Calendar of Events

Love is in the air. And it’s on our walls. It’s hanging there, mostly in bold colors, as a clear statement that photographer Ric Brooks loves music makers almost as much as he loves their music. For years, Brooks has been the official unofficial photographer of Big Ears. And it’s a role he loves. He’s a straightforward guy, I suspect he wouldn’t tell you any lies. So when he repeats that he isn’t a professional photographer, you believe that he believes it. Yet when you look at his work, you’ll recognize that he is a passionate shutterbug – which, in many ways, is exactly what you want for a festival that touches the very heart of passion.

His collection of work now hanging on our Market Square walls spans 2009 – 2017 and is mostly comprised of artists in action shots. Each one is a studied photo in its way. Brooks says, “I’m in the audience, listening, and I see a photograph that I want to take. Say, I see this look on the artist’s face, and I know I want to photograph it. I’ll have to take 3 or 4 just to get that expression. Lots of musicians will do certain things, make a move or something to get that high note; you know it – it’s what people call the guitar face. But you can see that happening in the song so you know it’s going to come back on the chorus or somewhere. I’m waiting for it. I know what photo I want.”

The exhibit represents just a fraction of his search for the images he likes and an extensive association with musicians. Brooks and Big Ears founder Ashley Capps have a long and continuous friendship that dates back to Kindergarten. When Capps started doing concerts at the Laurel Theatre way back when, Brooks was there with a camera and, sometimes, catering too. When Capps opened Ella Guru’s, Brooks was there, managing, taking tickets, and meeting, hearing and watching.

“Big Ears Big Eyes – Big Ears photos from 2009-2017”, an exhibit of photographs by Ric Brooks will be on view at the downtown Tomato Head on Market Square from March 5th thru April 1st. The exhibit will then be on view at the West Knoxville Gallery Tomato Head from April 3rd thru May 7th.

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

Stop by for local art that will put a smile on your face! March's exhibit features Gayla D. Seale's bright watercolor paintings and Mtn. Girl Design's adorable pebble collages. Both capture the charm and magic of everyday life.

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

Save the Date, March 5, 2018, Planned Giving Event

The McClung Museum is partnering with the University of Tennessee's Planned Giving Office to present "An Evening With Lark Mason." The event is open to those individuals who have already designated or are interested in learning more about designating the university and/or museum as a beneficiary of their estate.

Lark Mason and planned giving staff will share important information about making an estate gift that includes gifts of artwork or other such objects. In addition guests will have the opportunity to ask questions as well as enjoy a reception after the presentation.

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

March 5, 2018 at 12:00pm at the Historic Tennessee Theatre.
(Doors open at 11:30 AM) Enjoy Mighty Wurlitzer organ performances by Dr. Bill Snyder and Freddie Brabson and special guest, Farragut High School Band.

Brown bag lunches consisting of a sandwich, chips, and a dessert may be purchased in the lobby for $5.00 while supplies last. Soft drinks, bottled water, popcorn, and candy will also be available for purchase. Mighty Musical Monday is presented by LHP Capital, LLC.

For more information, contact the Tennessee Theatre's Clinch Avenue Box Office Monday-Friday 10am-5pm or Saturday 10am-2pm at 865-684-1200.
Tennessee Theatre, 604 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902.

On Monday, March 5, poet Erin Elizabeth Smith will read as part of UT's Writers in the Library reading series. Erin Elizabeth Smith is the Creative Director at the Sundress Academy for the Arts and the Managing Editor of Sundress Publications and The Wardrobe. She is the author of two full-length collections, The Naming of Strays (Gold Wake, 2011) and The Fear of Being Found (Three Candles, 2007). Her third collection, Down: The Alice Poems, will be released by Agape Editions in 2019.

Smith is the editor of two anthologies, Political Punch: Contemporary Poems on the Politics of Identity and Not Somewhere Else But Here: Contemporary Poems on Women and Place, and her poems have appeared in numerous journals, including Ecotone, Mid-American, Crab Orchard Review, Cimarron Review, and Willow Springs, among others. She holds a PhD in Creative Writing from the Center for Writers at the University of Southern Mississippi and teaches in the English Department at the University of Tennessee, where she is also the UT Libraries' Jack E. Reese Writer in Residence. In 2017, Erin Elizabeth Smith was inducted into the East Tennessee Writers Hall of Fame.

The reading begins at 7 p.m. in the Lindsay Young Auditorium of the John C. Hodges Library. The event is free and open to the public; all are encouraged to attend.

The mission of Writers in the Library is to "showcase the work of novelists, poets, and other literary craftsmen." Some of the best voices in contemporary literature are invited to read. The series is sponsored by the UT Libraries and the Creative Writing Program in association with the John C. Hodges Better English Fund.
www.lib.utk.edu/writers/

Paintings by Max Robinson, patchwork fabric art by Melissa Everett and screen painted fabrics and embroidery by Coral Turner.

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

Tiger Lily Theatre is thrilled to announce auditions for our annual production of original works: A Night of Shorts. Auditions will take place in the community room of the Emporium Building. To enter, come through the alley or to the side door. Don't worry. We'll put up signs.

