Calendar of Events

Knoxville Zoo thanks service men and women on Independence Weekend by offering them free admission.
July 4-7.
Please call 865 637 5331 ext 300 or visit www.knoxvillezoo.org for more details.

Service in the Courtyard of James White’s Fort to celebrate the 237th Birthday of the United States. Hours 10 a.m. Free Admission, but Donations will be accepted

James White's Fort, 205 E. Hill Ave, Knoxville, TN 37915. Information: 865-525-6514, www.jameswhitefort.org

The Knoxville Symphony Orchestra will host the KSO 29th Annual Pilot Flying J Free Independence Day Concert on July 4, 2013 at World’s Fair Park at 8:00 p.m. This free, family-friendly concert includes patriotic tributes, homage to Superman films and a spectacular fireworks finale. Maestro Lucas Richman will conduct the orchestra in this annual concert as part of the City of Knoxville’s Festival on the Fourth. Patrons are encouraged to bring blankets and lawn chairs to enjoy the KSO concert and the spectacular fireworks display. Musical selections include patriotic themes such as “God Bless America,” “Star Spangled Banner” and music from the film Superman featuring vocals by Jennifer Barnett, soprano. The KSO is proud to partner with the City of Knoxville, Pilot Flying J and WBIR-TV for this Independence Day concert. Both the concert and the fireworks display will be live broadcast on WBIR-TV Channel 10.

Words from the Maestro: "The KSO and I always look forward to celebrating Independence Day with the entire community of East Tennessee,” said KSO Music Director Lucas Richman. “As this year's theme is Superman, our musical program reflects not only the mythic superhero himself, but also the many superheroes throughout this country's history who sacrificed everything they had in order to provide us with the many freedoms and wonderful opportunities that we hold so dear."

This event is FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC; no tickets are required. The KSO will begin playing at 8:00 p.m. and the spectacular fireworks display will start at 9:30 p.m.

For more information regarding the KSO or the Independence Day Concert, please call 865-291-3310, www.knoxvillesymphony.com

Visitors to the Museum of Appalachia, a Smithsonian Affiliate Museum, will celebrate July 4 with an explosion of sound that pioneers heard thunder through the hills when they celebrated Independence Day. Local blacksmiths would "shoot the anvil" to celebrate the nation’s Independence, Christmas, and even Davy Crockett’s election to the U.S. Congress. Now, shooting the 175 pound anvil, an almost lost tradition, has come to be the highlight of the Museum's annual July 4th Celebration. Folks as far as 15 miles away have reported hearing the blast, and certainly everyone gathered for the excitement feels the earth shake under their feet.

Along with the big boom several times during the day, there will be patriotic ceremonies including a flag waving procession, Longhunter camp stories, Appalachian music and historic demonstrations. A bell-ringing ceremony will occur at precisely 2 p.m., coinciding with the National Bell Ringing Ceremony when more than 10,000 bells across the country are rung in unison. Thirteen youngsters will be selected from the audience to ring the bell in honor of the thirteen original colonies. The Liberty Pole raising at 2:15 p.m. will commemorate a Colonial American practice signifying dissatisfaction with the English government. It illustrates the spirit of liberty among colonists in the early days of the War for Independence. Wander the Museum’s Village and see demonstrations of “Betsy Ross” sewing our nation’s first flag, clogging, spinning, blacksmithing, woodcarving, mountain dulcimer making, sassafras tea brewing and cedar rail splitting.Tasty summertime treats will be available, including grilled hamburgers and hot dogs, homemade ice cream, cakes, pies and cookies.

The Museum is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., with special July 4th activities from 10 a.m.-3:00 p.m. Admission is charged; it’s free for Museum members. The Museum is located 16 miles north of Knoxville, one mile east of I-75, exit 122. For more information, call 865-494-7680, or visit www.museumofappalachia.org.

“Fine Arts Blount” Member Art Exhibit, coordinated by Cindy McDannel on the Art Wall at the Bookmark Café, Art Panels at the Reading Rotunda, two square pedestal cases and two vertical display cases in the Entry Rotunda, through July.

Free and open to the public, the program is at the Blount County Public Library, located at 508 N. Cusick Street, Maryville.

