Calendar of Events

Also featuring an OPEN STUDIO NIGHT, Sep 1, 6-9 PM
View the 8 different Resident Artist studios and enjoy a printshop demo by Kelly Sullivan in the RR Printshop!

On display Sep 1 - Oct 6: "Current Reflections: Exploring Screens, Self-worth, and the Quest for Connection in a Wired World" by Ann Tilley

“I make this artwork as a therapeutic outlet for me to process my experiences as a human. So, naturally, when the pandemic brought meaningless feelings about the value of what I do, it became fuel for new work. Screens, solar power, and technology have been recurring themes for me, but now that I have moved into an off-grid home, these thoughts on electricity - literally, power lines connecting our homes (or not) - have taken on new meanings. The singularity of looking at screens alone in our homes, and yet connecting us to everything…how is that affecting our inner personal dialogue? Our feelings of self-worth? How is that affecting our relationships with other humans?” -Ann Tilley @anntilleyhandmade

Relay Ridge, 4124 McKinley St, Knoxville. https://relayridge.org/ and https://www.instagram.com/relay_ridge/

A free gathering with the artists will take place on Friday, September 1, from 5:00-9:00 PM and features original music inside the Emporium by Blesser Heart.

Obscura III is a new, juried exhibition of alternative and historic photography, hosted by The Big Camera!. Alternative photography includes collage, mixed media, darkroom work, cyanotype, Van Dyke printing, traditional film, historic processes, and more. Cash awards will be chosen by the jurors, Adam Finkelston and James Meara, Co-Editors of The Hand Magazine. Viewer's Choice votes will also be collected at the First Friday opening. Obscura III is the third iteration in a series started by A1LabArts and The Big Camera!, who hosted Obscura II at the Emporium in 2020.

In collaboration with Donna Moore, John Allen and Anna Lawrence, The Big Camera! is an ongoing project: a modified enclosed cargo trailer that functions as an extra-large (6’x10’) format camera as well as a portable classroom and community outreach vehicle for A1LabArts. The Big Camera! was made possible in large part through the Ann and Steve Bailey Opportunity Grant. The group has taught classes or demonstrated photography in places such as the Emporium Center, Central Filling Station, Public Defenders Community Law Office Youth Program, Knox Makers and Knox County Schools. The Big Camera! is intended to share the magic of photography through making its principles hands-on, allowing photography to come alive in a new way for many who encounter it.

www.facebook.com/thebigcamera
https://info91553.wixsite.com/bigcamera
Instagram @thebigcamera

This exhibition will be on display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. The Emporium is open to the public Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM and Saturday, 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM. Closed Monday, September 4. For more information, please see www.knoxalliance.com or call (865) 523-7543.

A free gathering with the artists will take place on Friday, September 1, from 5:00-9:00 PM and features original music inside the Emporium by Blesser Heart.

My intent is not to lead the viewer in any specific direction. Rather, it is to stimulate their imagination so that they may draw their own conclusions. Although I have other cameras, I shoot most of my work with an iPhone 13 Pro Max using glass bowls and other objects as filters. In post-production, I further enhance and manipulate my original images using digital effects.

Living and traveling around the US and abroad has helped emerging artist Tonya Wade Wunder develop her aesthetic style. After residing in Asheville, North Carolina for fifteen years, she now calls Knoxville home. She has found support and community in her continued growth as an artist while living here. Wunder received a Juror Citation in Knoxville Photo 2021 and Best of Still Life in Knoxville Photo 2020. She has also displayed work in the City of Knoxville’s Mayor’s office. Distortions and other Non-Realities is her first solo exhibition.

Instagram @cathartic_rebellion

This exhibition will be on display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. The Emporium is open to the public Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM and Saturday, 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM. Closed Monday, September 4. For more information, please see www.knoxalliance.com or call (865) 523-7543.

A free gathering with the artists will take place on Friday, September 1, from 5:00-9:00 PM and features original music inside the Emporium by Blesser Heart.

