Calendar of Events

Mark your calendars for Friday, April 11 and the members-only preview of our spring store sale. Come enjoy tasty treats from Magpie's and shop the many additions to our store, including new pottery, glass pieces, prints and jewelry by local and regional artists. We also have fabulous new children's toys, games and activities. Drop by from 4:00-6:00PM and check it out. The sale runs through April 19.

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture. University of Tennessee, 1327 Circle Park Drive, Knoxville.

April 09, 2014 THE URBAN WILDERNESS: Explore Ijams
April 10, 2014 CHILDREN’S PROGRAM: Stroller Stroll
April 10, 2014 SCIENCE CAFÉ: The Lunar Eclipse
April 11, 2014 THE URBAN WILDERNESS: Bouldering Hike
April 12, 2014 PUBLIC PROGRAM: Wagging Walk
April 12, 2014 PEG'S KITCHEN: Breakfast is Served
April 12, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 12, 2014 THE URBAN WILDERNESS: South Loop Piece-by-Piece
April 12, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 12, 2014 IJAMS GARDENING SERIES: Urban Gardening
April 12, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 15, 2014 IJAMS SOCIAL SERIES: Pink Moon Happy Hour
April 16, 2014 THE URBAN WILDERNESS: Explore Ijams
April 17, 2014 SPECIAL EVENT: Ijams @ The Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage
April 19, 2014 PEG'S KITCHEN: Breakfast is Served
April 19, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 19, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 19, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 19, 2014 SPECIAL EVENT: Family Drum Circle
April 23, 2014 THE URBAN WILDERNESS: Explore Ijams
April 24, 2014 CHILDREN’S PROGRAM: Stroller Stroll
April 26, 2014 SPECIAL EVENT: Spring Native Plant Sale
April 26, 2014 PEG'S KITCHEN: Breakfast is Served
April 26, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 26, 2014 SPECIAL EVENT: Ijams @ EarthFest
April 26, 2014 SPECIAL EVENT: Outdoor KnoxFest @ Ijams
April 26, 2014 ANIMAL PROGRAM: Ijams Creature Feature
April 27, 2014 SPECIAL EVENT: Outdoor KnoxFest @ Ijams
April 30, 2014 THE URBAN WILDERNESS: Explore Ijams

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

Explore more than 60 miles of trails, open gardens, and historic homes as you enjoy a walk, bike ride, or drive.

Most of the Festival’s wide range of arts events, performances, and exhibitions are offered to the public free of charge. Dogwood Arts Festival: 865-637-4561 www.dogwoodarts.com

Art in Public Places Knoxville is a monumental installation of large-scale outdoor sculptures by regionally and nationally acclaimed artists. The sculptures enliven downtown Knoxville as well as McGhee Tyson Airport.

Opening Reception: Friday, April 4, 5:00 – 9:00 pm
Award Ceremony: Friday, April 4, 5:30 pm

We are honored to announce noted sculptor, Kenneth M. Thompson, as the Juror for the 2014-2015 exhibition!

Most of the Festival's wide range of arts events, performances, and exhibitions are offered to the public free of charge. Dogwood Arts: 865-637-4561 www.dogwoodarts.com

Civil War Historical river cruises in Knoxville, Tennessee

If you would like a relaxing and entertaining weekend on the river join us aboard TRACE 1. Bring your friends and guests to share this memorable experience with you. Learn the history of the area during the steamboat/Civil War era where you see the Armstrong Locket plantation home, Bleak house, Longstreet's Heights, Armstrong Hill, Fort Dickerson and many others. You will have an annotated map to help visualize the 1863 siege of Knoxville with Confederate and Union positions highlighted.

Your crew will be the 150 year old spirit old Sam Clemmons and Miss Drusilla. Sam has operated steamboats for many years and will entertain with the local Civil War history even if he never did pick a side.

Saturday gourmet sandwich lunch Civil War cruises, 12:00, 90 minutes, $26 adults and $20 children.
Second Sunday gourmet sandwich lunch cruise, 12:00, two hours, $32 adults and $26 children 5 to 11, see more sights.
Friday and Saturday Civil War cruise 3:00 and 5:15, 90 minutes, $18 adults and $14 children on-line or $20 and $16 at the gate
Sunday Civil War cruise 3:00 and 5:15, 90 minutes, $18 adults and $14 children 5 to 11 on-line or $20 and $16 at the gate
Prices above are for advanced on-line reservations.
If you have a copy of our narration booklet with you, you get a $2.00 discount for everyone in your party. You may purchase a copy at the Knoxville Visitor's Center or Knoxville History Center, both on Gay Street.

