Arcade Arts would like to sincerely thank our Founding Benefactor, the Ayers Foundation Trust.
A longtime supporter of the arts in Nashville, Ayers Foundation Trust is continuing their tradition of passionately supporting local artists through Arcade Arts Nashville. This program would not be possible without their generous support.
ARTIST IN RESIDENCE
Founded in 2023 in the historic Nashville Arcade, Arcade Arts is home to a collection of 12 working artists’ studios and galleries, where visitors can engage with artists actively creating their work in a variety of media during open hours and at frequent curated art events.
OUR MISSION:
To provide a long-term place in downtown Nashville for the visual arts that will serve as a destination for artist studios and allow for artistic and educational programming to engage the public in the visual arts.
OUR VISION:
To create and participate in meaningful collaborations that contribute to the elevation of visual arts in Nashville
To provide a rent-free, safe, sustainable, and cooperative working environment for our resident artists
To encourage the civil exchange of ideas through Arcade Arts programs
To offer opportunities for learning, inspiration, and celebration of the visual arts
To become an active participant in the efforts to elevate the Historic Arcade and downtown Nashville as significant contributors to the city’s civic pride and reputation
OUR ARTIST IN RESIDENCE PROGRAM
Arcade Arts’ Artist in Residence is home to 12 rent-free working artist studios located upstairs in the newly renovated Nashville Arcade. We host an open call to artists with a juried selection panel. Participating artists remain in residence for ten months. In addition to covering the cost of rent for these studios, Arcade Arts organizes and promotes curated art events including workshops and demonstrations, artist talks, monthly Art Crawls, gallery shows, and other programming that engages and fosters a robust arts community.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Whether presenting meaningful moments from everyday living or storytelling from historical research, Sarah Clinton’s paintings and mixed media art invite viewers to pause and look carefully. As a curious person, she observes details and experiments with ways of expressing herself in a representational style with impressionistic qualities such as subjects and colors. Her studio art conveys narratives that can be personal and emotional. Painting en plein air highlights her inquisitiveness and perspective, providing glimpses into the wonders she sees around her.
Clinton paints with the Chestnut Group, whose mission to preserve the historic buildings, naturescapes, and habitats inspires her. Working on location provides a particular thrill, saying, “I loved the idea of trying to capture the environment while you’re in the environment.”
This practice of outdoor painting invigorates her creatively and complements her studio art.
SARAH CLINTON
The surfaces of Clinton’s mixed media artworks convey a sense of history with layers of paint and found media applied over time. She creates anecdotes or recalls life experiences as she manipulates the materials she collects. In this format, she aspires to play with patterns, weaving, and disrupting lines to create a balance between abstraction and representation.
Clinton’s studio practice at the Arcade Arts Residency has shown her that vulnerability can have an impact. She recounts when a woman cried in front of her painting Respite The artist depicts a tightly cropped image of herself sitting on the floor holding her special needs child in her lap. Clinton says Respite is a bit of a departure because it is so personal. I have been less scared of going bigger and getting more explicit about making work that reflects my life.”
She feels encouraged knowing that the moments may not be clear to others, but the underlying emotions she experiences while making the work resonate with viewers.
SARAH CLINTON
“I talk about the residency to everyone who stops in and is interested in what is happening in the Arcade. Recently, a couple of tourists who stopped in to look around said, “We didn’t know anything like this existed here!” with an impressed look that conveyed new respect for the city.”
Echoes of Giants oil on panel, 8" x 10", 2025
Respite
acrylic on cradled birch board, 36" x 30" x 2" 2025
Arcade on a Winter Day 12" x 9", 2024
Locked in the Layers
oil on paper collage adhered to cradled birch board, 36" x 30" x 2", 2025
People Watching oil on panel, 12" x 6", 2025
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Katherine Frensley begins each new artwork with a fundamental question: “Will it dye?” The textile artist has a passion for working with natural dyes and fibrous materials that began in an undergraduate class. Now she grows a garden dedicated to producing plants to dye the material used in her pieces. The artist explores traditional techniques of making dye, sewing, weaving, and quilting. Reflecting that these methods have been used for centuries, she finds meaning in continuing these historical methods in her own fluid style.
