Calendar of Events

Marble City Opera will present two site-specific performances of Il Tabarro by renowned composer Giacomo Puccini.

On Friday, June 21 at 7:00 p.m., we'll be at the Sequoyah Birthplace Museum in Vonore for a performance next to the lake. VIP ticket holders will attend a pre-show reception.

On Sunday, June 23 a 7:00 p.m., we'll be in Melton Lake Park, 697 Melton Lake Drive in Oak Ridge for a performance overlooking Melton Hill Lake of the Clinch River. Food and Beer Trucks will be present for enjoyment before the performance.

General admission tickets are $40 each. VIP tickets are $50 each. VIP tickets include a pre-show reception with refreshments.

The story of Il Tabarro takes place in the 1910s aboard a barge anchored on the bank of the Seine River in Paris. Barge captain Michele correctly guesses that his wife Giorgetta is having an affair with one of his barge hands. Michele catches a longshoreman named Luigi on his way to meet Giorgetta late one night and operatic tragedy ensues. The singers in the cast of Il Tabarro are Marble City Opera's Executive Artistic Director Kathryn Frady as Giorgetta; Eddie Brennan as Luigi; Jacob Lassetter as Michele; Chris Plaas as Tinca; Maurice Hendricks as Talpa; Ema Mitrovic as La Frugola; Breyon Ewing as the Song Vendor; and Elena Klein as a Lover. The stage director for Il Tabarro is Marya Barry. The orchestra conductor is Andy Anderson.

Tickets can be purchased at the door or online at www.marblecityopera.com/tickets
Social Media links: FB: facebook.com/MarbleCityOpera
IN: @MarbleCityOpera
TW: @MarbleCityOpera

Burlington Branch Library
Jun 21, 10-5
Jun 22, 1-5

Since 1970 Friends has donated over $1M to the Knox County Public Library. Our used book shop and book sales raised nearly $98,000 in FY 2023. Some of the library programs currently receiving support from Friends of the Library include the new Storybook Trails program, the Children’s Festival of Reading, Summer Library Club, and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Knox County.
https://www.knoxfriends.org/book-sales/

At the Knoxville Expo Center
June 21, 2024 .......... 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
June 22, 2024.......... 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Quilt Turnings by Jan Wass & Merikay Waldvogel • FREE
Friday, June 21, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.

Go Tell It! Video filming of quilt stories • Both days • Check in with The Quilt Alliance booth in the Vendor area • FREE
Vendor Sales and Demonstrations
Boutique Gift Shop by members of Smoky Mountain Quilters
Quilt Appraisals by Cindy Stuart - for an appraisal appointment please call 865-386-0940
Quilt Scavenger Hunts for the young ones and the young-at-heart

Admission: $10 Adults; Children under 12 are free; Two-day pass $15; Group admissions - Call
Free Parking and Handicapped Accessible Entry
https://www.smokymtnquilters.com/quilt-show.html

FREE Tour Series
Wednesday, June 19, and Saturday, June 22, 2024, times varied.

Join us for special tours to commemorate Juneteenth. Mabry-Hazen House will share stories, objects, and research related to the historic house museum, local enslaved communities, and their stories of emancipation. Visitors will learn about the lives of African-Americans connected to Mabry-Hazen House, their achievements and struggles, and the various ways they gained their freedom. From self-liberation to the 13th Amendment, “...And Then I Became Free: Stories of Emancipation at Mabry-Hazen House” will explore the different methods enslaved people broke down the oppressive institution of American chattel slavery and fought to gain their personal liberty.

On Wednesday, June 19th, the museum will offer special Juneteenth tours at 11am, 1pm, and 3pm.
On Saturday, June 22nd, tours will be offered at 10:30am, 12:00pm, 1:30pm.