NavCal River Rides http://navcal.com/navcal/CWHistory.htm. 865-765-3407

Bliss Home is pleased to present Knoxville artist, Jane Nickels, for April's First Friday. Bliss Home, located at 29 Market Square, will host an opening reception on Friday, April 4th from 6pm to 9pm. Complimentary Steamboat Sandwiches will be provided and Jane's art will be featured for the month of April.

Jane's April exhibit will feature her Knot Perfect series which consists of paintings that explore a biomorphic interpretation of Celtic knots and overlapping pattern, color and line demanding an emotional response.

“Finally Spring” at the Plateau Arts Center
That is the theme for the annual spring show at the PCAC, and it couldn’t come at a better time! The Art Guild at Fairfield Glade invites you to view and vote on your favorite selection among the new works displayed for the first time at the Plateau Creative Arts Center (PCAC).

Come and view this high quality art presented in watercolor, acrylic, oil, pastels, colored pencil, photography, mixed media, pottery, sculpture, jewelry, and fabric. The theme of “Finally Spring” will be displayed starting on April 4. Voting will end on April 18. Ribbons will be awarded to the winners in the categories of People and Animals, Landscape, Floral, Still life, Sculpture and Mixed Media, and Showcase/Jewelry. Ribbon Awards will take place on Friday morning, April 25.

The PCAC is handicapped accessible and open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. M-Sat. Website: www.artguildfairfieldglade.net. Plateau Creative Arts Center, 451 Lakeview Drive, Fairfield Glade, TN.

Diana Scott-Auger of Greenback who paints in acrylics and Harriet Smith Howell of Rutledge who creates hand-painted wearable silk are the Art Market Gallery’s featured artists for April. Their recent works will be on exhibit at The Art Market Gallery through April 27, with an opening reception to be held from 5:30 to 9 p.m., Friday, April 4, during the monthly First Friday Art Walk in downtown Knoxville. At the opening reception visitors may enjoy complimentary refreshments and live music performed by the Tennessee Valley Accidentals.

Besides the featured artists' exhibit, April is the month for the gallery's popular annual silent auction. This year it will be held April 1-27 with an even greater variety of works than before, and with a new option: a "Buy It Now" price, set at 80 percent of an artwork's retail cost, which allows a customer to pay for it and take it home immediately.

Owned and operated by more than 60 professional regional artists, the Art Market Gallery, at 422 S. Gay St., is a few doors from Mast General Store and next Downtown Grill & Brewery. Hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday; 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday; 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call 865-525-5265, or visit artmarketgallery.net, or facebook.com/Art.Market.Gallery.

The finest progressive artists of our region will showcase their work in the Regional Fine Art Exhibition! Fine art encompassing all styles and genres from both emerging and established artists will be selected by renowned juror, Julie Levin Caro, for exhibition.

At the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Hours: Monday-Friday 9AM-5PM, Sat 11AM-3PM. Information: 865-523-7543, www.knoxalliance.com

Opening reception: Friday, April 4, 5:00-9:00 pm
Award Ceremony: Friday, April 4, 8:00 pm
Dogwood Arts Festival: 865-637-4561 www.dogwoodarts.com

KNOXVILLE’S CASA HOLA PRESENTS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMS FOCUSING ON MEXICAN “GUEST WORKERS” IN THE US
Hola Knoxville, the local Hispanic organization that promotes communications between Latinos and the people of our community, will host a series of special events during April that focuses on the experiences of bracero workers and their families. The bracero program (bracero means “manual laborer”) which brought millions of Mexican guest workers to the US just after the end of WWII, ended in 1964 under mounting criticism for exploiting Mexican workers and depriving jobs from American workers. Since most Americans know very little about bracero, the nation’s largest experiment with guest workers, these programs provide an understanding that is so especially important in current times. In 1962, Cesar Chavez founded the National Farm Workers Association, later to become the United Farm Workers. Under his leadership, farmworkers with allies in other unions, churches and community groups, were able to put enough pressure on politicians to end the bracero program and to work toward improving the conditions of farmworkers. Chavez died in 1993. The bracero program was controversial in its time and braceros experienced exploitation but also opportunity. The program was truly bittersweet and an overlooked chapter in American history.

