Calendar of Events

PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE RECEPTION AND AWARDS CEREMONY: OCTOBER 18, 6 - 8 PM

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts presents the National Juried Invitational Exhibit, "Bridging the Gap: Contemporary Craft Practices," featuring artists who seek innovative approaches to traditional craft practices and create historically conscious work, while resonating with newer audiences and current issues. This exhibit recognizes artists under 35 years of age who are making significant strides in their craft in bold and diverse ways.

For more information about the show and participating artists, visit: www.arrowmont.org/bridging-the-gap-contemporary-craft-practices/

Sandra J. Blain Galleries, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. Gallery hours: M-R 8:30-5, Fri 8:30-4, Saturdays call ahead. Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738. Information: 865-436-5860, www.arrowmont.org

Whistler & Company includes nearly a dozen works by Whistler accompanied by more than 50 etchings by some of his most accomplished American and European contemporaries. Whistler’s gritty images of the River Thames, views of Venice, and Parisian scenes are among works featured in the exhibition. Other artists who participated in the etching revival include Francis Seymour Haden, James McBey, Edwin Edwards, David Young Cameron, Muirhead Bone, Mortimer Menpes, Charles Meryon, Maxime Lalanne, Joseph Pennell, and Frank Duveneck, among others.

Although best known for innovative paintings such as Arrangements in Gray and Black No. 1 (popularly known as “Whistler’s Mother”), Whistler was a talented printmaker. The exhibition Whistler & Company examines the artist’s influential role in the etching revival of the 19th and early 20th centuries. This revival took hold in France, England and the United States. Artists set out to reestablish etching—the art of incising lines with an etching needle into a thin copper plate which was then inked and pressed into paper with the help of a printing press to create impressions—as an art form that could stand on its own. Inspired by Rembrandt, and the old masters, practitioners created remarkable original and expressive compositions that gained popularity with refined collectors and the broader public.

The legacy of expatriate American artist, James Abbott McNeill Whistler (Lowell, Massachusetts 1834-1903 London) was far-reaching, and his sphere of influence included early 20th-century East Tennessee. The Nicholson Art League, for instance, Knoxville’s leading art group of the period, dedicated its entire December 1, 1911 program to Whistler. Led by noted impressionist Catherine Wiley, the gathering featured presentations including “Whistler’s Influence on American Art,” and Whistler, His Life and Work.”

All of the works in in the exhibition are drawn from the Reading Public Museum’s permanent collection of works on paper, which numbers more than 10,000. Whistler & Company: The Etching Revival is organized by the Reading Public Museum, Reading, Pennsylvania.

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 Ewing Gallery is excited to kick off the fall semester with an exhibition of works by American sculptor, Ronald Bladen.

Angle / Edge / Plane features a collection of models, drawings, and photographs from the Estate of Ronald Bladen and the Loretta Howard Gallery.

Ronald Bladen (1918 – 1988) was a Minimalist best known for his large-scale sculptures. He is often credited with influencing fellow Minimalists Carl Andre, Donald Judd, and Sol LeWitt. Sculptures by Ronald Bladen have been featured in exhibitions at important public institutions including at the Albright Knox Art Gallery, Detroit Institute of Arts, Documenta 4, Kassel, Germany, Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, The Jewish Museum, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, Philadelphia Museum of Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Solomon R Guggenheim Museum, Vancouver Art Museum, The Walker Art Center, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York among others.

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

A new Farragut Museum exhibit featuring toys belonging to current and past volunteers, as well as items from the Museum's permanent collection, will open to the public on Friday, Aug. 16. "Timeless Toys" will remain open through the end of the year.

Friends of the Museum are invited to a sneak preview of the exhibit from 4:30-6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 15. New Friends can sign up during the event.

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, 11408 Municipal Center Drive, the Museum is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m. and offers free admission. For more information, visit townoffarragut.org/museum or contact Historic Resources Coordinator Julia Barham at jbarham@townoffarragut.org.

BreedArts School of Art and Dance is a program for youth located in the Annex Studio of the Emporium. This year, the Fall Season will offer a variety of Dance classes to include Modern, Ballet, Hip Hop, Tap, and an Intro to Movement class! The school also offers an Art Class on Tuesday afternoons, taught by Amelia Breed, and is very excited to announce a New DOWNTOWN KNOXVILLE HOMESCHOOL CO-OP, offering a day program on Fridays! Classes are intended for ages 4-13. Through exploration of dance concepts and techniques, students learn to identify and coordinate parts of their body into various movement patterns, developing strength and flexibility, and stimulating brain function. Students have the opportunity to empower their creative talents as they learn the art of choreography. As part of our core values, we encourage healthy body image and body knowledge for each dancer’s physical safety. Class schedule: https://docs.wixstatic.com/ugd/9046c2_123c153a851342aa8347f0e619db8915.pdf.

For more information, visit www.breedarts.com or these specific links:

+ Art Classes, for Ages 6-12, Tuesdays, Aug 6 – Nov 19, 3:30-4:30 PM. $50 per student/monthly rate. Join us for an exploration of 2D and 3D fundamentals! To include painting, drawing, collage, paper sculpture, printing, textile arts, and more! We will explore a wide range of material and learn a little bit of art history! www.breedarts.com/art-classes

+ Homeschool Co-op, for Ages 6-12, Fridays, Aug 9 – Nov 22, 9 AM – 3 PM. $100 per student/Monthly rate; $40 per student per day Drop-In rate. Sibling discount 20%. Includes yoga, open work, lunch, social studies, and art. www.breedarts.com/homeschool-co-op

Details TBA

Drown Wood Gallery
Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738. Information: 865-436-5860, www.arrowmont.org

"It’ll Tickle Yore Innards!”: A (Hillbilly) History of Mountain Dew

Special Members Preview: Thursday, June 27, 2019, from 4:00-6:00 p.m.

