Calendar of Events

By: Craig Lucas

A long running Off-Broadway hit by the playwright of Reckless and God's Heart.

A portrait of loneliness in one of the world's most densely populated cities. Libby, for her own private reasons, has invited six disparate friends to her apartment in New York for dinner and drinks. As their conversations drift, they begin to open up to one another...but how do you really know anyone?

Lab Theatre, 1714 Andy Holt Ave on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. For information: 865-974-5161, www.clarencebrowntheatre.com. For tickets: 865-974-5161, 865-656-4444, www.knoxvilletickets.com

Photographers of all ages – amateur and professional – share their vision of “sanctuary” in this first annual photography exhibition. Participants were asked to consider the definition of sanctuary: “a place of refuge or safety; a sacred place” and what that means to them…Where is your sanctuary? Is it a feeling? Is it a memory? Is it real? Is it imagined?

Over 20 photos are in the exhibition which runs through January 2018. An opening reception will be held on Thursday, October 19 from 6:00-7:30pm. The restaurant will remain open during the reception.

Sanctuary Vegan Café is located at 151 N. Seven Oaks Dr, Knoxville, TN 37922. Contact: Jody Sims, curator, 619-210-4587 or jody@jodysims.com

In the GEOFFREY A. WOLPERT GALLERY

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

Opening Reception: Thursday, November 2, 2-5 pm

Inexteriors is a series of paintings by artist Marcia Santore that address ideas of impossible architectural spaces. The series has developed over a number of years and has been inspired by visions of windows through doorways through windows, the patterns of light in interior spaces created by seen or unseen openings, indeterminate interior and exterior spaces, unknown houses seen from within and without, mysterious stairways and hallways and hidden rooms, figures that inhabit (haunt?) those spaces, and the potential for these spaces to tell or conceal multiple, unfolding stories. Some of these paintings are in oil and others in acrylic. Some include collaged elements such as recycled paper.

“As someone who has moved many times, both as a child and as an adult, houses have multiple meanings for me—they are places full of mystery and possibility, suggestive of many potential futures or outcomes.”
—Marcia Santore

A portion of the proceeds of sales from this exhibition will be donated to the Oak Ridge Art Center. www.marciasantore.com

O'Brien Art Gallery, Roane State Community College, 276 Patton Lane, Harriman, TN 37748

Flying Anvil Theatre presents a haunting tale of desire and obsession. Something dark and irresistible lives deep in the woods of Appalachia in The Love Talker by Deborah Pryor. Gowdie and Bun are orphaned sisters haunted by a mysterious presence that lured their mother away when they were very young. While Gowdie is tempted to follow the siren call of the Love Talker, her sister will do anything to save her, including sacrificing herself.

Based on an Irish folk tale, The Love Talker is an eerie, sensual play—set in a world where strange spirits walk the earth and magic is all around—recalling the darkest of Grimm’s' fairy tales. The play was originally produced at Actors Theatre of Louisville and published in an anthology, where director Jayne Morgan first read it.

“I’ve been wanting to do this play for about 30 years,” Morgan says. “It’s familiar because we know these lovely accents and the wild beauty of the forest. But it also taps into our primeval fear of the dark, of losing control. This show will seduce and unsettle you and make you examine your own obsessions and secrets.” Morgan says she has found strong actors to bring this haunting tale to life. The play reunites the two leads from an earlier Flying Anvil show, Venus in Fur—Carolyn Corley and JD Sizemore. Younger sister Gowdie is played by UT theatre student Emily Cullum, and Margy Ragsdale is the malignant spirit, the Redhead.

The production marks the theatre’s first use of an upgraded lighting system. The show is recommended for adults.

Performances are Wed-Sat at 7:30 PM and Sun at 2 PM.

Flying Anvil Theatre, 1300 Rocky Hill Road, Knoxville. Information: 865-357-1309, www.flyinganviltheatre.com

Read and discuss Emily St. John Mandel's bestselling novel Station Eleven with the entire community

When a community reads a book together, neighbors are inspired to be more empathetic, more aware, and more engaged. We are pleased to partner with more than 20 community agenices to share Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel with you. Join us for dozens of programs that explore Station Eleven and its themes.

Take the Station Eleven creative response challenge. Read the book, imagine you were there, and respond with a creation of your own—be it a poem, a painting or a video. You could win a prize, but you're guaranteed the satisfaction of trying.

