Calendar of Events

Art Exhibit at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church
Free and open to the public

When: Reception Friday, June 17, 6:00 to 7:30 pm. Artists’ talks at 6:30 pm.

Gallery hours: 10-4, Monday and 10-3, Tuesday through Thursday.
2931 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37918

Bobbie Crews Thurston
Born and raised in NW Ohio, Bobbie lives and works in Knoxville, TN. A self-taught painter, she earned her fine art degree in painting and drawing at the University of Tennessee School of Art in 2007 as the mom in the class. The value of good skills, content and good design are immensely important to her work. Painting professionally since 1993 Bobbie loves painting portraits of people and her paintings of antique automobiles are produced much like her oil portraits. They are composed of layers of color in an additive and reductive process to create a likeness, but also capturing character, attitude and light. She has been showing her automotive paintings in Concours d’Elegance shows since 2013 and is a member of the Oil Painters of America. She is currently showing in the Nationals of the OPA in Steamboat Springs, CO.

Clay Thurston
A wildlife and nature photographer for over 35 years, I’ve been lucky to travel the world recording wildlife and nature in their natural habitats. Sharing these experiences through workshops, programs and exhibitions makes me want to photograph even more. I enjoy recording the personalities of the animals that I photograph... nature has provided me with many hours of entertainment and amazement. I feel fortunate to be able to witness things that others will never see in person. I truly enjoy what I do and photography is as much therapy as it is work! I now use Digital cameras and lenses from 12mm - 600mm. I do all of my own printing, matting and framing... using only archival inks, papers, mats and framing techniques. My photographs will be around for many years to come. I have been honored to present my work to the North American Nature Photographers Association and to many other fine photography and civic organizations. I’m available for programs, critiques, workshops, classes and individual instruction. This show however, is very different from any show that I have ever done. All of these images are a direct result of Covid.

Prints by UT Knoxville Undergraduate & Graduate Students, Faculty, and Staff

Art & Architecture Building, second floor
1715 Volunteer Blvd.
University of Tennessee, Knoxville

June 6 – September 2, 2022

Each summer for the past few years the Printmaking Program in the UTK School of Art presents an exhibition of recent prints by undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff. The works represent a wide variety of methods and approaches, including intaglios, relief prints, lithographs, and screenprints, reflecting a diversity of ideas and approaches. The MFA Program in Printmaking at UTK is ranked #3 among public universities nationally by US News and World Report.

The Art and Architecture building is accessible to the public through the summer weekdays from 8 am-5 pm.
https://art.utk.edu/2022-printmaking-summer-showcase/

The opening will be Friday, June 3, from 6-9pm. We will announce awards at 7pm, which will also be streamed live on our instagram, @shoprala and on our youtube channel. The art will remain on display through the end of July.

FB event: https://fb.me/e/1u2zUsNzG

Rala: Regional and Local Artisans, 112 W. Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Hours: Tu-Sa 11-6, Su 11-5. Information: 865-525-7888, https://shoprala.com or www.instagram.com/ShopRala

OPENING RECEPTION of recent work JUNE 3, 5-9 PM

RED Gallery proudly announces the showing of Fresh Perspectives, by Wayne Blankenship. Opening on June 3 (First Friday), the show will run through July 29. Blankenship’s work features Appalachian landscapes.

Wayne Blankenship’s pieces are well known in East Tennessee. He has enjoyed recognition for his work in winning the Dogwood Arts Print Competition in 2002 and 2006. Blankenship presented his piece titled Appalachian Flowers to Dolly Parton at the Dogwood Arts Festival in 2006. In addition to the Dogwood Arts Festival, Blankenship’s work has appeared in local galleries, such as The Venue at Lenoir City.

An artist from an early age, Blankenship reveals that his creative career began with repainting his sister’s coloring books. He moved on to paint-by-number projects, and then to painting with acrylics. Blankenship’s mentor Jim Gray taught him to paint with oils, and it was Gray who suggested Blankenship try watercolors. Blankenship now combines materials in mixed-media work, using oil, watercolors and acrylic to achieve his signature, layered landscapes. He continues to branch out with his technique, and is continually inspired by the work of Andrew Wyeth. Blankenship is a member of the Tellico Village Art Guild.

“When I paint, it mostly comes from my memory, thoughts, or emotions,” says Blankenship. “I rarely have a photo reference or use a plein air technique. Whether it’s sunrise or sunset, painting the mountains gives me an endless supply of inspiration.” For the artist, painting is a way to capture the natural world and a stillness in time, as well as the sharpness of a treasured memory. Blankenship hopes visitors will enjoy the show, and be inspired to visit the mountains. Blankenship says his show at RED Gallery is happening at the perfect time, since it coincides with the upcoming Dolly Fest. He’s always been inspired by Dolly Parton, since he grew up in similar circumstances. Blankenship’s mother taught him a love and appreciation for the natural Appalachian beauty that was his childhood environment. http://wayneblankenship.com/

Starting June 3, Fresh Perspectives can be viewed at RED Gallery on Fridays 5-9pm, Saturdays 1-5pm and Sundays 1-5pm, and by appointment through the week, until July 29.

