Calendar of Events

Santa Claus has come to town and made “Santa’s Village” at Knoxville Zoo his temporary East Tennessee headquarters. The jolly old elf will be available to discuss Christmas wishes and pose for holiday photos Thursday, Dec. 5th through Sunday, Dec. 8th and Thursday, Dec. 12th through Sunday, Dec. 15th from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. each day. Guests may bring their own cameras for photos or purchase portraits taken by a professional photographer.

Located in The Pilot Special Exhibits Building, the halls of Santa’s Village are all decked for the holidays. Santa’s Village also has a “Secret Santa Gift Shop”, featuring items from $5 and up and designed just for little ones to do their very own holiday shopping. Knoxville Zoo’s staff of elves will help small shoppers make their selections and then wrap up their purchases to make sure there is no peeking before the big day.

Santa’s Village is included with general zoo admission. Currently, the zoo is celebrating Penguin Discount Days, and admission to Knoxville Zoo is half-off through Feb. 28, 2014.

Knoxville Zoo is Knoxville’s largest year-round attraction. Located off exit 392 from Interstate 40, the zoo is open every day except Christmas Day. Knoxville Zoo is nationally accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and is committed to the highest standards in animal care and well-being, ethics, conservation, and education. Currently, the zoo is open daily from 10:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Admission and ticket sales stop one-hour before the zoo closes. Next-day admission is free after 3 p.m. For more information, please call 865.637.5331 ext. 300 or visit www.knoxvillezoo.org.

Knoxville Zoo, 3500 Knoxville Zoo Drive, Knoxville, TN 37914. Open every day except Christmas. Information: 865-637-5331, www.knoxville-zoo.org

December 5 - 7, 2013 : 9th Annual Santa Mouse Christmas House Arts & Crafts Show presented by the Blount County Arts & Crafts Guild.
All items are unique, handmade and of the highest quality including hand woven baskets, fine art, stained glass, license plate sculpture, top quality jewelry, home décor including santas, ornaments, wooden items, quilted wall hangings, woolen, knit and crocheted items, clay pottery, dyed silk scarves, soaps and creams plus much more from 50 local artists from Blount and surrounding counties.

Thursday and Friday, 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM and Saturday, 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM at the Maryville College Alumni Gym at 502 East Lamar Alexander Parkway. Look for directional signs.
Free admission, lots of parking, free photos with Santa on Saturday, 10 AM - 2 PM (no pets please), and hour long demonstrations, each by a different artist or crafter, every hour of the show. A $1 raffle for a huge basket full of holiday items worth approximately $700. Tickets at the door with drawing at noon on Saturday.

Information: 510-504-0358, http://www.blountartsandcrafts.com/

Looking for fresh evergreens from the farm to decorate your home for the holidays?? Need the perfect gift for that "green thumb" in your life? Stop by KBGA on Friday, December 6th from 10am until 4pm. KBGA Members can come shop on Thursday, December 5th from 3pm to 6pm and enjoy some delicious refreshments! Debra Taylor from Riverdale Nursery will have special garden gift baskets, magnolia wreaths, other seasonal wreaths, bundles of winterberry and much more! Quantities are limited so come early!

Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum, 2743 Wimpole Ave, Knoxville, TN 37914. Hours: Gardens open daily from dawn to dusk. Information: 865-862-8717, www.knoxgarden.org

David Brill offer his tips for cracking the contemporary magazine market at the December meeting of the Knoxville Writers Guild. "With 20,000 consumer and business publications produced in the United States and Canada, the market is wide open for freelancers who can pitch story ideas that editors can't resist," Brill said. Topics to be discussed include:
* How to generate and focus story ideas,
* Why off-beat ideas often sell,
* What would George Plimpton do?,
* How to identify receptive markets for your work,
* Why persistence pays off: A case study on Bonnaroo, and
* How to draft irresistible query letters.