A native of Blount county, Charles E. Kirkland's Music & Dance series includes paintings, wall sculptures and standing sculpture. Kirkland feels that his art reveals his inner being and uses bold and subtle strokes and colors to get the feel he strives for in his work. This abstract series is unique due to the combination of underpinnings being used, as well as the color and patterns. There is a boldness and energy to the work.

Charles E. Kirkland will be available during the Last Friday Art Walk July 26,2013 from 5pm-8pm

The Denso Art Gallery is open Monday through Friday 9am to 6pm and during special events.

Clayton Center for the Arts: 502 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804. Info: 865-981-8590, www.ClaytonArtsCenter.com

West Virginia native, Karen Shaw, is Artist of the Month during July at the Plateau Creative Arts Center, 451 Lakeview Drive (off Peavine). Karen is proficient in colored pencil along with other mediums such as watercolor, printmaking, graphite pencil and jewelry. Shaw has won several art awards over the last few years including one Best of Show, and her work hangs in family and friends’ homes from California to Italy.

Plateau Creative Arts Center, 451 Lakeview Drive, Fairfield Glade, TN 38558. Hours: M-F 9AM-4PM; Saturday-Sunday 1-4PM. Information: 931-707-7249; www.artguildfairfieldglade.net

Support Knoxville's own Hard Knox Rollergirls!

At the Knoxville Civic Coliseum, 500 Howard Baker Ave. 6/29, 7/13, 7/27, 8/10, 8/24, 9/7, 9/21. Whistle blows at 6:00PM.
Tickets for sale at Coliseum box office or Knoxville Tickets. All dates Double Headers!
www.hardknoxrollergirls.com or 865 272 WHIP (9774).

8th Annual Fountain City Art Center Annual Open Show - a spectacular array of area artists’ talents. This exhibit includes pottery, amazing decorative gourds, a handmade book, a leather and fossil sculpture, oils, watercolors, pastels, graphite pencil drawings, fused glass, and many mixed media pieces.

Exhibit Reception - June 28, 6:30-8:00 PM

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.com

At the Museum of East Tennessee History through August 7. The exhibit provided by the Y-12 History Center, has appeared at a number of prominent venues, most recently at the National Archives and Records Administration's Southeast Region branch in Atlanta. The photographs, many by the Manhattan Project official photographer Ed Westcott, give visitors a firsthand look at life in the Secret City, the war effort, the Cold War, and ongoing research and technology.

The exhibition is open and free to the public.

East Tennessee Historical Society, 601 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Museum hours: Monday-Friday: 9AM-4PM; Saturday: 10AM-4PM; Sunday: 1-5PM. Information: 865-215-8824, www.easttnhistory.org

Art and science are intertwined in Nikon Small World as the photomicrographs showcase the delicate balance between outstanding scientific technique and exquisite artistic quality. "We are proud that this competition is able to demonstrate the true power of scientific imaging and its relevance to both the scientific communities as well as the general public," explains Eric Flem, Communications Manager, Nikon Instruments.

First place winners Dr. Jennifer Peters and Dr. Michael Taylor of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, partnered to capture the image highlighting their research of the blood brain barrier in a live zebrafish embryo, which is believed to be the first-ever image showing the formation for the blood-brain barrier in a live animal. The top five images in Nikon Small World include: the blood-brain barrier in a live zebrafish embryo; Live newborn lynx spiderlings; Human bone cancer (osteosarcoma) showing actin filaments (purple), mitochondria (yellow) and DNA (blue); Drosophila melanogaster visual system halfway through pupal development, showing retina (gold), photoreceptor axons (blue), and brain (green); and Cacoxenite (mineral) from La Paloma Mine, Spain.

This year's judges were comprised of top science and media industry experts: Daniel Evanko, Editor, Nature Methods; Martha Harbison, Senior Editor, Popular Science; Dr. Robert D. Goldman, Stephen Walter Ranson Professor and Chair, Department of Cell and Molecular Biology at Northwestern University and Liza A. Pon, Ph.D., Professor of Pathology and Cell Biology and Director, Confocal and Specialized Microscopy Shared Resource, Columbia University.

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

June 14 Reception 6pm - 8pm

An exhibition juried by Denise Sanabria from Knoxville.

Plateau Creative Arts Center, 451 Lakeview Drive, Fairfield Glade, TN 38558. Hours: M-F 9AM-4PM; Saturday-Sunday 1-4PM. Information: 931-707-7249; www.artguildfairfieldglade.net