Nashville Art - April 2017

ART & FASHION ADAM SHULMAN SHIRLEY ZEITLIN EMILY LEONARD THE DADA EFFECT

EXTENDED THROUGH

APRIL 22, 2017 DUE TO POPULAR DEMAND!

A RAISIN IN THE SUN

BY LORRAINE HANSBERRY

Pictured: Tamiko Robinson Steele and Eddie George

FEATURING

EDDIE GEORGE MARCH 25 – APRIL 22, 2017 At Johnson Theater, TPAC

TICKETS: (615) 782-4040 NASHVILLEREP.ORG

SEASON PARTNERS The HCA Foundation on Behalf of

3 nashvillearts.com

Nashvillian of the Year Award Dr. Ming Wang, Harvard & MIT (MD, magna cum laude); PhD (laser physics) Presented by Kiwanis Club International, Nashville, TN The Kiwanis Club of Nashville is proud to announce Dr. Ming Wang, director of Wang Vision 3D Cataract and LASIK Center, world-renowned laser eye surgeon, author, and philanthropist as the 35th recipient of their coveted Nashvillian of the Year Award for 2015.

Dr. Wang receives the award by exemplifying the qualities of Outstanding Nashvillian of the Year and the Kiwanis International Vision. Dr. Wang worked diligently to make the world a better place, when he established the Wang Foundation, helping patients from over 40 states in the U.S. and 55 countries, with sight restoration surgeries performed free-of-charge.

“It is difficult to know anyone who works as hard giving back to the community and changing the lives of children as much as Dr. Ming Wang,” said Kenny Markanich, president, Kiwanis Club of Nashville. “He has helped countless children through the charitable outreach of his foundation, giving free surgeries to repair their vision.”

Dr. Wang actively contributes to the Nashville community as the founding president of the Tennessee Chinese Chamber of Commerce and as an honorary president of the Tennessee American-Chinese Chamber of Commerce.

The mission of these two chambers is to help educate Tennessee businesses about China, helping Tennessee to increase its export to China. He is also a co-founder of Tennessee Immigrant and Minority Business Group, an organization that provides support to the diverse cultural and ethnic businesses in our community.

For the past 35 years, the 100-year-old civic club has bestowed the annual ac-

colade upon an individual who has gone beyond the expected scope of their abilities for the betterment and benefit of the Nashville community. The selection committee was spearheaded by George H. Armistead, III, one of the three original architects of the award (along with the late Gillespie Buchannan and the late Ralph Brunson).

Past winners of note include Martha Ingram, Roy Acuff, Jack Massey, Phil Bredesen, Vince Gill, Tim Corbin, Mike Curb, Frank Wycheck, Darrell Waltrip and Mayor Karl Dean.

A program saluting Dr. Wang was held at the Patron Club, Friday, July 29th at 11:30am. Dr. Wang was presented with

a commemorative plaque along a commissioned caricature.

About Kiwanis: Kiwanis Club of Nashville is a local chapter of Kiwanis International.

This global organization of more than 660,000 members is dedicated to serving the children of the world.

It annually raises more than US$100 million and dedicates more than 18.5 million volunteer hours to strengthen communities and serve children. Members of every age attend regular meetings, experience fellowship, raise funds for various causes and participate in service projects that help their communities.

Dr. Wang can be reached at: drwang@wangvisioninstitute.com Wang Vision Cataract & Lasik Center 1801 West End Ave, Ste 1150, Nashville, TN 37203 615-321-8881 www.WangCataractLASIK.com

ADVERTORIAL BY WANG VISION 3D CATARACT & LASIK CENTER

THE RYMER GALLERY presents

Elise Wehle

Hand-Cut Works on Paper

April 1–May 2, 2017 The Rymer Gallery / 233 Fifth Avenue / Nashville 37219 / 615.752.6030 / www.therymergallery.com

5 T H AV E N U E O F T H E A R T S DOWNTOWN NASHVILLE

PUBLISHED BY THE ST. CLAIRE MEDIA GROUP

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Columns HUNTER ARMISTEAD | FYEye MARSHALL CHAPMAN | Beyond Words ERICA CICCARONE | Open Spaces LINDA DYER | Appraise It RACHAEL MCCAMPBELL | And So It Goes JOSEPH E. MORGAN | Sounding Off ANNE POPE | Tennessee Roundup JIM REYLAND | Theatre Correspondent MARK W. SCALA | As I See It

Nashville Arts Magazine is a monthly publication by St. Claire Media Group, LLC. This publication is free, one per reader. Removal of more than one magazine from any distribution point constitutes theft, and violators are subject to prosecution. Back issues are available at our office, or by mail for $6.65 a copy. Email: All email addresses consist of the employee’s first name followed by @nashvillearts.com; to reach contributing writers, email info@ nashvillearts.com. Editorial Policy: Nashville Arts Magazine covers art, news, events, entertainment, and culture in Nashville and surrounding areas. The views and opinions expressed in the magazine do not necessarily represent those of the publisher. Subscriptions: Subscriptions are available at $45 per year for 12 issues. Please note: Due to the nature of third-class mail and postal regulations, issues could be delayed by as much as two or three weeks.

There will be no refunds issued. Please allow four to six weeks for processing new subscriptions and address changes. Call 615-383-0278 to order by phone with your credit card number.

TINNEY CONTEMPORARY

©Adam Shulman

GOLD OF AFRICA NEW WORK BY ADAM SHULMAN April 1 - May 6, 2017

237 5th Ave N . Nashville 37219 . 615.255.7816 . tinneycontemporary.com

5 t h Av e n u e o f t h e A r t s Downtown nAshville

On the Cover Emily Leonard

April 2017 18

White Peony Oil on panel, 20” x 16” See page 32.

Features 18

42nd Annual Harding Art Show National Art and Education Highlight This Year’s Show

20

Chris Hornsby Customs House Museum

24

Q&A with Shirley Zeitlin

56

56

Elise Wehle Cut Paper

62

At Home Curator Anna Zeitlin Recreates the Gallery Space

68

Carmen Nashville Opera’s Sizzling New Production

72

Home Is Where the Art Is Local Artists Donate Work to Park Manor/Abe’s Garden

83

Cigar Box Guitars No Longer a Novel Curiosity, These Tiny Titans Are Creating a Big Noise

24

20 26

Fashion Design Brings New Energy to Drink-n-Draw Channel to Channel

27

Art & Fashion

27

Columns

32

32

Emily Leonard Finding Freedom

38

Fresh Paint This Shoe Doesn’t Fit

42

Photographer Adam Shulman Mines the Gold of Africa

46

The Postman Cometh with

Beautiful New Stamps from Artist Elizabeth Brandon

48

Tommy Lindberg

52

Vanderbilt Celebrates Dada’s Century-long Influence over Avant-garde Art

16

Crawl Guide

40

The Bookmark Hot Books and Cool Reads

78

As I See It

by Mark W. Scala

87

Studio Tenn

88 Theatre

by Jim Reyland 90 FYEye

by Hunter Armistead 92

Art Smart

by Rebecca Pierce

98 NPT 102 ArtSee

10 nashvillearts.com

105 Beyond Words

by Marshall Chapman 106 My Favorite Painting

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Galerie Tangerine is free and open by appointment Monday through Friday, 9 AM - 5 PM 615 454.4103 Located at 900 South Street, Suite 104 www.galerietangerine.com

Publisher’s Note March 11th - April 22nd

A Great City Deserves Great Art One of the highlights of 2016 for me was meeting the legendary Spencer Hays—an immensely likable person with a quick wit, a twinkle in his eye, and a burning passion for art. His collection was as legendary as the man: Degas, Modigliani, Matisse, Renoir, Bonnard—in other words all of my favorites. He invited me to his home here in Nashville to talk about the collection and decision to ultimately gift it in its entirety to the Musée d’Orsay. Room after room showcased the most beautiful Impressionist and Nabi art. He talked lovingly about each piece, where he and his wife, Marlene, found it, how he negotiated to buy it, sharing all the nuances that collectors love to explain. It seemed to me that Spencer had his favorites hung just a little higher up the wall so that he had to reverently and respectfully look up to them. At times he looked like a college professor; other times he looked like a schoolboy excitedly talking about his favorite toys. A small Matisse caught my eye, a gorgeous portrait of a red-headed woman.

Spencer handed it to me for a closer look, and for a few seconds, holding that Matisse, I was the luckiest guy in the world. And that is what made Spencer Hays such an extraordinary and charismatic person. He had the ability to make you feel special, that your opinion mattered, and that he was genuinely interested in you. Spencer Hays passed away last month, but I suspect his spirit lives on in just about everyone he ever met.

www.cumberlandgallery.com | 615.297.0296 | 4107 Hillsboro Circle

A sincere thank-you to Stan Mabry at Stanford Fine Art for introducing me to this remarkable man.

Paul Polycarpou | Publisher

Paul Harmon Original Art Available At Auction!

April Auction Featuring Original Canvases, Watercolors, Pottery, and Sculptures By InternationallyRenowned Artist Paul Harmon!

3522 Central Pike, Ste. 207 Hermitage, TN 37076 patti@baldiniauction.com 615-490-6849 • Firm 5963

BaldiniAuction.com

BENNET T GALLERIES BRAD ROBERTSON

Untitled 3706, 40” x 40”

2104 Crestmoor Road in Green Hills, Nashville, TN 37215 Hours: Mon-Fri 9:30 to 5:30 • Sat 9:30 to 5:00 Phone: 615-297-3201 • www.bennettgalleriesnashville.com

April Crawl Guide First Saturday Art Crawl Downtown

Me by the Bombay-based curatorial collective Clark House Initiative; and East Side Project Space presenting Time Frames by Richard Heinsohn. Merrilee Challiss’s contemplative exhibition The Void and the Eye continues at Julia Martin Gallery. For an interactive art event that defies conventions, stop by The Crappy Magic Experience at abrasiveMedia.

Seed Space presents Sage Dawson’s installation inspired

by Persian pleasure pavilions, Brick Myth. Ground Floor Gallery showcases guest curator Austin Thomas’s group show featuring Carl Gombert, Katherine Wagner, Andrew O’Brien, Gil Given, Elysia Mann, Frances Ashforth, Robert Fields, Dusty Mitchell, Mariel Zuchman, Brianna Bass, Kathia St. Hilare, and Amanda Brown in Otherworldliness.

Saturday, April 1, from 6 until 9 p.m.

Franklin Art Scene

Friday, April 7, from 6 until 9 p.m.

Smell the blossoms as you walk through downtown Franklin and the nearby neighborhoods for the first Art Scene of spring.

Featured at Gallery 202 is artist Chris Smith who works with mixed media, which includes blown glass, pottery and found objects.

Danita’s Children/Hope for Haiti showcases paintings by awardwinning artist Ashley DuRard.

Amanda Kiser’s mixed-media art inspired by nature is on display at Hope Church. The Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church presents photo-realistic charcoal portraits by Kofi SarfoKantanka and artworks by Olasubomi Aka-Bashorun. Cory Basil’s original illustrations created for The Perils of Fishboy are displayed at Imaginebox Emporium. See the expressive works on canvas by Shon Hudspeth at Wellspring Financial.

Stop by Early’s Honey Stand to see mixed-media artworks

by Bailey Sutherland. The Williamson County Visitor Center presents the expertly metalsmithed and sophisticatedly styled collection of d. Marlene Jewelry. Visit Parks Realty for Essence DeVonne’s mixed-media abstract artworks. At the Williamson County Archives, certified Zentangle teacher Lynn Noga demonstrates a drawing technique designed to encourage creativity.

Arts in the Arcade is getting a little smaller next month as Corvidae Collective hosts its last exhibition in this location, Abstractions by Grayson Ravenhurst. Kevin Dietz and Michael Hampton take over Watkins Arcade Gallery for a performance-based drawing experiment, Dog Pile. Blend Studio features a whimsical group of anthropomorphic paintings by Jared Freihoefer in Origin of Species. Photographer Amiee Stubbs presents her contemporary pet portraits and concert photography at Ultraviolet along with artworks by Arthur Kirkby.

Arts & Music @ Wedgewood/Houston

Robert Scobey, Channel to Channel

Saturday, April 1, from 6 until 9 p.m.

From Hagan to Houston to Chestnut and beyond, take a walk around this neighborhood for top-notch art. Stop

by David Lusk Gallery to see This Land, An American Portrait featuring new photography by Jack Spencer. Zeitgeist continues their multi-artist exhibition At Home featuring paintings, prints, and a pop-up room by Wilder (see page 62).

Stop into the Packing Plant to see shows at mild climate featuring Bridget Bailey, Douglas Degges, and John Dickinson in Corner Palace; Channel to Channel premiering figurative paintings

by Mandy Jones, Drew Camino, Guang Chen, Bridgett Bailey, Robert Scobey, Megan Lightell, Greg Dennie, and Dustin Hedrick; COOP showcasing The Stories My Country Told

East Side Art Stumble

Saturday, April 8, from 6 until 10 p.m.

Take a drive down Gallatin Pike to The Red Arrow Gallery to see Better Angels by Dane Carder. A pop-up stop on the stumble, MAIN (709b Main Street) showcases Vanishing World, a group exhibition celebrating the beauty and vulnerability of Earth and its resources. Also a benefit for the Harpeth River Watershed Association, this event features work by Dina D’Argo, Alison Logan, Dawna Magliacano, Ryan “The Rhinovirus” Frizzell, Pam Brown, Sammy Laine,

16 Jack Spencer, David Lusk Gallery

nashvillearts.com

Chris Smith, Gallery 202

Michael Hampton, Watkins Arcade Gallery

Jared Freihoefe, Blend Studio

Enjoy a variety of styles under the lights on 5th Avenue. The Arts Company presents John Petrey’s Architectural Series of mixedmedia sculptures. The Rymer Gallery continues with paintings

by Adam Thomas and new work

by Elise Wehle (see page 56).

Tinney Contemporary is featuring Adam Shulman’s photography in Gold of Africa (see page 42). The Browsing Room Gallery at the Downtown Presbyterian Church presents HUM, new paintings by Nashville artist David Onri Anderson.

Carolyn Boutwell, and David Farmerie.

Michael Weintrob Studio and Gallery exhibits images from his upcoming INSTRUMENTHEAD book.

Boro Art Crawl

Friday, April 14, from 6 until 9 p.m.

Dina D’Argo, MAIN

Arts fill Murfreesboro’s city square and surrounding areas every other month. Featuring a multitude of styles and mediums, exhibitions can be found at VNTG, Green Dragon, Liquid Smoke, Dreamingincolor, Sugaree’s, Quinn’s Mercantile, L & L Contractors, Funtiques, Let’s Make Wine, Simply Pure Sweets, The Boutique at Studio C Photography, Earth Experience, and Daffodilly Design. The Center for the Arts on College Street features local fine craft artists and music by Troy Yost and Kevin Compton along with a selection of art by students from local county schools. The Murfreesboro City Hall Rotunda presents art by city-school students.

Germantown Art Crawl

Saturday, April 15, from 6 until 9 p.m.

Tour the non-traditional art spaces of Germantown to see an array of artworks by artists including Dean Tomasek, Anthony Billups, Lizzy Ragsdale, Stephen Watkins, Heidi Schwartz, Katherine Wagner, Valentina Ramos, Jackie Cheuvront, Carol Moon, Sarah Hart, Pamela Brown, What If? Quirks. As you make your way through the neighborhood, stop at these key arts spots: 100 Taylor Arts Collective, Abednego, Wilder, Bits & Pieces, Bearded Iris Brewing, and Alexis & Bolt. Join the excitement as both the Germantown Pub and Red Bicycle reveal new murals this month.

Jefferson Street Art Crawl

Saturday, April 29, from 6 until 9 p.m.

For the month of April, Art History Class Lifestyle Lounge and Gallery is mobile! Local historian Thaxton Waters II will be on the shuttles between the hours of 6 and 9 p.m. providing a nostalgic backdrop to the Jefferson Street community. The first stop, The Garden Brunch Cafe, presents art by Jordan Carpenter. Woodcuts Gallery and Framing features paintings by one of McGruder Center’s artists in residence, doughjoe. Graduating art student and president of Fisk University’s Tanner Art Society Maya Alston showcases her art at One Drop Ink Tattoo Parlor and Gallery along with Michael “Ol Skool” Mucker’s special-edition prints.

Check out the Loft at Ella Jean’s Cafe for more creative arts.

Additionally, Green Fleet Bike Shop is offering discounted bike rentals for the crawl. End the evening with live music sponsored by the Jefferson Street United Merchants Partnership at the Gateway to Heritage from 8 to 11 as part of the Jefferson Street Unity Day weekend. Check Facebook.com/jsactn for updates.

doughjoe, Woodcuts Gallery and Framing

42nd Annual Harding Art Show

he Harding Art Show has long been Harding Academy’s most important annual fundraiser. Thanks to this year’s featured artist, Ed Nash, the event will also be an innovative arts education project.

That’s because Nash, whose paintings are revered for their chiseled, elaborately textured beauty, will engage in a cooperative art project with the Academy’s students. Every child at the school, from prekindergarten through eighth grade, will add their own dab of paint, their own idiosyncratic flourish to a large canvas. Nash will then take their efforts back to his Nashville studio to create a finished painting.

He’ll transport that masterpiece back to the art show for display and sale.

“Ed Nash has never done a school-based art show before, so we were thrilled when he decided to do this project with the students,” event organizer Julie Infante told Nashville Arts Magazine. “It’s going to be such an amazing experience for the students, since all of them will get to touch this painting. And Nash will turn it into one of his vibrant and beautifully layered pieces.”

Nash is one of about 70 artists participating in the 42nd Annual Harding Art Show. The event is national in scope, with artists traveling from 13 states to participate. It’s also comprehensive in its offerings, with paintings, sculpture, woodwork, metalwork, photography, jewelry, and more, all on display and for sale. “Each artist brings about 25 works, so there will be a lot to see,” says Infante.

Lauren Dunn, another top artist who more or less “sculpts” her paintings, will also be at the show. A Mississippi Delta native, Dunn uses a palette knife to create textures and depth in her works. These paintings, an assortment of still lifes and landscapes, are bathed in warm hues and convey a sense of tranquility, of life lived at an unhurried pace.