Hola Knoxville, the Hispanic organization that promotes unity and communication between Latinos and the larger community, will host the “Bittersweet Harvest” exhibit during the month of April. This very special exhibit, created by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibit Services and made possible by Humanities Tennessee, examines the experiences of bracero workers and their families and provides rich insight into Mexican American history. The exhibit will be displayed at Casa Hola in the Emporium Building on North Gay Street in Knoxville and will consist of six panels of freestanding, illustrated banners and photographs on loan from the Smithsonian, a poster by local Lourdes Gaza, figurines and other art materials by Angel Luna, a Telamon mural designed by children of migrant workers, and audio and visual excerpts of a documentary on Cesar Chavez who organized the United Farm Workers union. Chavez’s great-great granddaughter, Julz Chavez, will attend the reception.

The opening reception for this very special exhibit will be April 4th from 5:30 PM – 9:00 PM in suite 109 of the Emporium Building, 100 South Gay Street. The public is invited and refreshments will be served. The “Bittersweet Harvest” exhibit will be the central event for a number of other Hola-sponsored events focusing on this theme and will include a round table discussion and Knox county school appearances by Julz Chavez. For details of these events, go to casahola@holafestival.org or contact the Casa Hola manager at 865 335-3358.

The “Bittersweet Harvest” exhibit, created by the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibit Services and made possible by Humanities Tennessee, is a display of banners, posters and other art that examines the experiences of these bracero workers and their families. The exhibition will be on display in the Casa Hola suite in the Emporium building (100 South Gay St) throughout the month of April with a special opening reception scheduled for April 4th at 5:30 PM.

African American Appalachian Arts, Inc., (AAAA, Inc.) at the Downtown African American Gallery will be hosting a First Friday Open House and Radio Listening Party. In honor of Jazz Appreciation Month during April, the Downtown African American Gallery will be presenting a Visual Exhibition of local visual and performing artists, Kelle Jolly and Emily Mathis. AAAA will also host a listening party to celebrate the debut of WUOT’s newest radio show, Jazz Jam with Kelle Jolly. Guests will be able to listen to the show while viewing the artwork in the studio.

Jazz Jam with Kelle Jolly celebrates great, classic and contemporary voices of jazz. The Jazz Jam with Kelle Jolly is an hour long show that includes recordings, live performances and interviews of local, national, and international artists on the jazz scene.

On April 30th, 2013, Mayor Madeline Rogero recognized April as Jazz Appreciation Month and April 30th as Jazz Day in Knoxville to celebrate the important cultural, social and even economic contribution that jazz makes to the Knoxville community.

African American Appalachian Arts: 100 S. Gay Street, Suite 106, Knoxville, TN 37902. 865-217-6786, downtownafricanamericanart@gmail.com

As one of the Dogwood Arts Festival’s featured exhibits, NEXUS, showcases national and international artists working in contemporary sculpture and 3D media. Indoor sculptures comprising all styles and genres from emerging and established artists will be selected by esteemed professor, Laticia Bajuyo, for exhibition at the University of Tennessee’s Downtown Gallery. Leticia R. Bajuyo is an Associate Professor of Art and Hanover College in southern Indiana. In 1998 she received her BFA in Sculpture from the University of Notre Dame, and in 2001 she earned her MFA in Sculpture from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Leticia grew up in the Midwest and draws much of her inspiration from her experiences living there. More specifically, growing up in a multicultural surrounding helped her to develop her style of blending dissimilar materials in her pieces. She constantly strives to learn new and inventive ways of creating.

Leticia Bajuyo maintains an impressive resume with many exhibitions in various categories including solo, outdoor, two- and three-person, and group. She has given numerous lectures and panel talks. Additionally, she has penned several articles, weblogs, and publications and has been the recipient of many honors and grants including receiving the Hanover College Faculty Development Major Grant three times. Most recently, she worked on a two- and three-person exhibition entitled Singularities on display at the West Street Art Center in Madison, Indiana, and she is currently working on a solo exhibition due to be displayed at Myers South Gallery, Living Arts in Tulsa, Oklahoma in 2014 entitled Dual Wielding.

Where: U.T. Downtown Gallery, 106 South Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902
Times: Monday- Friday, 11:00 am – 6:00 pm; Saturday, 10:00 am-3:00 pm
Opening Reception: Friday, April 4, 5:00 – 9:00 pm
Award Ceremony: Friday, April 4, 6:30 pm

Dogwood Arts Festival: 865-637-4561 www.dogwoodarts.com