Calendar of Events

Join Us for our Spring Fundraiser and Add Beauty to Your Home and Garden!

We know a number of you like to garden and we could not resist this new fundraiser. Flower Power is giving us 50% of your order price now through April 30th, if you order anything with them through our link http://ORAC.fpfundraising.com.

This comes just in time for the Spring planting season and the end of the last frost. Orders will begin shipping at the end of March so you will have them to work in as the season progresses. Orders ship safely and directly to your doorstep so you can garden without running to the store. Please check out the link and feel free to share it with your friends!

Once planted and blooming we would love to see photos of your beautiful landscape art too. This is a great opportunity to support your local non-profit Art Center without having to leave your home.

Oak Ridge Art Center, 201 Badger Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Information: 865-482-1441, www.oakridgeartcenter.org

Spring is the perfect time to enjoy Farragut’s unique history while strolling through the heart of town. Pick up a Farragut History Walk map from the brochure holder on the Heritage Trail sign located at the turnaround at Founders Park at Campbell Station and learn more about the town’s interesting past. A PDF version of the map is available at https://visitfarragut.org/attractions/

The walk includes four educational sites: the Heritage Trail with interpretive signage at Founders Park, the Campbell Station Inn and Mayor Ralph McGill Plaza, the Farragut Museum/Admiral Farragut Plaza and Pleasant Forest Cemetery. Parking along the trail is available at Founders Park, the Farragut Community Center or Farragut Town Hall.

Incorporated in 1980, the Town of Farragut has top schools, safe neighborhoods and high development standards, making it one of the best places to live in the Southeast. More info: 865-966-7057

Jack Gress is a familiar face to Ijams visitors thanks to his former work with the Natural Resource Management team, but did you know he also is a Knoxville-based artist specializing in event coverage, street, nature and mountain bike photography? See his wonderful work in March!

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. www.ijams.org

Tri-Star Arts is pleased to announce the inaugural exhibition in their new gallery at the historic Candoro Marble Building. A solo show featuring works by artist Althea Murphy-Price (Knoxville, TN) will open on Tuesday, March 9, and run through Saturday, May 8, 2021. A closing reception will be held on the evening of Friday, May 7 from 5:00 pm until 9:00 pm.

Althea Murphy-Price uses deception, desire, and ornamentation to form questions on the topics of truth, fascination, and attraction — often using manufactured hair (both synthetic and human) to exercise its role as embellishment and as a signifier of racial identity. In this work, hair functions as both subject and material and represents both assimilation and individuality. This body of her work consists of a variety of approaches to printmaking and sculpture to create works that are inspired by surface and texture. Her lithographic work is made to capture the realistic appearance of hair while screen-printed elements suggest object-like forms. Most recently, Murphy-Price has created 3D printed forms suggestive of wearable hair accessories.

This exhibition will be open to the public, alongside iconic spaces within the Candoro Marble Building, regularly from Tuesday through Saturday, 11:00 am until 5:00 pm going forward. Masks and social distancing (6 feet apart) is required. The gallery occupancy is limited to a maximum of 10 persons at a time.

In addition to the exhibition, five Knoxville-based artists have moved into the Tri-Star Arts studios at Candoro and begun their work. The studio artists are Jing Qin, Risa Hricovsky, Casey Fletcher, Jillian Hirsch, and Rachel Sevier Dallery.

Built in 1923, the Candoro Marble Building originally served as the offices and showroom for the Candoro Marble Company. The Aslan Foundation has just completed a restoration of the building. In partnership with the Aslan Foundation, Tri-Star Arts oversees programming at the site.

Candoro Marble Building, 4450 Candora Drive, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Tue-Sat 11-5. Information: https://tristararts.org/visit

An exhibition featuring work by 25 contemporary women printmakers, opens Monday, March 1, in the Printmaking Showcase Gallery.

The theme of viscosity, flexibility, and fluidity of ink used in printmaking serves as the organizing principle for the portfolio. Dynamic viscosity, by definition, is the sheer stress and sheer rate of a fluid material. The push and pull of ink under pressure can result in the pulling of a perfect film of color and texture. However, the wrong body of ink can result in tearing, push, or saltiness of the color field and render the print an unsuccessful. Constant trial and error of different additives to the ink body can and will be made. It is only after failure, success, and time, do printers, begin to understand how the ink body will react under the pressure of the printing press.

The exhibition encompasses a variety of printmaking media, and includes work by alumnae Ericka Walker (MFA ‘10), associate professor at the Nova Scotia College of Art University and Deb Chaney (BFA ‘01) a Tamarind Master Printer based in Brooklyn, New York and Paris, France.

The gallery is located on the second floor of the Art + Architecture Building outside the print shop, room 241. The exhibition is on view through Friday, April 30.

Art and Architecture Building, Outside of room 241
1715 Volunteer Boulevard, Knoxville, TN 37996
https://calendar.utk.edu/event/viscosity_women_of_print#.YDPza-hKjct

Ijams Take Action!: Big and Small Ways to Save the Planet is back, and it’s bigger than ever! Throughout 2021, you’ll find workshops, recycling events, and more to help you make a difference in the world.