The exhibition highlights the drink’s history, from the origins of the term “mountain dew” and the development of the marketable hillbilly image that influenced media and culture, to becoming the third most popular soft drink brand.

The exhibition includes more than 200 artifacts highlighting the drinks history, moonshining, and the hillbilly image. The exhibition begins with video footage of early moonshine busts and a visit to a moonshine still in Cocke County in 1938. A variety of liquor jugs, dating from as early as the 1890s are on display with other moonshine paraphernalia. There is an assortment of artifact reflecting the early color writers and their effects on the hillbilly image, as well as artifacts from Knoxville’s 1910 Appalachian Exposition. One case contains a variety of “hillbilly” memorabilia, including Beverly Hillbillies dolls, comic books, Lil’ Abner items, and a pair of Hee Haw overalls.

The exhibition features a 1900 carbonation machine from the Roddy Coca-Cola Bottling Company in Knoxville and a sizeable display of rare and highly collectable bottles, including a few dating to Knoxville in 1927, a progression of Mountain Dew bottles over the years, and a variety of other vintage soft drinks from around the region. Of special interest are the “Barney and Ally” bottles, which were the first Mountain Dew bottles ever produced. In 1951 and 1952, the Hartman Beverage Company produced 7 oz. green and clear bottles. The applied color label’s bare the name of the creators of Mountain Dew. In the early 1950s, green bottles were reserved for “colorless” flavors, while clear bottles were used for drinks where the color would reflect the actual flavor. Mountain Dew was originally bottled as a set of flavored drinks and not as a specific flavor like today. Also displayed are a variety of items relating to the Hartmann family.

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

Knoxville - Our Wings of Wonder Butterfly Exhibit has been installed throughout the Gardens. Twenty-five large scale butterflies decorated by area artists will be on display until September 8 (when they will be auctioned off to the public). Come enjoy their whimsical beauty!

This is the second year of this great collaboration of artists and the UT Gardens whereby the showcased art is auctioned to benefit the Gardens. This year's theme of butterflies hopes to showcase the importance of pollinators to our ecosystems and is in conjunction with pollinator research being conducted at the UT Gardens and elsewhere around the world.

UT Gardens, Chapman Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-7151, http://utgardens.tennessee.edu

Just like at your favorite meat n’ three, the WDVX Blue Plate Special® is served up piping hot. This fresh and free daily helping of live music during the lunchtime hour that features performers from all over the world and right here in Knoxville has put WDVX on the map as East Tennessee’s Own community supported radio.

The WDVX Blue Plate Special® is a live performance radio show held at noon, with your host Red Hickey Monday through Friday and Doug Lauderdale on Saturday, at the WDVX studio inside the Knoxville Visitor Center. It’s always free to join in so please don’t be shy. Make yourself at home as part of the WDVX family. From blues to bluegrass, country to Celtic, folk to funk, rockabilly to hillbilly, local to international, it all part of the live music experience on the WDVX Blue Plate Special. You’re welcome to bring your lunch.

Previous performing artists include Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, The Avett Brothers, Old Crowe Medicine Show, Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver, Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder, Jim Lauderdale, Marty Stuart, Nickel Creek, Red Stick Ramblers, Rodney Crowell, String Cheese Incident, The Del McCoury Band, Tim O’Brien, Yonder Mountain String Band, David Grisman, Claire Lynch Band, Brett Dennen, Tommy Emmanuel, Uncle Earl, The Infamous Stringdusters, the Jerry Douglas Band, Joan Osborne, John Oats, Mary Gauthier, Darrell Scott, and many many more! There’s plenty of great music to go around! http://wdvx.com/program/blue-plate-special/

Free 2-hour visitor parking located next door to the Knoxville Visitor Center. One Vision Plaza, 301 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Info: 865-544-1029, http://www.wdvx.com

Dogwood Arts Art In Public Places - Temporary Sculpture Exhibition

An exhibition of large-scale outdoor sculptures in downtown Knoxville, the McGhee Tyson Airport, Zoo Knoxville, and Oak Ridge. The annual rotating installation is one of many Dogwood Arts programs focused on providing access to the arts for everyone, promoting awareness of the strong visual arts community thriving in our region, and creating a vibrant and inspiring environment for residents and visitors to experience.

Sculpture installation will take place March 22-23, 2019.

Dogwood Arts, 123 W. Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-637-4561, www.dogwoodarts.com

WordStream: The Weekly Writer's Voice is a reading/performance series sponsored by WDVX-FM, held Fridays at noon at Visit Knoxville on the Blue Plate Special stage.

The series, coordinated by Linda Parsons and Stellasue Lee, features poetry, fiction, spoken word, play excerpts, and sometimes music. The podcast shines a light on our literary gems near and far.

Podcast site: https://wdvx.com/program/word-stream/.

WDVX, 301 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-544-1029

View the calendar of ongoing events at http://ijams.org/events/

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