Calendar of Events

Peppered Paper by Lesley Eaton - Painted paper collage, dinosaurs, crustaceans, flowers, and more. https://www.etsy.com/shop/PepperedPaper
Distinctive Gourds by Marty McConnaughey - https://www.distinctivegourds.com/

Westminister Presbyterian Church, 6500 S Northshore Dr, Knoxville, TN 37919. Hours: M-F 9-4. Info: (865) 584-3957 or www.wpcknox.org

Once again Tomato Head walls shimmer with the many-hued and luminous paintings of Jessica Payne. One of our favorite local artists, Jessica’s work fills the space with vivid color and imagery that excites the eyes and provokes conversation. One of her favorite memories is when, “I was eating at the downtown Tomato Head during one of my exhibits a few years ago, and I saw a family in the middle of the room looking around and discussing my paintings. At one point a little girl, maybe 8 or 9 years old, went up to look closer and immediately turned around and with a frown said, ‘Mommy it’s already sold.’”

Jessica grew up in Knoxville as the youngest of six in a long line of artists, and drawing and painting were hobbies that she came by naturally – both her father and grandmother spent their free time putting color on canvas. But while she took art classes and thought at times that her career might veer toward the arts, it was only after she took a degree in Social Work and Women’s studies and started a path to law school that she felt a tug to a more creative vocation. It was in the week of her 25th birthday while she sat outdoors when she committed to a different way of life: “I spent my birthday weekend sitting and observing so many beautiful things that had been around me for a long time. I felt an intuitive pull to change my life in a drastic way.” Promptly thereafter, Jessica joined Americorps where her urge to create found expression in the earth as she worked to help establish Beardsley Farm; later the same urge would lead her to study cooking, until finally through a variety of online courses and her own drive, she found both an approach and technique for painting that helped unlock her artistic life.

She says: “A huge thing I learned from artist Flora Bowley, after taking her online course Brave Intuitive Painting, is to keep painting until something works.” This approach helps keep Jesssica’s creative energy in flow, and it works in conjunction with her technique of layering. Jessica’s technique results in vibrant and multi-faceted imagery that contains the genuine chaos of natural creativity that, she says, eventually evolves into order. One of the most fun aspects of Jessica’s art is that her paintings often shine. The color, the variety of imagery, not to mention the playful use of glitter and mica, give our featured artist’s work a liveliness that almost leaps from the walls in a joyful celebration of the beauty that surrounds us and lives inside us, too. Don’t let it pass you by.

On view at the downtown Knoxville Tomato Head on Market Square through August 3rd.

Tomato Head, 12 Market Square (865-637-4067) and 7240 Kingston Pike, Suite 172 (865-584-1075), in Knoxville. http://thetomatohead.com

Sweet P’s hosts monthly Taste ’n’ Toast fundraisers at the Downtown Dive, offering guests a chance to have a good time and support a good cause. This month, the Taste ’n’ Toast will support The Joy of Music School, an organization that provides free weekly music lessons to underserved children in the community. Each $15 plate includes an entrée, sides and beer pairing with $5 of every specially created dinner donated to The Joy of Music School.

This month’s menu features smoked watermelon with chipotle honey chicken and street corn relish topped with cotija cheese. Bell’s Brewery will sponsor beer pairings for the meal. This month’s pairing will be Bell’s Oberon Ale. Sweet P’s also will match the amount raised at the event for an additional donation to The Joy of Music School.

Location: 410 W. Jackson Avenue, Sweet P's Downtown Dive, TN
Price: $15. https://www.visitknoxville.com/event/taste-n-toast/6347/

Wednesday, July 19, 8:00PM at the Bijou Theatre.
Australian singer-songwriter Kasey Chambers embarks on the US leg of her international tour in support of her eleventh studio album Dragonfly.
The album debuted in Australia at #1 on the ARIA Albums Chart as well as being #1 on the ARIA Top 50 digital albums, Top 40 Country Albums, Top 20 Australian Artist Albums and Top 20 Australian Artist Country Albums. The album’s official U.S. release is set for later this spring.
Dragonfly, her acclaimed double album and follow up to 2014’s Bittersweet, features special guests Keith Urban, Ed Sheeran, Paul Kelly, Grizzlee Train, Harry Hookey, Vika and Linda Bull, and Foy Vance. The first disc of Dragonfly was produced by ARIA Hall of Famer Paul Kelly at The Sing Sing Sessions, while the second was produced by Chambers’ brother Nash Chambers at The Foggy Mountain Sessions.

