Calendar of Events

From domesticated cats to mythic symbols of divinities, felines played an important role in ancient Egyptian imagery for thousands of years. Now, 80 items from the Egyptian holdings of the Brooklyn Museum will be on view in "Divine Felines". Likely first domesticated in ancient Egypt, cats were revered for their fertility and valued for their ability to protect homes and granaries from vermin. But felines were also associated with royalty and deities. Combining a lion's body and a king's head, sphinxes guarded temple entrances and provided protection as temple objects. The ferocious goddess Sakhmet, depicted as a lioness or lion-headed woman, and the goddess Bastet, represented as a cat or a cat-headed woman, together symbolized the duality of feline nature — caring yet dangerous. The male leonine gods Bes and Tutu were popularly worshiped as protectors of fertility, health and fortune.

Exhibition programming, all free and open to the public, also will include:
• A lecture on mummification in ancient Egypt by scholar Bob Brier, co-sponsored by the East Tennessee Society of the Archaeological Institute of America, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 21.
• Two free family fun days—"Purrs from the Past," 1–4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 25, and "To Kitties' Health," 1¬–4 p.m. Saturday, March 25.
• A stroller tour for caregivers and infants through four-year-olds, "Kitties and Toddlers," at 10 a.m. Monday, Feb. 27.
• A lecture on cat behavior by Julie Albright from UT's School of Veterinary Medicine at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 19.

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Dr on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Hours: Monday-Saturday, 9AM-5PM, Sunday, 1-5PM. Information: 865-974-2144, http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu

The Knoxville Museum of Art announces a new contemporary exhibition, Outside In, by Jered Sprecher. Sprecher lives in Knoxville and is a professor with the University of Tennessee’s School of Art. He enjoys a growing national reputation as one of the leading representative of a generation of contemporary painters dedicated to the exploration and revitalization of abstraction. He describes himself as a “hunter and gatherer,” pulling his imagery from such disparate sources as wallpaper, graffiti, architecture, cut gemstones, and x-rays.

Preview reception: January 26, 5:30-7:30 PM

Outside In reflects the dynamic range of Sprecher’s recent practice in terms of format, scale, imagery, and process. It also includes several new works configured in a provocatively informal manner designed to reference a space that is central to human domestic life since the dawn of time: the living room. The Study (2013), for instance, depicts an abstracted frontal view of a fireplace entrance defined in broad horizontal strokes in an icy palette that presents the original image in a strange new light. The painting reflects the artist’s examination of parallels between ancient domestic traditions in which the fireplace was a mesmerizing light environment that in contemporary life has been replaced by the ubiquitous digital screen.

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 Farragut Museum has unveiled its next special exhibit, "Fashionably Late." This exhibit features a variety of clothing and accessories that are in the Farragut Museum Collection and two items on loan from Farragut Museum committee members. All of these items are indicative of fashions that would have been worn in this area.

One of the highlights of the exhibit is an original John Pico John (Mr. John) hat on loan from Museum committee member Carolyn Sinclair. John's clients included female fashion icons like the Duchess of Windsor, Gloria Vanderbilt, Lauren Bacall and Joan Crawford. Vivien Leigh wore one of his creations in "Gone With the Wind," as did Marilyn Monroe in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes."

The Farragut 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 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.

With the love of art and entertainment it's no wonder that a bottle or two of wine would get involved to create Wine and Canvas! Awesome local artists, great customer service and beautiful surroundings make for an amazing experience that you don't find anywhere else. Sipping your favorite wine or cocktail, letting your inner artist out to create a masterpiece and maybe breaking into song throughout the night is what we have planned for you! Leave your cares at the door and dive in to the paint party! Best part - you take your artwork with you and leave the clean up behind! Local artists in each city inspire and Instruct Wine and Canvas customers step-by-step to create their finished masterpiece. Each location hosts many events monthly with a different featured painting each night. With our step-by-step instruction method customers without a stroke of painting experience are at ease.

Upcoming events:

$35 per session (unless otherwise noted). Wine & Canvas: Knoxville, TN, 865-356-9179, http://www.wineandcanvas.com/knoxville-tn.html

WDVX’s Katie Cauthen and guest hosts celebrate East Tennessee’s musical and broadcasting heritage by featuring top-notch musicians from near and far, interviews, spoken-word artists, and other surprises.

Join WDVX for Tennessee Shines Radio Show live at 7 PM every Wednesday night from Boyd's Jig & Reel in the Old City. The radio broadcast is 7-8pm, but the live music continues on until 8:30pm at Boyd's. Calendar of performers: https://wdvx.com/calendar/category/tennessee-shines/

Tickets are $10, $5 with a student ID at the Boyd's Jig and Reel door or on online. Boyd’s Jig and Reel, 101 S. Central St, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-544-1029, www.wdvx.com

The Marble City 5 will have a new day and time for their weekly performances at the Red Piano Lounge. The group will now perform every Wednesday from 6 to 8pm. Keith Brown's Groove Therapy will continue to perform on Wednesdays but will start a little later, playing from 8:30 to 10:30pm. As always, there is no cover charge for either group. Hope to see you there soon!

4620 Kingston Pike. Free admission & parking. Info from the Knoxville Jazz Orchestra: 865-573-3226, www.knoxjazz.org

The public opening of the exhibition begins at 4:30 p.m. on Friday, November 18, with light refreshments and remarks. Following the exhibition opening will be a special showing of “Quarry Project—Tennessee,” an exterior projection by artists Kate Katomski and Judd Mulkerin at 7:00 p.m. at the Knoxville Museum of Art.

East Tennessee marble is prized the world over. Rock of Ages: East Tennessee’s Marble Industry, a new exhibition by the East Tennessee Historical Society, offers a first-time look into the industry that launched the rock’s fame and crowned Knoxville as the Marble City.

The marble industry was once an important sector of East Tennessee’s economy. By the mid- 1850s, East Tennessee marble from Knox County had been chosen for the interiors of the Tennessee State Capitol and marble from Hawkins County was being installed inside the new House and Senate wings of the United States Capitol. In the decades that followed, East Tennessee’s varicolored marble was sought by architects and patrons for the interiors of a variety of public buildings: state capitol buildings, courthouses, city halls. Tennessee marble would soon also be ordered for high traffic railroad terminal flooring across the United States and Canada. The exhibition includes more than two dozen artifacts and numerous photographs and illustrations representative of Tennessee’s unique marble story.

East Tennessee Historical Society, 601 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Museum hours: M-F 9-4, Sa 10-4, Su 1-5. Information: 865-215-8824, www.easttnhistory.org

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