Making dyes includes collecting elements from nature that Frensley grows, finds, or buys. As an expert, she knows how to make appealing combinations with the likes of madder root, logwood, and cochineal bugs. Pointing to a pink colored print, she says, “this is cochineal… it's just gorgeous. I'm blending it with different materials, like marigolds, and sunflowers.” With delight and sometimes frustration she tests new approaches using various cotton and silk bases, moisture levels, and metallic salts.
KATHERINE FRENSLEY
While Frensley knows best practices for developing successful outcomes for textiles, she likes to experiment. In one of her artworks, she applied natural dyes to synthetic cloth and left it to chance. This sheer material does not take dye easily or consistently, but the results yielded a new approach. For the Arcade Arts Residency, she created an installation by suspending the luminous printed fabric and having visitors engage with its movement as they walked through.
The dyed textiles Frensley makes change over time. Discussing a series of blue woven sculptures, she relates a powerful lesson on decay: “these will eventually fade, and they tend to sag and droop. And with time, they kind of lose their true form that they originally were. But that’s kind of life.” Not a grim person, Frensley cherishes nature and seeks to drive deeper connections to its beauty.
fter graduation, I found myself missing the artistic community I once had, and this residency has been a beautiful opportunity to reconnect. The collaboration, the support from fellow artists, and the encouragement I’ve received have reignited my passion and driven me to explore new ideas and materials in my work.”
A Garden’s Eco-print Diptych eco-printed cotton using Marigold, Coreopsis, Hopi Sunflower seeds, 12" x 36", 2025
Cochineal Weaving (detail) naturally dyed weaving, 43" x 45", 2023
Silk Eco-print naturally dyed silk, varies in size and dye, 2025
Blooming Hollyhock hand-tufted rug, 21" x 33", 2024
Undaunted Indigo indigo dyed soft sculpture, varies in size, 2019
After a difficult start in life, Courtney Gatewood processes her frozen moments through art-making. The current series Help Me to Carry the Fire features bold paintings in bright, custom pigments. Predominantly red, the artworks contain subtle narratives presented through overlapping paint and collage elements. She conveys a passion for drawing, and that comes through in the contoured lines that define the people and objects she presents on canvases. Attention grabbing from the start, her art unfolds by looking closely at the layers of details.
The juxtaposition of imagery carries personal and universal meanings. For example, a chair may suggest rest and leisure, but Gatewood’s chairs tell a story of the boredom she felt sitting around the house with the grandparents who raised her. With limited funds and opportunities to participate in activities in a small town, she had few options for escapism. Gatewood says, “We’d sit outside and look at the daffodils, and I’d just stare at them. I wish I was a daffodil sometimes, because
COURTNEY GATEWOOD
they didn’t have anything bad happening to them.” By painting these memories, she binds them to the art and lets them go.
With her freedom from a difficult childhood and marriage, Gatewood followed her dream of being an artist. She put herself through art school at Austin Peay State University, becoming the first one in her family to graduate from college. The artist values the Arcade Arts Residency saying, “I understand the challenges of this career path, but it has been my aspiration for a long time. I aim to inspire young women who lack support or encouragement, showing them they can achieve their dreams as long as they believe in themselves.” Art provides her an outlet for processing hard times for now, but Gatewood has no plans to stop making whatever themes arise.
Wicked Sitting acrylic and tape on canvas, 48" x 36", 2025
COURTNEY GATEWOOD
ince embarking on my residency with Arcade Arts, my creative journey has flourished in ways I never imagined. I have had the incredible opportunity to connect with a diverse group of talented individuals, each bringing their unique perspectives and artistry to the table. Their work has not only inspired me but has also ignited a newfound confidence within me, encouraging me to dive deeper into my own artistic explorations. This dedicated time and space to create has truly become a catalyst for new opportunities, and I cannot wait to see where this adventure takes me next!”