As artists, we possess a unique ability to discover beauty and inspiration in the most ordinary aspects of daily life. This year, the West Fifth Studios: Field Trip exhibition is a celebration of this perspective, offering viewers a rare opportunity to experience the world through our eyes. In this exhibition, each artist has selected one seemingly "ordinary" object that resonates with them personally. These objects, often overlooked by many, hold a special significance to us. With this chosen object as our muse, we become vessels for our artistic talent and passion, crafting captivating works of art. Each piece will be a testament to our ability to see beyond the surface and uncover the hidden beauty that lies within our chosen subjects. Through our artwork, we aim to convey the emotions, memories, and unique perspectives associated with these objects, inviting the audience to delve into the depths of our creative minds. The exhibition will serve as a juxtaposition of the artwork alongside the original "ordinary" objects. Our hope is that by witnessing the beauty we find in the ordinary, you, too, will be inspired to see the world with new eyes and embrace the hidden wonders that surround us all.

West Fifth Studios is an art center located in Knoxville’s Old City. Its goal is to further the creative endeavors of its professional artists, build active artist relationships, and engage in Knoxville’s creative community. West Fifth Studios is partnered with The Point church and offers public events quarterly including classes, maker markets, and First Fridays.

“Field Trip” is West Fifth’s annual off campus group show exhibiting our studio artists, who include: Gabrielle Barnhart, Kate Buuck, Jasmine Hoisington, Laurel Hooker, Matthew Kent, Carolina Lebar, Allison Meriwether and Esther Sitver.

http://westfifthstudios.com/
Instagram @westfifthstudios

This exhibition will be on display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. The Emporium is open to the public Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM and Saturday, 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM. Closed Monday, September 4. For more information, please see www.knoxalliance.com or call (865) 523-7543.

A free gathering with the artists will take place on Friday, September 1, from 5:00-9:00 PM and features original music inside the Emporium by Blesser Heart. Beyond Landscapes asks the viewer to broaden their definition of what a landscape is typically. It is an exploration of a plein air perspective, a memory of a place, or even a mark left in a moment in time.

Lauren Adams studied painting and art education at the University of South Carolina. With a focus on Flemish and Dutch Art, she relishes archival techniques and processes. Through the years, her subjects have varied from landscapes, cityscapes, abstract atmospheres, to microcosms. Adams is also a high school art educator.

This series embodies the exploration of the marks our bodies leave after we wake from rest. Nocturnal landscapes, created by a loved one’s body imprinted into their bed, are remnants of his/her journey into the inner worlds. Some may leave a frenzied mountainscape from an active slumber, while others may leave rolling hills from a peaceful nocturnal recharge. I have asked people I love to send me a snapshot of their own nocturnal landscapes. From these, I have created an homage to the amazing worlds we are part of; the traces of which are left for us in the physical realm.

www.laurenadamsartstudio.com
Instagram @laurenadamsartstudio

Ilina Arsova was born in Skopje, Macedonia, where she studied painting and art education at the Ss. Cyril and Methodius University. Currently she is a PhD student in Socio-Cultural studies of Sport at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. As a member of the Association of Painters of Macedonia since 2005, she has exhibited in solo and group shows around the world, including in Washington, DC; New York City, NY; Berlin, Germany; Quito, Ecuador; Shanghai, China; São Tomé and Príncipe; Macedonia; and Malaysia.

As an environmental activist passionate about adventure and mountaineering, the connection with nature becomes a significant part of my art works. In 2020 I became the first woman from Macedonia and among 70 in the world to complete the seven summits mountaineering challenge, including the exceptional journey to the top of the world, Mount Everest. Inevitably the art works are inspired by my journeys, portraying the lived experience in a form of visual diary, complimented by a conceptual performance named ZERO where the artist becomes part of the artwork. The fetus position of a female nude immersed with the landscape is a symbol of a new beginning, a hope for a new humanity with higher respect towards mother nature, emphasizing the elements which give life.

Instagram @ilina_arsova
Instagram @ilina_arsova_art

This exhibition will be on display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. The Emporium is open to the public Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM and Saturday, 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM. Closed Monday, September 4. For more information, please see www.knoxalliance.com or call (865) 523-7543.

First Friday Reception: September 1st, 5:30 – 9:00 pm, with complimentary refreshments and music

Patrick Deason’s creative kinetic sculptures will be featured during the month of September. From a small birthday piece for his wife, Patrick’s art evolved through welding and shaping metal into creative kinetic art. Says Patrick, “Some of my methods are traditional blacksmithing, while others methods are unique tools and techniques, I've developed over the 20 plus years I've been involved in metal sculpturing. I most enjoy the challenges of kinetic art, requiring imagination and engineering along with ideas and inspirations." Patrick has received honors from the Georgia Coastal Art League as Artist of the Year, and has had his wonderful kinetic art featured in galleries in Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee.

