Calendar of Events

Brooklyn-born outfit, They Might Be Giants is best known for their unconventional and experimental style of alt-rock. This summer the duo tours in support of their brand new album, Nanobots: 25 unreasonable songs in 45 phenomenal minutes.

Bijou Theatre, 803 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-522-0832, www.knoxbijou.com. For tickets: 865-684-1200, 865-656-4444, www.knoxvilletickets.com

Knox County Public Library welcomes Duncan Maysilles to discuss his book Ducktown Smoke.
The public is invited to Books Sandwiched In, monthly lunch and learn program on Wednesday, October 16 to the East Tennessee History Center

It would take anyone by surprise. Suddenly there’s a desert in a region that receives almost 60 inches of rain a year. It was that desert, in the middle of the lush, diversified Southern Appalachian forest, that took Atlanta attorney Duncan Maysilles by surprise. And it is the story of that desert Maysilles tells in his book Ducktown Smoke: The Fight over One of the South's Greatest Environmental Disasters, the featured book in Knox County Public Library’s Book Sandwiched In, Wednesday, October 16, 12 p.m. in the East Tennessee History Center auditorium, at 601 South Gay Street. The program is co-sponsored by the East Tennessee Historical Society, which will open its museum to program attendees before and after Maysilles’ talk, and the City of Knoxville, as part of its Conservation Expo Centennial celebration, celebrating a century of conservation in East Tennessee.

The public is invited to join the conversation and bring their favorite sandwich or pick up something from a downtown restaurant. Copies of the books are available at the Library if you'd like to read one before the program.

Books Sandwiched In will continue on November 20, when Marshall Stair, City Councilman and practicing attorney, will discuss What Then Must We Do?: Straight Talk about the Next American Revolution by Gar Alperovitz. On December 4, Jerry Burgess, President and CEO of Community Health Alliance, will discuss The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care by T. R. Reid.
For more information, please call Emily Ellis at (865) 215-8763.

The Arts & Culture Alliance is pleased to host a monthly series featuring artists demonstrating their work and discussing their inspirations and processes. The series, entitled “Time Well Spent: Inspiration at Lunch”, is free and open to the public, and guests are invited to bring a “Brown Bag” lunch. The next presentation in the series takes place on Wednesday, October 16, from 12:00-1:00 PM with artist Antuco Chicaiza, who will discuss his recent works of painting, collage, and drawing in which cultural identity is a recurring theme. Chicaiza was born in Wichita Falls, Texas but raised in Ecuador, his father’s native land.

The presentation will take place at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. Parking is available at metered spots on the Gay Street viaduct or in the parking lot on Jackson Avenue caddy-corner from the Emporium.

Upcoming presentations in the “Time Well Spent” series:
Wednesday, October 16, 12:00 PM: Antuco Chicaiza – Acrylic and mixed media
Wednesday, November 13, 12:00 PM: Jeffrey Stoner – “The Fine Art of Photography” - the history of photography as a fine art
Wednesday, December 11, 12:00 PM: Raluca Iancu - Printmaking
Wednesday, January 15, 12:00 PM: Kelly Hider – Photography and mixed media
Wednesday, February 19, 12:00 PM: Emily Schoen – Mixed media and sculpture

For more information, please contact the Arts & Culture Alliance at (865) 523-7543 or visit www.knoxalliance.com.

Led by Ijams' naturalists and historians, this unique walking tour along rugged trails takes in Ijams' disused quarries with their own dark pasts for an informative yet hauntingly fun adventure in search of the infamous, the unknown, and the unexplained. $10 per person.

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Grounds and trails open during daylight hours. Call for Visitor Center hours. Information: 865-577-4717, www.ijams.org

The District Gallery is pleased to present a photographic journey through Paris as seen through the lens of photographer Ben Finch. PARIS: A Journey on Film features classic scenes of Paris and modern views of iconic landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. Finch also captures common details of everyday French culture and turns them into memorable images with his timeless aesthetic and traditional film photography.

An opening reception will be held on Friday, October 11 from 5:30-9 p.m. with pastries by the French Market. The show continues through November 9.

A jewelry show by Adel Chefridi will also open on October 11. Chefridi’s designs emphasize simplicity, wearability, durability, and openness to light and movement. Made with natural gemstones, his elegant pieces have a friendly and peaceful feel that make them wearable every day.

The District Gallery, (865) 200-4452, TheDistrictGallery.com

The public is invited to the reception and opening of the Annual Fall Awards Art Show on October 11 from 6:00-7:30 p.m. at the Plateau Arts Center (PCAC). The theme of the show is Wild about Art. Artists of the Art Guild at Fairfield Glade will submit their original work to be judged on this theme in the following categories: Watercolor and acrylic under glass, Oil and acrylic not under glass, Mixed media, Pastel, Colored pencil drawing, Black and white drawing, Photography, Three dimensional, and Jewelry. Awards will be given for each category. This year's judge is Bobbie Crews of Knoxville. The reception will include refreshments viewing of the new show, and presentation of awards.

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

The Appalachian Arts Craft Center in Norris will hold its Fall Porch Sale starting Thursday, Oct. 10, and running for about two weeks. The Porch Sale, held each Spring and Fall, features outdated stock, seconds, student crafts and unjuried work by members of the Craft Center. It’s an excellent time to get great deals. This year we’ll also have handmade baked goods for sale while they last.