Blooming Daffodil ink on paper; 24" x 18", 2025
Dancing Daffodils acrylic on canvas, 48" x 24" x2, 2025
Sitting Pretty acrylic, paper, charcoal, tape on canvas; 36" x 48", 2025
The Porches acrylic and tape on canvas, 48" x 36", 2025
Blooming Daffodil ink on paper; 24" x 18", 2025
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Darrell Green employs humor and clever juxtapositions to make multimedia installations, photographs, and films that provoke questions and propose narratives. As a cinematographer, he tells stories with video and sound, and in his visual art practice, he combines physical materials and clever titles that act as prompts for a plot. The artist describes his art-making process as being like a puzzle to put together.
This effort gives viewers who experience his poetic visions an opportunity to reflect on the subtleties of life.
In his work Universe he presents a photograph that appears like the night sky but actually comes from a spot of concrete. Adding a suspended model of our solar system to the photograph creates a relationship that highlights our miniscule position in the universe. Green explains, “It’s just like how big things are, how small we are. And then how these small moments in life are happening.” Using nature as a teacher, he highlights the paradox of significance and insignificance.
DARRELL GREEN
At his Arcade Arts Residency studio, Green displays an array of cameras and formats from cinema cameras to classic point and shoots that have unique histories. He practices street photography, which requires selecting the right camera to capture the mood and convey his perspective quickly. The technical skills he gained through experimentation and studying at Middle Tennessee State University allow him to achieve textures and effects that support his visual storytelling.
From Nashville, Green reflects on how strange it feels to have no connection to the big growth happening or the country music culture that popularized the city. His experience is not reflected in the definitions of new Nashville, but that does not make him feel less Nashvillian. He marks his spot with art, showing moments, people, and ideas from Nashville that contribute to a broader perspective.
Deciding What To Watch
Ilford Delta 400, Myles Wilson
DARRELL GREEN
“The Arcade has been a space to live, learn, create, rest, isolate and commune. Truly transformative.”
THEPrayer directed by Darrell Green, digital video, 2025
Still from Nag Champa directed by Darrell Green, digital video, 2025
Still from Hurry Home directed by Darrell Green, digital video, 2025
Time Works For Me
Konica Centuria 100, Myles Wilson
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Emily Holt finds inspiration from everyday experiences and materials. The long-time artist and art educator incorporates play and improvisation into her life and work. She creates imaginative worlds that draw viewers in and tempt them to stay for a while. Her process involves printing, painting, sewing, sampling, constructing, and deconstructing in no particular order. Learning fearless experimentation from her young students, she brings that spirit into the studio.
The art speaks through materials, each delicate layer stitched and assembled into compositions that invite careful exploration of each thread and surface. Supporting sustainable practices, Holt finds many materials at the non-profit Turnip Green Creative Reuse and repurposes them to fit her creative vision. She also recycles previous artworks to avoid waste. The folded triangular house pattern that spans across various works in the current series contains elements from earlier creative projects. Layering patterned pages from different periods results in vibrant compositions unique to the artist’s hand.
EMILY HOLT
The houses in Holt’s work suggest a sense of place, home. She explains, “I think of houses as living things and how they are similar to a body, but also how houses are an extension of our bodies as we interact with them daily.” The vibrant repetition of structures brings up questions about place, population growth, and society, but she has no expectations that viewers come to specific conclusions. The artist plays with ambiguity to encourage reflection and engagement.
Upon moving into Arcade Arts Residency space, Holt knew she wanted to collaborate with the building in some way. She used her studio there to create giant installations of tunnel books. In one, an arrangement of tracing paper evokes a long luminous hallway that sparks an array of interpretations. Critiques and working on this concept in iterations has allowed her to grow and push herself.
Habitat paper, paint, thread, cord and wire, 50" x 62", 2025
EMILY HOLT
“
Having a large studio to expand the scale of my work has been life-changing, but it is really the relationships with the other artists that has proven to be even more meaningful in this experience.”
Night Vision paper, paint, thread, cord and wood, 28" x 40", 2025
Cicada Sister Flo paper, paint, thread, wire and wood, 18" x 30", 2025
Daybreak paper, paint and thread, 18" x 42", 2025
Tiger Eye
paper, paint, thread, wire and wood, 30" x 55", 2025
Tower Works paper, paint, and thread, 8" x 38" 2025
ABOUT THE ARTIST
As an academically trained painter and professor at Belmont, Mandy Rogers Horton speaks fluently about art-making and history. Her sharp eye comes through in her current series, Material and Metaphor in which the combination of urban landscapes and blue hues sparks larger conversations about personal and societal change.