RED Gallery, 130 West Jackson Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37902

Leesa Osburn, Knoxville, TN
I was born and raised on the Oregon Coast. I enlisted in the Army and had the opportunity to travel to Germany. After serving in the Army, I returned to the U.S. and ended up settling in Las Vegas, NV for 14 years. After too many hot summers, in 2019 my husband and I moved to Knoxville, Tennessee with our two rescue dogs. The positive change in environment has reinvigorated my need to put paint to canvas.

I have a Bachelors in Studio Art from University of Nevada Las Vegas and paint mostly in Water Soluble Oils. My work, mostly landscapes, have been shown now in several local exhibits and hope to expand my reach to future juried events.

I enjoy “rescuing” formerly used canvases and frames. Many canvases only need a tiny amount of work and a neutral base coat in oils to prepare them for a new day of painting. Good quality frames often just need a new coat of paint and the two, canvas and frame, are ready to be joined. I often choose to paint on gallery wrapped canvases which omits the need for a frame all together.

To Expand my craft, I joined Tuesday Painters, a Plein Air painting group. For ease of portability I have been dabbling on Tuesdays in Watercolor. https://artisticescape.studio/artist-bio/

Lox Salon, 103 West Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Hours: Tues-Fri 9-9:00, Sat 9-5:00, Closed Sun-Mon.

Starting June 1, families are invited to participate in crafts, games and other activities on Wednesdays in June and July from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. in eight different City parks and natural areas.

Kid A’ Riffic Fun in the Park, sponsored by Home Federal Bank, is for families with children age 2-12 offering activities, games, hands-on crafts and other fun pursuits hosted by the City of Knoxville Office of Special Events, Parks and Recreation Department and community partners.

Participation is free, and no registration is required.

Kid A'Riffic schedule:

• June 1 – Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Avenue
• June 8 – Lakeshore Park, 6410 S. Northshore Drive
• June 15 – Victor Ashe Park, 49001 Bradshaw Road
• June 22 – Knoxville Botanical Gardens and Arboretum, 2743 Wimpole Avenue
• June 29 – Fountain City Park, 117 Hotel Road
• July 13 – Baker Creek Preserve, 3700 Lancaster Drive
• July 20 – World's Fair Park Festival Lawn
• July 27 – Inskip Park, 4204 Bruhin Road

Kid A’ Riffic was established in 2019 in Market Square as a weekly opportunity for summertime activities for youngsters and their families. For more information about the City parks’ amenities, visit www.KnoxvilleTN.gov/parks. If you have questions about individual Kid A’ Riffic Fun in the Park events, contact Special Events at specialevents@knoxvilletn.gov or call 865-215-4248.

The Knoxville Museum of Art, in conjunction with the Hunter Museum of American Art in Chattanooga, showcases what two important Tennessee cultural organizations are doing to support and empower women artists. Women Artists: Highlights from the Hunter Museum of American Art is on view at the KMA April 22-July 24, 2022, and Currents: Women Artists from the KMA Collection is on view May 13-August 14, 2022. Both exhibitions pay tribute to contemporary women artists represented in each museum’s respective collections.

Since 2000, the Hunter Museum of American Art has prioritized the acquisition of works by women artists from around the United States, who have long lagged behind their male counterparts when it comes to museum-level recognition. Highlights of the Hunter exhibition include an installation by Lesley Dill featuring floor-to-ceiling banners and hand-embroidered text, a silhouette pop-up book by Kara Walker examining the history of American race relations, a textile by Vadis Turner questioning inherited gender roles, and a mixed media installation by Beverly Semmes inspired by composer John Cage’s minimalist music.

Like the Hunter, the Knoxville Museum of Art has actively sought to acquire outstanding works by women for its collection. The selection on view reflects women’s broad technical and aesthetic range found in contemporary art. A mixed media painting on wooden sections by Alison Moritsugu conveys a monumental landscape, expansive yet incomplete. Nancy Rubins elevates graphite drawing into a large sculptural construction apparently shaped by violent forces. British artist Marilène Oliver constructs provocative portraits of her family in the form of acrylic sheets imprinted with digital medical scans. Patty Chang uses water and mirrors to transform her own image taken in a Belgian church into a complex photographic work fragmented by harsh angles and provocative reflections. In her video Joan of Arc, Alex McQuilkin responds to Maria Falconetti’s memorable lead role in the legendary 1928 French silent film by Carl Dreyer and the film’s themes of adolescent desire, faith, and suffering. These and other selected works call overdue attention to women’s significant role in reshaping the contemporary art landscape.