Dennis Sabo’s stunning photography titled “Iceland- Earth, Water, and Ice” will be featured during the month of September. Dennis Sabo is an internationally honored photographer specializing in contemporary abstract, landscape, and seascape photography. His award-winning work has appeared in multiple national publications. Locally his work has recently been seen in the 2023 Dogwood Regional Fine Art Exhibition, Arts in the Airport- Spring/Summer 2022 Exhibition, and the 2022 National Juried Exhibition. Says Dennis, “My goal is to help other people celebrate their love and passion of nature and the natural world through my photographic artwork.” Dennis’s photographic fine art can be found in many private collections internationally and throughout the U.S., as well as within the healthcare and corporate industries.

Art Market Gallery, 422 S. Gay St, Knoxville, TN 37902. Hours: Tu-Sa 11-6, Su 1-6. Information: 865-525-5265, www.artmarketgallery.net, www.Facebook.com/ArtMarketGallery

Opens 6-8 PM on Fri Sep 1

Join us for September's First Friday show "Through the Looking Glass" by Blanket Fort Studio. Kendra is known for her fun and colorful ceramic pieces. This show will be no exception! Friday will be the first night of this month long show. Come on down to see the show, meet Kendra, or maybe even bring home an irresistible piece of art!

Rala: Regional and Local Artisans, 112 W. Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Hours: Mon-Thu & Sat 11-6, Fri 11-8, Sun 11-5. Information: 865-525-7888, https://shoprala.com or www.instagram.com/ShopRala

Reception: First Friday, September 1, 6-9pm

Mighty Mud, 126 and 127 Jennings Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37917. Hours: Tu-F 11-6, Sat 9-5. Open studio time on Thu 6-9. Information: 865-595-1900, www.mightymudclay.com

Opens FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2023 AT 5 PM – 8 PM
Regular Gallery Hours: M-F | 9AM-5PM

Shaped Like Light is an exploration of the cultural and physical landscape of East Tennessee. These paintings shimmer though landscape and folklore in a mirage of incandescent color and pattern.

Annie Rochelle is an artist living and working in her hometown of Knoxville, Tennessee. She is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art with a BFA in Painting and Art History. With an education in art conservation and art history, Rochelle’s work is an optical investigation that strives to both celebrate and break traditional painting into refracted color and shape. Like light caught in a prism, the shifting perspectives, double imagery, refracted and faceted compositions strive to capture the ephemeral nature of the environment around us. These artworks works to combine naturalistic imagery such as scientific illustration and landscape painting with the sharper geometry of traditional barn quilt composition and rigid tessellation in an prismatic palette to create a visual and thematic kaleidoscope. All of these visual elements work to celebrate the singular uniqueness of East Tennessee’s biodiverse environment, pay homage to agrarian art traditions and revel in the dizzying colors of Appalachia in her warmer months.

Summer Small is a self-taught visual artist from East Tennessee. Her work unfolds a complicated but passionate relationship with modern Appalachia and the people and places that call the Tennessee valley home. In 2021 she began her freelance career and has since been featured in many exhibitions, publications and public art projects in Knoxville and around the greater south.

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

Afrofuturist, artist, educator, graphic designer, and DJ, Stacey Robinson will be having exhibitions at the UT Downtown Gallery, Ewing Gallery, and a 5-day artist residency in Knoxville, during fall of 2023. Robinson’s time in Knoxville will coincide with an intentional Afrofuturist takeover of the galleries with the presentation of his exhibition projects, Black Audacious Freedom Dreams and Black Utopia: Black Distractions & Disruptions in Time Space, to be on view in fall 2023. Infusing downtown Knoxville and the University of Tennessee campus with Afrofuturistic imagery, Robinson and the galleries will build a critical mass of Black thought and creativity to amplify and center Black voices.

