Calendar of Events

Steep Canyon Rangers will be taking the Bijou by storm on Wednesday, January 7th, 2015! The true bluegrass band won the Best Bluegrass Album Grammy Award for their 2012 album Nobody Knows You and was nominated for another Grammy in 2011 for their collaboration album with Steve Martin, whom they tour with frequently. Join the Steep Canyon Rangers with their guitar, banjo, mandolin, bass and fiddle this January for a foot-stompin’ show you won’t soon forget!

Bijou Theatre, 803 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information/tickets: 865-522-0832, www.knoxbijou.com, www.ticketmaster.com

Jason Thompson and Chad Volkers have developed quite a sound and quite a following playing at the Crown and Goose over the past few years. The group's instrumentation of baritone/bass saxophone, guitar, piano and drum set is unique, but it's the group's enthusiastic swing that has won so many fans. Sure to be a rompin', stompin', toe-tappin', knee-slappin' good time.

1st Wednesday of every month at the Square Room, 4 Market Square, next door to Tomato Head. $15 admission includes concert plus a delicious lunch served up by Cafe 4. Knoxville Jazz Orchestra: 865-573-3226, www.knoxjazz.org

Leapin’ Lizards! The world’s best-loved musical returns in time-honored form. Directed by original lyricist and director Martin Charnin and choreographed by Liza Gennaro, this production of ANNIE will be a brand new incarnation of the iconic original. Featuring book and score by Tony Award-winners Thomas Meehan, Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin, ANNIE includes such unforgettable songs as “It’s the Hard Knock Life,” “Easy Street,” “I Don’t Need Anything But You,” plus the eternal anthem of optimism, “Tomorrow.”

Tennessee Theatre, 604 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. For information/tickets: 865-684-1200, www.tennesseetheatre.com, www.ticketmaster.com

Eun-Sook Kim of Oak Ridge and Harriet Smith Howell of Rutledge will be featured artists for January in the Art Market Gallery’s historic space at 422 S. Gay St. The opening reception during downtown Knoxville’s traditional date for the First Friday Art Walk will begin at 5:30 p.m. on Jan. 2, with light refreshments and Bluegrass music performed live by Caring Committee.

Kim and Howell share certain attributes. While their styles and interpretations may differ, both are award winning versatile artists who look to nature for inspiration. They teach and conduct art workshops, have exhibited widely, and were juried into this cooperative in both two-dimensional and three-dimensional mediums, a feat accomplished by just a handful of current active members. For this exhibit, Eun-Sook Kim, who also works in clay, will be showing her paintings, and Harriet Howell, who also creates paintings, will show one-of-a-kind silk scarves as wearable art.

Eun-Sook Kim’s primary medium is ceramics, in which she has a MFA from the University of Tennessee, but this former gallery owner in Oak Ridge considers herself a painter first. “Through brushwork, I feel in harmony with nature,“ she says of her Chinese brushstroke watercolor paintings. “Like a speck in the landscape of a classical Chinese painting, I am infinitely small, yet essential in nature. Interweaving different strands from different cultures and countries, my art reflects the multicolored pattern of my life.” Kim’s works have been exhibited and collected regionally, nationally and internationally, particularly in Korea and Japan, where she has had educational collaborations. She is a supporter of the Knoxville Area Korean-American Association.

Harriet Howell, past president and signature member of the Tennessee Watercolor Society, uses color and movement to capture the images and emotional content of nature. “I’ve always loved fabrics, and used to make all of my own clothes,” she says. “Painting on scarves allows me to play with color and natural shapes and then turn the art into something wearable.” Starting with stretched silk, she uses brushes to apply successive layers of fabric dyes. Sometimes, a resist is used or a hand-cut stencil. Other times, the dye is applied wet-in-wet. Finished scarves are then steam set, washed, ironed, and sewn. This former Arrowmont instructor and longtime Howell Graphics owner earned a BFA in watercolor and graphic design from the University of Tennessee.

Art Market Gallery, 422 S. Gay St, Knoxville, TN 37902. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday 11AM-6PM, Sunday 1-5PM. Information: 865-525-5265, www.artmarketgallery.net

Bliss Home is pleased to present photographer, Phil Savage, for January's First Friday. Bliss Home, located at 29 Market Square, will host an opening reception on Friday, January 2nd, from 6pm to 9pm. Complimentary refreshments will be provided and Phil's art will be featured for the month of January.

Phil Savage was born in Mexico City and is a world-traveler, which has helped him hone his ability to "turn the ordinary into the extraordinary". Phil loves to explore the endless possibilities that photography has to offer, by embracing black and white panoramic photos with hand-tinted touches. Phil's First Friday exhibit aims to challenge viewers to rediscover the beauty and complexities that can be found all around Knoxville.

Bliss Home, 29 Market Square, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-329-8868, www.shopinbliss.com

The Oak Ridge International Folk Dancers meet on Wednesday evenings throughout the year to learn and enjoy folk dances from many countries around the world. The group was started over fifty years ago when the city of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, was first developed during World War II. Our dancers come from Oak Ridge, Knoxville and nearby towns. Visitors are always welcome. We do dances from the following countries and more: Romania, Bulgaria, England, Scotland, France, Hungary, Sweden, Norway, Ukraine, China, Israel, Germany, Ireland, Greece, Macedonia, Serbia, Russia, Mexico, Slovenia, Armenia, South Africa, Turkey, and Japan. Paul Taylor and other folk dancers in the group teach dances early in the evening; then we do request dancing.

At the Claxton Community Center near Oak Ridge and Knoxville. Info: www.OakRidgeFolkDancers.org or https://www.facebook.com/orfolkdancers

The Salvage Shop is a program of Knox Heritage, accepting donated historic building materials to prevent these valuable items from going to the landfill. These items are re-sold to benefit Knox Heritage. All donations are tax-deductible.