This year’s artist roster also includes Suzanne Damrich, an Alabama native whose encaustic paintings fuse oil pigments with beeswax to create works of remarkable color and mysticism; Dara Burriss, a Texas-based artist who paints cloud-swirls of abstract color; and Ben Caldwell, a Nashville metalsmith who forges copper and silver into works of exqisite beauty and functionality. na

The 42nd Annual Harding Art Show runs May 4–6 at Harding Academy, 170 Windsor Drive in Nashville. Hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Thursday, May 4; 1 to 9 p.m. Friday, May 5; and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 6. The event is free but a $10 donation is suggested. Thursday and Friday evenings are for guests 21 and older, who can enjoy hors d’oeuvres and cocktails. Parking is at Immanuel Baptist Church, 222 Belle Meade Boulevard, with access to a complimentary shuttle. For more information, visit www.thehardingartshow.com.

Dara Burriss, All I Need Is a Miracle, 2015, Mixed media on canvas, 40” x 40”

T

Ed Nash, Verde, Acrylic on canvas, 72” x 72”

by John Pitcher

Lauren Dunn, His Mercies Are New Every Morning, 2016, Mixed media on wooden panel, 40” x 40”

National Art and Education Highlight This Year’s Show

HISTORY EMBR ACING A RT

Nash, Mixed media and found objects

Featured Artist

C H R IS

SMI T H

Artist Reception • April 7, 6-9pm 202 2nd Ave. South, Franklin, TN 37064

•

www.gallery202art.com

•

615-472-1134

chrisHORNSBY

by Cat Acree

Clarksville’s Customs House Museum and Cultural Center through May 4

F-POD-2, Acrylic, ink, and paper on canvas, 43” x 109”

“

Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work.

—Chuck Close

I

t’s a lesson in balance and an important one for Knoxville artist Chris Hornsby, who is ever striving to marry hard work with fresh ideas. More than that, he’s on the hunt for catalysts to evolution—of himself and of his art—so much so that he’ll openly consider that someone might not love his debut show, an exhibition of ten Fracture paintings currently on display at Clarksville’s Customs House Museum and Cultural Center.

“It’s not the end of the world if people don’t like what you do,” he says. “There’s a lot more to it, and there’s a lot more opportunity to change.”

It’s this effusive, positive attitude that has led to such tremendous success in Hornsby’s advertising and marketing career. After earning a BFA in graphic design from the University of Georgia, Hornsby worked with a number of ad agencies and design studios across the Southeast before launching his creative firm, Hornsby Brand Designs, LLC., in 2003. He has been inducted into the AAF (American Advertising Federation) Hall of Fame and has won more than a hundred local and international design awards.

“I think great work comes from parameters,” says Hornsby, who goes by only his last name as an artist. “Some people, they don’t understand the creative process. They think, oh wow, wouldn’t it be great not to have a

20 Danielle Duer

nashvillearts.com

F-DEFEND, Acrylic, ink, and paper on canvas, 43” x 43” F-ATTACK, Acrylic, ink, and paper on canvas, 43” x 43”

F-CIRCLE, Acrylic, ink, and paper on canvas, 43” x 43”

canvases, the mass has been organized, contained, or perhaps caged. So what’s the contrast of good and bad? Is the black mass the bad, and the organization the good? Or is the mass an amalgam of good and bad, and Hornsby’s canvases are an attempt to make sense of it?

client or someone to give you any kind of parameters. . . .

That’s just absolutely not true. Everybody has to have some parameters. And so with my art, with my painting, I accept my own parameters.”

“It’s like this fighting and turmoil is very, um, free is not the right word,” Hornsby says. “But it’s not controlled, and yet I found myself trying to control it within circles and different structures. . . . Maybe I’m being too controlling, but at the same time, that’s kind of part of it. It’s that struggle.”

With his Fracture paintings, Hornsby offers a stark contrast between black-and-white, malleable form and rule-abiding canvas.

Another contrast to note: The ways Hornsby describes the paintings seem to center on power and competition, on “humanity’s violent struggle to succeed.” But this struggle, while it could describe financial or career signposts, is profoundly internal.

“I was inspired by this image that I saw of David and Goliath and the whole idea that this struggle between—you could call it good and evil, good and bad, or whatever it is—the struggle [that’s] internal with all humans,” Hornsby explains.

“I think [it’s about] trying to succeed as decent human beings, as people who are more positive than negative,” Hornsby says.

“Whatever your difficulties are through life—everybody has them—[there’s something] that you’re wanting to get better or change. It’s just a constant evolving of the human.”

The entire Fracture series originated from his first drawing of David and Goliath, and then digitally he began to fracture it.

Hornsby considers his preliminary computer work to be the equivalent of sketches or blueprints. After printing out the design (using environmentally friendly black and grey ink), he layers paint and even items like tissue paper with Rorschach inkblots and wire on the canvas.

From stark contrasts to contradictions, there’s a little bit of all of us in Hornsby’s Fractures, whether we like it or not. na Chris Hornsby’s Fracture series is on view at Clarksville’s Customs House Museum and Cultural Center through May 4. For more information, visit www.customshousemuseum.org. See more of Hornsby’s work at www.hornsby.gallery.

Each Fracture has a black, abstract mass writhing within multiple canvases. That powerful organic form seems to be in motion and may be up to something sinister. But within the

21 nashvillearts.com

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Shirley Zeitlin O

n May 4 the Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville will present to Shirley Zeitlin the Martha Rivers Ingram Arts Visionary Award for her business leadership and patronage of the arts. Her son, Nashville resident and noted architect Manuel Zeitlin, talked to her about the award and her thoughts on our great city. na

Interview by Manuel Zeitlin Photography by Jerry Atnip I was planning to interview Mom on the way to dinner about her involvement with the Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville and the award they will be giving her. I’m a little biased, but I can’t think of anyone more deserving. I thought she might have some interesting insights into Nashville, art, business, and how the three things work together for the benefit of our city. Mom always seemed to be connected to the zeitgeist—not our gallery, but the spirit of the times. She was connected back in the 60s, and she is connected now. As we worked our way downtown, our conversation took as many detours as the city streets. Nashville is an ever-changing landscape. And part of the reason for that is the lady in the car with me. Here’s a snippet of my conversation with Mom. MZ: I’m thinking of taking you to Public House at Urban Cowboy; I think you’ll like it. We might eat outside—seems warm enough.

SZ: I always like trying something new. Not sure about sitting outside, though. What about that new place with the oysters?

MZ: Maybe . . . What is your earliest memory of art in Nashville, or maybe public art?

SZ: I’m not sure.

(Oh dear, not a great start!)

SZ: I remember Martin (Mom’s husband of 53 years) and I bought our first sculpture from Lyzon’s. It was the only gallery I remember in Nashville at that time, in the 50s.

MZ: The 50s. Are you sure?

SZ: Well, maybe the 60s.

MZ: It was the 60s. I remember when you brought it home. I liked it then and I still like it. How did you develop an interest in modern art, growing up back then in the relatively sheltered suburban environment of Nashville?

Were you influenced by the Parthenon, or the public art that was starting to happen at the time?

SZ: I don’t think that was it. Martin and I used to enjoy picking out art when we traveled, and we usually agreed—and if we didn’t, I always went with Martin’s choice.

He had a real eye. He was the more creative one, you know.

He and you kids got all the creativity.

(This coming from a woman who created one of the most innovative real estate companies in the South, and I really am trying to be objective here. She has helped move every organization she has been involved with, from being of its time to being timeless.)

SZ: We always liked the existentialists.

MZ: Existentialists? Or impressionists?

SZ: The impressionists.

MZ: As I remember, you liked the existentialists too.

SZ: Right, but not for art.

(As we made our way downtown, we were both mesmerized by all of the activity as West End turned into Broadway. Cranes everywhere. I wondered what Mom thought of all this.)

MZ: Did you ever think Nashville would be like this?

SZ: It’s so exciting. It keeps me young. It’s pretty amazing to see what the art scene is today.

MZ: What would you like to see the Arts & Business Council (ABC) be five years from now? How would you like to leave it?

SZ: In addition to remaining financially sustainable, I envision that it will always exhibit relevance, be focused on its mission, and be thoughtful in its growth. I think the impact of the Arts and Business Council will be more widely felt as new opportunities arise that continue to merge the interests of the arts community and the business community in Nashville.

It’s also important to evolve and change over time as visions change and needs change. Getting involved in the growth of the fashion industry would be a great example of matching developing needs with what the ABC might provide.

(She was really getting fired up at this point.)

Like bringing to the business community an understanding of how important arts are to the success of Nashville as a city, and bringing to artists some of the business skills and knowledge necessary to help them grow and survive in their careers.

We partially do this through the Periscope Program in collaboration with the Entrepreneur Center. And there’s always a waiting list! . . .

It doesn’t really matter what business employees get involved in, as long as they get involved in something. There are so many choices now: the Symphony, all kinds of music, dance, painting . . . so many possibilities . . . One of the things Martha Ingram was interested in was getting artists involved on corporate boards and business leaders engaged on nonprofit arts boards. That’s so important to the long-term viability of both groups.

We also bring artists into businesses to provide artistic experiences as a way to help employees open up and bond with each other. It really assists in team building.

If employees are working on a piece of art together, they’re not thinking about failure; they’re not competing. They’re communicating; they’re learning to collaborate.

MZ. Have you ever had them do a workshop with your company?

SZ: Yes. MZ: How’d it go?

SZ: It could have gone better. But we’ll try again.

MZ: I guess I need to think about where we’re driving, huh?

SZ: Yeah. Is that the SEC tournament blocking Broadway?

Along the way I missed our turn and we ended up in East Nashville. Mom loved the excursion. We had a wonderful dinner, and she especially loved being one of the youngest at heart in a crowd of young people who are firing up Nashville every day.

And she can’t wait for our next adventure. Congratulations on the award, Mom. —Manuel

Fashion Design Brings New Energy to Drink-n-Draw

Words by Peter Chawaga Photography by John Jackson

Channel to Channel

F

or over two years, Nashvillians have been dropping by Wedgewood/Houston’s Channel to Channel gallery and studio to sharpen their sketching skills and indulge in refreshing libations during a regular event called Drink-n-Draw. Recently, founder and director Dustin Hedrick added a stylish twist to the evenings, asking local fashion designers to outfit the models every Tuesday night.

The inspiring and lighthearted atmosphere of the event is part of a larger mission Hedrick has to engage visitors in his dual studio/gallery.

“I’ve been trying to figure out a way to incorporate clothed models into the sessions, but wanted to add something to make it more interesting,” Hedrick says. “A clothed model gives participants more avenues to explore color. It is also a chance to learn what is happening in our local fashion community.”

“Maintaining that studio environment makes it less intimidating for people to enter the space,” he says. “The art I choose to go in the gallery inspires me, and I hope that it has the same effect for those that come to Drink-n-Draw.”

To initiate the fashion-focused Drink-n-Draw, Hedrick enlisted local designer Isabel Simpson-Kirsch. Her work includes oversized jerseys, colorful shirtdresses, and mesh shorts featuring prints of rapper Lil B. Outfitting models in her designs created an interesting technical experience for drawers, as well as the chance to engage conceptually.

Of course, there are no expectations for attendees to produce gallery-level work. While Drink-n-Draw does offer the chance for budding artists to refine their art skills, it’s also an evening to work with and learn from like-minded individuals.

“The key to getting good at anything really is practice, so these sessions provide an outlet for people to draw and paint from a model, multiple times a week, at an inexpensive price,” says Hedrick. “There are tons of amazing artists who come to these sessions who one can engage with and learn from.” na

“I think her clothes provide great, bold color for the artists to work with as well as something different from what you might normally see on the streets of Nashville,” Hedrick explains.

“With Nashville turning more into a diverse metropolitan area, I think it is important to have fashion and art that represent that change. There are also conceptual elements to a lot of Isabel’s designs that I find intriguing.”

Drink-n-Draw is hosted regularly at Channel to Channel, 507 A Hagan Street, with varying pose times. Fashion sessions are hosted on Tuesdays from 6 to 8 p.m. For more information, please visit www.channeltochannel.com.

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AR FAS T & HIO N

S

eptember may be the January of fashion but in Nashville the fashion events calendar starts in April. Nashville Fashion Week will offer an incredible 5 days of fashion.

It starts on the 4th and runs through the 8th. NFW will kick off with a showcase of locally based designers, followed by a runway presentation of emerging designers, a fashion photography installation, a night of ready to wear designer runway shows, and the week is capped with the 4th Annual Nashville Forward Fashion Gala.

Local designer Pink Elephants by Truly Alvarenga will show on opening night; one of her gorgeous gowns is featured in this editorial. Local jewelry designers Judith Bright and Margaret Ellis’s McLaine Richardson are featured as well, alongside fabulous art-inspired merchandise from some of Nashville’s best retailers. As we move through the month, we have the Nashville Symphony Fashion Show to look forward to on the 18th. Zac Posen is presenting his fall 2017 collection this year, and Kelsea Ballerini is performing. A little piece of trivia: I styled Kelsea for her first red carpet, the American Country Countdown Awards. You can shop Zac Posen’s fall collection at the trunk show on the 19th and 20th at Gus Mayer. The next week on the 26th, Jamie will present a fashion show at Belle Meade Country Club for Cause for Paws which benefits Nashville Humane Association. Every Tuesday of the month WeHo art gallery, Channel to Channel hosts Drink-n-Draw. Artists of all skill sets are invited to draw or paint a model wearing designs by a local fashion designer. Last but not least, if you haven’t seen the Irving Penn exhibit Beyond Beauty at the Frist, make plans to do so soon! The exhibit will run through May 29th.

Penn was a prolific fashion and portrait photographer who shot many iconic images.

—Milton White, Fashion Editor, The Fashion Office, www.thefashionoffice.com

Photographer / Brad Rankin www.bradrankin.com Model / Aliene Brooks, EYE Model Management www.eyemgmt.com/aliene Junior Fashion Stylist / Alexa Lipman, The Fashion Office www.thefashionoffice.com Make-up Artist/Hair Stylist / Jenny Garner www.jennygarner.com Photo Assistant / Jon O’Hara Photographed at The Rymer Gallery www.therymergallery.com and Tinney Contemporary www.tinneycontemporary.com

Willow & Clay citron cropped pullover with grommets, Free People abstract floral skirt (E. Allen); Lika Behar gold and blackened silver multi-chain necklace, Lika Behar black rhodium sterling silver and white topaz hoop earrings, Evocateur black and white striped gold trimmed cuff (Cindi Earl), Gucci Kelly green patent leather sandals (The Private Label)

by Louis Vuitton, Doberman by Herb Williams at The Rymer Gallery

Free People neon tank (E. Allen); Pau W striped skirt, Stuart Weitzman orange suede sandals (The Private Label); Judith Bright 7 stone rock drop neck cuff in neon apatite, rockless van bar cuff in gold (Judith Bright) between Monday Blues and Space Oddity by Adam Thomas at The Rymer Gallery

Carolina Herrera silk printed dress with orange belt, Fendi pastel plaid clutch with beading (The Private Label) in front of Legacies of War by Sisavanh Phouthavong at Tinney Contemporary

Novis Pixley sequin cocktail dress (Jamie, available by special request); Judith Bright Jolie hoop earrings in chrysoprase (Judith Bright) in front of UXO in Laos by Sisavanh Phouthavong at Tinney Contemporary

Pink Elephants by Truly Alvarenga gown with white bodice and watercolor skirt (The Showroom); Margaret Ellis Calder earrings in sterling silver and white topaz (Margaret Ellis); Bounkit lemon quartz and aquamarine necklace (AshBlue); Sophia Webster blue and ivory sandals (The Private Label) between Orange Crush and Monday Blues by Adam Thomas at The Rymer Gallery

Photograph by Gina Binkley

Emily Leonard

emilyLEONARD Finding Freedom David Lusk Gallery

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April 18–May 27

E

mily Leonard began her latest series with a watercolor she made while pregnant with her daughter. Although she did not know it at the time, she reminisces, “It brought me a lot of joy to make this picture during my residency in France, and I really wanted to make it into a painting.”

While she normally does not prepare studies for her larger works, this special portrait of a foxglove was the origin of all the work that will hang at David Lusk Gallery (DLG) this April and May. Known for her extraordinary depictions of landscapes and wildlife, Leonard advances her fascination with nature in her upcoming solo exhibition Unfold. For this show, she has created paintings that transform ordinary garden flowers into meditative aesthetic experiences that are guided by the artist’s vision and hand. “Nature is such a point of wonder for me. It gives me a first step toward a painting.”

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by Sara Lee Burd

Two Peonies, 2016, Oil on panel, 12” x 18”

Working within the rich trajectory of floral paintings, Leonard is in good and plentiful company. A few examples to consider: the sacred symbolism of the lotus flowers in ancient Egyptian art, the representation of floral combinations essential for Chinese feng shui practices, the luxurious arrangements of exotic flowers fashioned by 15th-century Dutch painters to exude wealth and power, Van Gogh’s explorations of life, light, and color through his ubiquitous sunflower series, and many more. Still she worried that “if I told my 23-year-old self that I was painting flowers, I’d be embarrassed.”

Motherhood impacted Leonard’s artistic practice in many ways. With limited time to dedicate to her studio work and the enormous challenges of learning to be a new parent, she realized she needed a new approach to finding inspiration and challenging herself artistically. She recalls, “I wasn’t getting where I wanted to go with landscape work as a mom.” She moved away from expansive scenes of foliage, which she painted in darker muted tones, to creating expressive portraits of flowers in white and light hues. She explains what making this new work has done for her: “I think focusing on florals and also letting myself have more freedom with color was something that expanded my reach and helped me find more freedom in my life in general. It’s about letting go.”

Leonard’s contemplation of the shape, structure, and biology of flowers, however, has yielded a series of paintings that highlight the underlying strength and intricate beauty of these blooms. The process of making these works added the necessary interest for her to continue the work. She explains, “When you are looking at it at this level, you see the paper-thin petals that seem delicate, but when you think about what it does in the world, it stays dormant for most of the year. Then it comes through the darkness of underground, sprouts, and blooms again. It is not fragile at all; it’s actually strong.”

She acknowledges that she has always been attracted to working within the art historical canon of classic subjects. “I like the challenge of making something that has been painted a million times but making it my own. I like the tradition, and I like having those parameters,” she explains. The impending exhibition deadline at DLG motivated her to, as she says, “sink into the subject matter.”

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Tulip Tree study, 2015, Oil on panel, 20” x 22”

Foxglove in Lehon, 2016, Oil on panel, 34” x 48”

“

Leonard’s contemplation of the shape, structure, and biology of flowers, however, has yielded a series of paintings that highlight the underlying strength and intricate beauty of these blooms.