Centered on deep observations of the world around her, Rogers Horton’s work incorporates construction elements that she sees as uncertain moments full of potential.
In a painting featuring a carefully stacked pile of bricks, Rogers Horton gives weight to the construction materials as indicators of possibility. They hint at a future different from now, although the outcome of better or worse remains unclear considering the numerous existential threats facing society. Likewise, the works featuring fallen buildings point to a time of transition. In these, the building’s interior reveals remnants of the spaces that once supported human interaction. The vacancy poses questions about the fate of the people who once occupied it and what comes next.
MANDY ROGERS HORTON
Painting this series in monochrome blue began from Rogers Horton’s grappling with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and civil rights conversations sparked by the murder of George Floyd in 2020. She says, “I felt like I wanted to be dealing with things, but in a quieted way. To look directly at these scenes but also tame it with tone.” By highlighting the world around her in blue, the artist provides a unique perspective on common construction zones and offers a calm space for contemplating change.
The physical space and community at the Arcade Arts Residency impacted Rogers Horton’s work as she now experiments with aspects of installation and performance. During her tenure, she collaborated with musicians and dancers to add layers of aesthetic experience to her painted works. These new elements add dimensions she craves in her artistic practice.
Material and Metaphor 1 acrylic on shaped panel supported by cinder black, 48" x 36", 2023
photo by Sam Angel
MANDY ROGERS HORTON
“A
rcade Arts has been a powerful catalyst for my practice. This space and time have enabled me to deepen ongoing projects, bring long-held ideas to life, and lay the groundwork for future work that will unfold in the coming years.”
Line painted gravel, dimensions variable. (Photographed here with Material and Metaphor II 2023 and Provisions 2023) October 2024
We Lived Happily acrylic on panel 30" x 40", 2023
Provisional
Adrift in the New
site-specific installation including cinder block, wood, brick, drywall, tarp and wooden palettes, December 2024
Troubled Surface (installation) site-specific installation including tyvek, drywall, plaster-cast bricks, and construction fabric, November 2024
photo by Sam Angel
Arcade Arts Nashville officially opened on Thursday, June 20, 2024, with the Art Between the Avenues event. This unique event introduced the mission of Arcade Arts and the Artist in Residence program, and featured work from 12 local art galleries and curators. Our inaugural group of resident artists were selected a few months later and moved into their Arcade Arts studios October 1, 2024. Since then, we have held monthly Second Saturday Art Crawls and we have initiated an Artist Talk & Walk.
We have also hosted a number of professional development workshops this year on a variety of topics including: How to Get the Most Out of Your Residency Experience, Grant Writing, and How to Install, Light, Photograph and Price Your Work. We have also organized three different critique sessions with our artists and welcomed studio visits from Frist Art Museum’s CEO and Executive Director, Seth Feman, along with the museum’s curatorial staff, and from Nashville’s Mayor, Freddie O’Connell.
We have also enjoyed curated shows at Gallery 56, Arcade Arts Exhibition Space. During the year, we invited various curators who don’t have a home to exhibit a show for six weeks, during which time they benefit from two Second Saturday Art Crawls. If you are interested in curating a show, please present a fully developed proposal with a curatorial statement and images to ed@arcadearts.org
Interested in learning more about Arcade Arts or supporting our mission?
