville.com.

“If only I could look back on a day when I was fancy free, a real razzle of a day packed with adventure and high jinks, a day to remember…” When their boss goes out of town for the day, two country grocery store clerks close up shop and “escape” to the big city of Vienna for an adventure they won’t soon forget! Based on the play that also inspired Hello Dolly, the production is a fast-paced farce complete with slapstick shenanigans, mistaken identities, misdirected orders and romantic complications all combined with trademark Tom Stoppard wit and wordplay!

Clarence Brown Theatre / Carousel Theatre, 1714 Andy Holt Ave on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. For information: 865-974-5161, www.clarencebrowntheatre.com. For tickets: 865-974-5161, 865-656-4444, www.knoxvilletickets.com

Mystery and Mayhem Dinner Theater is teaming up with Volunteer Princess Cruises to present a memorable dining experience filled with mystery, deception and a delicious meal.
“Murder at the Café Noir” is an interactive murder mystery that will be performed while guests enjoy a three-course plated dinner and cruise the still waters of the Tennessee River. The Knoxville skyline creates the perfect scene for this show that is sure to keep the audience guessing.
This unforgettable evening will take place every Thursday night in April and May, beginning on April 4, 2013. The yacht departs from Volunteer Landing Marina at 7:00 pm. For only $59.95 per person, guests not only receive a fantastic meal on a two hour cruise, but they also experience a chilling show in a fun atmosphere that cannot be beat.
Reservations must be made in advance for the cruises and can be made by calling the yacht’s office at (865) 541-4556 or online at www.volunteerprincess.com.

The Knoxville Museum of Art presents Tradition Redefined: The Larry and Brenda Thompson Collection of African-American Art March 22 through June 16, 2013.

Larry and Brenda Thompson have amassed a remarkable collection of art by African Americans from around the nation. The strength of the Thompson’s collecting process lies in their considered attention to artists who have typically not been recognized in the traditional narratives of African American art.

In addition to acknowledged “masters,” the Thompsons have collected works by artists who have been labeled “emerging,” “unknown,” “outsider,” “eccentric,” “vernacular,” “regional” and more. The result is a collection that redefines the landscape of American art, offering a more in-depth, inclusive understanding of African American artists and their aesthetic and social concerns.

Knoxville Museum of Art is located in downtown Knoxville at 1050 World’s Fair Park and is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday 10 am–5 pm, and Sunday 1 pm-5 pm. Admission and parking are free.

February 1 - July 28 "JAPAN 1945: IMAGES BY U.S. MARINE PHOTOGRAPHER JOE O'DONNELL" is a traveling exhibition organized by the Tennessee State Museum that showcases 22 of the most compelling images to document the aftermath of U.S. bombing raids on the Japanese cities struck by the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Artifacts and explanatory panels complete the exhibition. AMSE Lobby.

American Museum of Science & Energy, 300 S. Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Monday-Saturday 9AM-5PM; Sunday 1-5PM. Information: 865-576-3200, www.amse.org

Becoming the Volunteer State, a traveling exhibition of the Tennessee State Museum, Nashville will be on display in the East Tennessee History Center from January 28, 2013 through May 19, 2013.

There will be a preview for ETHS members from 2:00-4:00PM, Sunday, January 27, 2013 and a Brown Bag Lecture and Gallery Tour with exhibit curator Myers E. Brown II, at noon at the East Tennessee History Center on Wednesday, February 6, 2013.

East Tennessee History Center, 601 South Gay Street, Knoxville.
More information online at www.eastTNhistory.org.