Blue Lily, 2016, Mixed media on paper, 60” x 42”

Untitled, 2017, Oil on panel, 40” x 60”

Honoring efflorescence, she stages each flower to photograph as if it were a portrait. Set against the white backdrop of her home’s stucco walls, white peonies, geometric cleome wildflowers, and expansive Japanese magnolias appear elevated and bare, ready for her to interpret in paint. Her renderings relate their graceful forms, but the style comes directly from her intuition and imagination.

present, and staying committed until the work is complete.

Finishing is an intuitive action, she jokes: “It isn’t like you finish one stroke and then ta-da! it’s done.”

Creating this new body of work affected Leonard’s relationship with her own artmaking and her own tenacity. “Painting flowers for the better part of a year brought me face to face with my own ugly parts. I look at them as lovely, graceful, and purposeful. I’d like to learn more about how to walk through the world like they do.”

Works such as Three Peonies communicate the tension between fragility and strength visually with quickly applied broad strokes of acrylic house paint combined with exacting details made with layers of oil pigments. The resulting combination of looseness, precision, color, and geometry makes her work feel fresh, active, and appealing. To these ends she admits, “That is what intoxicates me about nature in general. The sort of big picture of sweeping movements and also the tiny little intricacies of the little leaves and sprouts and things.”

Speaking with Zen-like awareness, she concludes, “The dormant flower is so patient and reminds me to be the same way in my art. It will come just as it does, like the flowers bloom in spring.” na

Leonard works on each painting for months or even years. She likes to have several going at once, and for her the worst thing that could happen is to have a studio filled with artworks all at the same stage. Hers is a slow process of creating, remaining

See Emily Leonard’s Unfold at David Lusk Gallery April 18 through May 27. The opening reception will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. on April 22. For more information, visit www.davidluskgallery.com.

See more of Leonard’s work at www.emilyleonard.com.

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Fresh Paint

Words and photography by Stacie Huckeba

THIS SHOE DOESN’T FIT

A

friend of mine gave me this pair of Ivanka Trump stilettos at a brunch we both attended. She didn’t want to sell them or give them to a thrift store, but she didn’t want to keep them either. Honestly, I didn’t know what to do with them myself.

That evening, I sat looking at the shoes, at all of the rhinestones and gold, taking in the ornate design and thought, Man, there’s nowhere really to wear these. Not only were they extravagant, but they were small, a size 7, much too small for me or anyone I knew. I ran my finger down the impressed name, Ivanka Trump, and then I flipped them over and saw the little “Made in China” stickers on them.

And that is when I realized that these ostentatious shoes perfectly summed up for me how I felt about this administration.

Marvin

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Fongchong

Luma

It is designed to fit only a very narrow margin of society. As far as I could tell, nobody I knew could wear the sparkly shoes.

thoughts of self-harm to their ethnically, sexually, and financially challenged clients. Irina is a Russian refugee and sweetly wonders why all of the “hatefulness” is even necessary. Bo is a disabled homeless man who is actually a Trump supporter but is flatly against his immigration stance.

So I decided to take them out to my friends and neighbors to see if “the shoe fit,” so to speak. What I realized in the process was so much more powerful than that.

Margaret is a high school teacher who wrote me an entire essay.

Marvin I met when he stopped to help me with a flat tire. He is a fast-food worker who wants to break out of the cycle of poverty.

Fongchong was adopted from China and is not afraid of the future at all. Bob is the great-grandson of Polish immigrants who came into this country via Ellis Island. And there are so many more . . .

I shot forty-four portraits over the course of eight days, and the outcome encompasses almost every conceivable blended family, mixed race, ethnic background, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, lifestyle, and culture. Amazingly, the farthest I drove was eleven miles from my home, and even more amazing was that all of them are no more than one degree of separation from me. These are all people I know or that they know.

Forty-four portraits with forty-four unique stories; stories of hope, patriotism, and freedom. When you think about the fact that this much diversity and culture is only eleven short miles from my home here in East Nashville (in the middle of red-state Tennessee no less), just imagine what that speaks to the vast fabric that makes up this already great country. na

A short essay taken from my interviews with these people will accompany each image, and the stories are as much a part of this exhibit as the photographs. There was Marga, a transgender woman who is retired from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She is an activist who jokes that she is not a paid protester but wants to know where to sign up. Luma is an Iraqi refugee who has lived here for sixteen years. Even as a single Muslim mother of two she is quite the feminist.

This Shoe Doesn’t Fit is on view at Art & Invention Gallery on April 9 from 5:30 to 9 p.m. For more information, visit www.artandinvention.com. See more of Stacie Huckeba’s art at www.staciehuckeba.com.

The opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of the Nashville Arts Magazine.

I met two therapists who both have concerns for the increased

Irina

Kelly and Nancy

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You’ll want to check out this gorgeous coffee-table book of work from and about the Surrealist photographer Dora Maar. A friend of Pablo Picasso, Man Ray, and Jean Cocteau, Maar perfectly captures the aesthetic of the Surrealist art movement in her work. Add it to your collection today!

Pick up Holly Tucker’s latest, City of Light, City of Poison, and learn about the world of true crime in seventeenth-century Paris. Tucker brings a new definition to “City of Light” by following Nicolas de La Reynie’s attempts to lower the murder rate in Paris by installing street lanterns—the story that unfolds will turn your understanding of Paris upside down. Tucker is a professor at Vanderbilt.

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The Songs of Trees: Stories from Nature’s Great Connectors David George Haskell Take a break from whatever you’re doing and enjoy this lovely quiet book from David George Haskell.

Haskell is a professor of biology and environmental studies at the University of the South in Sewanee and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for his last book, The Forest Unseen. In The Songs of Trees, Haskell combines scientific and literary studies to explore the beauty of trees. See Haskell discuss this wonderful book at Parnassus Books on April 30 at 6:30.

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“

Looking through a lens not only allows me to capture a moment in an image, but it allows me to delve into the depths of my own emotions.

Photographer Adam Shulman Mines the Gold of Africa Tinney Contemporary

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April 1–May 6

by Karen Parr-Moody

I

t was decades ago that the famous fashion and wildlife photographer Peter Beard erupted on the art scene with his evocative photos of African women, celebrating their burnished skin. The dandy/adventurer’s images struck a chord with the public as he elevated these African queens to a pedestal that had long been occupied by their paler-skinned sisters.

Photographer Adam Shulman’s work also elevates Africans’ beauty while keeping it steeped in—to use a favorite word of Beard’s—authenticity. He shoots with 6x7 film on a Mamiya RZ67 manual camera, producing images that are crisp, yet sprinkled with traces of graininess.

Shulman’s upcoming exhibit at Tinney Contemporary is called Gold of Africa. Indeed, the photographer uses the visual metaphor of metallic gold to celebrate the idea of the gold embodied in Africa’s people and land.

The show will open with a reception from 6 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, April 1, and will be on display from April 1 through May 6.

Miss, 36” x 30”

Carol Gove and her painting muse Osiris

(facing page) Ernesto, 59” x 49”

For Gold of Africa, Shulman painted clay onto his sitters’ bodies, using it to represent Africa’s cracked desert earth. He then Photoshopped a golden sheen onto the clay.

The woman in Geli Front is adorned with such golden clay stripes and bears a fierce countenance, keeping her emotional distance. A similar mood is found in Miss, in which the sitter visually dares the viewer to break through her figurative shield.

Shulman explains that the stripes of Geli, which features a woman born of Cameroonian descent, can be representative of animals native to her lands. Or they can be construed as a symbol of the metal bars that oppressed her ancestors. “I wanted the gold to feel almost like a suffocating barrier,” he says of Geli. “Her eyes tell the story of a continent’s history, the mass of an entire continent just hidden behind the depths of her stare.”

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Aube, 48” x 48”

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Geli, 36” x 30”

Zumar, 36” x 36”

He says the woman in Miss tells a similar story. Born in Senegal, she wears a plate of gold around her neck. “This could be a metaphor for her ancestors’ tumultuous past, for the shackles that took those ancestors from their native lands,” he says.

“However, this same plate of gold could be construed as an adornment, representative of the royalty of her country’s past.

In this image, I tried to capture the unwavering strength of Africans and in particular of African women. It is almost as if her body can be captive, but her soul will reign for an eternity.”

oncology cancer care.”

Joined by his wife, a gorgeous model who has graced catwalks from New York to Paris, Shulman has lived in Ghana and Senegal to practice his profession and volunteerism. For six years his volunteer work in and out of Africa has been done through Radiating Hope, a nonprofit focused on cancer care.

He donates medical equipment and trains local medical professionals in modern cancer treatment techniques.

Science and art have co-mingled throughout his life. “Looking through a lens not only allows me to capture a moment in an image, but it allows me to delve into the depths of my own emotions,” he says.

Aube, which claims a high-fashion sensibility, is one of the photographer’s favorite images. As with the sitter in Miss, the model wears a “costume” reminiscent of those of her ancestors, complete with a golden “crown.”

Shulman currently works as a senior medical physicist for the National Center for Cancer Care and Research in the capital city of Doha of the Middle-Eastern state of Qatar. He is also a voluntary assistant clinical professor for the University of California at San Diego, leading medical training endeavors in Senegal. He is also pursuing a partnership between his current hospital and a cancer center in Sub-Saharan Africa.

“The headdress is worn with majesty as she exudes power, sensuality, and confidence,” Shulman says. “She is the embodiment of the royalty that is the African heritage.”

Born and raised in Nashville, Shulman is a board-certified medical physicist. He received his medical training at Middle Tennessee State University (during which time he met a Senegalese woman, Adama, who would become his wife), as well as at Vanderbilt University.

In Doha, a city of extremes, modernity presses up against tradition. Shulman says that the element of tradition is what he prefers about Doha as opposed to, say, Dubai. “I am constantly inspired by the juxtaposition of the two elements: modernity and tradition. This has an influence on my current work, as well as on future works in progress.” na

He was drawn to work in Africa when he heard a Senegalese medical physicist speak at a conference he attended. She described the extreme hardships of practicing medicine in Senegal and in much of Sub-Saharan Africa (cancer is the leading cause of death in Africa). Shulman says: “From that moment forward, I was determined to use my education, and soon-to-be experience, to make an impact on the lives of Africans in need of improved access to modern radiation

Adam Shulman’s exhibit Gold of Africa opens with a reception from 6 until 9 p.m. on April 1 at Tinney Contemporary and remains on view through May 6. For more information, visit www.tinneycontemporary.com. See more of Shulman’s work at www.adamaphotographynyc.com.

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The Postman Cometh with Beautiful New Stamps from Artist Elizabeth Brandon

Her image of white and blue hydrangeas in a blue pot is remarkable both for its beauty and simplicity. The final stamp, on the other hand, is a veritable fireworks display of color, an arrangement featuring white hydrangeas, white and pink roses, green hypericum berries, and purple lisianthus in a white vase.

Veteran graphics designer Derry Noyes created the stamps, working faithfully from Brandon’s eye-popping, realistic still lifes.

Brandon says the Postal Service often searches for graphic ideas that will appeal to the country’s large population of philatelists, otherwise known as stamp collectors. “Stamp collecting is a huge hobby, so the Postal Service is always on the lookout for new ideas,” Brandon tells Nashville Arts Magazine.

Other stamps coming out in 2017 include ones celebrating the centenaries of John F. Kennedy and former University of Notre Dame President Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh. There’s even a new set of stamps devoted to sharks common to American waters.

JFK and Jaws were obvious choices. But how did one of the federal government’s largest agencies find Brandon and her flowers?

“The government actually came looking for me,” says Brandon.

“I’m probably better known nationally than locally, since my images have been reproduced by a lot of big companies, like Kaukauna Cheese and Cook’s Illustrated covers. I suspect that’s how they found me.”

M

illions of Americans will soon be sticking out their tongues at Elizabeth Brandon’s artwork. Well, to be precise, they’ll be licking the backs of new U.S. Postal Service stamps featuring some of the Nashville-based painter’s most appealing floral designs.

The new set, which the Postal Service is titling “Flowers from the Garden,” comes from four different Brandon paintings of flowers typically found in American gardens. The first stamp shows red camellias and yellow forsythia in a yellow pitcher.

The second depicts white peonies and pink tree peonies in a clear vase.

The Postal Service must have had a eureka moment when it discovered Brandon’s art, since her realistic works are perfect for stamps. Her realism—a kind of aliveness that defines everything she paints—flows directly from her aesthetic. Unlike many contemporary painters who work from photographs, Brandon always paints from life. Working with natural light gives her paintings an organic quality.

“I always loved the way the Dutch Masters used light and shadow,” says Brandon. “Their techniques captured the essence of the subjects they were painting, so their art really seems to have a life basis. I try to convey the same thing in my work.” na The stamps featuring Brandon’s art will be available later this year. See the paintings used on the stamps at the downtown library May 6 through July 30. See more of Brandon’s work at www.elizabethbrandon.com.

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Right: Kristi Hyde

tommyLINDBERG

by Cat Acree

When He’s Not Pouring You a Drink, Lindberg Is Busy Capturing the Nashville Nightlife

Weatherup, Pencil and ink on archival paper, 17” x 14”

Hotel Delmano, Pencil and ink on archival paper, 17” x 14”

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Lindberg’s scenes feel distinctly ephemeral, as the mood and players within any bar setting are likely to change. There’s also a voyeuristic quality, as the viewer can’t help but be aware of the person who captured each moment.

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here are certain bars that seem separate from the passing of time—windowless joints that block off the setting and rising of the sun—because guilt and self-awareness are lessened when you’re unaware of what hour it is. The crosshatch line illustrations by Tommy Nicholson, artist name Tommy Lindberg, capture that particular haziness of dimly lit cocktail bars where light and shadow bleed together, where time is a little flatter.

Skull’s Rainbow Room in Printers Alley is like that, and it’s where Lindberg tends bar. We’re perched at the bar counter, and his family—girlfriend, new baby, and two sons whom he has just picked up from the airport after they flew down from New York to visit—are sitting at a table just behind us. At night, there will be burlesque dancers, but for now it’s not so loud as to drown out Lindberg as he talks quickly and casually about his work.

And though he began drawing with serious intent only about five or six years ago—at the same time he began to approach bartending with a bit more seriousness as well—it was in this alley that young Tommy began to draw.

Pegu Club, Pencil and ink on archival paper, 17” x 14”

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Manhattan Cricket Club, Pencil and ink on archival paper, 17” x 14”

I was doing back here,” Lindberg says, gesturing to the bar space across from us. “I spend all my time back here. Everything is textures, bottles, glass.”

“My family owned one of the buildings,” Lindberg says.

“Brass Stables was Andrew Jackson’s stable house. That was my family’s building.” He describes the women who worked in the cleaner’s on the top floor, and how his hardworking grandmother was the tailor for the mayor. “My brother and I would just get lost, running around this alley, amok. We’d steal my mom’s cigarettes and go to her back fire escape, where all the strippers were out smoking cigarettes, and we’d try to drop quarters down their shirts.”

Lindberg tied his two passions together through an illustration series of the best, most groundbreaking cocktail bars in Manhattan and Brooklyn, including Hotel Delmano, Weather Up, Maison Premiere and Manhattan Cricket Club. “It’s so intertwined,” he explains. “There’s like five key players, and then they go off and train five more, and they go off. You could look at the whole thing as if it’s a family tree that you open up and see how they’re all connected.”

As a shy 10-year-old, Lindberg was paid by construction companies to draw renderings of houses, which would be printed in newspapers. Beyond that, drawing was not something he pursued. Eventually, he moved to New York (he moved back seven months ago) with a dream of writing screenplays, got a film in Tribeca, and spent his time bartending, writing, and drawing coffee-shop scenes on napkins. But it wasn’t until he was working at Manhattan’s legendary Pegu Club that he began to rethink what he was passionate about. His cocktails started getting better, and so did his art.

Lindberg’s scenes feel distinctly ephemeral, as the mood and players within any bar setting are likely to change. There’s also a voyeuristic quality, as the viewer can’t help but be aware of the person who captured each moment, similar to how we feel when spying on the diner occupants of Hopper’s Nighthawks.

Lindberg is inevitably part of the scene as a viewer and likely imbiber. But the bartender is always the crux; their face often catches the most light, as in Weatherup, or they seem most likely to engage, as in Manhattan Cricket Club.

“At the same time I was drawing, I started appreciating what

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Clover Club, Pencil and ink on archival paper, 17” x 14”

“It’s kind of weird,” Lindberg acknowledges, “I never intended the focus to be on the bartender, but they are always the centerpiece.”

Photograph by Anthony Scarlati

It should be noted that Lindberg is no longer drawing on napkins, and he’s not spending all day in a bar to capture these scenes. (“I obviously can’t sit in a bar all night and get drunk,” he says. Although one could argue that yes, you could.) He takes photos in each bar, though he’ll swap characters from different scenes. “Half the people aren’t even in it,” he says of the final product. “It’s made up.”

Each piece, on 17-by-14 archival paper, takes about 40 hours in total, or about a month of layering lines upon lines. He begins with a preliminary sketch—which he describes as messy, “smudgy,” and “boring”—and then a pen outline, additional detail, then erasing.

“I see through the light,” Lindberg says. “That’s the thing, that it’s all lines. And then after all the lines are done, I go through with the eraser and I create the light. I don’t even know how it’s going to happen . . .

It’s just like [this bar]. I don’t know what’s going to happen every day.

Every night is going to be different.” na If you would like to contact Tommy Lindberg, please send an email to info@nashvillearts.com.

Tommy Lindberg

YORK & Friends fine art Nashville • Memphis

RHONDA POLEN WERNICK

Garden Party, Oil on canvas, 20” x 16”

107 Harding Place • Tues-Sat 10-5 • 615.352.3316 • yorkandfriends@att.net www.yorkandfriends.com • Follow us on

at York & Friends Fine Art

Vanderbilt Celebrates Dada’s Century-long Influence over Avant-garde Art Vanderbilt Fine Arts Gallery through May 27

Francis Picabia, Decouverte Dada, ca. 1918, Ink wash and collage on paper, 19” x 15” © 2017 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris 52 nashvillearts.com

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Dada was an anti-art movement. They rejected the past and wanted to create something entirely new, using different tools.