Contact Mollye at mollye@arcadearts.org
Arcade Arts 2024–2025 Programming
October 2: Welcome Reception with selected Artists, Board of Trustees and members of the Selection Panel
October 5: Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
November 2: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
November 20: How to Make the Most out of your Residency with Lanie Gannon and Paul Kesling
November 29: Jazzy Bells — XPayne Public Program, featuring live jazz and a community mural project
December 6: Critiques with Kristi Hargrove and Barbara Yontz (Belmont-Watkins)
December 7: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
January 18: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
January 21: Nashville Scene visits Arcade and artists
January 25: Curator Ming Washington met with Darrell Green and César Pita
January 26 & February 2: Peer critique with Post Nothing followed by gathering at Standard Proof after both days
February 8: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
February 13: Grant writing workshop with Beth Reitmeyer
February 27: Ashley Mintz: Unearthing the Layers (ticketed public program)
February 28: Pizza at Bella Napoli
March 1: Studio visits with Mandy’s Belmont/Watkins college students
March 5: USN Evening Class
March 8: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
March 13: Workshop: Installing, Photographing & Pricing Works with Joshua Bennett @ Tinney Contemporary
March 26: Air Max Day Party
March 27: Briena Harmening bringing James Lawson High School students at 10/11am and Sisavanh Phouthavong bringing MTSU students at around 1:30pm
March 27: Artist Talk with Hurry Home group show participating artists hosted by Taylor Walton and Darrell Green
April 6: Jana Harper peer critique
April 10: NSA students visit
April 10: Artist Talks — XPayne, Rod, Courtney, Katherine
April 12: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
April 12: Darrell Green’s public program, Sometimes Words Are Irrelevant An experimental film experience in collaboration with Cinemania Circle
April 18: Studio visits with Frist curators
Each artist has a 15-minute studio visit with the group of Frist Curators
April 21: Convention and Visitors Bureau Tour
April 27: Studio visit invitational
April 29: PBS Arts Break Filming
May 1: Presentation to Leadership Nashville
May 2: Sarah Clinton’s Public Program, Plein Air Demonstration and Community ‘Paint-out’ at Church Street Park
May 4: Emily Holt’s Public Program, Make a Card, Take a Card workshop
May 7: Katherine Frensley’s Public Program, Flower Hammering workshop
May 8: Artist Talks — Taylor, mikewindy, Sarah, Duck
May 10: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
May 15: Artist Talks — Ashley, Mandy, Emily, César
June 14: Artist Talk & Walk at 5pm; Art Crawl from 6 to 9pm
June 21: César Pita’s Public Program, Slab-Built Cups workshop
June 22: Mandy Rogers Horton’s Public Program, Intro to Installation
June 29: “After your Residency” workshop with Caitlin Blomstrom
June (TBD): Closing Reception/Gathering
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Rod McGaha’s visual art stems from his roots as a jazz musician and photographer. His work at the Arcade Arts Residency centers on presenting the chaos that happens when beauty is blocked. In the iterative installation, The Beauty of Disruption he arranges the entire studio space into a swirl of suspended materials that carry personal meaning. He explains, “Everything is off-kilter; it represents my turning point on a new way of looking at things.” The celebration of racist ideologies in the current political environment combined with repeatedly facing discrimination himself, McGaha feels frustrated.
Blocked from simply fascinating on the beauty in life, McGaha destroyed his previous art. Rather than flat, still-life photography, he now tells stories about the resilience of Black people, particularly women. He explains “I deal a lot with Black women because coming up was helped out a lot by Black women…got my hair braided and help with my homework. I've got a wife, I've got daughters, my mom…
ROD MCGAHA
I definitely want to pay tribute to them in my practice.” His subjects come off the walls to command notice.
As a focal point in the studio, McGaha set up what appears as an altar of music-making tech, including pedals, mixers, and a seat for a musician to perform. However, a wall of netted elastic cords obscures the creative space. The artist calls this a metaphor for disruption. A way of making visible the invisible forces blocking freedom, beauty, and connection.
The installation contains originally composed audio and fills the studio space with caustic sounds without melody. For the Arcade Arts Residency art crawl, McGaha activated the space with live music he improvised with his drummer and upright bassist. This union presents a glimpse at how it could be without the disruptions, those socio-political forces, that dampen the Black experience.
We Rise 3 photography, 38" x 57", 2020
“ A fter our last group meeting, I was reflecting on what an amazing job you all are doing. The opportunities you provide are truly invaluable. From performance chances to studio visits, pricing guidance, and so much more, it’s absolutely incredible. It feels like an art school experience all on its own. You should be so proud. Your residency is already an undeniable success right out of the gate.”
