Calendar of Events

While all public activities at the Laurel have been canceled until further notice including dances, concerts and church services, please enjoy videos on their YouTube channel which include concerts, dance lessons, and more! https://www.youtube.com/user/LaurelTheater/videos

The historic Laurel Theater is a regional, community cultural center dedicated to preserving and presenting the traditional arts of the Southern Appalachians. The Laurel Theater is owned and operated by Jubilee Community Arts.

Tune in to 91.9 FM WUOT on Saturdays at 9 PM for "Mountain Jubilee" and 89.9 FM WDVX on Sundays from 5-11 PM for "Sunday Jubilee"!

WE ARE OPEN! See hours listed below. The art and gifts at the Gallery continue to be refreshed with new work. If you are driving through Townsend, stop by our TAG Gallery.

The mission of Townsend Artisan Guild is to connect fine arts and fine crafts and the people of East Tennessee through education of youth and adults, professional development of local artisans, and community development. The membership of the Corporation promotes an active interest in the arts through exhibits, demonstrations, lectures, and education as well as raising standards of professional performance among its working artisans.

7719 E. Lamar Alexander Pkwy. (Hwy. 321), Townsend, TN 37882
Hours: Wed. - Sat. 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., Sunday - 1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
TAG website: https://www.townsendartisanguild.org/

The challenge is designed to create dedicated time and space to build more effective social justice habits, particularly those dealing with issues of race, power, privilege, and leadership.

You will be presented with challenges such as reading an article, listening to a podcast, reflecting on personal experience and more. Participation in an activity like this helps us to discover how racial injustice and social injustice impact our community, to connect with one another, and to identify ways to dismantle racism and other forms of discrimination. This is an exciting opportunity to dive deep into racial equity and social justice. We hope you will join us on this journey and we can’t wait to get started!

Originally developed by Dr. Eddie Moore, Jr. and Debby Irving, this 21-Day Challenge has been adapted by organizations across the country. It is designed to create dedicated time and space to build more effective social justice habits, particularly those dealing with issues of race, power, privilege, and leadership.

Anyone can take part in the YWCA 21-Day Challenge. Participation in an activity like this helps us connect with one another, discover how racial inequity and social injustice impact our community, and identify ways to dismantle racism and other forms of discrimination.

Participants will be prompted daily with challenges such as reading an article, listening to a podcast, reflecting on personal experiences and more. Participation in an activity like this helps us discover how racial and social injustices impact our community, motivates us to connect with one another, and inspires us to identify ways to dismantle racism and other forms of discrimination.

This is an exciting opportunity to dive deep into racial equity and social justice. We hope you’ll join us and accept this challenge.

Each day (Monday-Friday) starting on Friday, June 19 through Friday, July 17 you will receive an email prompting you with a daily challenge. Please make sure you've signed up for the challenge! https://ywcaknox.com/21-day-challenge-sign-up/

Thursdays at 1 PM On JTV's digital platform
Become a Maker: Growing Your Jewelry Business from Hobby to Hustle is designed for all makers. Ryan-Ashley Anderson focuses on jewelry to help narrow the medium, but the advice can be applied to any craft. Each week she will cover a different topic to help makers grow their businesses. She also created a Facebook group to help makers fast track their plans by participating in a 6 month challenge.

BAM Facebook group - people can join this to hop into the 6 month challenge at any time: https://www.facebook.com/groups/603367736938285/610671426207916/

www.JTV.com/Extra and Facebook Live on the Jewel School Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/jewelschool.

CBT Theatre Thursdays is a new digital initiative designed to help bring theatre education to the East Tennessee Community. This program aims to provide enriching cultural and educational content to our area youth and lifelong learners who are looking for ways to stay artistically engaged. Each month we will dive into a small section of a play and explore what goes into making that piece of theatre come to life! From conversations and mini video tutorials with directors, dramaturgs, designers, performers, prop artisans, costumers, and more we hope to inspire people to create theatre at home!

https://clarencebrowntheatre.com/cbt-theatre-thursdays/

Argentine-British artist Jessica Sarah Rinland's installation, The Society at Black Pond, consists of three film works, and explores the activity within a common land in the south of England that was previously occupied by The Diggers, a collective of 17th century agrarian socialists. The land is currently inhabited by a Natural History Society whose occupations include bat and moth trapping, mycology, tree measuring, and botanical walks.

These three films offer a social and natural history of this particular location while exploring more intimately human’s relationship with and within land and nature.

From Thursday June 11 - Friday, August 7, The UT Downtown Gallery will be screening Black Pond, Bosque, and Moths Interior.

Adjusted gallery hours will be Thursdays and Fridays 12-6pm. We ask that you practice good social distancing and wear a mask when visiting the gallery.

Thank you, and we're glad to be open again!

UT Downtown Gallery, 106 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902
Information: 865-673-0802, http://web.utk.edu/~downtown

Enjoy the 44 works by regional artists, as juried by Jim Scarsella.

The current exhibition (juried by Jim Scarsella) will be on display from June 10 - October (end date TBA) 2020. View and purchase artworks at https://www.knoxalliance.store/product-category/airport-22. Thank you for your support of our local artists!