—Joseph Mella, director of Vanderbilt's Fine Arts Gallery

by John Pitcher

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hortly after 7 a.m. on the morning of February 21, 1916, German forces in France unleashed hell on earth. It was the beginning of the Battle of Verdun, a conflict intended to “bleed France white.” German artillery fired off more than two million shells in the opening bombardment, turning the French countryside into a broiling volcano.

Inevitably, this relentless assault became a protracted stalemate. In the end, nearly 800,000 soldiers were injured or killed.

Some 240 miles away, in the safety of neutral Switzerland, a motley collection of artists, writers, musicians, monocled dandies, and draft dodgers read reports of the carnage with disgust and dismay.

A handful of these creative types soon began meeting at a Zurich nightspot called Cabaret Voltaire. Calling themselves Dadaists, they began creating a body of Max Ernst, Untitled, 1952, Collage and crayon on paper, 10 ½” x 8 ¼” absurdist, irrational works that rejected © 2017 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris all European tradition, which they saw as brutal and corrupt. From these nonsensical improvisations sprang one of the most influential avant-garde movements in the history of art.

To celebrate the centenary of this pivotal movement, Vanderbilt University Fine Arts Gallery is mounting an ambitious exhibit called The Dada Effect: An Anti-Aesthetic and Its Influence. Produced in collaboration with Vanderbilt’s W.T. Bandy Center for Baudelaire Studies at the Jean and Alexander Heard Library and the Vanderbilt Department of Theatre, this wide-ranging show will feature first-edition books and journals, most of them signed by the authors. There will also be artworks by such noted Dadaists and Surrealists as Jean Arp, Max Ernst, Francis Picabia, and Salvador Dalí, and period films by Jean Cocteau and Man Ray. Visitors to the exhibit will feel as if they’ve entered the Dadaists’ world, since the Theatre Department has recreated the Cabaret Voltaire, complete with a likeness of the German writer Hugo Ball in cubist costume.

There will also be recreations of fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli’s Surrealist dresses, providing Nashvillians with intriguing insights into the extraordinary influence Dada has had on 20th-century fashion.

The exhibition will include an important multi-media component. Touch screen monitors will be available,

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Man Ray, The Meeting, plate IV, from Revolving Doors, 1926, Pochoir on paper, 22” x 15” © Man Ray Trust/Artists Rights Society, (ARS), NY/ADAGP, Paris 2017, Courtesy Hampshire College Art Gallery

Jean Cocteau, Méditerranée, 1961, Lithograph, 27” x 20 1/8” © 2017 ADAGP, Paris / Avec l'aimable autorisation de M. Pierre Bergé, président du Comité Jean Cocteau

allowing visitors to peruse illustrated editions by René Magritte, Jean Cocteau, and Man Ray, among many others.

Wi-Fi will also be available to play Dadaist and Surrealist music.

Picabia’s Decouverte Dada, ca. 1918, an ink wash and collage on paper displayed in the exhibit’s first section, seems to have been drawn with a compass. It even includes a nonsensical mathematical formula: DADA = DADA.

“It was very important to us to have an interactive show,” curator Daniel C. Ridge tells Nashville Arts Magazine. “When kids go to a children’s museum, they get to interact with the exhibits. When adults go to MoMA, on the other hand, they stand quietly with their arms to their sides. We wanted people to interact with the Dada exhibit, and we felt the best way to do that would be intellectually through the technology.”

There is some disagreement about the origin of that delightfully silly word “Dada.” The German artist Richard Huelsenbeck claimed that he and Hugo Ball first came across the word in a French-German dictionary. They soon discovered it meant different things in different languages—“yes, yes” in Romanian, “rocking horse” in French. It suggested foolish naiveté in German. The Romanian artist Tristan Tzara also claimed authorship of the word, which he used on posters and the first Dada journal.

In a curious way, the Dadaists themselves were fascinated with machines and technology. During the First World War, German military leaders described their tactics as “Materialschlacht,” that is, “battle of equipment.” The Dadaists believed the Germans had it backwards. “The war is based on a crass error,” the writer Hugo Ball wrote in his diary in 1915. “Men have been mistaken for machines.”

There is no disagreement about Dada’s aesthetic. “Dada was an anti-art movement,” says Joseph Mella, director of Vanderbilt’s Fine Arts Gallery. “They rejected the past and wanted to create something entirely new, using different tools.”

This movement, though, had its shortcomings. Dada was crystal clear about its proscriptions, about the things art should never be. But it was philosophically incapable of offering prescriptions. Not surprisingly, by the mid 1920s the movement had been supplanted by Surrealism.

The proto-Dadaist Marcel Duchamp had already caught on to this notion. His artwork often depicted humans as machines.

Other Dadaists expressed the dehumanization of the contemporary world through pseudodiagrams, draftsmanlike designs filled with dials, wheels, and pulleys. Francis

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The Dadaists were mostly interested in breaking eggs,” says Ridge. “The Surrealists came along and started making omelets.”

Dada’s star may have faded quickly, but its light never vanished completely. Its irreverent, iconoclastic approach to art influenced everything that came after it, from abstract and conceptual art to performance, pop, and installation art. Just try to imagine one of John Cage’s and Merce Cunningham’s “Happenings” without the precedent of the Cabaret Voltaire.

Vanderbilt’s exhibition devotes considerable space to Dada’s wide-ranging influences. The show features an amazing section on Surrealism. Two striking works on loan from Purchase College include Yves Tanguy’s Lune Obscure, an oil on canvas “depicting a strange alien landscape,” and Max Ernst’s Untitled, a collage and crayon on paper that appears to show cartoonish, mechanical figures in an embrace. The show lavishes attention on Salvador Dalí, with several of his Divine Comedy illustrations. As a bonus, Fisk University has supplied some of Carl Van Vechten’s fabulous art photos of Dalí, Marcel Duchamp, and Man Ray. In recent years, Nashville has emerged as a fashion hot spot, so it is fascinating to see the exhibition’s section on fashion and the avant-garde. Vanderbilt’s Department of Theatre has recreated some of designer Elsa Schiaparelli’s dresses.

Schiaparelli designed “Woman’s Evening Coat” (1937) with Jean Cocteau and “Woman’s Dinner Dress” (1937) with Salvador Dalí. Both dresses blur the line between art and function.

The French have a saying about Dada, namely that “Dada explained the First World War better than the First World War explained Dada.” Perhaps for that reason, Dada’s reach extended far beyond even the Second World War. The Vanderbilt exhibit examines some of Dada’s descendants.

These include Les Pataphysique, an arts movement that approached science with the seriousness of a Marx Brothers comedy, and neo-Dadaism, which Vanderbilt examines through the works of such creative icons as John Cage and Robert Rauschenberg. na The Dada Effect: An Anti-Aesthetic and Its Influence runs through May 27 at Vanderbilt Fine Arts Gallery, located in Cohen Memorial Hall, 1220 21st Avenue South. Professor Robert Barsky will present a lecture on Dada’s influence on the Beat Generation at 5:30 p.m. April 4 at Cohen Memorial Hall, Room 203. For more information, visit www.vanderbilt.edu/gallery.

nashvillearts.com

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An Allusion to Kells Book_Folio 29r, 2016, Cut paper collage, 24” x 13”

eliseWEHLE

by Noah Saterstrom

Cut Paper The Rymer Gallery through April 29

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laborate stone carvings and ceramic tiles cover the Alhambra palace, where ornamentation is taken to a cosmic extreme. There in Andalucía, Spain, is where artist Elise Wehle became captivated by the intricacy of Moorish design. Her artistic focus shifted, and she began incorporating dense repeating patterns in her own works on paper, a selection of which can be seen at The Rymer Gallery through April.

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Wehle’s works are intimate, ephemeral, embodying her love for the fragility and malleability of paper.

Raised in California and now living in Utah, Wehle has been heavily influenced by her travels in Europe. Her art pulls from a range of source imagery, riffing on divergent and at times contrasting themes of History, Femininity, Religiosity, the Urban, the Pastoral. But the underlying, unifying thread that runs through all her work is the interference of the image by geometric design. Repeating visual patterns are hypnotic, and humans love them, are drawn to them, always have been. We cover the floors of palaces, the ceilings of temples, the pages of manuscripts, our clothes, our walls, with rhythmic geometric arrangements to soothe our minds even as we excite our eyes.

Photograph by David Wehle

But what, exactly, calms us amidst the structured chaos of repetitious motifs? Is an innate desire for order satisfied when we see a design reliably and perfectly repeat itself? Or maybe it’s a recognition of the molecular structure of the universe, built on tessellating forms. Perhaps it’s the divine, or a sublime perfection to which we aspire that compels us to embellish things with complex patterns. At its most raw, base level, it is certainly true that geometric designs are simply fun to make and pleasing to see.

Elise Wehle

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Unlike adorned stone arches of temples, Wehle’s works are intimate, ephemeral, embodying her love for the fragility and malleability of paper. In these domesticscaled works, photographs are either cut directly or overlaid with cut paper.

The result is a lacy, delicate layering of representation and abstraction where patterns both obscure and reveal the image. “My hope for those artworks was

Path 1, 2017, Cut paper collage, 19” x 12” Path 2, 2017, Cut paper collage, 26” x 13”

produce them. Wehle references this tradition of craftsmanship, but is deliberately and intentionally not trying to replicate it.

Rather, Wehle’s work attempts something more attainably modern: interference with her own imagery. As she layers paper, concealing and revealing photographic images through her cut-outs, her inquisitiveness is apparent. How much meddling can occur and have an image still be readable? Can a face be nearly obliterated by geometric patterns and still be seen as a face? How much information do we need, and how much can we get rid of? How does the intervening pattern affect different images differently? As Wehle says, “No matter how many paper layers intersect with the representational image of the photograph, the cut-outs ultimately act as negative space, forming lines and shapes out of nothing. They both enhance and obscure the representational image.”

that both the single moment captured by the photograph and the protracted amount of time represented by the pattern could complement and contrast each other.”

For her small collection of images at The Rymer Gallery, she has derived her compositions for the cut-outs from the Book of Kells. She describes the rewarding process of taking these motifs and reimagining them into something that feels more contemporary and pertinent to her own experiences. Thus the question: Do we make some art—specifically, in this case, patterns—in an attempt to apprehend The Infinite? Italian writer Umberto Eco posits, “What does culture want? To make infinity comprehensible,” and Wehle, with us along for the ride, forces the question of whether replication casts light on human experience or obscures it.

Though the seduction of repeating patterns is in itself implied perfection, Wehle embraces her own imperfections—the overcuts, the slight variations, despite her best efforts. She does not want them to look mechanical, but to reveal the human hand, and there is a resulting tension in her work between the mechanically made and the handcrafted.

Wehle is also influenced by illuminated manuscripts like the Book of Kells and the Lindisfarne Gospels. Though the scale of these manuscripts is intimate, the ornamentation is so extreme, so meticulously crafted, that it took many hands many years to

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An Allusion to Kells Book_Folio 2r, 2016, Cut paper collage, 20” x 13”

bigger something. We might say there is a moral undertone when dense patterns are used. Humble negation of the self, not personal expression, is in service of a greater unity. Wehle’s studio is in the third bedroom of their home in Utah. Fortunately, her one-year-old daughter has not figured out doorknobs yet.

Wehle and her husband had a child last year. When asked how being the parent of a young child has affected her work, Wehle does not dwell only on the practical things. The new logistical demands that come into the world along with a child contrast strongly with the time-intensive, meticulous, and fragile art of hand-cut paper. One thinks of sturdy plastic objects, wipeable surfaces, and not a lot of extra time. But that is not the conversation. For Wehle, the birth of her daughter served to illuminate a new sense of her own mortality. There’s nothing like a first baby to remind us we are on a continuum—not a culde-sac, but a link in an infinite chain.

The contemplative dimension to the labor of pattern-making calls to mind the Shaker admonition “put your hands to work and your hearts to God.” Wehle’s intentions may not be so pious; the post-Modern use of images to comment on themselves speaks to a more existential tension summed up just as neatly by Simone de Beauvoir: “I am incapable of conceiving infinity, and yet I do not accept finity.” na

These are lofty ideas, but come from something basic. Humans want to see their flawed and limited selves in the light of something bigger, greater, more. Patterns—repetitious and tedious as they may be to create—are a stand-in for that

Enjoy new work by Elise Wehle at The Rymer Gallery through April 29. For more information, visit www.therymergallery.com.

See more of Wehle’s work at www.elisewehle.com.

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IN STORE EVENT April 18 & 19 The Mazza Co.

A L L T H E B E S T I N F I N E J E W E L RY 5101 Harding Road Nashville, Tennessee 37205 615.353.1823 s cindiearl.com

BAND TOGETHER BECOME A MEMBER TODAY

Museum members enjoy unlimited access to the Museum’s rotating exhibitions, as well as exclusive performances and programs, discounted tours of Hatch Show Print and Historic RCA Studio B, shopping and dining deals, and more.

PRESS PLAY RECORD #PressPlayRecord • @CountryMusicHOF CountryMusicHallofFame.org/Membership • Downtown Nashville

At Home

by Elaine Slayton Akin

Curator Anna Zeitlin Recreates the Gallery Space Zeitgeist through April 29

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eitgeist Gallery’s current exhibition, At Home, is not only a smart grouping of (mostly) abstract works on paper; it is delightfully layered in meaning. According to curator Anna Zeitlin, “at home” was the 20th-century term for afternoon visiting hours meant for socializing with extended family and friends. Inspired by a 1940s Emily Post volume from Zeitlin’s personal collection of vintage etiquette books, the title aligns today’s gallery with the historical salon where visitors would casually gather to discuss art. Zeitlin believes we have lost a little of our capacity for personal interaction since the days of the salon and sees At Home as a way to reinforce the gallery’s position as a welcoming venue for all—closer to a warm living room than a place of mere transaction.

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Beyond its past meaning, “at home” is also intended to incite feelings of the viewer’s personal residence, so that the art you see in the gallery could also be art you live with, art you would want in your home.

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Rami Kim, 2017, Hand built ceramic 1. Three Faces, 2” x 2” x 6” 2. Girl Head, 2” x 2” x 2” 3. Polka Dot Girl with a Kitty, 2” x 2” x 7” 4. Girl Head with a Kitty, 2” x 2” x 4”

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Sonnenzimmer (Nick Butcher & Nadine Nakanishi), The Arts Club of Chicago: Establishment, 2016, 10-color screen print, 1-pass foil stamp, 36� x 26�

Ky Anderson, Walking Stick, 2017, Acrylic on collaged paper, 42” x 38”

Vicki Sher, Untitled (Love Letter), 2016, Ink, acrylic, collage on paper, 72” x 60”

Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign foibles. Anderson, on the other hand, keeps it personal and dwells in the linear realm with primary-hued acrylics on paper that capture a cerebral friction between us and our environment.

At Home is comprised of works by a cross-country lineup of artists. Zeitlin started the selection process last year with anchor pieces by Chicago-based Sonnenzimmer, the husband-wife duo of Nick Butcher, a Middle Tennessee State University alumnus, and Nadine Nakanishi. Familiar to some Nashvillians from their inclusion in Zeitgeist’s 2014 group show Cannonball Run III, Butcher and Nakanishi are now Facebook’s artists in residence and epitomize a youthful, contemporary form of printmaking that is minimalistic and fashionably retro and teeters on the edge of surrealism. Sonnenzimmer’s screen prints are drawn from the conceptual Arts Club of Chicago series documenting the various developmental eras of the cultural institution—a graphic timeline of sorts with titles such as Founding, Establishment, and Expansion. The semitranslucent application of pinks, blues, yellows, and greens casts a watercolor effect across the paper, and the geometric shapes render the compositions clean yet engaging.

Zeitlin rounds out the national representation with Vicki Sher, also from Brooklyn; Jessica Simorte from Houston; and Sarah Boyts Yoder from Charlottesville. The sheer cultural and geographic diversity these artists represent is pure gold to a curator seeking broader dialogue and perspective for Nashville’s art community, not to mention their raw artistic abilities.

Beyond its past meaning, “at home” is also intended to incite feelings of the viewer’s personal residence, so that the art you see in the gallery could also be art you live with, art you would want in your home. With only space parameters and creativity as their guide, Nashville-based Ivy and Josh Elrod of Wilder further streamlined the viewers’ visions of home with their Deconstructed Living Room installation just inside the gallery’s entrance. A lighted coffee table is flanked by a sofa on one side and a large flat-screen TV and credenza on the other.

All sit atop a decorative, rose-colored area rug. The entire configuration of furniture is superimposed by a painted black triangle. A copy of V.O. Key, Jr.’s Politics, Parties, and Pressure Groups (1964), open to the chapter “Party Organization,” on the credenza and a Guatemalan passport on a sofa cushion offer clues to the motivation of the work, which reveal a dark

Zeitlin discovered Los Angeles artist Rami Kim, whose work is among the few three-dimensional in the exhibition, and Brooklyn artist Ky Anderson at national art fairs—San Francisco and Miami, respectively. While Kim as an animator also produces works on paper, her small sculptures turned the head of Zeitlin because of the subtle, unexpected faces they depict and their similarity to the tradition-breaking ceramics of John Donovan, which blend Olmec iconography with pop culture phenomenon Hello Kitty. Zeitlin infers that, for example, Kim’s Girl with a Kitty figurines may reference

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Jessica Simorte, Ship Song, 2017, Acrylic and graphite on paper, 14” x 11”

Sonnenzimmer (Nick Butcher & Nadine Nakanishi), The Arts Club of Chicago: Refinement, 2016, 11-color screen print, 1-pass foil stamp, 36” x 36”

interpretation of our current political administration and, presumably, our deteriorating relationship with South America regarding immigration.

It was important for Zeitlin to scout talent locally, as well as abroad, for At Home. For most Zeitgeist visitors, “at home” means Nashville, after all. The dense influx of people moving to Nashville includes many young adults and nontraditional art patrons who may find the gallery scene intimidating.

Zeitlin, a young adult herself, purposefully chose works on paper in part because they are more accessible, visually and fiscally. Whereas abject population growth often precipitates disconnectedness between neighbors, Zeitlin hopes to reinvigorate meaningful fellowship and facilitate common discoveries through art, yes, but equally through the space of art—the gallery. na At Home is on view at Zeitgeist through April 29. For more information, visit www.zeitgeist-art.com.

Anna Zeitlin

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Photograph by Jerry Atnip

Fellow Nashvillian Amelia Briggs brings the eclectic ensemble full circle with her cartoon-derived prints, reminiscent of Kim’s quirky ceramic characters. Primarily a painter, Briggs utilizes her prints somewhat as preliminary studies for larger projects.