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World's Fair Park, Knoxville, TN 37916. Hours: Tu-Sa 10-5, Su 1-5. Information: 865-525-6101, www.knoxart.org. Admission and parking are free.

Opening May 8, 2-4 PM - meet the artist, refreshments
Exhibition hours M-F 9-4

Ted Richards lives in Loudon, TN. www.tedart.com

The Gallery at Rarity Bay Community Activity Center (second building on right as you enter Rarity Bay), 150 Rarity Bay Pkwy, Vonore, TN 37885.

2022 MARKET SQUARE FARMERS’ MARKET (WEDNESDAYS & SATURDAYS)
Every Wednesday (10 am – 1 pm), May 4 through November 16, 2022
Every Saturday (9 am – 1 pm), May 7 through November 19, 2022
Market Square in downtown Knoxville

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 our vendors in the East Tennessee region. Products vary by the seasons and include produce, eggs, honey, herbs, pasture-raised meat, plants, bread, baked goods, salsas, coffee, artisan crafts, and more!
https://www.nourishknoxville.org/market-square-farmers-market/

For the past thirteen years, the Arts & Culture Alliance of Greater Knoxville and the Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority (McGhee Tyson Airport) have partnered to present a biannual 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 by:

Cosima Aryee, Kate Aubrey, Sally Brogden, Jan Burleson, Gino Castellanos, Elle Colquitt, Barbara Bolton Cornett, Denise Cumming, Yvonne Dalschen, Vincent Drake, Melissa N. Everett, Diana Ferguson, Alan Finch, Elena Ganusova, Carl Gombert, Brian Horais, Anthony TungNing Huang, Kathleen A. Janke, Siobian Jones, Gretchen Kaplan, Anne W. Kinggard, Andreas Koschan, Judy Lavoie, William M. Long, Allison Meriwether, Anders V. Nienstaedt, Tom Owens, Dennis Sabo, Phil Savage, Baxter Stults, Kelli L. Thompson, Chloe Wack, Carl Whitten, Douglas Wielfaert, Marianne Woodside, and Museum of Infinite Outcomes.

View and purchase artworks at https://www.knoxalliance.store/product-category/airport

www.knoxalliance.com/arts-in-the-airport

In celebration of the 40th Anniversary of the 1982 World's Fair, the Museum of East Tennessee History announces the opening of a new, one-of-a-kind exhibition, "You Should've Been There!," in the Rogers-Claussen Feature Gallery from March 19 to October 9, 2022.

The exhibition’s theme is not only a nod to the international exposition’s marketing catchphrase, “You Have Got to Be There! The 1982 World’s Fair!,” but also an acknowledgement that four decades removed, there is a generation of East Tennesseans who were not alive to experience the historic event.

Organized by the East Tennessee Historical Society and the Knox County Public Library, “You Should've Been There!” traces the fair’s development from conception to the pivotal moment when The Wall Street Journal referred to Knoxville as a “scruffy little city” and questioned its ability to host an international event. More than 11,000,000 visitors from around the world were informed and entertained in the various pavilions, exhibitions, and attractions put on by 22 countries and some 50 private organizations. Popular souvenirs were shirts and buttons proclaiming, “The Scruffy Little City Did It!”

The fair’s theme, “Energy Turns the World,” played to the region’s reputation as a technology and science center. For example, it was at the 1982 World’s Fair that users were able to try out a touchscreen for the first time. Elo, a Knoxville-based company, debuted the touchscreen technology, then known as "talk back" computers, in the United States Pavilion. To honor this spirit of innovation, “You Should've Been There!” incorporates engaging touchscreens alongside displays of original fair materials from pickle pins to deely bobbers and everything in between.

To learn more about the exhibition, please visit: https://www.easttnhistory.org/1982worldsfair

"You Should've Been There!" is an official event of the 40th Anniversary of the 1982 World's Fair. To learn more about upcoming commemorative events, please visit: http://www.knoxvilleworldsfair.com.

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

No BPS will occur Jan 25-29 - please come back Feb 1 for more great music!

The WDVX Blue Plate Special® is a live performance radio show held at noon, with your host Red Hickey, Monday through Thursday at the Knoxville Visitor Center. On Fridays WDVX takes the Blue Plate Special to Barley’s Taproom & Pizzeria for “The Big Plate”, then back to the Visitor Center on Saturday with your host Evie Andrus.

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.

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.

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