Calendar of Events

Please join us for light snacks & refreshments
5:30pm - 8:30 pm EST

Able Trade, 203 W Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: https://weareabletrade.com/ or www.instagram.com/abletradeknox/

We're back open for August First Friday!

We are happy to host three incredible artists Dale Mackey @mackeyda Ashley Addair @ashleydawnaddair and Risa Hricovsky @risa.hricovsky for our newest gallery exhibition "Monster House" opening August 2nd 6-9pm

We'll also host Open Studios with the 8 RR Resident Artists plus enticing community printshop happenings in the back so mark us down on your calendars! More details TBA

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

The Arts & Culture Alliance will host the first of a series of First Friday block parties, featuring live music outdoors as well as artist booths/vendors by more than 20 local artists!

In August, we welcome Robinella. Inside, the Emporium celebrates the opening of five new exhibitions, detailed at https://www.knoxalliance.com/upcoming-exhibitions.

The Block Party aims to create a lively atmosphere in conjunction with the monthly First Friday celebrations. Closure of a portion of Gay Street will provide open pedestrian access and help build community. All are welcome! First Friday runs 5-9 PM. The 100 Block of Gay Street between Jackson and Vine avenues will be open to pedestrians only from 4-10 PM. Information: 865-523-7543, www.knoxalliance.com

Experience Appalachian Aquarium, Ryan Blair's collection of folk art fish created from wood. Each piece showcases the artist's unique vision and craftsmanship.

Rala, 112 W. Jackson Ave, Knoxville, TN 37902
PH: (865) 525-7888
Instagram: @ShopRala
https://shoprala.com/

Featuring an artist talk and new artworks by John Paul Kesling.
AUGUST 2 | 6–9 PM

Lilienthal Gallery invites you to our First Friday event for Dreamscapes on Friday, August 2, 6–9 PM, featuring new artworks and an artist talk by John Paul Kesling, who was born in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains. After the death of his younger brother and many friends to the ongoing opioid epidemic, his art serves as a visual exploration of the emotional and psychological intricacies of intimate relationships, personal loss, and our place in the natural world. Imbued with a deep sense of nostalgia, the work harkens back to the excitement and vulnerability of new human connections and experiencing nature in a new light.

His work is available and on view with artists Cynthia Zhou and Walker Antonio, who all blur the barriers between the real and the surreal in an effervescent harmony.

Our First Friday will include light bites and wine. This event is free and open to the public.
23 Emory Place, Knoxville, TN 37917
lilienthalgallery@gmail.com or 865.200.4401

First Friday Live!, with host Daniel Fluitt, 6pm on the WDVX Stage at Visit Knoxville.

WDVX, 301 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-544-1029, www.wdvx.com

Friday, August 2, from 6-8 Awaken Coffee will host an opening reception for Lauren Vaught Austin.

Lauren’s work is inspired by tastes and textures of music, poetry, emotion, and atmosphere. This curation consists of female portraits in watercolor, graphite, and Chinese ink.

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/

Union Ave Books is excited to present a Poetry Night in celebration of First Fridays, featuring Chris Barton, Shira Haus, and Micah McCrotty. This event will take place on August 2nd from 6-8pm at our bookstore. This is a free event. Please RSVP here.

Chris Barton is the author of the chapbook A Finely Calibrated Apocalypse (Bottlecap Press, 2024). His writing has appeared in or is forthcoming in Epiphany, Peach Magazine, The Plenitudes, Mergoat Mag, and elsewhere. He currently bartends at Kaizen and lives in South Knoxville with a big orange cat named Scrunty.

Shira Haus (she/her) is a queer, Jewish writer pursuing an MFA in poetry at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. Her work has appeared in HAD, West Trade Review, and Honey Literary, among others. She has received support from the Napa Valley Writers’ Conference and placed third in the 2024 Pinch Literary Awards for poetry. She works as an Associate Poetry Editor for Grist Journal, a reader for The Maine Review, and the Reading Series Coordinator for Sundress Publications.

Micah Daniel McCrotty lives near Piedmont, Tennessee with his wife Katherine. His poetry has previously appeared in The Midwest Quarterly, Louisiana Literature, Spoon River Poetry Review, Sycamore Review, and The Fourth River among others.

Event date:
Friday, August 2, 2024 - 6:00pm to 8:00pm
Event address:
517 Union Ave.
Knoxville, TN 37902

https://www.unionavebooks.com/event/august-first-fridays-poetry-night

Friday, August 2, 2024, 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Join the Guild for First Friday downtown.
Featured artists showcase their work and demonstrate their craft. Come see the Guild's office space and enjoy our permanent collection. And there's popcorn!

Featured Artists: Lynn Fisher, Clay, and Nancy Rowland-Engle, Jewelry
Board Member: Judy Woodson, Jewelry

Foothills Craft Guild, at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, Suite 113, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-470-0669, www.foothillscraftguild.org

15 Emory Place, Knoxville, TN, United States, Tennessee 37917

6-8 PM
Join us for Pete Dougherty, our August featured artist, this First Friday. Pete was born in Rhode Island and lived in Maryland for 28 years. He now lives in East Tennessee. His paintings reflect his extensive travels around the world. A graduate of Rhode Island College with a Bachelor of Arts in Fine Arts, his primary medium is oil, but he also works in acrylics and watercolor.

https://pivotpointgallery.com/artist/pete-dougherty

Aug 06, 2024, 6:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Mead's Quarry , Mead's Quarry Lake, Knoxville, TN 37920, USA

Ijams invites you to wrap up the end of summer on August 6 at Big Fun Tuesday (BFT) at Mead's Quarry! These events happen every first Tuesday from May-October. BFT is a night to hang with your friends, hit the trails on your mountain bike or on foot, listen to some great live music, enjoy a local food truck, rent a paddleboard or kayak from River Sports Outfitters, or simply enjoy a great evening! This month features one of Knoxville's finest: Steph Cabell!

For August, we are celebrating the end of summer with an Appalachian Mountain Bike Club social bike ride, swimming at the quarry, killer music from Steph Cabell starting at 6:30pm, delicious food from Neece's Chix Fix, and the Ijams beer garden will be open for food/drink needs. This is a FREE event for all ages. Grab your friends and family, and come to the quarry for fresh air and fun!

No registration required.

NOTE: Big Fun Tuesdays are weather-dependent and may be canceled due to rain. Plans will be announced on this page and on the Facebook event page.

Big Fun Tuesdays are sponsored by Boston Beer Co. {Truly Hard Seltzer, Samuel Adams, Dogfish Head, Angry Orchard, and Twisted Tea}

https://www.ijams.org/event-details/big-fun-tuesdays-at-meads-quarry-end-of-summer-blast

8/1 • Knoxville Shakespeare: A Midsummer Night's Dream
8/2 • Knoxville Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet
8/3 • Knoxville Shakespeare: A Midsummer Night's Dream
8/4 • Self-Care Sunday Yoga
8/4 • Knoxville Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet (Matinee)
8/4 • Knoxville Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet
8/6 • Big Fun Tuesday: End of Summer Blast

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. Visitor Center open daily 10-6; grounds and trails open daily from 8 AM - dusk. Information: 865-577-4717, www.ijams.org