In fact, they are overwhelmingly black and white for this show and could pass as graphite sketches from a distance. Based on the phrase “we are not together yet,” they concern the search for identity and complement Wilder’s political sentiment.

Nashville Cherry Blossom Festival

Photograph by Angel Rose

Nashville Public Square Saturday, April 8

artisan fair

may 13,2017 • 7 Pm-11 pM on The Clay lady's Campus

The 2017 Nashville Cherry Blossom Festival will celebrate the planting of more than 900 Japanese cherry trees over nine years throughout our city’s parks and neighborhoods, from Riverside Drive in East Nashville to England Park in the Nations, from Timothy Park in Bordeaux to Whitfield Park in South Nashville.

Welcome spring and experience Japanese culture during this family-friendly, daylong festival that begins at 9 a.m. with the Cherry Blossom Walk, hosted by Sister Cities of Nashville. Mayor Megan Barry and Masami Kinefuchi, the Consul General of Japan, will lead participants on a 2.5-mile course that begins at Nashville’s Public Square and follows the Cumberland River Greenway, looping at Sister Cities’ Magdeburg Connector to Morgan Park in Germantown.

Kaminari Taiko of Houston will open the festival on the Main Stage at 10 a.m. Throughout the day, the Main Stage will feature taiko drumming, Japanese music and dance performances, the Kent Family Circus, a Cosplay Contest, and the 4th Annual Pups in Pink Parade and Adoption Parade, benefitting the Nashville Humane Association.

1416 LEBANON PIKE, NASHVILLE TN 37210

Join us at dusk on Saturday, May 13th as we kick off the Firefly Artisan Fair — a unique market celebrating the Nashville arts community. Shoppers can enjoy an evening under the stars featuring local artists and musicians, food trucks, an interactive art project, artist demonstrations and more.

FIREFLY ARTISAN FAIR IS NASHVILLE’S NIGHT TO SHINE!

The Blossom Bistro Stage will showcase martial arts demonstrations, a traditional tea ceremony, a cultural lecture series, and more Japanese-inspired song and dance.

Enjoy a Taste of Japan from Japanese food vendors, shopping at the Ginza Marketplace and Artist Avenue, sumo-suit matches, and a variety of children’s and anime activities in the Arts & Culture and J-Funland areas. Young artists are invited to join Nashville Arts Magazine for an arts-and-crafts activity.

FREE ADMISSION!

Free parking and $1 per person round-trip shuttle service will be available at Nissan Field, and Walk Bike Nashville will be at the corner of 3rd and Union with a bike valet service.

For more information, please visit www.nashvillecherryblossomfestival.org.

www.fireflyartisanfair.com

3X3 Brings Art Crawl to Leiper’s Fork

David Arms, The Well, 2017, Acrylic on wood, 47” x 77”

Sloane Bibb, Sarah-nade, 2017, Mixed media, 38” x 44”

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eriodically, Leiper’s Fork, an unincorporated village of 650 in Williamson County, turns into an unlikely epicenter for art enthusiasts. Its three local art galleries host an event known as 3X3 (three by three), a unique opportunity to experience erudite creativity and bucolic simplicity at once.

Roger Dale Brown, Golden Hour, 2017, Oil on linen, 20” x 36”

“The pastoral setting is unlike any other place for showing art,” explains Lisa Fox, owner of Leiper’s Creek Gallery and one of the event’s organizers. “There is no traffic, park in the field, the vibe is relaxed and friendly, yet sophisticated.”

“He typically has a theme in mind when he begins a piece, but as he sorts through his collections, the story can evolve into a giant bird, nest, guitar, layer cake, or front porch.”

The David Arms Gallery will exhibit the latest work by its owner and namesake, who has created a series of abstract impressions with acrylic paint and a palette knife on wood panels. “I want to create emotion with my subject matter, more than an exact image,” Arms says. “The image develops as I paint, letting each move direct the next. I choose a place to start with no clear vision of the end result.”

The sixth iteration of 3X3 will be held on the evening of April 22, with Leiper’s Creek Gallery, The Copper Fox, and the David Arms Gallery each hosting new work by featured artists who will be on hand to discuss it.

“It’s sort of like an art crawl in that you travel from one show to the next, but there’s more to it than that,” Fox says. “People love being in the country and kicking back to enjoy the surroundings, food, and live music. That really tops it off on a cool spring night with twinkling lights and a bright moon.”

With all three galleries standing within a minute’s walk of one another, their spirit of collaboration is particularly apparent during 3X3.

Leiper’s Creek Gallery will present work by award-winning pleinair painter Roger Dale Brown, who hails from Franklin.

“We felt like with our special bond in working together and helping each other in our businesses, that showcasing that was just a natural step to take,” says Fox. “I believe the fact that we all work together in harmony on the show is felt by those who attend.” na

Meanwhile, The Copper Fox is going to feature the work of Sloane Bibb, a mixed-media artist who lives and works in Alabama. “Through his use of an eclectic combination of wood, metal, paper, canvas, vintage magazines, and photographs, Sloane’s humorous narrative keeps viewers engaged for hours, if not lifetimes,” says Talbott Grimm, owner of The Copper Fox.

3X3 will be hosted from 6 to 9 p.m. on April 22 at Leiper’s Fork’s three galleries, all on Old Hillsboro Road. For more information, visit www.leiperscreekgallery.com, www.thecopperfoxgallery.com and www.davidarms.com.

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Carmen

by Joseph E. Morgan

Photography Courtesy of Nashville Opera

Nashville Opera’s Sizzling New Production

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n April 6 and 8 the Nashville Opera will close its 2016–17 season with a production of Georges Bizet’s masterpiece, Carmen. Composed late in Bizet’s life, at its premiere run at the Opéra Comique, the opera sparked quite the controversy for its unconventional forms and even more so its unconventional leading lady. Unfortunately, Bizet died after the 33rd performance—he never knew the acclaim that his last work enjoyed. Carmen employs an aesthetic that essentially bridges the tradition of the Romantic French opéra comique and the bloody realism of late-19th-century verismo. In its day it was understood to be the French response to Richard Wagner’s operas, featuring a fully developed system of leitmotivic expression, some of the most spectacularly exotic scenes in opera, and one of the most memorable staples of the mezzo-soprano repertoire, the famous habanera “L'amour est un oiseau rebelle.” This production promises to be a highlight of the Nashville season.

Based on the novel by Prosper Mérimée, the opera is set in exotic Southern Spain and tells a shocking story of honor and its victims in the downfall of a naïve soldier named Don José. The libretto was assembled and adapted by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy and features, especially in the final scene, a huge spectacle of triumphal processions, ballets, and joyous fanfares that is certain to transform Andrew Jackson Hall.

The title role is legendary. It requires an expert actress with a voice that can impart the experience, capriciousness, and fearlessness of a grown, self-defining woman (hardly a typical prima donna character).

Perhaps the most famous interpreter is Maria Callas, but it has recently been transformed by Elina Garanca in New York. Nashville Opera has brought in the amber-eyed Italian mezzo-soprano Ginger Costa-Jackson for a Nashville debut. She is coming off a successful performance of Lola from Cavalleria Rusticana at the Met. For the equally celebrated tenor role of Don José, a part sung by all of the famous tenors (my favorite was Jose Carreras), Nashville alum Noah Stewart (La Bohème, 2014) is returning for the role. The habanera aside, listen for the famous Act One Seguidilla aria “Près des remparts de Séville.” If the production is successful, the tension here will be more than dramatic. na The Nashville Opera presents Carmen April 6 and 8 in Andrew Jackson Hall at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center and will feature a free preview talk by Director Hoomes one hour before each performance. For more information visit www.nashvilleopera.org.

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THROUGH MAY 7 This exhibition was organized by the Frist Center for the Visual Arts in collaboration with Galerie Karsten Greve.

Supported in part by the FRIENDS OF CONTEMPORARY ART and

919 BROADWAY, DOWNTOWN NASHVILLE

fristcenter.org

Claire Morgan. If you go down to the woods today, 2014. Muntjac (taxidermy), butterflies, torn polythene, nylon, and lead, 118 x 118 x 98 1/2 in. Courtesy of Galerie Karsten Greve, Cologne, Paris, St. Moritz. © Claire Morgan

C U S TO M S H O U S E M U S E U M E X H I B I T

Peggy Kretchmar Leland: Abstracted Surroundings

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April 4 – May 30

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W. AL SHERICK ANN LIGHT CHARLIE HUNT STEVE KACZMARCZYK NOLA JANE SMODIC HUGH BENNETT CATHERINE MOBERG BEVERLY MAYES OMARI BOOKER IRIS ROTKER BRADLEY TYLER WILSON POLLY COOK RON YORK RHONDA WERNICK DEBE DOHRER W. MICHAEL BUSH LINDA HODBY MICHELLE TRACHTMAN MADONNA REISZ-BUSH LYNNE LOONEY TRACY YARBROUGH MARY DAWN PAFFORD JENNIFER HINSON MICHAELM PHILLIPS ANTHONY PERRIN MARISA RAY TROY CRISSWELL TOBY KLEIN CHERYL ROBERSON SHARON INGRAM CAROLYN BOUTWELL VALENTINA HARPER BILL ARTHUR JOHN YANDALL KAREN JOHNSTON LESLIE KLEIN LISAMERGEN BEVERLY BASHAM SMITH BONNIE WILLIAMS LINDA MCLAUGHLIN CAROL BUCHMAN JUDY KLICH AMBER ANNE PALO MARTHA NEMER CARRIE MILLS SHER FICK AL SHERICK ANN LIGHT CHARLIE HUNT STEVE KACZMARCZYK NOLA JANE SMODIC HUGH BENNETT CATHERINE MOBERG BEVERLY MAYES OMARI BOOKER IRIS ROTKER BRADLEY TYLER WILSON POLLY COOK RON YORK RHONDA WERNICK DEBE DOHRER W. MICHAEL BUSH LINDA HODBY MICHELLE TRACHTMAN MADONNA REISZ-BUSH LYNNE LOONEY TRACY YARBROUGH MARY DAWN PAFFORD JENNIFER HINSON MICHAELM PHILLIPS ANTHONY PERRIN MARISA RAY TROY CRISSWELL TOBY KLEIN CHERYL ROBERSON SHARON INGRAM CAROLYN BOUTWELL VALENTINA HARPER BILL ARTHUR JOHN YANDALL KAREN JOHNSTON LESLIE KLEIN LISA MERGEN BEVERLY BASHAM SMITH BONNIE WILLIAMS LINDA MCLAUGHLIN CAROL BUCHMAN JUDY KLICH AMBER ANNE PALO MARTHA NEMER CARRIE MILLS SHER FICK

april 22-23, 2017

on the west side 4th annual fine art and craft show

over 40 local & regional artists

opening cocktail reception & sale

2017 featured artists: rhonda polen wernick debe dohrer cathy moberg

saturday, april 22 | 6-9pm $15 suggested donation

exhibit and sale

sunday, april 23 | 10am-4pm no charge

GORDON JCC NASHVILLE

nashvillejcc.org 615.356.7170

Home Is Where the Art Is

by Donna Glassford

Local Artists Donate Work to Park Manor/Abe’s Garden

“L

Memory Care Center, Interior Garden Room

Copyright Sarah Mechling, Courtesy Perkins Eastman

ife is short, art is long,” Hippocrates opined. As to “life being short,” every day hundreds of thousands of seniors cross the welcomed or unwelcomed threshold of a skilled nursing facility or an assisted living community. And as for “art is long,” to many of us home is where the art is. Humans, no matter what age, have a desire for beauty, and there is a need to have access to art throughout an entire lifetime.

The residents of the Hebrew Home at Riverdale in New York, a senior residential campus, are surrounded by art. Imbedded in the Hebrew Home’s communal areas and residential suites is a nationally renowned art collection and the Derfner Judaica Museum. Residents and staff take great pride in and enjoy this stellar art collection. Holdings include artworks by Marc Chagall, Alex Katz, Robert Mangold, Joan Mitchell, Louise Nevelson, Pablo Picasso, Ben Shahn, and Andy Warhol. The art collection was started in the 1960s by Jacob Reingold, a resident of the Home.

Mr. Reingold told The New York Times in 1968, “What we wanted to do was to bring the beauty that is art into the lives of the Home’s residents.”

In 2007, Michael Shmerling and a group of local visionaries with expertise in a variety of areas and experience caring for beloved aging family members founded a non-profit organization called Abe’s Garden. The following year, the organization acquired Park Manor, a Nashville independent senior lifestyle community, with the goal of transforming it into a unique, supportive, and engaging independent and assisted living environment for senior adults.

In 2008, the organization began raising funds to establish Abe’s Garden, an Alzheimer’s center of excellence.

In the initial planning stages, the design team researched national models of senior residential care and inventoried the variety of lifeenrichment programs offered to residents. The arts consistently surfaced as an important programming component that benefited residents and ranked high on resident satisfaction. Research confirms that seniors, including those with dementia, flourish while engaging in the arts. Amir Parsa, educator for the MoMA Alzheimer’s Project, attests that when people with dementia engage with art it allows: “an opportunity for personal growth, an exchange of ideas without relying on short-term memory, opportunity to access long-term memories, new insight into others’ ideas and interests, a means to make connections between individual experience and the world at large, a social setting that allows connection to one’s peers, and a respite, both physically and psychologically.”

Dennis Wile, Heart-Shaped Leaves, Photograph, 32”x 32”

In the early days of designing Abe’s Garden, a few art opportunities were identified and integrated into architect Manuel Zeitlin’s building design and landscape architect Kim Hawkins's courtyard

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Donna Glassford, Gladioli, Giclee, 40" x 30"

Pamela Smilow, Vessel II, Collage, 32”x 24”

Abe's Garden namesake, Abe Schmerling Mike Martino, Atticus, Mono print and screen print, 18" x 26"

Many residents' artworks will be included in the art collection.

A space for an exhibition gallery highlighting residents' and other local artworks is being planned. To date, artists who have contributed original artwork are: John Baeder, Martha Berry, Brenda Butka, Roger Clayton, Kathryn Dettwiller, Lanie Gannon, Alan LeQuire, Mike Martino, Marilyn Murphy, Julie Sola, Pamela Smilow, Dennis Wile, and myself among others.

design. Artists included Sherri Warner Hunter, Carrie McGee, Susan Simmons, and Charlotte Terrell. Unfortunately no money was earmarked for other art acquisitions. Inspired by the Hebrew Home’s art collection, Park Manor/Abe’s Garden decided to build an art collection focusing on regional artists.

With bare walls and residents to inspire, a targeted letter of appeal went out to some of Nashville’s noted artists asking for a donation of their work. The appeal resonated, and the artists' responses were overwhelmingly positive, providing an impressive foundation for the burgeoning collection. Artist John Baeder donated because, "If I can touch someone anywhere, if only a tiny speck of enlightenment, then that makes me happy making another feel the same.”

More art will be needed to grow the permanent art collection.

A curatorial art committee has been formed to vet art donations and acquisitions. Submitted work will be reviewed in accordance with the collections policy. na For information on the permanent art collection program at Park Manor/Abe’s Garden and for information regarding art contributions, contact Beth Zeitlin at bzeitlin@abesgarden.org.

For general information regarding Park Manor/Abe’s Garden, contact Judy Given at jgiven@abesgarden.org.

Physician, artist, and poet Brenda Butka aptly summed up many of the artists’ reasons to participate. “Every human being should live with things that are beautiful, real, and touched by human hands and human creativity.”

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Art on the West Side Returns Gordon Jewish Community Center

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April 22–23

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he fourth annual Art on the West Side event is coming to the Gordon Jewish Community Center (GJCC) this month, April 22–23, featuring more than 40 artists and work for sale ranging from paintings and sculpture to jewelry and glass art.

With three galleries, an in-house curator, and regularly rotating exhibitions, the GJCC is a familiar home to many of Nashville’s art makers and supporters alike. This year’s show has a renewed focus on distilling the many who apply to exhibit down to the very best.

“The goal of the event is to bring together a diverse group of the public to the GJCC to enjoy art and learn about what we have to offer,” says Leslie Sax, executive director of the GJCC. “It is a fun event that extends our cultural programming and broadens exposure to a range of local and regional artists.”

“The quality and number of presenters at our show continue to grow,” Sax says. “It has become increasingly competitive to present, and many who apply are not accepted.”

Photograph by John Cummings

A selection committee of local artists, designers, and curators chose three featured artists for this year’s Art on the West Side.

Rhonda Polen Wernick, Spring Blossoms, Oil on canvas, 24” x 20”

Cathy Moberg, Necktie or Bow Tie, Porcelain on a wooden wall piece, 14” x 12” x 3.5”

Cathy Moberg, a clay sculptor who practices trompe l’oeil, was one of those selected.

“Each day in my studio I love the challenge of exploring new subjects and figuring out how I can create new objects of clay,” Moberg says.

“My hope for this year’s Art on the West Side is that our visitors will enjoy and be inspired by some of the new challenges that I’ve taken on in my pieces.”

Another featured artist will be Rhonda Polen Wernick, a GJCC member who helped organize the first Art on the West Side in 2013. “When I look at the sky, a flower, a glass, or piece of fruit, I see color and shapes and am always thinking about how I would represent what I am feeling and seeing at that moment,” says Wernick, who will display paintings and drawings at the event.

“I want the visitors to come away smiling and joyful after looking at my work.”

Debe Dohrer, a bold accessory designer, rounds out the list of featured artists selected this year. “All of my pieces have versatility and an uncommon ability to show enigmatic confidence,” Dohrer explains. “My desire is for the client to go home and try different looks with their Debe Dohrer Design pieces and realize that they are the artists, not me.” na Art on the West Side will open at the GJCC, 801 Percy Warner Boulevard, on April 22 with a cocktail reception and preview sale from 6 to 9 p.m. The event will continue on April 23 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, please visit www.nashvillejcc.org.

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THURSDAY, MAY 4 Tune, Entrekin & White presents Opening Night Reception with Ed Nash, 2017 Featured Artist 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

FRIDAY, MAY 5 The Harding Art Show 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

CapWealth Advisors presents Friday Night Reception with Ed Nash, 2017 Featured Artist 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

SATURDAY, MAY 6 Infinity Hospitality Group presents Family Day at The Harding Art Show 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

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Photograph by Jerry Atnip

ASISEEIT

BY MARK W. SCALA

Mark W. Scala Chief Curator Frist Center for the Visual Arts

Passion and Subjectivity: Artists as Curators

New York art fair, NYC

A

t the New York art fairs in March, an avid art addict may have seen thousands of works of art that have been created around the world, most unremarkable, many good, a few great.