Appalachian Arts Craft Center: 2716 Andersonville Highway, Clinton, TN. Hours: Monday-Saturday 10AM-6PM; Sunday 1-5PM. Closed Sunday and Monday in January and February. Information: 865-494-9854, www.appalachianarts.net

Flying Anvil Theatre and Knox County Public Library to Offer
Free Play Writing Workshop.
Everyone's got a story, but they don't always have the best tools to tell it. Flying Anvil Theatre, in partnership with Knox County Public Library, is pleased to announce Grand Entrances: Writing for the Stage, an 8 week play writing workshop that gives potential playwrights the basic elements of play writing as well as a "behind the scenes" look at play production.

The workshop runs on Wed, October 9 through November 27 from 2-4 p.m. at Lawson McGhee Library in downtown Knoxville. The workshop is free and open to all adults. No formal writing experience is necessary. Participants may sign up online at www.knoxlib.org or by calling (865) 215-8729.

The East Tennessee Society of the Archaeological Institute of America and the McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, will begin their annual lecture series on Tuesday, Oct. 8.

The first lecture will feature UT professors Erin Darby and Robert Darby, who will talk about their recent archaeological excavations at 'Ayn Gharandal, Jordan.
Robert Darby, a lecturer in art history in the UT School of Art, and Erin Darby, an assistant professor in the Department of Religious Studies, direct the 'Ayn Gharandal archaeological project that has uncovered rare new details about an ancient Roman fort in southern Jordan.

The 7:30 to 9 p.m. event will be in the McClung Museum's auditorium.

The lecture series invites scholars from around the world to present the latest archaeological discoveries. It is free and open to the public.

Upcoming lectures this fall include the following:
Nov. 7: "Cultural Interaction and Reaction in the Courtly Art of the Hellenistic World" by Kristen Seaman, Kennesaw State University, Ga.
Nov. 19: "The Neolithic Alepotrypa Cave: Past Findings and Present Research" by Anastasia Papathanasiou, Greek Archaeological Service

The McClung Museum is located at 1327 Circle Park Drive. It is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Free parking is available on Circle Park Drive in front of the museum.

For more information about the McClung Museum and its collections and exhibits, visit http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu.

Professional Photographer and Art Guild of Fairfield Glade member, Tom Whitehurst, loves to take photos of nature, flowers, and landscapes. His current exhibition of 17 photographs is the October exhibit at the Palace Theatre in Crossville. This artist does his own printing, matting, and framing and prints on canvas, watercolor, and fine art papers using pigmented ink, all of which are Archival. His photographs can be enjoyed for decades. Currently, Tom uses a Digital SLR Camera and shoots wide angle to telephoto and macro shots.

Palace Theatre, 72 S Main Street, Crossville, TN 38555. Information: 931-484-6133, www.palacetheatre-crossville.com

Recent works by Dennis Sabo Photography will be on display at the Tomato Head Restaurant-Market Square in downtown Knoxville from October 5 - November 1 and at the Tomato Head-Bearden location from November 3-December 7. His art exhibit entitled "Leafing Impressions" is an impressionistic and expressionistic viewpoint of the autumn grandeur that Mother Nature has provided to us.

Sabo says, "I challenge myself to capture common subjects that are often overlooked and then refine the photograph into an interpretive collage of color, motion, and textures. With a global community very much focused on environmental impact and fragile ecosystems, my artwork captures natural images and color with a perspective people easily miss." Dennis Sabo is an internationally award winning photographer specializing in contemporary fine art abstract, and scenic photography. His fine art prints interweave his creative compositional expressions and vivid colors into nature’s greater scheme of things. Dennis has refined the photograph into an interpretive collage of colors, and texture. His artwork and photography has appeared in a variety of books and magazines that include Canon, NOVA, PBS, Living Southern Style, Hilton Hotels, NBC, Ocean Conservancy, Shedd Aquarium-Chicago, and Blue Planet. His fine art has been included in gallery exhibitions at the Blowing Rocks Preserve-Hobe Sound, FL., Arts in the Airport Spring 2011/13 Exhibition-Knoxville, TN, the National Juried 2012/13 Exhibition-Knoxville, TN, Emporium Gallery- Knoxville, TN, Red Line Gallery-Farragut, TN, the Dogwood Regional Fine Art 2012 Exhibition-Knoxville, TN, Bliss Home Designs 2013, and ongoing at "The Art Market Gallery", Knoxville, Tennessee. www.dsabophoto.com

Tomato Head - 12 Market Square Knoxville, TN 37902 | (865) 637-4067
Tomato Head - Bearden - 7240 Kingston Pike, Suite 172 | 865-584-1072

The Fountain City Art Center’s 8th Annual Membership Exhibit opens Friday night, October 4. Members entered artwork in both 2-D and 3-D categories: oils, acrylics, watercolors, mixed media, pencil, clay, mosaics, wood, a handmade book, and jewelry. The show will be on view for the public through November 14. Most of the work is for sale through individual artists. Judges Kenneth W. Clayton, Jr. and Charles E. Williams, Jr. judge this particular show each year by popular demand. Cash prizes were awarded to all main category winners. Best of Show was awarded to an oil painting by Gary Dagnan entitled “Dan at His Easel.”

Opening Reception: 6:30-8:00 PM Friday, Oct. 4
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