619 Broadway, Knoxville, TN 37917. Shop Hours: Wed-Fri 12-5pm, Sat 10am - 3pm. Information: 865-523-8008, www.knoxheritage.org

Historic Westwood was built as a “wedding promise” in 1890 by John Edwin Lutz and his wife, Ann Adelia Armstrong Lutz, on property owned by her grandfather, Drury P. Armstrong. The couple moved into the Queen Anne Victorian mansion from Adelia’s parents’ home, Bleak House, a short distance away on Kingston Pike. The Lutzes’ home, designed by notable architects Baumann Brothers, was constructed of brick and stone with a slate roof in the grand Richardsonian Romanesque style popular in the late 19th century and originally was surrounded by 12 acres. Four generations of the same family lived in the house between 1890 and 2012. The distinctive serpentine wall was constructed in 1933 for the wedding reception of Cecil Holloway, Adelia and John’s granddaughter, to Albert Matheny II, who were married at St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral.

Tours: Monday-Thursday, 10am-4pm or by appointment
Info: 865-523-8008, 3425 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37919. http://historicwestwood.org

Ramsey House was built in 1797 by Knoxville’s first builder, Thomas Hope, for Francis Alexander Ramsey. The structure is significant for original interior and exterior architectural features and its period decorative art collection. The Ramsey Family was one of the first families to settle the Knoxville area. They played vital roles in developing civic, educational and cultural institutions. Colonel Francis A. Ramsey was one of the founding trustees of Blount College, now the University of Tennessee. One of his sons, Dr. J.G.M. Ramsey authored an early history of the state, The Annals of Tennessee. Another son, William B.A. Ramsey, was the first elected mayor of Knoxville.

Tours: Wednesday-Saturday, 10:00am to 4:00pm (last tour at 3:00pm)
Info: 865-546-0745, 2614 Thorngrove Pike, Knoxville, TN 37914. www.ramseyhouse.org

The Mabry-Hazen House Museum, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is located on six acres atop Mabry’s Hill in Knoxville,TN. Built in 1858 and housing three generations of the same family from 1858-1987, the Mabry-Hazen House served as headquarters for both Union and Confederate forces during the Civil War. This stately, elegant home of the Victorian and Civil War periods showcases one of the largest original family collection in America. Containing original artifacts including china, silver, crystal, and antique furnishings, this home is a rare view into the past. The Civil War, a gunfight on Gay Street in 1882, and a Breach of Promise lawsuit in the early 1930’s are only a few stories that bring life and color to those who visit the museum.

Tours: Monday-Friday: 11am – 5pm; Saturday: 10am – 3pm (or by appointment)
Info: 865-522-8661, 1711 Dandridge Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37915. www.mabryhazen.com

Located on Bethel Avenue and down the road from the Mabry-Hazen House, the Bethel Cemetery contains more than 1,600 Confederate dead, including roughly one hundred who were killed in the battle of Fort Sanders. In addition, around 50 “Union Men” and 20 Civil War veterans are interred here. The monument to the Confederate dead was erected by the Ladies Memorial Association and was unveiled on May 19, 1892. The cemetery was cared for and maintained by the Winstead family from 1886-1989. The last family descendent and caretaker, Miss Mamie Winstead, willed the cemetery to the Hazen Historical Museum Foundation in 1989. Meeting her wishes, the Foundation recently opened a small museum which details the history of the cemetery as it pertains to the Civil War in Knoxville.

Tours: Saturday: 10am-3pm or by appointment
Info: 865-522-8661, 1917 Bethel Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37915.

Marble Springs State Historic Site is the last remaining home of John Sevier. Born in Virginia in 1745, John Sevier made a name for himself as a Revolutionary War Hero during the Battle of Kings Mountain (1780), a key player & Governor of the short-lived State of Franklin (1784-1788), and ultimately was elected to serve as the first Governor of the State of Tennessee (1796). Marble Springs was the approximate 350 acre farm that Sevier lived on from 1801-1815, the last years of his life. Sevier named his farm Marble Springs because of the Tennessee Rose Marble that was quarried on site and the natural springs that flowed on the property. While visiting Marble Springs, you will have the opportunity to tour several historic structures that are designed to represent various aspects of John Sevier’s life & times. These structures include: The Tavern, The Loom House, The Smoke House, The Spring House & the John Sevier Cabin and detached kitchen.

Tours: Wednesday – Saturday, 10:00am to 5:00pm and Sunday, 12:00pm to 5:00pm (or by appointment)
Info: 865-573-5508, 1220 West Gov. John Sevier Highway Knoxville, TN 37920. www.marblesprings.net

James White, The Founder of Knoxville, came here in 1783 from North Carolina. Having served as a Captain in the Revolutionary War he was given a land grant of 1,000 acres for his service and here he built his two story log house in 1786. Two years later he enclosed the house and outbuildings with a stockade fence for protection from marauding Indians and the wild animals. James White was a friend to the Cherokee Indians and he assisted in the negotiation of several of their treaties with the settlers. The area surrounding the Fort would have been cleared of trees and in their place were gardens along with orchards and fields of corn and tobacco mostly for White’s family and slaves use. In October 1791, James White laid off part of his land to establish the town of Knoxville, named for Henry Knox, Secretary of War under President Washington’s. The town at first was the Capital of the Territory South of the River Ohio and later became the first Capital of the State of Tennessee in 1796.

Tours: (April – November) Monday – Saturday: 9:30 am – 5:00 pm
(December – March) Monday – Friday: 10 am – 4 pm
Phone: 865-525-6514. Address: 205 Hill Avenue SE, Knoxville, TN 37915. Website: www.jameswhitesfort.org