Because the purpose of the art fairs is primarily to make sales, not to offer thoughtful aesthetic experiences, one never loses sight of the fact that however wonderful it is, art situated between the studio and museum or private collection is inventory, a thing among things. Even our art addict cannot help but be bemused by the strangeness of a world in which expensive commodities have no real connection to need, production costs, or any of the other factors that typically affect price.

reflection of culture. Art presented in an aesthetically enhanced and informative context enables one to forget the leveling dimension of the art fair, to remember that at its best, art is a force of communication and transformation as potent as great literature and film.

Or one can go in a messier direction, to artist-run fairs, galleries, and pop-ups, where younger or less mainstream artists and emerging curators are given space to construct mini-shows on a particular theme. Art dealers can be incredibly knowledgeable about their artists but are always mindful of the need to position them in the marketplace. Professional curators are objective scholars who place art within a social and historical context, but may not be prepared to gamble on the long-lasting significance of new creations. Artists-as-curators are closer to studio practice, often bringing a subjective vision

So after this high-end bazaar, one might wish to go to the temple, MoMA, or the Guggenheim to remind oneself that while art may be tied to money, what one acquires is an idea, an auratic experience, a signifier of a moment or era, a measure or

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shaped less by the marketplace or notions of art-historical importance than by empathic insights into other artists’ processes and challenges.

Today, the curatorial profession seeks to encourage new generations of curators from across the social spectrum, to advocate for the museum career at the middle-school and high-school level, especially emphasizing diversity and inclusivity. Some of us also encourage artists to be curators.

For me, one of the most anticipated exhibitions of the year is Blue Black, which will open at the Pulitzer Art Foundation in St. Louis this June. Guest curator Glenn Ligon—an artist who works with text as it has been used to construct ideas of racial identity—will explore meanings of color in works ranging from abstract expressionism to experimental film. His insights will likely be personal and passionate. On the art-fair circuit, a recent stalwart has been Spring/Break, a rambling low-budget artist-and-emerging-curators’ show that took place this year in a hotel in New York’s Times Square. It was a lovely mob scene, hundreds of exhibiting artists and their friends, art students and young curators, as well as early-stage collectors looking for that young phenom whose work might make a worthwhile acquisition, or at least might be enjoyed as something new and distinctive.

At the Frist Center, we show traditional and contemporary art from around the world (including Nashville!), exposing our audience to a range of voices, techniques, and innovations while adding to the cosmopolitan perspective of artists and non-artists alike. Smaller galleries and artists-run spaces in Middle Tennessee are also engaged with curatorial projects of note. One might see lively installations at art crawls in Wedgewood-Houston, downtown on 5th Avenue, or the East

Richard Feaster and Alex Lockwood at Zeitgeist

“

Art exhibitions are not simply displays of a compelling product. They are uniquely orchestrated experiences that derive meaning from the triangulation between the artwork, the curator, and the audience.

Nashville Art Stumble. These often take place at artist-run places like COOP and Seed Space, Jodi Hays’s DADU popup, or the gallery at the downtown First Presbyterian Church.

Artists also direct several commercial galleries, bringing their visions to bear in surprising exhibitions and public programs.

Zeitgeist’s recent presentation of Alex Lockwood’s grand and terrifying sculptures and Richard Feaster’s ethereal paintings, organized by artist and gallerist Lain York, was a remarkable show by anyone’s standards, partly because the curatorial pairing of these two unlikely aesthetic voices created a vibe that was as gloriously irrational as it was electric.

Art exhibitions are not simply displays of a compelling product.

They are uniquely orchestrated experiences that derive meaning from the triangulation between the artwork, the curator, and the audience. And happily for Nashville, one doesn’t have to travel far to get to the source. Artists-as-curators have become key agents in our burgeoning art scene, reminding us that if the cultural life of one’s community does not have everything one might want, the choice does not have to be exit stage right.

Increasingly, artists are creating opportunities to forge the culture of their communities in a positive way. na

NeLLie Jo

Serafin String Quartet

Friday, April 7 • 8 p.m.

Steve & Judy Turner Recital Hall With the Blair String Quartet Presented with gratitude to an anonymous friend for generously supporting the Blair School The Palms, oil, by Nellie Jo Rainer

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Upper School Spring Art Exhibit Exhibit features drawings, paintings, mixed media, 3D works, media graphics, and photography.

Artists’ Reception: April 19 4:30 – 6:30 p.m.

Exhibition: April 19 – May 1 Art, Photography, and Digital Media Exhibit in Patton Visual Arts Center Advanced Placement Studio Art Exhibit in Marnie Sheridan Gallery THE HARPETH HALL SCHOOL 3801 Hobbs Road • Nashville, TN 37215 www.harpethhall.org

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Little Johnny Kantreed

by Ted Drozdowski

Cigar Box Guitars

No Longer a Novel Curiosity, These Tiny Titans Are Now Creating a Big Noise

I

f you’re a fan of live roots music, you’ve likely been to at least one recent concert where an artist has played a cigar box guitar—a homemade-looking instrument delivering a raw tone that tickles the auditory cortices and rings the funky chimes of history.

These creations, which often sport broom-handle necks, pencil-mark frets, and hardware that’s, well, literally hardware are part of a renaissance in primitive instrument building that straddles the worlds of music and outsider art.

Nashville is home to three of Tennessee’s more inventive makers of nuevo-archaic sound machines. Jonathan James Greiner, Little Johnny Kantreed, and Mike Windy have between them conjured a playable universe of one-, two-, three-, and four-string instruments that recycle the temporary housing of Montecristos and their kin and reach beyond the cigar box to make a joyful noise with the help of old stock pots, tobacco barn staves, tennis rackets, and even hog bones.

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“All I had was $20, so I bought an eye bolt and wing nut at Home Depot, to hold and tune the string,” he recounts. “I used a broom handle for the neck and got a trash bag full of cigar boxes from my Bible study group at church. And in my tool box, I had some sandpaper, a few screwdrivers, a sharpened butter knife, a rusty mini-hacksaw, vice grips, and a drill bit.” From that assemblage, his initial hand-made instrument was crafted. The first night he busked in front of a local gas station convenience store he made $40. In a few months, he had enough money to fix his broke-down car and got a job delivering Chinese food to get back on his feet.

Musician and author Ted Drozdowski

Photograph by Michael Kurgansky

Hundreds of builds later, Greiner makes inspired-looking instruments that gleam in their lacquered finishes, sometimes boast fretted necks, and incorporate inviting flourishes like hubcap resonators, violin-style f-holes, inscriptions and decorative carvings. One of his creations pays tribute to Johnny Cash, with Cash’s Sun Records single “Get Rhythm” on its top and lyrics written inside. Another was recently on display at the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) show in Anaheim, California, where it was used to demo a new pickup built specifically for amplifying cigar box guitars. Despite the growing sophistication of his instruments, Greiner remains

committed to hand-tool building—respecting a family tradition of carpentry and craftsmanship begun by his grandfather. His work can be found at the Shimai Gallery of Contemporary Craft on the grounds of the Loveless Café and at Fanny’s House of Music in East Nashville.

Kantreed has been selling his work at Fanny’s for years, in addition to taking commissions, which Greiner also does. His inspirations were historic bluesmen who started playing on onestrings—especially Texas’ Lightnin’ Hopkins and Mississippi Delta players including Muddy Waters and Bo Diddley. The latter adopted his name from the one-string instrument played with a slide called the diddley bow.

“The main reason for my builds is the musical side,” Kantreed says, “although people have bought them just to hang on their walls. There’s a revolution of cigar box guitar builders going on across the country, with numerous festivals dedicated to the cigar box guitar, and I see myself as part of that.

“It’s a very gratifying feeling to see someone actually making music with something that I’ve created,” he adds. “Josh Peyton of the Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band and Joey Fletcher [of the band Rhythm Kitchen] have some really great videos on YouTube playing my cigar box guitars.”

Mike Windy initially came to instrument building as a visual artist. He’s an accomplished painter and sculptor who also works in animation and has a Master of Fine Arts. Windy has studied with renowned sculptors Greely Myatt and Gregg

Jonathan James Greiner

Photograph by Jerry Atnip

Greiner started much like the South African musicians who make guitars out of gas cans, the early blues players who imitated one-string African fiddles by nailing a snipped broom wire to a board, or the Appalachian settlers who cobbled whatever junk they had into makeshift banjos. He was broke and wanted to make music.

“

I want an instrument to have its own character. I want it to be alive. If it doesn’t say, I’ve been made with love and determination, I don’t want to do it.

Photograph by Jerry Atnip

—Jonathan James Greiner Lucky Box Guitars

Schlanger and teaches art at Father Ryan High School. But, he says, “As I have increasingly begun to work with more musicians and seriously make music and sound sculpture, the sound of the instruments has become just as interesting.”

He has fashioned some sonically and visually provocative objects: a diddley bow made from a five-gallon lobster pot, a bass one-string that features a 36-inch carved wooden mask and a chamber pot, and a two-string with a body made from a metal globe for Dom Flemons of the Carolina Chocolate Drops. He also spreads the recycled instrument gospel to his students, and 93 of them will be making playable one-ofa-kind one-strings this year, that they can take home.

The website Cigarboxnation.com is a focal point for the worldwide outsider instrument community, and other notable Tennessee builders include John Lowe in Memphis and, in Nashville, Travis Bowlin and Printers Alley mainstay Stacy Mitchhart. If they have a mutual mission statement, perhaps it’s best summarized by Greiner when he says, “I want an instrument to have its own character. I want it to be alive. If it doesn’t say, I’ve been made with love and determination, I don’t want to do it.” na For more information, visit www.cigarboxnation.com, www.littlejohnnykantreed.com and www.facebook.com/LuckyBoxGuitars.

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STUDIOTENN

A Quest Beyond the Grail

Studio Tenn’s Managing Director Jake Speck and Artistic Director Matt Logan

Photograph by MA2LA

Spamalot Opens at Jamison Theater May 4-21

together in a musical, leading the cast of local and national all-stars. With multiple theatrical accolades under their belts, Speck and Logan together make a satirical dream team in this Tony Award-winning musical of many hats.

What happens when you cross a hilarious, farcical British satire with the best and brightest of Tennessee talent? Monty Python’s Spamalot, of course! King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table head for Franklin in this tongue-in-cheek musical comedy and are sure to bring knee-slapping laughter to Middle Tennessee.

“Its going to be really exciting taking the stage together for the first time in a musical,” Speck said. “Matt and I have known each other since we were kids, so we have many years of great experiences and hilariousness together to bring to our audiences.”

As its 2016–2017 season finale, Studio Tenn brings this rompus musical farce to its very own castle, the Jamison Theater in The Factory at Franklin, May 4–21. More than just a lyrical parody, Monty Python’s Spamalot offers a wide variety of Broadway-level showmanship with massive dance numbers, amazing musical arrangements, and the occasional catapulted cow.

Jake Speck and Matt Logan aren’t the only names you are likely to recognize in this slapstick musical. King Arthur, Sir Lancelot, and the ragtag Knights of the Round Table bring Studio Tenn’s exploration of perspectives full circle with a sidesplitting reminder to “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life.”

A story of epic proportions, Monty Python’s Spamalot has its roots in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the 1975 cult classic that is “as gut-bustingly hilarious as it is blithely ridiculous.”

Spamalot, much like its film counterpart, takes a thinly veiled jab at modern social, political, and even religious institutions.

“We hope to really get audiences engaged with this show,” says Logan. “It’s going to be unlike anything we’ve done in the past, but I think it will really be a breath of fresh air for not only us but our audiences as well.” na

Though it is the last show of the season, Monty Python’s Spamalot brings an arrangement of firsts for the company.

Studio Tenn’s Managing Director Jake Speck and Artistic Director Matt Logan are marking their first performance

Join in on the fun as we take an irreverent journey back in time at the Jamison Theater in The Factory at Franklin, May 4–21. Tickets can be purchased at www.studiotenn.com.

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THEATRE

Jim Reyland’s new book, Handmade: friendships famous, infamous, real and imagined, is available at Amazon.com in paperback and on Kindle. jreyland@audioproductions.com

BY JIM REYLAND

Same Street, Different Road “I chose Lucky Stiff because now’s a good time for some laughter,” —Jason Tucker, Street Theatre’s Artistic Director

Angela Madaline-Johnson as Rita LaPorta and Jack E. Chambers as Tony Hendon

Street Theatre Company

Currently on stage at the Street Theatre is Lucky Stiff. Mayhem ensues as a gaggle of colorful characters cavorts through this wacky tale of murder, inheritance, and a dead body! “Lucky Stiff is smart, witty, and zany,” Tucker promises. Lucky Stiff will be staged at Holy Trinity Community Church, 6727 Charlotte Pike, through April 2. Tickets are $24 for adults and $20 for students and seniors. www.streettheatrecompany.org.

STC started twelve seasons ago out of that same panel truck, but before long, founder Cathy Street secured a permanent home and real growth began. Today, upon Cathy’s departure, Street Theatre has returned to its nomadic ways. The difference: They now have the experience of twelve quality seasons to take with them, and Cathy has handpicked Jason Tucker to carry on as Artistic Director. While STC continues to look for another permanent home, they are producing shows in an unused chapel located at Holy Trinity Community Church as well as at the Looby and 4th Story theatres.

New Work at Lakewood Lakewood Theatre, one of Nashville finest examples of doing things right for a very long time, has a new work to offer us. They are excited about presenting The Cast List, an original play written by Gayle Greene, the grand-prize winner of Lakewood Theatre Company’s first annual Tennessee Playwright Festival in 2016. “We are committed to showcasing new works and are thrilled to produce this comedy.”

—Lakewood Theatre Company

“In order to do theatre in a chapel, we’ve had to install our own lighting and sound rigs as well as basically create a stage and backstage area out of whole cloth. We’ve got a cadre of technicians and designers who have gotten really good at making cool theatre happen in unlikely spaces—something we’re quite proud of. Our actors and musicians love the challenge of doing things a little differently, and our audiences get to see something new every time they come see a show.

Still, our ultimate goal is to secure permanent premises since we fully believe that we can produce better theatre more efficiently in a home of our own.” —Jason Tucker

The Arts Center is trying to keep its head above water by selecting a sure-fire money-maker with great name recognition (and no royalties)—Romeo and Juliet—but will Shakespeare’s classic tragedy unwittingly be turned into a comedy in this Waiting for Guffman-like, play-within-a-play

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Photography by Nathan Zucker

S

tarting a new theatre company and producing shows out of the back of a panel truck is a hard-knock life. Many of these companies don’t last, and for the ones that do, it’s sure to leave a mark. Not just on the back of the AD’s neck, but in the hearts and minds of the Nashville theatre lovers who support them and come to rely on them. It’s good for us. Nashvillians need as much new theatre as we can get. Imagine a great American city without it. Imagine theatre in storerooms and church buildings, in strip malls, schools, and empty Waffle Houses. In existing places along with new multi-use spaces (are you listening developers?), built to accommodate the theatrical arts explosion that is surely coming. Keep crafting, hang some lights, and check the sound; Nashville Arts Magazine supports you.

Allie Hemmings and Suzette Williamson rehearse for Murder in Bloom

Courtesy Tara Tioaquen Photography

Sarratt Art Studios NON-CREDIT ART CLASSES AT VANDERBILT

farce with heart, as two star-crossed cast lists wreak havoc on this community theatre’s ill-fated production? See The Cast List to find out! April 28 through May 14 with 9 performances: Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 for adults and $12 for seniors, students, and the military.

Tickets can be purchased online at www.ticketsnashville.com or at the door with cash, check, or credit card.

CoPlayers Theatre Blooms CoPlayers Theatre founding Artistic Director Easton Curtis directs the inaugural production of Murder in Bloom, a mystery-comedy in two acts.

“What could be more harmless than a ladies’ garden club in a small English village? That’s what they thought in sleepy, uneventful St. Basil-on-Green, until one day the richest lady in town is mysteriously murdered during a club meeting! As the police come onto the scene, we realize that this is more than a mere garden club and that more is at stake than begonias.”

Performances at Madison Church of Christ, 106 Gallatin Pike N, Madison, TN 37115, April 13–15 at 7:30 p.m., April 21–22 at 7:30 p.m., and April 23 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students and seniors. Email coplayerstheatre@gmail.com to reserve tickets in your name. All tickets will be paid for at the box office. If you reserve tickets in advance, you can pick them up at Will Call.

It’s Crazy at the Darkhorse Woodland Entertainment presents Crazy All These Years (a movie that’s now a great new play) by Jeff Swafford, a poignant yet humorous look at family and the damage that is caused by running away from the past.

“Ben leaves home. Ben returns. Ben reunites. Now Ben must face everything he’s run from.” Directed by Jeff Swafford, a World Premiere starring Cinda McCain. Dates are April 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22 at the Darkhorse Theater. A portion of ticket sales benefits the Tennessee Equality Project. Tickets on sale through www.TicketsNashville.com or at the door. na

POTTERY JEWELRY PHOTOGRAPHY DRAWING PAINTING FUSED GLASS AND MORE We are now registering for Sarratt Youth Art Institute • Ages 5-16 • One week sessions beginning June 5, 2017 • Summer theme is “traveling the world through art” For more information and to register www.vanderbilt.edu/sarrattart/ summer-youth-art-institute

TEXT & PHOTOGRAPHY

BY HUNTER ARMISTEAD

Photograph by Jerry Atnip

FYEYE www.hunterarmistead.com

A Frame of Film, A Line of Words, Capture the Creative Culture of Our City

presents

DIVIDED SKY Heather Leroy Director, Screenwriter, Comic, Actor, and Photographer

Role Model The story of Heather Leroy is . . . made for a movie. It’s the perfect backdrop for a standup comic—and I don’t know of any standups who aren’t exorcising demons. Her bio reads like a psychedelic Twister map: “Pain plus Time equals Comedy,” she says. Start with being born on a farm on the Tennessee-Alabama state line—“the Bermuda Triangle of firework stands, ammo shops, and Walmarts,” she says. Add 14 schools before graduating, living alone her senior year, a year in Cape Town when Mandela was freed. No residence longer than a year. The alcohol-fueled memories in L.A. Plenty of material, as they say.

with special guest TRACY SILVERMAN

On to her roles: Children’s party clown (fired for calling in sick to go to a Tool concert), bartender, chauffeur, photographer.