We Rise 2 photography, 38" x 57", 2020
Terece photography, 38" x 57", 2020
Reflection photography, 38" x 38", 2019
Dance photography, 38" x 38", 2019
We Rise 1 photography, 38" x 57", 2020
ABOUT THE ARTIST
In her collage art, Ashley Mintz combines magazine clippings, hand-painted images, and embroidery thread to add layers to her storytelling. She comes from a lineage of artists on her maternal side. She has writers, painters, quilters, and musicians as ancestors, and her artistry pays homage to that legacy.
The mixed-media work Bonding: Memories with Rosie Lee features a large composition in which a girl sits with hands outstretched at the piano. The predominant use of red and yellow invigorates the scene, and the excitement of the moment comes through. Mintz explains this comes from memories of being in her great-grandmother’s apartment as a child: “She was my best friend and I wanted to portray safety, happiness and creativity in this particular piece since that’s what I felt with her.” This work expresses her gratitude for the generational love.
As a book artist, Mintz works in a historic medium known for imparting wisdom to convey her deeply personal writing and illustrations.
ASHLEY MINTZ
Processing familial trauma, she made a book called In His Image
In it, she reflects on the possibilities of deeper meaning gained through suffering. She notes that many people do not want to focus on spirituality but she says, “I want to delve into it…it's an important part of life.”
In addition to personal narratives, Mintz makes surreal collages where she manipulates scale, such as a flamingo with an oversized head, or creates unexpected juxtapositions like a spider and modern architecture. The cut-outs from old magazines add history and intrigue. The artist passes on knowledge and objects from the past for a contemporary audience to explore.
The Arcade Arts Residency has supported Mintz’s growth by creating a community where she engages with others about art. The critiques and accountability to go into the studio will have lasting influence on her.
The Guttural Screams of My Ancestors, Great Great-Grandmother acrylic and embroidery thread on paper, 9" x 12", 2025
ASHLEY MINTZ
eing an Artist in Residence at Arcade Arts has given me a well-rounded experience in what it means to be a working artist. I have been able to offer community programming, utilize studio space, and display my art for studio visits, critiques, and art crawls. One of the main things that has helped me has been the critiques we had with professionals, which is something that I have not experienced before as an artist. I am excited about seeing and feeling the growth in myself in just the few months we have been here, and I look forward to experiencing life as an artist after the residency, using what I have learned and experienced.”
From Behind the Yellow Wallpaper acrylic, waxed thread and embroidery thread on fabric, 40" x 68"
Bonding—Memories of Rosie Lee acrylic, found papers, embroidery thread and ink on canvas, 30" x 40", 2025
In His Image
acrylic, fabric, found paper, embroidery thread and ink on paper, 45" x 12", 2025
Saturday Blues acrylic, found paper, lace, and embroidery thread on raw canvas, 4.80" x 15", 2025
Unmasking acrylic, book pages and ink on canvas, 14" x 18", 2025
ABOUT THE ARTIST
César Pita makes art that combines his passion for learning new techniques for making clay sculptures and imbuing his creations with conceptual weight. His research-oriented artworks present elements from his Mexican ancestry and express compassion for immigrant communities. Noting that the negative perspective of brown people relayed in politics does not match his experience, he says “growing up, seeing your parents and your family working extremely hard, they provide for you and have a very peaceful existence.” While his art gives perspectives on under-represented people, he also processes complicated feelings around identity and belonging.
Pita’s five-foot tall ceramic vessels make an impact with embellished elements from cultural and familial research imbued with social advocacy. In Nuestras Manos, Nuestra Tierra Pita carves images of people into brown clay, their skin appearing naturally pigmented. By connecting to the art historical tradition of honoring usually white wealthy patrons and royalty on vessels, he elevates the
CÉSAR PITA
status of everyday brown people. With anti-immigration policies being enacted, Pita’s historical approach to art-making imparts dignity to the immigrant people who often feel they must hide at the margins of society.
The materials he uses resonated with him more deeply when he learned that his father and grandfather made and sold clay bricks in Mexico. The artist has aspirations to one day collect dirt from his ancestral Mexican town, saying “It would be a spiritual experience to partake in. In a sense, I'm honoring and acknowledging the privilege that I have now, to be able to work as an artist with this medium versus my family working with it as a means of survival.”
