Calendar of Events

Join us this fall for three days of equality, community, activism, and pride!
https://www.knoxpride.com/pride-fest-2023

Townsend Artisan Guild is hosting an art event at the Townsend Visitors Center in Townsend, TN on October 6, 7, 8. The event will feature the work of 17 local artists who are juried members of the Guild.
The event includes demonstrations of art all three days. All artwork will be for sale.

Townsend Artisan Guild is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote interest in and appreciation of the arts through community activities, exhibits, classes, festivals and workshops.

Dates: October 6, 7, 8
Times: Friday and Saturday 9am - 5pm. Sunday 9am - 3:30 pm.
Location: Townsend Visitors Center, 7906 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Townsend, TN.
www.townsendartisanguild.org
email: townsendartisanguild@gmail.com
FB: Townsend Artisan Guild

WordPlayers to produce Lauren Gunderson’s masterful and illuminating work, Silent Sky. Show dates of October 5, 6, 12, and 13 at 7:30pm, and October 8 and 15 at 2:30pm, in the auditorium of Erin Presbyterian Church, located at 200 Lockett Rd. Knoxville.

Though it is not a “church activity,” the WordPlayers will use the lovely, intimate auditorium of Erin Presbyterian Church in Bearden to produce an evening of theatrical magic with Lauren Gunderson’s Silent Sky .Tickets on sale now at www.wordplayers.org, and available at the door while seats last.

The true story of 19th century astronomer Henrietta Leavitt explores a woman’s place in society during a time of immense scientific discoveries, when women’s ideas were dismissed until men claimed credit for them. Social progress, like scientific progress, can be hard to see when one is trapped among earthly complications; Henrietta and her female peers believe in both, and their dedication changed the way we understand both the heavens and the earth.

“…sheer magic [is] in Lauren Gunderson’s SILENT SKY. …Gunderson [writes] economically and with bursts of smart, infectious humor."-San Francisco Chronicle

“Lauren Gunderson’s luminously beautiful play SILENT SKY is an intellectual epic told on an intimate scale.Bottom line: Heavenly.”-Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The WordPlayers, 865-539-2490
Website: wordplayers.org
Facebook: The WordPlayers
Twitter: @wordplayers
Instagram: wordplayers

Cherokee basketry and Southern Appalachian basket styles are on display now at Pellissippi State Community College’s Strawberry Plains Campus. The “All the Eggs in One Basket” exhibit curated by Art Professor Jeffrey Lockett is free and open to the public through the college’s Appalachian Heritage Project, which is housed in the Strawberry Plains Campus Library. Funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Appalachian Heritage Project serves as a repository for regional literature, history and folklore and includes programming including exhibits, lectures and workshops. “Abundant river cane in the Southern Appalachians contributes to its widespread use in weaving and basketry,” Lockett said. “The known works of the 17th century Cherokee Indians introduced the unique combination of materials and weave patterns using this cane.”

In the 18th and 19th centuries, storage baskets were used for daily needs such as harvesting, transportation and food preparation, Lockett added. However, as mountain tourism and markets for mountain crafts grew into the 20th century, Cherokee basket makers responded by producing baskets for the tourist trade. Most baskets on display in the "All the Eggs in One Basket” exhibit were made by Jimmy Lawrence of Clinton, Tennessee. Lawrence, born in 1937 in Abington, Virginia, is a Virginia Tech-educated mechanical engineer with a lifelong fascination with Appalachian crafts. He and his wife, Gail, have a regionally known collection of Southern folk art, crafts and utilitarian ware at their home.

“Jimmy says his curiosity for Southern crafts together with his engineering background has allowed him to approach basketmaking and weaving as an artform as well as an achievement in engineering,” said Lockett, who named the exhibit in honor of the variety of Lawrence’s traditional egg baskets that are on display. "Jimmy takes traditional Appalachian styles as well as Cherokee weaving traditions and varies the materials to include slippery elm bark, native cane and white oak.” All works in the exhibit are from the collections of Lawrence or Lockett. The Strawberry Plains Campus Library is open 8 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday.

Pellissippi State | 865.694.6638 | marketing@pstcc.edu | www.pstcc.edu

The Tennessee Artist’s Association is holding its Annual Members Juried Art Show at the Fountain City Art Center, 213 Hotel Rd., Knoxville, 37918. A gala reception will be held on Sunday, October 1, 2:00 - 4:00 pm, and refreshments will be available. Fountain City Art Center regular hours are Tuesday- Thursday, 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.

More than 40 artists and over 100 pieces of artwork will be represented at the show. Prizes include Best of Show, 1st Place, 2nd Place, & 3rd Place in various categories, including Portraiture, Figurative & Animals; Abstract, including 3-D & Collage; Landscapes, including Seascapes & Streetscapes; Flowers & Still Life; and Emerging Artists will be featured.

Juror is Michael C. Berry, a working artist and professor of art at UT. Berry is known for his dynamic urban compositions that bend and twist the cityscapes that have become his unique style. Berry was the 2007 Dogwood Arts Festival Limited Edition Print Artist and has earned various awards and recognitions over the years.

TAA is celebrating 51 years as the area’s oldest member supported arts organization. TAA members work in many different genres of art and types of media and at various levels of ability. TAA seeks to be inclusive of all members and encourages active participation in shows and events.