Most events are free and open to the public, but a few require reservations (link is external). http://www.knoxlib.org/calendar-programs/programs-and-partnerships/big-read-2017

The work of Asheville artist, Kathryn Gunn is a vibrant collection of color, light and reflection that comes from an intuitive place where music and mindfulness mingle with canvas, acrylic, and curiosity. Gunn only recently started painting – in fact, until last year, she thought that she couldn’t: “I have always been a lover of art and when I was younger I pursued a career in Art history, but never believed that I could be an artist.”

But when she salvaged the remains of a children’s tempura paint set, Gunn’s artistic interest started her on a path that would lead to art shows and juried events across the southeast even though the beginning of the journey was a very, very private affair that included only one set of eyes: her own.

“I took [the children’s’ paints] home with me. I just loved mixing colors. I would hide in my basement and paint on cardboard so I could throw them away as soon as I was finished and no one would ever look at anything I did.” And even when a friend lured her to a live model drawing event with a promise that the event had “really chill music and you get to drink wine,” Gunn only agreed to attend when she was assured that no one would actually see what she had drawn. The event proved to be much more than a pleasant afternoon of wine and song because when her drawing turned out to actually look like the model Gunn was moved to continue to explore her artistic side. Her subsequent experiments with drawing led to more painting and more work with color and form.

Gunn’s approach remains intuitive – she adds color based on a sense of what’s missing and remains open in terms of style and subject style. “I’m not sure that I’ve found my niche, and maybe never will as I find the next style and go ‘I want to try that out!’”

But her work is certainly informed by nature – in landscapes and even in her abstract and “Flow” works, the colors might leap from the flowers and vistas of the Appalachian Mountains. But more than that, Gunn’s work reflects a peaceful beauty, one that’s attune to her creative process. When she works, Gunn is absorbed by the present, because, she says, “When I’m painting, I lose myself in the work, lose track of time, forget to eat, completely absorbed, I don’t even know that I am sore from standing for hours and hours until I am finished. There is really no separation between me and the painting.”

You can get lost in Gunn’s paintings, too at the downtown Market Square Tomato Head through October 1st. She will then hang at the West Knoxville Tomato Head from October 3rd through November 6th.

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

For thousands of years Northwest Coast Indians including the Coast Salish, Haida, Kwakwa̱ka̱’wakw, Makah, Nuu-chah-nulth, and Tlingit peoples represented in this exhibition, have made art expressing their cultural norms and values with precision, clarity, and artistic exuberance. Using indigenous and trade materials obtained in their homes along the coast of Oregon and north to Alaska, Northwest coast peoples mark elaborate ceremonial life, social rank, and prestige through their objects and art.

This exhibition explores Northwest Coast art through over 60 objects made by known and unknown artists, representing traditional and modern forms of cultural expression. From model totem poles and bentwood boxes, to spoons, prints, and silver bracelets, these objects were created for different purposes––utilitarian, decorative, and ceremonial. What all of them share in common is the desire to preserve and perpetuate Northwest Coast cultural heritage and community.

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

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts invites you to attend our latest exhibit entitled Of the Earth: Selections from Arrowmont’s Permanent Collection.” The exhibit opens in the Sandra J. Blain Gallery September 1 and will run through December 9. Admission is free.

Works included in Of the Earth reflect a range of themes including nature, human emotion and the passage of time. Some of the pieces display overcoming struggle while others focus on hope. The earth tones and scorched surfaces found in many of the wood and ceramic pieces tie the show together. Arrowmont’s permanent collection is made up of pieces that were made by current and past artists-in-residence, instructors, national and international artists - all of the pieces and their creators have ties to Arrowmont and are part of the school’s history. This is the second large-scale curated exhibition utilizing works from Arrowmont’s permanent collection that Kelly Hider, Arrowmont’s Gallery Manager, has created, the first being Pieces of the Whole, in 2015.

The permanent collection includes nearly 1,000 works in a variety of arts and crafts media, including fiber, ceramics, wood, metals, and mixed media work. Made by the hands of current and past Arrowmont instructors, individuals from the settlement school’s days, and past artists-in- residence, the works represent the arts and craft school’s history, present, and future. “Arrowmont’s permanent collection encompasses such a diverse range of work,” Hider said. “It’s an impressive collection.”

The Sandra J. Blain Gallery is located at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Parkway in Gatlinburg, and is open Monday-Friday 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Saturday 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM. It is closed on Sunday. The gallery serves as an educational resource, enabling students and visitors to learn about various media and techniques.

Drawn from the extensive collection of the Reading Public Museum, this vibrant exhibition examines the key role played by artists’ colonies in the development of American Impressionism. It features more than 50 paintings and works on paper by Frank W. Benson, Mary Cassatt, William Merritt Chase, Childe Hassam, Ernest Lawson, William Paxton, Robert Reid, Chauncey Ryder, John Twachtman, Julian Alden Weir, and many others.