The Ewing Gallery, located in UT’s Art + Architecture Building will present Black Audacious Freedom Dreams by BLACKMAU, a creative collaboration between Stacey “ Blackstar” Robinson and Kamau “DJ Kamaumau” Grantham. This exhibition features a multimedia projection and seven 7-foot banners created using digital collage. These images visually mimic the audio sampling used throughout hip hop musical production and the process of crafting a tight DJ set, which inspire the duo. This work prompts a conversation about Black liberation as a reality not yet fulfilled. By centering Black people within the narrative, BLACKMAU prompts the audience to imagine themselves in the spaces with the subject. Robinson and Grantham reference Black liberation texts with With Black Audacious Freedom Dreams, including Freedom Dreams by Robin D.G. Kelly, and We Want to Do More Than Survive by Bettina L. Love, which they include in a study area and curated library of Black texts in the exhibition.

Concurrent with Black Audacious Freedom Dreams, the UT Downtown Gallery will present Robinson’s new solo project, Black Utopia; Black Distractions & Disruptions in Time Space. This exhibition is a design research project looking at systems of oppression and resistance through black and white logo designs and illustrations that use the emptiness of white gallery walls as the backdrop for extracting Black resistance commentary. The systems examined springboard a burgeoning theory comprised of Black-created systems that can function as a form of Black liberation government in lieu of Black Reparations, justice, and failed integration.

Exhibition: Audacious Black Freedom Dreams
Artist: Stacey Robinson / BLACKMAU
Dates: August 22 - October 29, 2023
Location: The Ewing Gallery of Art + Architecture, 1715 Volunteer Boulevard
Times: M,T,W,F: 10am - 5pm, Thur: 10am - 7:30pm, Sun: 1-4pm
For more information: ewing@utk.edu | https://ewing-gallery.utk.edu

The McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, is proud to announce that it will bring the acclaimed exhibition, In Conversation: Will Wilson, to the local community. With over $35,500 in grant support, the museum will feature the powerful works of Diné (Navajo) photographer Will Wilson in a moving exhibition exploring the importance of self-representation.

In Conversation: Will Wilson opens at the McClung Museum on August 18 and will include a range of engaging programming for both the university and the Knoxville community. The exhibition was made possible through Art Bridges, a foundation created by philanthropist Alice Walton that is focused on expanding access to American art. Showcasing 17 portraits from Wilson’s Critical Indigenous Photographic Exchange project, the exhibition is dedicated to capturing a contemporary perspective of Native North America. In Conversation: Will Wilson challenges viewers to think critically about how Native peoples have been portrayed in photography over time. Through portraiture, Wilson responds directly to the works of early 20th-century photographer Edward Sheriff Curtis (1869–1952). Curtis’ photographs simplified and romanticized Native American life, whereas Wilson has created rich, complex portraits from Indigenous perspectives. Visitors to the exhibition will witness some of Wilson's portraits come to life through an augmented reality app, providing an interactive experience known as "Talking Tintypes."

In Conversation: Will Wilson is organized by Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, and curated by Mindy Besaw, Curator of American Art/Director of Fellowships & Research from Crystal Bridges, and Ashley Holland, Associate Curator from Art Bridges.

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Dr on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-2144. Hours: Tuesday through Saturday 9 a.m.–5 p.m. and Sunday 12–4 p.m. https://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu

Closing Reception: Thursday, September 21, 3-5 pm

This mixed media exhibition by Maggie Connolly and Eric Sherwood, both teachers at Mighty Mud ceramics studio in Knoxville, will be on display in the Bagwell Center for Media and Art Gallery.

“Purposefully organic is a phrase that permeates the exhibition 'Turn to the Fool,’” said Professor Herb Rieth, Career Community Coordinator for Creative and Media Arts at Pellissippi State Community College. “The throbbing iterations, linear susurrations and natural genesis channeled through automatic drawing, wordplay and sculpting result in work that is quiet, insistently patient and infinitely detailed.”

Connolly received her Bachelor of Arts from Grinnell College in her native Iowa, her Master of Fine Arts in Ceramic Design from Tsinghua University in Beijing, China and her Ph.D. in Fine Arts Ceramics from Tokyo University of the Arts in Japan. She was an Arrowmont Artist in Residence 2019-2020.

Sherwood was born and lives in Knoxville. As a person of Chinese and American parentage, he spent time in China with his extended family and grew up navigating between the two cultures. This “otherness” is a platform for viewing both cultures and the larger world around him as well as a lens turned inward.

Hardin Valley Campus of Pellissippi State: 10915 Hardin Valley Road, Knoxville, TN 37932. Bagwell Center Gallery hours: M-F 9-5. Information: 865-694-6405, www.pstcc.edu/arts