Before making the movie, she was a standup comic in New York and L.A. Her first one-woman show, “The Battle of Wounded Me,” premiered in Hollywood. Then another: “MEDIOKRA: The Sweet Smell of Unsuccess”. (See a theme here?) Last year she was in a movie with Woody Harrelson.

Now she’s literally in the role of her life, her movie Carpe DM. Leroy’s film is a dark comedy about love lost and depression.

In the scenes I have seen, she plays herself convincingly, which is to say sidesplitting. The script (replete with a stripclub scene) is already a laugh riot, but her delivery, especially her mannerisms, seals the deal. Shot in black and white, it’s a film noir—to go with the “cheery” subject.

Carpe DM is far more than a film. The backstory is a whole other tale—a tale of unflinching resolve to make the film for whatever budget she could raise with all its trials and tribulations—to say the least. She has overcome it all to make a very fine film.

Move over, Hollywood. You’re going to have to make some space for Heather Leroy. If you don’t, she’s going to make it for herself.

works by anastasio | bates | snider | telemann

May 9 2017 | 7:30PM Turner Hall | Blair School of Music

for tickets and information visit aliasmusic.org

ARTSMART

A monthly guide to art education

TENNESSEE ROUNDUP

Courtesy of Tennessee State Photography

Making Poetry Accessible – A Wrap-up of Poetry Out Loud

2017 Poetry Out Loud Winners, L to R: Marquavious Moore, state champion; Addisyn Bryant, first runner-up; Brennen Humphreys, second runner-up; Michelle Mellard, third runner-up

Poetry is not always accessible. It can be difficult to understand, challenging to write, and for those of us who were required to memorize a poem with its archaic words in school, anxiety inducing. But Poetry Out Loud breaks down these barriers. As a National Recitation Contest organized by the Tennessee Arts Commission in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the Poetry Foundation, the program helps students access literary history and contemporary life through poetry memorization and recitation. Poems are transformed from page to stage, and students are transformed as well by mastering public-speaking skills and building self-confidence along the way.

This year 2,094 students and 100 teachers participated in the state program by implementing schoolwide contests. We had 18 school finalists who competed at the state level, at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum last month. Our partnership with the Country Music Hall of Fame gave students access to the iconic stage at the CMA Theatre and to the breadth of artistic talent in Tennessee. Victoria Shaw was our emcee, performing music and improvising with her own poetry composed on the spot. Victoria is a hit songwriter whose songs have been a staple on the charts with recordings by Garth Brooks, John Michael Montgomery, and Trisha Yearwood among others. Ivy Phillips, Grand Master Fiddler Youth Champion from Chapmansboro, Tennessee, provided the musical entertainment.

Photograph courtesy of State Photography

2017 TN Poetry Out Loud state champion, Marquavious Moore

Making the Poetry Out Loud program more accessible this year, one student was able to join us by way of video submission. Another student from the Tennessee School for the Blind also competed. We have been working closely with the NEA and Poetry Foundation to even the playing field for all students statewide and nationally. The Arts Commission requested a copy of the online anthology of over 900 poems to be translated into braille along with an electronic version for low-vision students. Because of our conversations with the Tennessee School for the Blind, we were also able to advocate for the removal of eye contact from the Physical Presence section of the judging criteria.

This has provided greater accessibility to this year’s competitor with hopes for continued inclusive practices to encourage all Tennessee students.

Finally, you don’t have to travel to Washington, D.C., to access the National Recitation Contest on April 25–26. You can cheer on the 2017 Poetry Out Loud Tennessee Champion, Marquavious Moore from Memphis, by visiting poetryoutloud.org for live viewing of the competition. His recitations will transform you, too!

by Danielle Brown Arts Education Special Projects Coordinator Tennessee Arts Commission

Photograph courtesy of State Photography

Courtesy of Tennessee State Photography

We cannot thank the Country Music Hall of Fame staff enough for the quality of program offerings they made possible. Before the competition, the school finalists went on a private tour of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, learned about the history and artistic process of Hatch Show Print—even creating their own prints—and explored the connections between poetry and songwriting in the Taylor Swift Education Center.

Educators, if you want your students to discover the fluidity between poems, songs, lyrics, lyric poetry, art songs, song-poems, storytelling, and more, check out the Country Music Hall of Fame’s Words & Music program, which is available in the Center and through accessible distance learning videoconferencing.

by Ann Talbott Brown Director of Arts Education Tennessee Arts Commission

Cory Guinn, 2017, Digital photograph

Matt Booker, Type Portrait, 2016 Digital illustration

ARTSMART

Showcase at Nashville State Community College allowing media display at tables that encompass all elements of design, including animation, plus the projection onto the wall of a portfolio page.

The backgrounds of students in the upcoming exhibit at Nashville State Community College are as varied as their creative images and designs: the graduate in biochemistry now pursuing a passion for graphic design, a finalist in Photographer Forum’s 2016 Best of College and High School Photography Contest, a musician whose need for low-cost promotional materials led to the study of graphic design and his launching of Design City.

The two-year program at NSCC combines general ed with an area of concentration and awards an Associate of Applied Science in Visual Communication to graduates of the program.

“Our challenge is to get these students ready in two years, and we have to pack a lot into those two years,” says Gorham. While some will pursue additional degrees, others will immediately enter the job market, and many, particularly in visual communication, will opt for self-employment, either by starting their own business or by working for or freelance contracting with organizations. For these reasons, students learn about start-up and launching of a business while gaining creative and technical skills such as optimizing files, digital distribution, or discovering how images will look with different devices.

An exhibit of work by these and 21 other graduating Visual Communications students at NSCC will be displayed in the first-ever Portfolio Showcase on May 2 from 5 to 7 p.m. in the H-Building Gallery.

“Graphic Design has always had an event on a much smaller scale,” explains Beth Gorham, Assistant Professor of Photography. “This is the first time students from each of the four concentrations (photography, graphic design, web design, and multimedia design) have been brought together for a showcase event.”

The Showcase will highlight the work of rising entrepreneurs such as Design City founder Matt Booker, who has already received three Addy awards by the American Advertising Federation. In addition, it provides exposure for new talent.

In anticipation of the exhibition, it was essential that this event be student driven with a committee handling arrangements and detail, from invitation design to the use of Sketchup for 3-D modeling of the exhibition space.

“The program does not force us to focus on one thing,” says Cory Guinn. “In photography, we may start off with interest in one particular area, but with exposure to lots of resources and types of photography, I shifted my interest into fashion photography.

The Portfolio Showcase will let me show what I’m capable of creating.”

Gorham explains that a Portfolio Showcase differs from a traditional exhibit. Display tables will feature the portfolios of photographers and graphic designers with each presenting a cohesive body of work. Presentations for multimedia and website design are enhanced by a Microsoft donation of tablets

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by DeeGee Lester Director of Education The Parthenon

Photograph by Drew Cox

For additional information, go to www.nscc.edu.

ARTSMART A Video Field Trip to Mark Sloniker’s Studio What would it be like to have a passion that is so strong it is woven into your fiber? That, in addition to eating and breathing, the pursuit of your passion is a necessary part of your survival, your existence. We all have things that we like to do. I enjoy sewing a crazy outfit or painting something fun for a blank spot in the living room. But such ventures are not a part of my every day. In fact, it’s a rare individual who eats and breathes to create. And I think that person is Mark Sloniker.

I met Mark a couple of years ago when he was leading a hat-making workshop at the Frist. I knew I was going to like Mark right away when I first spotted the hats he’d created as inspiration for the workshop.

There was a tray-of-cupcakes hat, a giant ice cream cone, a huge lollypop, to name a few. Not only that but there were a half dozen giant tubs brimming with fun hat-making supplies: pompoms, feathers, and fabrics galore. We were all so inspired by Mark, and everyone created the most beautiful of hats. That workshop was one of my all-time favorites.

I’ve recently started approaching artists of all kinds to ask if they’d be interested in my Field Trip video series. As an art teacher, I long to introduce my students to working artists of all kinds: mural painters, printmakers, book illustrators, and folk artists. Remembering what a fun time I had at the Frist, I decided to reach out to Mark to see if he would be interested. He graciously agreed, giving up a Saturday morning to allow my art teacher buddy Jennifer and me to come to his home studio with our cameras and tripod.

The King of the Weedle Birds with Mark Sloniker in the background

“

Walking into Mark’s home was like going into a museum of curiosities.

Walking into Mark’s home was like going into a museum of curiosities.

There were crystals that he’d grown and used in delicate tabletop sculptures. Adorning the walls were works of art both two-dimensional and three. There was even a footstool made to look like a tree stump! I did several 360 turns in that room alone just to take it all in.

When Mark took us back to his studio, the breadth of his creativity became more clear. On his drafting table were the illustrations for a children’s book; hanging up were large hot-pink moth sculptures; next to that was fabric Mark had created by snapping photos of his pink moths. I was astonished that this artist, who works full time at Animax Designs in Nashville, continues to create almost the moment he gets home. When I asked him about this, he said he sometimes has to remind himself to stop creating, to spend time with his husband, to unplug.

When Jennifer and I left Mark’s home studio we couldn’t stop talking about his boundless creativity. We’ve all heard the expression “Jack of all trades, master of none.” Well, Mark debunked that theory. He was a master artist with nearly every medium conceivable, like he had a magical artistic touch. It was such a pleasure to film his many creative processes. I know my students will be thrilled and inspired.

Photograph by Juan Pont Lezica

The Lillavae, 2015, Polymer clay, metal, fabric, foam, plastic, 15” x 8” x 6”

by Cassie Stephens Art Teacher Johnson Elementary

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ARTSMART

by Catherine Randall M.F.A. Instructor of English, Volunteer State Community College

Expanding A Novel Idea What began as a simple creative writing enrichment program for middle- and high-school students is now an expanding artistic enterprise. A Novel Idea was the bright concept of founder Kristen House over seven years ago. Her sole intention was to counteract the fear that traditional writing assessments elicit and replace that trepidation with confidence. ANI conducts month-long summer camps that guide students, grades 5–12, in writing a novel. Yes, it is an ambitious task to complete, but most participants do finish that rough draft by month’s end.

in a “high touch,” not a high-tech, way. Sharing their work with fellow classmates builds a sense of empathy and community, which is the cornerstone of this unique approach. The staff understands writing is difficult, but the ANI process helps participants discover that it is also satisfying. “Life is full of starts without finishes,” says McCoy. ANI is all about meeting the goal.

The writers have until October 1 to put the final touches on the rewrites and get them back to ANI for publishing and online purchase. Students even design their own cover art.

“It is a revolutionary way to teach writing. It gives students permission to write in a non-comparative environment,” current director Tama McCoy says. Within this accepting and encouraging atmosphere these new authors “blossom and fly.”

To celebrate their success, the authors attend a Conferring Ceremony at Parnassus Books in December each year. To date 412 novelists have completed the program. Middle schooler Utsav Talati has written three novels with ANI.

It isn’t that they do not have any formal instruction at all. On the contrary, the writers are taught all the elements of storytelling, researching, and mechanics, and they practice the steps in the writing process from brainstorming to rewriting. The key to the pedagogy that builds confident, secure writers is that ANI also teaches them how to, as McCoy explains, “eject those inner critics in order to be able to create.”

This innovative curriculum is gaining momentum. Workshops are now being offered in Chattanooga and Atlanta with plans to expand on the West Coast. For those who want to keep their skills honed during the school year, ANI offers Pen & Paper Clubs. Eighth grader Wednesday Link participated last summer in a workshop and now spends Saturday mornings writing at Harding Academy.

ANI does offer some scholarships. A Novel Idea has secured 501(c)(3) non-profit status, which means they can now apply for grants to expand their scholarship awards.

Rachel Hinchey, a Harpeth Hall rising 8th grader, concurs.

“Before I came to camp at A Novel Idea, I was very insecure about my writing and myself. But I found the teachers and atmosphere to be so warm and authentic that I pushed myself to complete an entire novel.”

Above all, these camps teach the mantra of a true writer’s key to success: “The more you write—the better you write.”

The sessions foster a greater tolerance to sitting still and working

For more information, visit www.anovelideanashville.com.

ANI Director Tama McCoy in a lighthearted moment with young authors

Instructors Wendy Martin and Erica Ciccarone with novelist Utsav Talati at Parnassus 95

nashvillearts.com

Inspiration. Creativity. Heritage.

Paducah inspires creativity as a UNESCO Creative City. Home of the National Quilt Museum, Paducah’s rich American heritage and engaging attractions create the foundation for authentic cultural experiences. Travel to Paducah and find your inspiration!

Plan your next getaway at Paducah.travel—and be creative!

1-800-PADUCAH

Want your design ideas to bear fruit?

Call Merrick!

Merrick Printing Company Richard Barnett, Sr. VP – Sales Cell (502) 296-8650 Office (502) 584-6258 richard.barnett@merrickprinting.com

Mary Merkel-Hess’ Double Green (2008), Paper, reed and paint, from Craft in America: Nature

SURVIVOR STORIES Holocaust Remembrance Day is April 24, and we’re showing two strikingly different approaches to remembering. On Monday, April 17, at 11 p.m., Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust is the story of recovered and restored instruments and the long-lost musicians who played them, often during the most horrific

Jennifer White in a still from Great Performances: Young Men

Comics have been mocking Hitler since before the U.S. entered World War II— Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator (1940) is one example. Mel Brooks has continued that tradition and is one of the comics and thinkers debating whether the Holocaust should be off limits in The Last Laugh, airing Monday, April 24, at 9 p.m. on Independent Lens. “The Holocaust is not funny; survival is,” Rob Reiner says in the film, which also features Carl Reiner, Sarah Silverman, Gilbert Gottfried, and many others.

FINE ART The Reel South series of documentaries about Southern culture continues

Tuesdays at 11 p.m. We’re also hosting a free screening of one of those films, 120 Days, at Casa Azafrán on Thursday, April 6. For more information, see wnpt.org/events.

Craft in America: Nature looks at how five artists interpret the natural world on Friday, April 21, at 8 p.m. One of them, Patrick Dougherty, will be familiar to Nashville Arts readers through his 2014 Little Bitty Pretty One installation at Cheekwood. The other artists in the episode are Mary Merkel-Hess (fiber), Michelle Holzapfel (wood), Preston Singletary (glass), and Catherine Alice Michaelis (books).

Some of the greatest masterworks of the 20th century were created along the Côte d’Azur. Globe Trekker visits Arles, Aix, Nice, and other spots frequented by Picasso, Matisse, Van Gogh, Gauguin, and others in Art Trails of the French Riviera airing Saturday, April 29, at 11 p.m. The show also highlights a gallery with works

by Alexander Calder, Joan Miró, Marc Chagall, and Raoul Dufy.

Spring into action this month and support NPT! Simply go to www.wnpt.org and click the Donate button. Encore presentations of many of our shows and program theme nights are broadcast on NPT2, our secondary channel.

A still from Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust

Credit Debra Yasinow

A World War I infantryman’s experiences are at the heart of Young Men, a featurelength ballet filmed in Northern France.

Choreographed by Iván Pérez to a score

by English folk rock musician Keaton Henson for the BalletBoyz dance company, the ballet premiered in London at the Sadler’s Wells Theatre in January 2015. The work premieres on Great Performances on Friday, April 7, at 8 p.m.

moments of the Second World War. Narrated by Academy Award-winning actor Adrien Brody, the film tells how master violin maker Amnon Weinstein made it his mission to rescue the violins, some of which were found in pieces. They later returned to concert play in a 2015 performance by the Cleveland Orchestra featuring virtuoso Shlomo Mintz. NPT and the Gordon Jewish Community Center will host a free screening and discussion of Violins of Hope, 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5, at the GJCC. Information is available at wnpt.org/events.

Credit Sophie Harris-Taylor

A century ago this month, the United States entered World War I, then optimistically referred to it as the war to end all wars. It was also known as The Great War, which is the title of a threenight documentary series airing 8 to 10 p.m., Monday through Wednesday, April 10 through 12, on American Experience. The series concentrates on how the war changed the country, as shown through the experiences of nurses, journalists, aviators, and infantrymen.

Courtesy of Mary Merkel-Hess

Arts Worth Watching

April 2017 Weekend Schedule 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 2:30 3:00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30

5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:30 12:00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 3:00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 6:00 6:30

Saturday

am Thomas and Friends Bob the Builder Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Splash and Bubbles Curious George Nature Cat Ready Jet Go! Sewing with Nancy Sew It All Garden Smart Pati’s Mexican Tab;e Martha Bakes Julie Taboulie’s Lebanese Kitchen noon America’s Test Kitchen pm Cook’s Country Kitchen Sara’s Weeknight Meals Lidia’s Kitchen Simply Ming Fons & Porter’s Love of Quilting Best of Joy of Painting Rough Cut – Woodworking with Tommy Mac Woodwright’s Shop This Old House Ask This Old House Woodsmith Shop PBS NewsHour Weekend Ray Stevens CabaRay Nashville

Sunday

am Sid the Science Kid Cyberchase Sesame Street Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Splash and Bubbles Curious George Nature Cat Ready Jet Go! Tennessee’s Wild Side TN Capitol Report (April 30) Volunteer Gardener Tennessee Crossroads Nature Washington Week noon To the Contrary pm Born to Explore Joseph Rosendo’s Travelscope Travels with Darley Globe Trekker California’s Gold Bare Feet with Mickela Mallozzi America’s Heartland Rick Steves’ Europe Antiques Roadshow PBS NewsHour Weekend Charlie Rose: The Week

Weekday Schedule 5:00 5:30 6:00 6:30 7:00 7:30 8:00 8:30 9:00 9:30 10:00 10:30 11:00 11:30 12:00 12:30 1:00 1:30 2:00 2:30 3:00 3:30 4:00 4:30 5:00 5:30 6:00

This Month on Nashville Public Television

am Classical Stretch Body Electric Wild Kratts Ready Jet Go! Nature Cat Curious George Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Splash and Bubbles Sesame Street Dinosaur Train Peg + Cat Super Why! Thomas & Friends noon Bob the Builder pm The Cat in the Hat Splash and Bubbles Curious George Nature Cat Ready Jet Go! Odd Squad Odd Squad Wild Kratts Arthur Martha Speaks WordGirl PBS NewsHour

Nashville Public Television

Monday – Wednesday, April 10 – 12, 8:00 pm

ORIGINAL DOCUMENTARY

The Early Black Press: Tennessee Voices Lifted

ORIGINAL DOCUMENTARY

Aging Matters: Aging & the Workplace

In the years following the Civil War, African Americans gained a voice through newspapers.