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

The Art Gallery at Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church (ORUUC) will present an exhibit of the work of Kathy Holland from July through September 8. A gallery opening talk and artist reception will be hosted at the church on Sunday July 16, at 12:30 p.m. The public is invited.

ORUUC is located at 809 Oak Ridge Turnpike in Oak Ridge. Admission to the gallery is free and open to the public Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. For artists interested in a showing contact Nancy Starr at starroakridge@gmail.com or call 865-483-8684.

Opening reception on Fri Jul 14, 6:30-8:00 PM. Free and open to the public. Judged by Dr. Chad Airhart, Carson Newman.

Exhibit viewing hours: Tu, Th 9-5; W, F 10-5; Sat 9-1. Fountain City Art Center, 213 Hotel Ave, Knoxville, TN 37918. Information: 865-357-2787, www.fountaincityartcenter.com

The Ewing Gallery is pleased to present an exhibition of recently acquired works from our permanent collection. All works on exhibit were collected between 2015 and 2017.

The Ewing Gallery will be having abbreviated summer hours. The gallery will be open Monday - Thursday: 12-4PM and Sunday: 1-4.

Ewing Gallery, 1715 Volunteer Blvd on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-3200, www.ewing-gallery.utk.edu

Exhibiting works by new Artists-in-Residence – Xia Zhang, Paige Ward, Elyse Krista-Mische, Emily Culver, and Max Adrian. The Artists-in-Residence Program provides early career, self-directed artists time, space and support to experiment and develop a new body of work in a creative community environment. Each year, five artists of different media are selected for the eleven-month program, which begins mid-June and continues through late May of the following year. Participants receive exhibition opportunities, teaching experience, professional development and a private studio. Showcasing work in a range of media including ceramics, fiber, mixed media, drawing, and installation, the exhibit introduces work by Arrowmont’s five Artists-in-Residence as they begin their 11-month residency. The exhibit is on view in the Geoffrey A. Wolpert Gallery.

+ Xia Zhang is a multi-media artist creating work centered on the vessel. She received her MFA from West Virginia University in 2015 and her BA from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. Xia works with ceramics, sculpture, photo, video and performance to examine colonialism, femininity, and memory. www.xiayzhang.com
+ Paige Ward is a ceramic and sculpture artist. She recently received her MFA from The University of Florida in Gainesville in 2017 and her BA from Union University in Jackson, TN. Utilizing sculptural media, Paige is inspired by philosophy, personal narrative, religion, and faith as she questions concepts of security. www.paigeward.com
+ Elyse Krista-Mische received her BA from Lawrence University in Appleton, WI with an emphasis in printmaking, drawing, and ceramics. Her work lives between make believe and reality and investigates time, wealth, memory and consciousness. She translates two-dimensional drawings and tapestries into three-dimensional performance pieces. www.lifepropaganda.com
+ Emily Culver is a multimedia jeweler. She recently received her MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in 2017 and her BFA from Tyler School of Art, Temple University in 2012. Ranging from body-sized sculptures to hand-held objects, Emily’s work examines the relationship between object and body. www.emily-culver.com
+ Max Adrian is a fiber artist creating three-dimensional sculptural forms. He graduated with his BFA in Fiber and Creative Writing from the Kansas City Art Institute. Using sculptural quilting, Max creates objects centered around nightlife, identity, performance, and storytelling. http://www.maxadrian.com/

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738. Gallery hours are Monday – Friday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm and Saturday and Sunday 10:00 am – 4:00 pm. Information: 865-436-5860, www.arrowmont.org

The public is invited to an Art Opening and Reception featuring photographs by Knoxville photographer Emily Brewer. The event will be held on First Friday, July 7 from 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm at the newly named White Oak Gallery located inside Magpies Bakery at 846 North Central Street. The event is free, artwork and prints will be for sale, and refreshments will be served.