Many of the nationally prominent artists represented in this exhibition have ties to East Tennessee and the KMA’s ongoing display Higher Ground: A Century of the Visual Arts in East Tennessee. More than a dozen participated in large art exhibitions held in conjunction with Knoxville’s 1910 and 1911 Appalachian Expositions, and the 1913 National Conservation Exposition. Their paintings appeared alongside those of several East Tennessee artists represented in Higher Ground, such as Catherine Wiley, Lloyd Branson, Adelia Lutz, Charles Krutch, and Hugh Tyler, to name a few. These sprawling and ambitious exhibitions were designed with the goal of bringing the “best contemporary art in America” to people of the region. The displays highlighted art currents of the day, and allowed East Tennessee artists to demonstrate their proficiency in a national context.

Among other ties, John F. Carlson served as a juror for the 1913 Expo art exhibition along with Knoxville impressionist painter Catherine Wiley. Robert Reid was one of Wiley’s art instructors during her studies in New York, and Mary Cassatt’s intimate domestic scenes inspired Wiley’s career-long interest in depicting women and children. As a result of these and other connections, this exhibition offers a broader national lens through which viewers can assess the work of Wiley, Branson, Lutz, Krutch, Tyler and other Higher Ground artists who also experimented with Impressionism.

Organized by the Reading Public Museum, Pennsylvania. The museum is holding an opening reception Thursday, August 10 from 5:30 to 7:30pm. This event is free and open to the public.

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

Stories in Stitches: Quilts from the East Tennessee Historical Society’s Permanent Collection

East Tennessee families treasure quilts made by their ancestors. Besides warming and decorating the bed, quilts also serve as reminders of important events—births, weddings, service to our country, the death of loved ones. Often, these memories are preserved in notes attached to the quilts or through stories handed down to younger generations. Sometimes notes are lost and memories fade, leaving families with a "mystery quilt." Did Grandma Jones or Granny Smith make this quilt? Or, was it Aunt Jane? When did she make it? Why did she choose this pattern? What caused this stain or that tear? These are some of the mysteries that quilt historians try to address through genealogical research and technical analysis.

From histories handed down to mysteries that remain, the new feature exhibition at the Museum of East Tennessee History provides visitors the opportunity to learn the "stories in stitches" from the quilts that have been entrusted to the East Tennessee Historical Society. Stories in Stitches features more than two dozen quilts with dates ranging from c. 1820 to 2001. The exhibition will be on display in the Rogers-Claussen Feature Gallery of the East Tennessee History Center from August 7, 2017 - January 2, 2018. Stories in Stitches is dedicated to Linda Claussen and Ginny Rogers for their years of service and support of the East Tennessee Historical Society’s quilt collection.

When the East Tennessee Historical Society was founded in 1834, early collection efforts focused on books and manuscripts. In more recent decades, objects began to be added, and the idea of displaying them in a museum grew. The ETHS Permanent Collection acquired its first quilt in 1992, one year before the Museum of East Tennessee History opened on the first floor of the renovated Customs House. Now a part of the expanded East Tennessee History Center, the museum and its collection includes more than 100 quilts. The ETHS Permanent Collection focuses on quilts made or used in one of East Tennessee’s 35 counties. An acquisitions committee reviews potential additions, evaluating the quilt’s history, condition, and importance to the collection as a whole. Some quilts are displayed in the museum’s signature exhibition, Voices of the Land: The People of East Tennessee. Others are cared for in climate-controlled storage and are brought out for special events or exhibitions like this one. The exhibition highlights more than two dozen quilts in a variety of fabrics, and patterns, and highlights some of the families who have made and cherished them. Patterns include everything from Rose of Sharon and “Knoxville Crazy Quilt” to a Civil War memory quilt and one pieced together out of clothing labels. The quilters range from John Sevier’s wife Bonny Kate to the Smoky Mountain Quilters of Tennessee.

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

Wednesdays from 11:00 am – 2:00 pm
Saturdays from 9:00 am – 2:00 pm
at Market Square, Knoxville, TN 37902

The Market Square Farmers’ Market is an open-air farmers’ market located on Market Square in the heart of downtown Knoxville. Everything at the MSFM is grown or made by the vendor in the East Tennessee region. Products vary by the seasons and include produce, eggs, honey, herbs, pasture-raised meat, bread, baked goods, salsas, coffee, artisan crafts, and more. With interactive fountains, delicious local food, and surrounded by shops and restaurants, the MSFM is a perfect family destination. https://nourishknoxville.org/markets/market-square-farmers-market/