With clear conceptual motivations, Pita challenges himself. He notes that at the Arcade Arts Residency he has progressed more quickly toward his goal of making accessible art that speaks to his cultural roots and protest.
Vigilante Del Heredero ceramic, 33" H x 12" W x 24" D, 2024
CÉSAR PITA
“My time at the Arcade has been incredibly fulfilling. Having this much space to experiment and grow as an artist has been a rare and valuable opportunity. It’s clear that a lot of thought and care went into shaping this residency, from the panel’s thoughtful selection process to the way studios were assigned, the programs offered, and the opportunities provided. Everything has felt intentional and meaningful. I’m incredibly grateful for the effort everyone has put into making this experience so impactful, and I can genuinely feel the support and investment in helping us develop as artists.”
Darse Un Mini Relax ceramic, 19" H x 12" W x 5" D, 2024
Sarape Ancestral ceramic, 6" W 5" H 6" D individual, 36" W 60" H 6" D combined, 2024
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Taylor Walton makes illustrations and collages that encourage viewers to pause, reflect, and make connections. To create the eye-catching and visceral artworks, he layers imagery from mass-produced media clippings with hand-made drawings of figures and symbols from his imagination. He notes, “I like older media because it can be recontextualizing older conversations…we can get lost being so focused on what's happening when it can be so cyclical.” Walton processes societal influences and his emotions into richly detailed artworks imbued with history and storytelling.
His technique includes overlaying paper materials with acrylic paint, oil pastels, and color pencils to make multi-colored mixed media works. Although built upon layers, Walton uses color and spatial theory to flatten out the image. The ideas cut deep but appear processed onto a surface for studying. Sparked from current events and ongoing conversations with friends, he offers visual cues that highlight disparities at the intersections of race, class, and gender.
TAYLOR WALTON
The figures in Walton’s art appear as guides into unreal worlds where the artist’s questions and frustrations unfold. He invites viewers into what he calls the surrealism of Black existence, which comes through in the unexpected juxtapositions that resist singular interpretation. In his art, he manipulates found imagery to suggest new meanings, always keeping the audience aware of other perspectives.
The artist primarily works on paper, but he does not limit himself to expressions on a page. With the Arcade Arts Residency, Walton has a physical area where he extends his illustrations onto large walls. The maplike drawings made with markers provide an immersive experience. He appreciates the history of the Arcade as a hub and says, “Having this room is kind of a universe, a canvas of its own for me to build my own worlds that can then go out into the world.”
TAYLOR WALTON
“My time at the Arcade afforded me the time and space to grow upwards and outwards. I feel affirmed in my practice as an artist, and in my steps towards what’s next. I realize now my civic duty as an artist to not only enthrall but engage audiences with my work. We are creating experiences that could introduce someone to the wonders of creativity.”
King's Ransom
ABOUT THE ARTIST
A prolific artist, mikewindy experiments with methods of making paintings, sculptures, and mixed media work. His expressions take distinct formats, from three-dimensional objects composed of weathered wood to wall hangings composed with paint and collaged images. The artist has varied temporal modes of art-making; sometimes he challenges himself to make work quickly, while others he allows to develop over years.
In a series of art defined by its aged medium, mikewindy combines paint and wood to make sculptural wall hangings. To obtain his signature patina, he hangs his art on the fence in the backyard of his house. Over months and years, he watches the wood and painted scenes change. With careful viewing, the textures and ridges enhance the visual impact. Narratives unfold through intentional marks and natural decay. Significant to his process, mikewindy always thinks how the work exists when he makes it, with an eye on what might happen when it ages. Of course, he holds no power over nature; thus his art
mikewindy
inherently contains surprises such as a spider living inside or bird pecks on the surface.
mikewindy built sculptures featuring caged heads before the residency, but at the Arcade Arts Residency, he has focused on making paintings featuring his characteristic subject. Often made as fast as possible, the figures have no specific gender indications; however, their leftward facing position echoes historical presentation of powerful people on money and portraiture.