Brill’s essays, personality profiles and articles on science, ecology, the environment, business, health, fitness, parenting and adventure-travel have appeared in more than 30 national and regional magazines.

The event, which will be open to the public, is at the Laurel Theater at the corner of Laurel Avenue and 16th Street in Fort Sanders. A $2 donation is requested at the door. The building is handicapped accessible. Additional parking is available at Redeemer Church of Knoxville, 1642 Highland Ave. For more information about this and other KWG events, visit www.knoxvillewritersguild.org.

Enjoy holiday cheer and entertain your hopes for a white Christmas at Pellissippi State Community College’s hugely popular Holiday Spectacular musical concert, offered in two performances, 6 and 8 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 5. Part of Pellissippi State’s Music Concert Series, the Holiday Spectacular is free and the community is encouraged to attend. Because space is limited, the college is asking that guests arrive 30 minutes before each performance to receive a complimentary ticket. Tickets will be issued at the door to the first 485 guests, and having a ticket guarantees a seat.

The Holiday Spectacular, centered this year around the hopes of many East Tennesseans for a white Christmas, takes place in the Clayton Performing Arts Center on the Hardin Valley Campus. The concert features the talents of more than 140 Pellissippi State students and faculty in eight different musical ensembles. The Music Concert Series is part of The Arts at Pellissippi State, which brings to the community cultural activities ranging from music and theatre to international celebrations, lectures, and the fine arts.

Pellissippi State: 10915 Hardin Valley Road, Knoxville, TN 37932. Information: 865-694-6405, www.pstcc.edu/arts

Get your Christmas presents purchased early! December 5, 5:00-9:00PM, book signings by Bill Landry, Sam Venable and Lisa Soland.

Refreshments will be served by Thomas Tavern.
Thomas Tavern Gifts & Smoke Shop
101 Meeting Street, Dandridge, TN, 865 397 2616

What: Free preview screening of The State of Arizona, followed by a moderated panel discussion about immigration reform as it affects our community and nation.

As part of its continuing Community Cinema series of documentary film screenings, East Tennessee PBS is excited to present an advance screening of The State of Arizona, which captures the explosive emotions and complex realities behind Arizona’s headline-grabbing struggle with immigration issues. Following Arizona’s controversial Senate Bill 1070, dubbed the “show me your papers” law, the film tells the stories of Arizonans on all sides of this divisive issue from ground zero of the nation’s immigration debate. The screening will be followed by a panel discussion and Q&A session with guests Dr. De Ann Pendry of the University of Tennessee; Darwin Guerrero, social worker at Austin East High School; and a representative from the Knox County Sheriff's Department. Produced and directed by Carlos Sandoval and Catherine Tambini (Farmingville), The State of Arizona premieres on PBS’s Independent Lens on Monday, January 27, 2014, at 10 p.m. For more information, visit http://www.easttennesseepbs.org/news-and-events/community-cinema/

East Tennessee PBS studio, located at 1611 East Magnolia Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37917
Free and open to the public. No RSVP required. Parking is available behind the studio.

The enchanting music of Tchaikovsky and the Nutcracker Christmas story is brought to life on ice by the gliding, jumping, spinning and dancing of a large cast of Ice Chalet ice skaters.
December 3-7, 2013, Tuesday-Friday 7:00PM, Saturday 2:00PM and 7:00PM.
Admission $12 before Dec. 3
Chalet Ice Rinks, Inc.100 Lebanon St. Knoxville TN 37919, next to Western Plaza.

The Farragut Folklife Museum invites the community to visit "An Old Fashioned Christmas" exhibit, on display Monday, Dec. 2, 2013, through Friday, Jan. 3, 2014 (closed Dec. 24 and 25). This special holiday exhibit will feature items from the Museum's collection of artifacts as well as items belonging to Folklife Museum Committee members.