Knoxville Based photographer Emily Brewer practices portraiture and printmaking as a way to relate to her surroundings and relationships. Her film photographs will be on display through August 29 and will include platinum prints, silver gelatin prints, optical color prints, and Polaroid emulsion transfers. All work is for sale.

White Oak Gallery, located inside Magpies Bakery, is generously made available by owner Peg Hambright and managed by Knoxville artist Beth Meadows of With Bear Hands. Meadows' artwork is always on display, and a different Knoxville artist is featured every other month. The public is invited to visit the gallery any time during Magpies' business hours and to consider buying artwork and/or cupcakes while there.

MON. 10-4, TUES.-FRI. 10-5:30, SAT. 10-4 | SUN. CLOSED
For more information, visit withbearhands.com/gallery or contact beth@bethmeadows.com.

First Friday reception from 6-9 PM

Harry Underwood is a self taught painter living in Nashville Tennessee. He began painting pictures fifteen years ago while working as a flooring installer in Nashville. He was born during 1969 in Miami Florida, and raised in the rural "Redlands" farming area near Homestead. His father was a Carpenter and his mother worked at a Supermarket. He has one sister. With his family he attended the Church of God pentecostal church until 1982. As a teenager he cleaned swimming pools at many of the Motels in the area and bussed tables at the Capri Italian Restaurant in Florida City. Uprooted by Hurricane Andrew in 1992 he lived in New Orleans and Austin, eventually settling in Nashville where he worked in the construction industry until 2005. His artwork has been shown by galleries in United States, France and England. http://artbyharry.weebly.com/

RALA, 112 W. Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-525-7888, https://shoprala.com/

A reception will take place on Friday, July 7, from 5:00-9:00 PM as part of First Friday activities downtown to which the public is invited to meet the artists and view the artwork. Most of the works are for sale and may be purchased through the close of the exhibition.

The Arts & Culture Alliance is pleased to present the fifth annual Knoxville Photo, an exhibition featuring selected works from 37 artists throughout the region. Knoxville Photo was developed to provide a forum for photographers to compete on a national scale and display their work. The exhibition encompasses photographs depicting all subjects and genres, including streetscapes, cityscapes, landscapes, environmental portraiture, portraits, abstracts, and more. Baldwin Lee served as juror for the exhibition and viewed images from 107 artists to select the exhibition. For more information, please visit http://www.knoxalliance.com/knoxville-photo/.

On display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Information: (865) 523-7543 or www.knoxalliance.com.

A reception will take place on Friday, July 7, from 5:00-9:00 PM as part of First Friday activities downtown to which the public is invited to meet the artists and view the artwork. Most of the works are for sale and may be purchased through the close of the exhibition.

The Vacuum Shop Studios (VSS) was founded in January 2013 between the Old North Knoxville and 4th & Gill neighborhoods. Occupying the former location of a vacuum repair shop at 1326 N. Broadway, VSS is a collaborative work space for artists. While the space is primarily used as private artist studios, VSS opens their doors to the public three times a year for open studio nights annually on First Fridays in February, May, and October. VSS has exhibited at Bagwell Gallery (Pellissippi State Community College) and Catron Gallery (Walters State Community College). The exhibition at the Emporium Center marks VSS’s third group exhibition. The Vacuum Shop Studios were voted "Top Artists Workshop/Studio" in the Knoxville Mercury's "Top Knox 2015 Reader's Poll."

Currently, VSS houses eight artists: Eleanor Aldrich, Heather Hartman, Kelly Hider, Ashton Ludden, Erin Mullenex, Chelsie Nunn, Deborah Rule, and Jessie Van der Laan. The exhibition will include works by these artists in a variety of media such as painting, collage, mixed media, printmaking, and fiber work. For more information, please visit https://vacuumshopstudios.wordpress.com/.

On display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Information: (865) 523-7543 or www.knoxalliance.com.