The Arts & Culture Alliance of Greater Knoxville and the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority (McGhee Tyson Airport) present a semi-annual exhibition entitled “Arts in the Airport”. This juried exhibition was developed to allow regional artists to compete and display work in the most visited site in the area. The selected art features contemporary 2- and 3-dimensional artwork and is exhibited in the secured area behind McGhee Tyson Airport’s security gate checkpoint for six months at a time. Approximately 35-40 works comprise each exhibition. Work is normally available for viewing only by visitors flying in or out of the airport.

"I create art through photographic imagery. Inspiration comes from the natural world, specifically colors and patterns. Much of my work starts out as pictures of rocks, minerals, and fossils. I seek a different viewpoint, and many of the images are abstractions, and open to viewer interpretation".

On exhibition Downtown from June 8 to July 7 and at the West location from July 8 to August 7.

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

Through the Lens 6: New Directions in Print Photography and Selections from the Permanent Collection.

As in all programs right now, we are following the guidelines set forth by the State of Tennessee and the City of Oak Ridge and are practicing social distancing, utilizing masks, limiting the number of people in the building, and cleaning and sanitizing throughout the day.

Oak Ridge Art Center, 201 Badger Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Tu-F 9-5, Sa-M 1-4. Information: 865-482-1441, www.oakridgeartcenter.org

The Arts & Culture Alliance is proud to present a special Summer Members Show featuring new works by local artists in the Greater Knoxville area. The fresh mix of two- and three-dimensional works created within the last two years encompasses a wide variety of media such as oil, acrylic, watercolor, pastel, mixed media, photography, fine craft, sculpture, ceramics, fiber, and more from artists who are all individual members of the Arts & Culture Alliance, which serves and supports a diverse community of artists, arts organizations, and cultural institutions. Membership is open to all, and information may be found at www.knoxalliance.com/join-renew. Most of the works in the 2020 Members Show are for sale and may be purchased through the close of the exhibition.

A reception is tentatively scheduled for First Friday, July 3, from 5:00-9:00 PM to which the public is invited to attend at 100 people at a time. All visitors to the Emporium are asked to follow social distancing guidelines and other recommendations given by the Knox County Health Department, the City of Knoxville, and Knox County.

Individual members of the Alliance participate locally and regionally in gallery exhibitions, art festivals, sculpture trails, weekend shows, studio tours, and public murals. Some of the members are full-time artists, while others have day jobs and create on evenings and weekends. Some Alliance members include art professors with the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, Carson-Newman University, Maryville College, Pellissippi State, Roane State, and Walters State. Others are teachers within Knox and surrounding county’s elementary, middle and high schools. Some Alliance members teach classes privately or through community classes with the Appalachian Arts Craft Center Fountain City Art Center, Knoxville Arts & Fine Crafts Center, Knoxville Museum of Art, and Oak Ridge Art Center. Many of the artists have working studios in their own homes, while some are part of studio collectives such as The Emporium Center, The Vacuum Shop, 17th Street Studios, Mighty Mud, Studio 2515, Broadway Studios & Gallery, and Knoxville Community Darkroom.

The Summer Members Show will be on display throughout the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville from June 5 – July 31, 2020. Gallery hours are currently Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. Please note, the Emporium will be closed July 6 for the holiday. For more information, please contact the Arts & Culture Alliance at (865) 523-7543 or visit www.knoxalliance.com.

The silhouettes created for the 2020 summer “Dazzling Dogwoods: A Garden Art Exhibit,” are on display at the UT Gardens, Knoxville. All the pieces will be available for purchase at an auction that will be held in the fall. The auction will be the last phase of an art project designed to promote community participation and artist collaboration as well awareness and support for the UT Gardens.

https://tiny.utk.edu/DazzlingDogwoods

37 local amateur and professional artists creatively interpreted this year’s dogwood theme by painting or embellishing large-scale plywood dogwood silhouettes in two sizes. Artists had the option to create either a large or small form or a pair. The works have been installed throughout the UT Gardens and will be on display throughout the summer. In the fall, these beautiful, one-of-a-kind dogwood silhouettes will be sold to the public at auction.

Ijams Nature Center has opened the swimming area at Mead's Quarry in phase two of the City/County reopening plan, which went into effect May 26.

River Sports Outfitters (RSO) began offering paddle rentals on the lake Memorial Day weekend. Hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Saturday and noon to 7 p.m. Sunday. Rentals will close due to inclement weather and will be announced on the RSO Facebook page at @RiverSportsOutfitters.

The Ijams Outpost, which offers concessions, beer and other items, will mirror RSO hours. Restrooms at the quarry remain open from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The Visitor Center restrooms and limited-contact gift shop/concessions purchases continue to be open daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. All restrooms will close for short periods at set times each day to allow facilities to be cleaned and sanitized. During those times, the front lobby of the Visitor Center also will be closed.

Navitat is open Monday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Thursday-Saturday 11 a.m.-5 p.m. and Sunday noon to 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays are by appointment only.

You are encouraged to wear masks when entering the Visitor Center and while passing other people on the grounds. Ijams remains committed to the health and safety of visitors and staff, and will be evaluating reopening policies, procedures and hours; changes may be implemented at any time. www.Ijams.org or call 865-577-4717.