Other recurring imagery includes birds, who appear in much of mikewindy’s art. Their significance remains open, although their colorful, whimsical style suggests creativity, freedom, and joy. In a series at the Arcade Arts Residency, the birds convey a more philosophical view. In these artworks, he combines the caged heads with birds trapped within them; we see their expressiveness restrained. The artist reflects “sometimes we are our own captors.”
Just under this facade is where I hope we one day meet. 30" x 30" acrylic and spraypaint on carved wood
“H
aving a studio at Arcade Arts has been a foundational experience for me as a professional artist. That might sound a bit strange knowing I turned 50 during the residency, but it connected me to a group of 11 other artists that will have an exponential impact on me and the students I serve at TSU for years to come. It has also flipped a switch in my head and heart and I will never again allow myself to not have art-making be a focus in my life. I am (re)stung and am so grateful to these 11 artists, Mollye, Sai, and the programming they facilitated and the community of arts supporters that show up once a month to see what we are up to.”
A particularly tricky guilt found object sculpture on a found base 12" x various dimensions, 2025
Cage head: the things we think we are over but aren't install view with family of mikewindy collectors, 6' x 9' acrylic and spray paint on painters tarp 2025
Stained glass cage: it's funny how we adorn our constraints install view on my surprise 50th Birthday with cousins, 6' x 9' acrylic paint on painters tarp 2025
If you look closely it will whisper you a secret
5' × 5', acrylic paint on woodblocks and painters tarp in background as Cub and Joe Christy investigate smaller works during a Sober Brunch
ABOUT THE ARTIST
On a quest to find himself through his art, Xavier Payne (XPayne) explores non-western histories for inspiration. Expanding his worldview, he researches history, spiritualities, and literature from the African diaspora, which inspires him to celebrate culture that resounds with Black greatness. In turn, he creates paintings and sculptures with symbols inviting African people to exist in contexts free from oppression. His investigations and life experiences fuel his process, and the vivid, graphical works he produces appear lighthearted but convey deeper conversations.
After deep research into West-African Yoruba religious practices, XPayne made a painting that represents the Orisha Ogun appearing with a shield, armor, and spear. The simplified linear style and pigmented lips impart a contemporary feel. This warrior indicates power that navigating today’s socio-political environment requires.
XPayne also builds upon the ancient Greek mythological stories in a
XPAYNE
painting of the heroic Pegasus and Bellerophon and includes a Black champion with a winged-horse named Negasus. With hair blowing in the wind and majestic pose, the pair symbolize freedom and ambition.
Exploring a theme he calls Afro-fantasy, he creates powerful Black figures in ideal worlds filled with creatures and stories where Black people thrive and live without restraint. In a technology meets fantasy concept, XPayne’s most current series at the Arcade Arts Residency features Afro picks as symbols of freedom meant to transport Black people to a fantastical planet where they rule. These colorful, whimsical works provide a hopeful place that exists outside the constraints of time and history.
Working in his space at the Arcade Arts Residency, the artist has been able to shape his own safe environment for conversational exchange with a wide audience. Filling all the available walls with the art made over the years, he has a chance to share different parts of himself and reflect upon the Black experience.
Holy Afrimony (mural)
“The Arcade Arts Residency was a humbling and transformative experience. I gained a new respect for my creative process as I created new work for the art crawls. We went through a boot camp of sorts by speaking with so many different folks about our work in a short amount of time. I even had a personal full-circle moment talking with students from my old high school. I feel part of a new movement in Nashville, and I'm proud to be in the same group as such a diverse and passionate group of creators.”
Old Man with Flowers Rainbow
Old Man with Flowers
The Hunter
Interior studio walls
OUR BOARD AND STAFF MEMBERS
CRISSY CASSETTY
Vice President of Parks & Placemaking Nashville Downtown Partnership
NICK DRYDEN
Principal, Dryden Studio
ALYCIN YORK
Founder, Allora Creative
EX-OFFICIO MEMBER
MARK CHAN
Linfield Capital LLC
ARCADE ARTS
MOLLYE BROWN
Executive Director
SAI CLAYTON
Artist in Residence
Programming Director
Arcade Arts thanks Sara Lee Burd for writing the profiles of the artists in this catalog, and to John Partipilo for providing his photography throughout this first year of the Artist in Residence program.