Admission is free, but tours are limited to twenty-four (24) visitors per tour.
Reservations are encouraged and donations are appreciated.
https://www.simpletix.com/e/and-then-i-became-free-stories-of-emancip-tickets-173716

Winner of the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. In a run-down movie theater in central Massachusetts, three underpaid employees mop the floors and attend to one of the last 35mm film projectors in the state. A hilarious and heart-rending cry for authenticity in a fast-changing world.

Jun 16 - 23, 2024
Central Cinema, 1205 North Central Street, Knoxville, Tennessee 37917
https://www.simpletix.com/e/the-flick-by-annie-baker-tickets-158344

Reception Friday, June 14, 6:00 to 7:30 pm. Artists’ talks at 6:30 pm.
Free and open to the public

“Indicia” is defined as indications, traces or evidence; something serving as a visible or tangible representation of a fact, quality or feeling. Mixed-media artists Emily Taylor and Jean Hess – long-time friends and colleagues -- make work about recollecting and reconsidering early memories, family history and chaotic life paths. They each gather and playfully experiment with found and natural materials along with traditional art media, aiming to surprise themselves and others.

Jean Hess’ work is in public collections including the Huntsville, Knoxville and Evansville museums of art as well as corporate and private collections. She writes about art, gives classes and opens her Knoxville studio and garden by appointment: www.jeanhess.com

Emily Taylor teaches studio art locally as an adjunct professor and in other workshop formats. She has shown her work locally, regionally and in group shows and private collections. Contact her to visit or come to an open studio in Bearden!
https://www.facebook.com/emilytaylorpaintings/
Instagram:@emilytaylor9515

Gallery hours: 9:30-4:30 Monday through Thursday, 9:00-1:00 Sunday
Art Exhibit at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church, 2931 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37918

Saturdays, June 8, 15, 22 and 29, 9-10 AM
Start your June Saturdays off with an hour of slow flow power yoga, led by Jessica Tezak. Classes will take place outdoors weather permitting. An indoor backup location will be available. Email Jessica to sign up and learn more. Classes are $10 per week with a portion of the proceeds going to support the Garden. Meet at the Visitor Center parking lot.

https://www.knoxgarden.org/events

Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum, 2743 Wimpole Ave, Knoxville, TN 37914. Hours: Gardens open daily from sunrise to sunset. Information: 865-862-8717, www.knoxgarden.org

Sat Jun 8, 15 and 22
https://tnstateparks.com/parks/events/seven-islands

2809 Kelly Lane, Kodak, TN 37764
Price: $10
Time: 8:30 PM to 11:00 PM

Firefly season is here and we want to share this spectacular night light show experience with park visitors. This will be an opportunity for visitors to enjoy the fireflies and experience the park after hours from the Bobwhite ADA Trail. Visitors will be allowed to bring blankets and chairs to setup along the paved Bobwhite ADA Trail and view the fireflies and gaze at the night sky. Park staff will be stationed along the trail to answer any questions that visitors may have during the viewing experience. Participants MUST stay on the Bobwhite ADA Trail for the entire duration of the viewing experience. All of the other trails in the park will be off-limits. There will be a short slideshow presentation playing inside the Bluebird Barn to provide some cool firefly facts and shed some light on the fascinating flashing that visitors will be viewing. There will also be kids activities starting at 8:30 until it gets dark.

Flashlight use should be kept to a minimum so as to not interfere with other visitors' vision in dark conditions. It is recommended that you have a red light/filter on your flashlight if possible to reduce the light disturbance to the fireflies and other park visitors.

The cost of this program is $10.00 per person (ages 3+). We encourage participants to bring water, sturdy hiking shoes, and flashlights. The video and kids activities will begin at 8:30. Sunset is around 9:00. Please check-in with event volunteers and park staff at the Bluebird Barn by the main entrance parking lot no later than 9:00pm. The open viewing experience will end at 11:00pm. Please plan to be out of the parking lot at 11:00pm. Please note that this program is outside of the park's normal operating hours. Anyone caught in the park after sunset that is not registered for the program will be considered trespassing and subject to park rule violation citations and penalty fines.