March 1-31
Help Creatures Great and Small: Wildlife Rehabber Collection Event
Licensed wildlife rehabilitators work 24/7 to help injured or orphaned animals heal, grow and hopefully be released back into the wild. Help them accomplish this important work during this collection event!

https://www.ijams.org/wildlife-rehab-collection

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. www.ijams.org

Experience an unparalleled view of Knoxville during our public cruises! Enjoy a delightful lunch, brunch, or dinner cruise. We offer a range of public cruises for your friends and family on Knoxville’s only luxury yacht! From sunset dinner cruises to sailgates in Big Orange Country, Volunteer Princess Cruises is truly special for any event. Browse through our cruise offerings to begin your jaunt along Knoxville, Tennessee’s beautiful riverfront! Public, seasonal, and other cruises available.
https://volunteerprincess.com/

Create some memories on our authentic paddlewheeler - the Star of Knoxville. We offer a variety of lunch and dinner cruises along with sightseeing-only tickets.

This authentic paddlewheeler is United States Coast Guard approved for 235 passengers. The main deck seats 144 passengers and is fully enclosed, air conditioned, and heated for year round comfort. The vessel is equipped with two (2) bars, a dance floor, band stage, and is exquisitely decorated for the most elegant dinner and entertainment available. From black tie events like weddings and receptions to a casual event like a football charter the atmosphere is right for any occasion.

https://tnriverboat.com/

The Art Guild of Tellico Village is proud to present its Midwinter Art Exhibit. This spectacular collection of beautifully rendered artwork was all created by our members.

Thirty four artists and 97 works of art are represented in our Midwinter Exhibit.

You can see the virtual exhibit here: https://www.tellicoartguild.com/midwinter-exhibit/

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts invites you to experience the 20th Sevier County Biennial Juried Exhibition. This exhibition is a juried, mixed media art exhibition presented by Arrowmont to recognize and foster the skills and talents of artists and makers who call the region of Sevier County home.

Features 76 original works created by 51 Sevier County, Tennessee artists. This is the first show open to visitors since the onset of the pandemic. You may schedule your gallery appointment on Arrowmont’s website at https://www.arrowmont.org/visit/events/20th-sevier-county-biennial-juried-exhibition/ or contact Gallery Manager Kelsey Dillow at 865-436-5860, kdillow@arrowmont.org.

Mary Welch Thompson, award-winning basket weaver, juried the 20th Sevier County Biennial. She said, “The COVID-19 pandemic has been a challenge for all of us. Viewing this art let me forget for a short time. I had fun; it has been a learning experience and a challenge to select the Best of Show and the Awards of Merit pieces. The vibrant colors and imagination really stood out, paying tribute to the beauty of our natural surroundings, our mountain home.”

The McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is reopening to the public after a closure due to the pandemic, and visitors are invited to enjoy a new temporary exhibition, Women’s Work.

The museum will be open Wednesday through Saturday 9AM-5PM starting in June.

The exhibition, which is presented by First Horizon Foundation, features 28 paintings, ceramics, sculptures, and works on paper from the museum’s permanent collections and will provide a number of virtual programs for the campus and Knoxville communities. The exhibition is curated by Emma Grace Thompson, a UT alumna and former graduate assistant for the McClung Museum. It was born out of her research into the museum’s collections along with her interest in women’s history.

The McClung’s Jefferson Chapman Executive Director, Claudio Gómez, is excited that the exhibition will highlight the work that has been done during the museum’s closure: “The team of the McClung Museum has responded creatively to the COVID-19 crisis, and although the building is closed, our programs and activities have remained active to engage with the different communities that we expect to serve. I am proud of the work done by my team during these months, and I am sure that the steps we are implementing for a limited reopening in January will allow us to provide some of the on-site experiences that are deeply missed by many people.”

More about the exhibition: https://news.utk.edu/2021/02/01/mcclung-museum-reopen-public-womens-work-exhibition/

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Dr on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-2144

Rala is preparing for our February First Friday show, with featured artist Cynthia Markert. The opening reception will be from 6-8 on February 5th. All paintings are one of a kind and make the perfect gifts for Valentine's Day! Cynthia's work will remain on display from February 5th - March 31st.

Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/753165832032219
Artwork: https://shoprala.com/collections/cynthia-markert

Cynthia Markert's art-deco paintings of women have long been a staple in the Knoxville art scene and have become symbolic of the city's artistic community. A long-time Knoxvillian, Cynthia was a Studio Art major at the University of Tennessee with a minor in Women's Studies. Since then, she's created these gilded, glowing, and brooding works that Tennesseans have come to adore and collect. Cynthia began developing her iconic style by painting plywood panels on empty buildings around downtown in 1994. Back then downtown was, as Cynthia puts it, a "ghost town", so the boarded up buildings provided plenty of the wooden canvas that would become indicative of her work.

"I would go walking past these big gorgeous pieces of plywood nailed to doors and I would start to see a face or a body. On Saturday mornings I would fill a baggie with pencils or pastels and return to draw"

Fun Fact: Markert's work is included in the archives of the National Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington D.C.

Due to the ongoing pandemic and Knox County safety guidelines, we will be limiting customer capacity and requiring that masks be worn inside at all times. Rala: Regional and Local Artisans, 112 W. Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-525-7888, https://shoprala.com. Instagram: @ShopRala