Roles are available for all ages and types. Rehearsals begin March 12th and each piece typically rehearses once per week. Performances are April 26th - 29th. Bring any schedule conflicts with you to auditions. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. You can message us here or email us at tigerlilytheatretn@gmail.com

Come audition for 8 different plays all at once and be a part of our favorite tradition!

Sun 2-4 PM, Mon 6-8 PM, at the Emporium Center Annex, 100 S. Gay St
https://www.facebook.com/events/2003478556568510/

Join us on March 2, 5-9 PM for our second First Friday Art Show EVER in our newly updated gallery space! This month we're excited to be featuring the work of #Knoxville's Adam Pernell Deal!

Adam Pernell Deal is an illustrator and performance artist working in Knoxville's underground art scene. His art is influenced by Albrecht Durer's detailed woodcuts, Austin Spare's esoteric symbolism, and a pleasant childhood spent in the woods and abandoned buildings of rural Pennsylvania and Tennessee.

Adam's illustration work is primarily in ink and watercolor, generated through surrealist automatism. His guided hand reproduces worlds and their inhabitants beyond the veil, whether they may be on the far side of the universe, or as near as the empty lot next door. Adam is currently working on fantasy- based children's literature, gothic rock n' roll, and his biceps. You'll often find him in DIY studio spaces or corner tables of coffee shops. He crafted his technique in the moonlight.

Bijou Theatre, 803 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-522-0832, https://knoxbijou.org/art-gallery/

A reception will take place on Friday, March 2, 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.

The Fountain City Art Guild will feature original art by nearly 30 local artists including oils, watercolors, woodworking, and more. The mission of the Guild is to create an atmosphere that promotes, encourages, guides, supports, and informs artists in our guild, which currently has about 50 members.

The Fountain City Art Guild began in 1979 as a group of women who met in the "Art Cellar," the basement of Chloe Harrington's home. Most of the Guild members were watercolor artists. For several decades, they were known as the Fountain City Watercolor Guild, and they met in various churches and homes in the community, holding exhibitions in local businesses. In 2000, the Guild voted to allow other 2-D media in their exhibits, and in 2015 members voted to allow nonfunctional 3-D work as well. In 2004, the Guild was instrumental in helping open the Fountain City Art Center at 213 Hotel Avenue, the location of the old Fountain City Library. They welcome creative, committed artists who will bring fresh ideas, energy, and enthusiasm to join the Guild. Applications for admission are accepted each spring and fall. The Guild meets monthly and holds two exhibits each year at the Art Center. They also coordinate painting retreats and workshops. For more information, please visit www.fountaincityartguild.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. Closed Friday, Marhc 30. Information: (865) 523-7543 or www.knoxalliance.com.

A reception will take place on Friday, March 2, 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.

Richardson Turner: Recent Works 2018 in the upper gallery
The Arts & Culture Alliance is pleased to present a new exhibition of recent, narrative works by Knoxville artist Richardson Turner. The exhibition includes paintings, photographs, lithographs, and sculptures.

Richardson Turner received his Bachelor of Fine Arts in sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1968. In 1981, he started his own construction company for commercial buildings. During this time, he continued to create images through painting, sculpture, lithography, screen printing, ceramics, and photography. Since 2003, Turner has taken classes at Haystack Mountain School of Crafts, including painting and drawing with Michiko Itatani, Moe Brooker, and Emily Brown; clay with Andrea and John Gill; and lithography with Beauvais Lyons. His work has displayed in McGhee Tyson Airport and the Emporium Center in Knoxville as well as in various regional juried shows.

On display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Closed Friday, Marhc 30. Information: (865) 523-7543 or www.knoxalliance.com.

A reception will take place on Friday, March 2, 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.

I am fascinated by natural design: seashells, budding forms, organic architecture. A sculptor first, I approach clay as an explorer. I chose hand building with slab construction to best express these organic forms in my pottery. This exhibition is about looking back with new perspective and re-interpretations. All of the work is durable stoneware clay, glazed with overlapping layers of studio made glazes.

Thirty years ago, I began using overlapping clay sections to build ceramic pots and sculpture. What started as student exploration while at the University of Tennessee in the mid-80s has now blossomed into more mature work. The funnel vases and feather vessels were some of the refined forms I created, an approach that leaned heavily on observation of organic systems of growth and structure such as flower buds and bird plumage. Many older works were made of raku clay. Over the years, my work developed in a more functional direction, and I created an ongoing collection that I could sell at retail art fair shows and wholesale to shops. For more information, please visit www.facebook.com/BillLeePottery or https://www.etsy.com/shop/BillLeePottery.

On display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Closed Friday, Marhc 30. Information: (865) 523-7543 or www.knoxalliance.com.

A reception will take place on Friday, March 2, 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.

Kailey Leehans is a young, emerging artist whose preferred medium is watercolor. She enjoys experimenting with acrylic, mixed media and clay. She also creates jewelry, such as clay beads, resin with dried local flowers and bugs, and metal working. Leehans first realized her abilities in drawing when she was very young. She copied children's books covers and then online photographs with pencil. Eventually, she realized she could create original artwork from her imagination, which proved more satisfying and expressive.

This new exhibition includes a variety of styles. For more information, please visit https://www.facebook.com/oddysshopart/ or https://www.etsy.com/shop/OddysShop.

On display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Closed Friday, Marhc 30. Information: (865) 523-7543 or www.knoxalliance.com.