A two-person show, Outta Time, featuring recent works by artists Joshua Bienko (Knoxville, TN) and Lester Merriweather (Memphis, TN). Curator: Brian R. Jobe.

A preview reception will be held on Friday, June 7, 2024 from 5:00—8:00 pm. Additionally, there will be an artists’ reception on Friday, July 19, 2024 from 5:00—8:00 pm (artists in attendance). There will be an artist talk by Bienko and Merriweather beforehand on July 19 at 3:30pm.

Joshua Bienko (b. 1978, NY) received his MFA from the Lamar Dodd School of Art at the University of Georgia in 2008, and his BFA from the University of Buffalo in 2000. He has exhibited at NADA (NY), Dallas Contemporary (TX), Artpace (TX), Labor Ebertplatz (Köln), Vox Populi (PA), Big Medium (TX), OUTERSPACE (Facebook) and the Guggenheim Museum (in collaboration with YouTube Play Biennial). Most recently he has shown in New York, Portland, Baltimore, Brooklyn and Pittsburgh. He has also curated shows in Brooklyn, Queens, Seattle, and Gainesville and is one of the founding members of the artist-run space Ortega y Gasset Projects in Gowanus, and C for Courtside in Knoxville. He is a 2009 Tanne Foundation recipient, and a Hambidge Residency and V.C.C.A Fellow. Bienko is an Associate Professor in the School of Art at the University of Tennessee, where he teaches Drawing and Painting. “Who’s the G.O.A.T.? Jordan! Or maybe J.M.W. Turner. Yeah, Either Jordan or Turner.”

Lester Julian Merriweather (b. 1978) is a Memphis-based visual artist. He attended the Skowhegan School of Painting & Sculpture. He holds an MFA from Memphis College of Art and a BA from Jackson State University. Merriweather has exhibited extensively throughout the U.S. at various venues such as the Studio Museum (New York, NY), CAM (St. Louis, MO), TOPS Gallery, Crosstown Arts, and Powerhouse (Memphis, TN), Diverseworks (Houston, TX), Stella Jones Gallery (New Orleans, LA), and Atlanta Contemporary (Atlanta, GA). He has also exhibited internationally at the Zacheta National Gallery (Warsaw, Poland). Merriweather served as the first Curatorial Director of the Jones Gallery & the Martha & Robert Fogelman Galleries of Contemporary Art at the University of Memphis from 2010-2016. He worked on the Board of Directors for Number, Inc. independent journal where he created the Art of the South exhibition series. He is a founding member of the ArtsMemphis Artist Advisory Council and the artsAccelerator Grant Panel. He served as the Curatorial Consultant for the PPF Contemporary Art Collection (Memphis, TN). He is Emeritus for the Advisory Panel of TONE Memphis. Merriweather is participating in Multiplicity: Blackness in Contemporary American Collage. Originating at The Frist Art Museum (Nashville, TN), the exhibition travels to The Museum of Fine Arts (Houston, TX) and The Phillips Collection (Washington, D.C.).

Tri-Star Arts at Candoro Marble Building, 4450 Candora Drive, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Tu-Sa 11-5. Information: https://tristararts.org/visit

This show is located within the unique architectural space of a narrow wooden stairwell.

A preview reception will be held on Friday, June 7, 2024 from 5:00—8:00 pm. Additionally, there will be another reception on Friday, July 19, 2024 from 5:00—8:00 pm (artist in attendance).

Michael Giles is a Venezuelan-American artist working primarily in painting and drawing. He has exhibited nationally including SITE: Brooklyn (Brooklyn, NY), Core New Art Space (Denver, CO), Channel To Channel (Nashville, TN), William King Museum (Abingdon, VA), Crosstown Arts (Memphis, TN), Walters State Community College, Carson Newman University, and Fluorescent Gallery (Knoxville, TN). Born in Maracaibo, Venezuela, at the age of five he immigrated with his family to Baltimore, OH. He studied as part of the Reciprocal Exchange Program at Edith Cowan University (Perth, Australia, 1996) and received a BFA from The Ohio State University in 2000, and an MFA from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville in 2007. He is currently an Associate Professor of Art at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, TN. He lives and works in Knoxville, TN, with his wife and son and various furry animals.