Tennessee Artists Association meets monthly at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 6500 Northshore Dr., Knoxville. TAA - A place to learn and grow as an artist. Monthly programs of TAA include practical art demonstrations, discussions, and opportunities for individual artists to get involved in learning, community and shows More on the Tennessee Artist’s Association can be found on the web at https://tnartists.org, on Instagram at @tn_artists, and on Facebook at TNArtistsAssociation.

Faith Yared is an artist and undergraduate student who uses acrylic and water-based mediums to make narratives of worlds with people in their everyday lives. For this exhibition, Faith planned to really challenge herself by making a set of paintings that related to each other, forming together to make one complete narrative. She truly wanted to embrace the complexity of storytelling in her rendition of these paintings.

The Bottom, 2340 E Magnolia Ave, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: thebottomknox@gmail.com, 865-444-5915 or www.thebottomknox.com/

New Work by Beth Meadows and Mike Berry
at The Maker Exchange, 710 Clinch Avenue, Knoxville, TN
Opening Reception Thursday, October 5, 5-8 pm
Show runs September 30- December 10, 2023

The Richness of Life is a joint exhibition of new paintings and cutouts.

Gallery is open 24/7, however...
• Sometimes the Maker Exchange holds events in the gallery space. Call ahead to check for any events that would affect normal hours (865) 522-2800 ext. 7
• On the night of the opening, artists I will have smaller items for sale

https://bethmeadows.com/
http://www.mikecberry.com/
https://www.makerexchangeknox.com/

Open Show 2023 is the annual juried exhibition for all artists in all media

Opening reception Sat Sep 30, 7-9 PM with gallery talk at 6:30 PM and awards at 7 PM

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

Friday evening, September 29th will mark the 25th consecutive year that Maple Lane Farms will open its Corn Maze and other “agritainment” activities that include tractor-pulled hayrides (daytime and nighttime), pumpkin picking, inflatables for the kids, music, corn hole, food vendors, photo ops, sunflower fields, and other wholesome family fun to the public.

The Maze is located at 1126 Maple Lane in Greenback, just 14 miles south of Knoxville’s McGhee Tyson Airport.

The Maze is open weekends from September 29 through October 31. The Haunted Maze begins NIGHTLY October 20 through October 31. Opening hours are the following:
- Friday 6pm to 10pm
- Saturday 10am to 10pm
- Sunday Noon to 6pm
- Haunted Maze Opens nightly, October 20-31

Additional Features include:
- Barn Store Collectibles including Fall/Halloween Decorations, Straw Bales, Cornstalks
- Variety of Food and Beverage Vendors
- Evening campfires in the Maze Fairway near our Covered Party Tents
- Private Parties via Tent Reservation with Fire Pit
- Music
- Face Painting, Photo Booth
- Numerous Photo Ops, including the Sunflower Fields

Visit the farm’s website at www.TNMapleLaneFarms.com, Facebook page at www.Facebook.com/tnmaplelanefarms/, www.Instagram.com/MapleLaneMaze, or call 865-856-3511

By Samuel D. Hunter

In a small office in Southern Idaho, two single fathers develop an unlikely but powerful friendship. Samuel D. Hunter’s intimate, empathetic play is a thoughtful meditation on human resilience.

River & Rail Theatre, 111 State Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-407-0727, www.riverandrailtheatre.com

Family festivals, musical performances and guest speakers are among the events Pellissippi State Community College has planned for Hispanic Heritage Month – and all are free and open to the public. Themed “Todos Somos Familia” (We Are All Family), Hispanic Heritage Month at the college will celebrate the rich and beautiful complexity of Latino and Hispanic culture at Pellissippi State as well as recognize the importance of the contributions of Latino and Hispanic culture to the local community and the world.

Keynote speakers Karen Ocon-Mora, community schools site coordinator for Knox County, and Megan Barolet-Fogarty, director of youth and family engagement for Centro Hispano de East Tennessee, will kick off the month’s festivities Tuesday, Sept. 19, with an address on “Familia: Relationships and Resilience in Latino Culture.” The event will be held 10:30-11:15 a.m. in the Goins Building Auditorium on Pellissippi State’s Hardin Valley Campus, 10915 Hardin Valley Road, and livestreamed on Zoom.

Families have two opportunities to come out to Pellissippi State for festivals including games, activities, food and a screening of the film “Encanto” at sunset: 6-9 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 21, on the college’s Hardin Valley Campus and again 6-9 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 5, on Pellissippi State’s Strawberry Plains Campus, 7201 Strawberry Plains Pike

And don’t miss a lively performance by Knoxville’s own Latin jazz band Candela on Wednesday, Sept. 27, in the Hardin Valley Campus Courtyard. Candela will play 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m., and refreshments will be served.

For a full list of Pellissippi State’s activities planned for Hispanic Heritage Month, including concerts and lectures, visit www.pstcc.edu/hispanic-heritage. To request accommodations for any campus event, call 865.694.6411 or email accommodations@pstcc.edu.

Willkommen to Schulz Brau! Oktoberfest is our biggest festival of the year here at our Brewery and Biergarten! Meticulous planning goes into creating this special 3-week celebration of Bavarian culture. We proudly follow Munich traditions to offer our guests an authentic and fun experience. Prost!

Public Event, No Ticket Required
*Ticket Required to Attend Opening Tap Ceremony from 5-9AM on Sep 16
https://knoxvilleoktoberfest.com/