The exhibit showcases a variety of antique toys, games and dolls dating from the late 1800s through the 1900s. A featured item is the Rice doll house, designed and built in 1929 by local architect Malcolm Rice and a National Architecture Award recipient in 1930. Originally with electricity, the doll house was enjoyed by three generations of the Rice family. Folklife Museum committee member Lou LaMarche has loaned several 1940s toys from his personal collection, including toy soldiers, a Rudolph radio and an electric football game. In addition, the exhibit features a 1940s toy steam engine donated by museum volunteer Malcolm Shell as well as 1970s Star Wars toys donated by Mayor Ralph McGill.

The Farragut Folklife Museum is committed to preserving the heritage of its East Tennessee community and features a remarkable collection of artifacts from the area, including an extensive collection of the personal belongings of Admiral David Glasgow Farragut, first Admiral of the U.S Navy and hero of the Civil War. Housed in the Farragut Town Hall located at 11408 Municipal Center Drive, the museum is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and offers free admission. For more information about the museum or the exhibit, please visit www.townoffarragut.org/museum , like the museum at www.facebook.com/farragutfolklifemuseum, or contact Museum Coordinator Julia Barham at julia.barham@townoffarragut.org or 966-7057.

Zoo admission is half-price. Details TBA!

Knoxville Zoo, 3500 Knoxville Zoo Drive, Knoxville, TN 37914. Open every day except Christmas. Information: 865-637-5331, www.knoxville-zoo.org

Higher Ground: A Century of the Visual Arts in East Tennessee - Ongoing/Hayworth Gallery
This permanent installation, housed in one of the two large top-floor galleries, traces the development of fine art and craft in the region and the surrounding area over the past century. It tells the largely unknown story of the area’s rich artistic history and its connections to the larger currents of American art. Featured works are drawn from the KMA collection along with selected works on loan from several regional museums and private collections.

Currents: Recent Art from East Tennessee and Beyond - Ongoing/Faires Stokely Gallery
This exhibition showcases the exciting range of contemporary works by a stellar slate of more than 30 international artists and East Tennessee luminaries. The selection is grouped in thought-provoking juxtapositions that call attention to new directions in art and new approaches to the artistic process, and help viewers discover meaningful connections between featured works.

Thorne Miniature Rooms - Ongoing/Great Hall
Thorne Rooms are among America’s most well-known miniature diorama groups. The Thorne Rooms were developed in the 1930s and 40s by Mrs. James Ward Thorne of Chicago, who collected miniature furniture and accessories and used them to create dioramas built to a scale of one inch to one foot.

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

The Knoxville Museum of Art and the Tennessee Art Education Association present the eighth annual East Tennessee Regional Student Art Exhibition, which features artwork created by middle and high school students and offers students the opportunity to display their talents and be honored for their accomplishments in a professional art museum environment. This event is made possible by the generosity of presenting sponsor Regal Entertainment Group and additional sponsors Emerson Process Management, Home Federal Bank, Carton Services Inc, and the Tennessee Theatre.

Students, family, friends, and the public are invited to a reception and awards ceremony Tuesday, December 3 from 6 to 8pm. The ceremony this year will be held at the Tennessee Theater at 604 S. Gay Street due to the renovations taking place at the KMA. Student artwork will be on view at the museum. The event is free and open to the public.

The East Tennessee Regional Student Art Exhibition is open to students in grades 6-12, attending public, private, or home schools in 32 counties across East Tennessee. Fewer than a third of the more than 1500 entries in this highly competitive show will make it through a rigorous jury process. The Best-in-Show winner will receive a Purchase Award of $500, and the artwork will become a permanent part of the collection of Mr. James Dodson, on loan to the Knoxville Museum of Art's Education Collection. This is the first exhibition to open in the newly renovated Clayton Building. Having been closed to the public since late August, the museum has undergone extensive renovations and is reopening in stages as work is completed. The two galleries on the museum’s main level will house the Student Art Exhibition and boast newly finished flooring, while new terrazzo flooring will greet visitors as they enter the front doors.

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