Tri-Star Arts at Candoro Marble Building, 4450 Candora Drive, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Tu-Sa 11-5. Information: https://tristararts.org/visit

First Friday Reception: June 7th, 5:30 - 9 pm
Art Market Gallery, Knoxville

Lynn Straka, Jewelry
Lynn Straka is a Cleveland, Ohio native, avid Buckeye, and supporter of Arrowmont School Of Arts and Crafts. She received her Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Veterinary Medicine at The Ohio State University, and is a self-taught jewelry artist that enjoys the art of technique and texture. While she has always been a maker in some form, she began making beaded jewelry which lead her to explore the art of metal working. Daily problem solving and using small hand tools as a veterinarian has helped her with mastering jewelry fabrication. This is her fourth season teaching community classes at Arrowmont, and her first season at Hands On Gatlinburg. Her work can be found at the Cliff Dweller’s gallery in Gatlinburg, TN, Ijams Nature center, the Art Market Gallery in Knoxville, TN, the Arrowmont showcase gallery, and Etsy.com

The jewelry I make is adornment – created to produce joy to the wearer. Designs influenced by nature, they may evoke a memory, affirm a belief, or be an extension of the wearer’s personality. The common denominators of my work are texture and exercise in technique. Whether it is hand stamping designs or words, forging, creating three-dimensional forms, or impressing texture onto metal, each piece has its own one-of-a-kind, individual personality. The materials I use most are sterling silver, copper, and bronze, with semiprecious stone accents. Some of the materials are recycled or repurposed metal items that I have altered and incorporated into my jewelry. Typically, they are finished with an antiqued or aged patina to highlight their texture. This month’s featured artist collection is called ‘Trash To Treasure’. Most pieces will have unusual materials and found objects combined with sterling silver. This represents the idea that beauty and adornment can be found in everyday and discarded objects.

Carole Stoiber, Painting
Carole Stoiber is an artist who expresses herself in watercolors, oils, acrylics, and clay. Her works are presently on display and for sale at the Art Market Gallery in Knoxville. When living in Harrisonburg, VA, Carole began painting original watercolor portraits of homes as commissions. She called her business, “A Different Kind of House Painting”. Images of these watercolors and her amazing original oils can be viewed on her website:http://www.carolestoiberart.com

Patrons marvel at her talent to create beautiful images with skillful techniques, vibrant colors, and imaginative designs that provoke emotions and memories with familiar, yet unique visions. Carole received a Fine Arts Degree with a Ceramic Concentration from Barton College (Wilson, NC). Carole continues to learn and create every day in all media. Her experiences in multi-media were indispensable when teaching K-12 at Greenfield School. She also taught at Wilson Community College through continuing education programs with seniors. In addition, Carole’s years of teaching include The Boys & Girls Club (Wake Forest NC), churches, and summer camps. Most recently, Carole retired from her position as Art Department chair at Greenfield Academy. Since moving to Tennessee, Carole has found fulfillment as a published fiction author, and is a member of the local Mossy Creek Writers. She has written and illustrated a book titled THE UNTOUCHABLES AND THE CIRCLE OF TRUST. Carole will now be teaching art to grades K-2, 2-4 and 4-6 entitled MAKE ART with MS. CAROLE. These original and cross curriculum STEAM lessons will be at the Rose Center for the Arts in Morristown, Tn. Carole’s philosophy? To stay young at heart, you must create something every day.

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

https://www.cevetjonesphotography.com/

Please stop by for amazing art and great coffee!

Awaken Coffee, 125 W Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Open daily. Information: 865-951-0427, www.instagram.com/awaken_coffee or www.facebook.com/awakencoffeeoldcity/