How our growing senior population is changing the world of work.

Thursday, April 20, 8:00 pm

Thursday, April 27, 8:00 pm

10

9

7:00 Call the Midwife Season 6, Episode 2.

Sister Ursula ruffles feathers; an explosion at the docks.

8:00 Home Fires on Masterpiece Season 2, Episode 2.

Frances learns a secret.

9:00 Inspector Lewis The Lions of Nemea.

10:30 Tennessee Uncharted 11:00 Tavis Smiley 11:30 Scully/The World Show

7:00 Antiques Roadshow Salt Lake City, Hour 2.

8:00 The Great War: American Experience The three-night miniseries begins with America’s nearly threeyear journey to war.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 1913: Seeds of Conflict The Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the years before World War I.

7:00 Antiques Roadshow 7:00 Call the Midwife Salt Lake City, Hour 1.

Season 6 premiere.

8:00 Independent Lens It’s 1962 in Poplar.

Newtown. The 8:00 Home Fires on aftermath of the Masterpiece December 2012 Season 2 premiere. mass shooting at an This story of a group elementary school. of women in a World 9:30 POV War II English village Listening Is an Act of picks up in June 1940.

Love: A StoryCorps 9:00 Inspector Lewis Special. Animated Entry Wounds. stories from 10 years 10:30 Tennessee Uncharted of StoryCorps.

11:00 Tavis Smiley 11:30 Scully/The World Show 10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Shelter Me Community Matters.

3

11

7:00 Nazi Mega Weapons Hitler’s Island Megafortress. The UK’s Channel Islands were heavily fortified during German occupation.

8:00 The Great War: American Experience Patriotism sweeps the nation, stifling free speech and dissent.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Reel South Shake ’Em on Down: The Blues According to Fred McDowell.

7:00 Last Days of Jesus 9:00 Frontline American Patriot.

How the Bundy family’s fight against the federal government inspired armed militias and “patriot” groups.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Reel South Red Wolf Revival.

Conservation in N.C. 11:30 Reel South Eat White Dirt.

The phenomenon of consuming earth.

4

12 7:00 Nature Viva Puerto Rico.

Scientists try to restore Puerto Rico’s endangered manatees, parrots and turtles.

8:00 The Great War: American Experience In the conclusion, the war comes to end and some worry about democracy at home.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Austin City Limits The Avett Brothers; Nickel Creek.

7:00 Nature Owl Power. The specifics of owl flight, hearing and vision.

8:00 NOVA Himalayan Megaquake.

The 2015 Nepalese earthquake.

9:00 Secrets of the Dead Leonardo, the Man Who Saved Science.

Was da Vinci a copycat?

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Austin City Limits Ed Sheeran; Valerie June.

5

6

13 7:00 Tennessee Crossroads 7:30 Volunteer Gardener 8:00 Rick Steves’ European Easter 9:00 Rick Steves Special Luther and the Reformation. A new special celebrates the 500th anniversary with visits to key sites.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 The Crowd & The Cloud Citizens + Scientists.

Tracking air and water pollution.

7:00 Tennessee Crossroads 7:30 Volunteer Gardener 8:00 Willie Nelson: The Library of Congress Gershwin Prize 9:30 Workin’ Man Blues 10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 The Crowd & The Cloud Even Big Data Starts Small. The crowd, using mobile tech and the cloud, contribute to science that saves lives.

Mon, April 24, 9:00 pm

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Independent Lens: The Last Laugh

Thursday

Thurs, April 13, 9:00 pm

Wednesday

Luther and the Reformation

Rick Steves Special

Tuesday

Weds, April 12, 7:00 pm

Monday

Nature: Viva Puerto Rico

Sunday

Nashville Public Television’s Primetime Evening Schedule

April 2017

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7:00 Lawrence Welk Show Tribute to Swing and Sweet Bands.

8:00 Keeping Appearances 8:30 Downton Abbey Season 6, Part 3.

A handsome volunteer helps Edith.

9:30 Endeavour Rocket. A royal visit to a family-owned munitions factory ends in murder.

11:00 Globe Trekker Road Trip: Rust Belt Highway, USA.

7:00 Lawrence Welk Show The Southern Show.

8:00 Keeping Appearances 8:30 Downton Abbey Season 6, Part 2.

Wedding plans hit a snag; pigs are trouble for Edith.

9:30 Endeavour Fugue. A string of Oxford murders continue.

11:00 Globe Trekker Top 10 South American Adventures.

Saturday

7:00 Soundbreaking The Human Instrument. 7:00 Lawrence Welk Show Adele, Amy Winehouse Easter. and Christina Aguilera 8:00 Keeping Appearances demonstrate vocal 8:30 Downton Abbey power.

Season 6, Part 4. Anna 8:00 Great Performances at and Mary rush to the Met London; a former maid Roméo et Juliette. comes to lunch.

Vittorio Grigolo and 9:30 Endeavour Diana Damrau reunite Home. The hit-and-run for a new production of death of an eminent Gounod’s opera based Oxford professor. on Shakespeare’s play. 11:00 Globe Trekker 11:00 BBC World News Road Trip: Rust Belt 11:30 Front and Center Highway 2, USA. Steve Vai.

7:00 Soundbreaking Painting with Sound.

8:00 Great Performances Young Men. A dance film shot in Northern France set in World War I. 9:30 POV Listening Is an Act of Love: A StoryCorps Special.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Front and Center Southside Johnny.

Weds, April 26, 9:00 pm

Wild Weather

Friday

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May 7:00 Victorian Slum House The 1860s.

Modern-day brits embark on a living history experiment.

8:00 To Be Determined 9:00 Frontline 10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Reel South 120 Days. A man must self-deport after an unexpected traffic stop.

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7:00 Soundbreaking Four on the Floor.

8:00 The Highwaymen: American Masters Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash and Kris Kristofferson.

9:00 Johnny Cash’s Bitter Tears Cash’s 1964 concept album and a 50th anniversary reboot.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Front and Center Kaleo.

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7:00 Soundbreaking Going Electric. From the electric guitar to synthesized music.

8:00 Craft in America Nature. The beauty, inspiration and future of the American landscape.

9:00 Craft in America Music.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Front and Center The Cadillac Three.

7:00 Nature 7:00 Tennessee Crossroads 7:00 Soundbreaking Dolphins: Spy in the 7:30 Volunteer Gardener The World Is Yours.

Pod, Part 1.

8:00 Dickensian The role of the music 8:00 NOVA Famous literary producer.

Wild Ways. How newly characters meet in this 8:00 Genealogy Roadshow established wildlife drama series.

Nashville. corridors aid in 9:00 Dickensian 9:00 Genealogy Roadshow conservation efforts.

10:00 BBC World News Albuquerque.

9:00 Plants Behaving 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 10:00 BBC World News Badly 11:00 Forgotten Coast 10:30 Last of Summer Wine Murder & Mayhem.

A rugged thousand11:00 Front and Center 10:00 BBC World News mile journey by foot, Dawes.

10:30 Last of Summer Wine paddle, and bike from 11:00 Austin City Limits the Everglades to the Natalia Lafourcade/ Florida-Alabama Grupo Fantasma. border.

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7:00 Tennessee Crossroads 7:30 Volunteer Gardener 8:00 Aging Matters: Aging & the Workplace A new NPT documentary.

9:00 Aging Matters: Living with Alzheimer’s & Dementia 10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 The Crowd & The Cloud Citizens4earth. The far-ranging potential of citizen science in the digital age.

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Visit wnpt.org for complete 24-hour schedules for NPT and NPT2.

7:00 Call the Midwife 7:00 Antiques Roadshow Season 6, Episode 5.

Virginia Beach, Hour 2.

New recruit Nurse 8:00 Antiques Roadshow Valerie Dyer arrives.

Corpus Christi, Hour 1.

8:00 Home Fires on 9:00 Independent Lens Masterpiece National Bird. The Season 2, Episode 5. dramatic journey of Steph risks losing the whistleblowers farm; Sarah finds determined to break herself in a dangerous the silence around the situation. secret U.S. drone war.

9:00 Inspector Lewis 10:30 Last of Summer Wine Magnum Opus.

11:00 BBC World News 10:30 Tennessee Uncharted 11:00 Tavis Smley 11:30 Scully/ The World Show

7:00 Nature Forest of the Lynx.

The remote forests of Austria’s Kalkalpen National Park.

8:00 NOVA Building Chernobyl’s Megatomb. Containing the remains of Chernobyl’s reactor.

9:00 Wild Weather Nature transforms wind, water, and temperature.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Austin City Limits Cassandra Wilson.

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7:00 Command and Control: American Experience The deadly 1980 incident at a missile complex.

9:00 Frontline The Fish on My Plate.

Journalist Paul Greenberg investigates the health of the ocean.

10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 BBC World News 11:30 Reel South An Enduring Legacy: Louisiana’s Croatian-Americans.

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7:00 Antiques Roadshow 7:00 Call the Midwife Season 6, Episode 4.

Virginia Beach, Hour 1.

An expectant mother 8:00 Antiques Roadshow buckles under the Chicago, Hour 3. strains of pregnancy.

9:00 Independent Lens 8:00 Home Fires on The Last Laugh.

Masterpiece Jewish comics and Season 2, Episode 4. thinkers discuss The Brindsleys make a whether anything, disturbing discovery. including the Meanwhile, there is Holocaust, is off-limits joyful news in the in comedy.

Campbell house.

10:30 Last of Summer Wine 9:00 Inspector Lewis 11:00 BBC World News One for Sorrow.

11:30 The Mighty T: The 10:30 Tennessee Uncharted Tuolumne River from 11:00 Tavis Smiley Glacier to Golden 11:30 Scully/ Gate The World Show

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17 7:00 Grand Coulee Dam: 7:00 Nature 7:00 Tennessee Crossroads American Experience Hotel Armadillo. The 7:30 Volunteer Gardener Tension between coveted burrows of the 8:00 The Early Black Press: technology and giant armadillo.

Tennessee Voices environment at the 8:00 NOVA Lifted Washington State dam.

Holocaust Escape A new NPT documentary.

8:00 Frontline Tunnel. Archaeologists 8:30 Housing: NPT Reports Last Days of Solitary. search Nazi death Town Hall Recently released camp ruins.

9:30 First Black Statesmen: prisoners go from 9:00 Escape from a Nazi Tennessee’s Selfsolitary to the outside Death Camp Made Men world.

Survivors return to the 10:00 BBC World News 10:00 BBC World News site of the Polish camp. 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 10:00 BBC World News 11:00 The Crowd & The 11:00 Reel South 10:30 Last of Summer Wine Cloud 120 Days. A man must 11:00 Austin City Limits Viral vs. Virus. How apps self-deport after an Spoon; White Denim. and maps combat unexpected traffic stop. globalized diseases.

7:00 Antiques Roadshow Salt Lake City, Hour 3.

8:00 Antiques Roadshow Chicago, Hour 2.

9:00 Independent Lens Seed: The Untold Story. Seed keepers try to counter the rate of lost varieties.

10:00 BBC World News 10:30 Last of Summer Wine 11:00 Violins of Hope: Strings of the Holocaust A violinmaker restores violins recovered from the Holocaust.

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7:00 Call the Midwife Season 6, Episode 3.

New legislation and Sister Ursula cause problems.

8:00 Home Fires on Masterpiece Season 2, Episode 3.

The war intensifies; the Brindsleys receive some wonderful news.

9:00 Inspector Lewis Beyond Good and Evil.

10:30 Tennessee Uncharted 11:00 Tavis Smiley 11:30 Scully/ The World Show

6 7:00 Lawrence Welk Show Songs of the ’70s.

8:00 Keeping Appearances 8:30 Downton Abbey Season 6, Part 7.

9:30 Endeavour Sway. The Oxford police deal with the third strangling victim in a month.

11:00 Globe Trekker Food Hour: Provence, France.

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7:00 Lawrence Welk Show Tribute to Jerome Kern.

8:00 Keeping Appearances 8:30 Downton Abbey Season 6, Part 6. The hospital war reaches a climax.

9:30 Endeavour Nocturne. An elderly man is murdered with a ceremonial dagger.

11:00 Globe Trekker Art Trails of the French Riviera.

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7:00 Lawrence Welk Show Top Songs from Broadway Musicals.

8:00 Keeping Appearances 8:30 Downton Abbey Season 6, Part 5. Spratt rescues Denker; a powerful politician comes to dinner.

9:30 Endeavour Trove. A suicide may have been murder in the Season 2 opener.

11:00 Globe Trekker Tough Trains: The Transcontinental Railroad, USA.

Luke and Olivia Landry at The Arts Company

Ali Katt and Dustin Hedrick at Channel to Channel

Paul Allen, Bobby Bare Jr., and Doni Schroader at Julia Martin Gallery

ARTSEE

Linda Ashby and Jamie Carroll at David Lusk Gallery

ARTSEE

Alan Waddell, Ryan Daniel, Anna Pope, and Sheryl Spencer at O’More College of Design

Denise Stewart-Sanabria, Angie Leahy, and Tiger Gagan at O’More College of Design

ARTSEE

The Great Toyzini, Sara Lederach and Katie Wolf at East Side Project Space

Charles V. Bennett, Naryan Smith, Cecilia Strand, Katie Kowalski and Jennifer Smith at The Rymer Gallery

Julia Martin, Kevin Doyle and Molly Lahym at Julia Martin Gallery

Tiffany Foss and Alex Higginson Rollins at Gallery 202

Reygan Pitman and Zander Rosenbaum at The Arts Company

Maliyhah Albayan and LaChanda Q. Akers at Watkins Arcade Gallery

Monica Brown, Misti Wren, Luke brown, and Maria Tipton at Bob Parks Realty

The Rymer Gallery

Kris Griggs and Julie Harvey at Gallery 202

Brian Edmonds, Vicki Sher, and Heath De Hart at Zeitgeist

Curt Thorne, Heather Thorne, Nashville Ballet Artistic Director and CEO Paul Vasterling and Jason Facio

Sarah Maggart and Kat Friedmann at Channel to Channel

ARTSEE

ARTSEE

Photograph by Susan Adcock

Ben Lankford at East Side Project Space

Jess and Katora at Tinney Contemporary

Tim Ross at Bob Parks Realty

At Brikolai

Merrilee Challiss at Julia Martin Gallery

Nashville Ballet company dancers perform to Muddy Magnolias

Photograph by Karyn Photography

PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN JACKSON

ARTSEE

Jamie Carroll at David Lusk Gallery

Diane Carter and Bill Fahey at Bob Parks Realty

Living for a living ...

Back in 1985, when my niece Catie was but five years old, she said something so profound I’ve never forgotten it. This was during a particularly dark period in my life. My career didn’t seem to have a pulse, and I’d just broken up with my boyfriend. Feeling deeply depressed, I had fled Nashville for the safe confines of my parents’ house in Spartanburg.

So I’m lying on a sofa in their den when someone mentioned something about my being a musician.

“Aunt Marshall, I didn’t know you played music for a living,” the five-year-old Catie said. “I thought you lived for a living.”

Her words hit me like a ton of bricks. I’m thinking, If this five-year-old thinks I live for a living, then I must be doing something right. It was enough to give me the strength and courage to return to Nashville and finish up some songs I’d been working on.

Williamson County Culture

Out of the mouths of babes, right?

So now, here I am. Thirty-something years later. Semiretired, drawing Social Security and an AFTRA pension.

And when I stare off into the future, the only thing visible is my own mortality. Which makes living in the moment more than a good idea. More like a matter of life or death.

Meanwhile, people I love keep falling by the wayside.

And when they do, the love I feel for that person gets redistributed, at least in my mind, to the ones who are left. So every time someone we love dies, we have to love the ones who are left more. That’s my own little personal philosophy. Call it Marshall Law, if you like.

Anyway, so spring is finally here. And as I sit at my desk, pondering how the hell I’m going to wrap up this article, I observe outside my window a neighbor’s young cat stalking bees in the middle of some freshly blooming hellebores in my garden. The cat turns a complete flip as she leaps in the air trying to catch a bee.

That cat is “living for a living” and doesn’t even know it, I think, as I rise to go outside and join her.

Marshall Chapman is a Nashville-based singer/songwriter, author, and actress. For more information, visit www.tallgirl.com.

BEYONDWORDS

Photograph by Anthony Scarlati

ry Eve st fir ! ay Frid

BY MARSHALL CHAPMAN

MYFAVORITEPAINTING ALI PERRY, ENTREPRENEUR

ARTIST BIO: Jason Craighead Jason Craighead is a recognized leader in the North Carolina art scene. His work has been featured in many solo and group exhibitions across the Southeast and is included in many private and public collections throughout the United States and internationally.

Jason grew up in Florida where he studied art at Gulf Coast Community College and Florida State University. He has been a resident of downtown Raleigh for sixteen years and an active participant in the city’s arts community. He is a member of the City of Raleigh Arts Commission and serves on the Grants Committee. He is also co-founder of Switchhouse, a working studio space and gallery that he and artist Dave Green completed in the spring of 2014.

Jason’s work emits an infectious, fervent energy. In fact, it echoes the well-known words of Edward Hopper: “If you could say it in words, there would be no reason to paint.” Craighead’s creative process combines instinct and spontaneity with purposeful movement and references from emotionally significant books, films, and music lyrics.

What remains is an elusive balance of structures intricately networked to create striking compositions. The effect of his work engages the viewer, inciting emotional reaction and engagement with his emotive narrative.

Jason Craighead, Make It What You Will, Mixed media on canvas, 70” x 60”

In Nashville, Craighead is represented by Tinney Contemporary, www.tinneycontemporary.com. See more of his work at www.jasoncraighead.com.

and takes up residence in that fuzzy, toe-curling, happy place at the base of your skull. An incredible piece of artwork will do that to you. It will squeeze your heart and render you breathless—which is exactly what happened as I stood in front of Jason Craighead’s Make It What You Will at Tinney Contemporary. But then, his work does that to me. And this piece became the second of his treasures to join my burgeoning collection. Something I love about Jason’s work is that his composition is heart-wrenchingly beautiful.

Perfect. The kind of perfect that’s almost too much to bear. Without question, this piece could stand on its own without any understanding of its underlying meaning. But such a story Jason tells. One of growth, of unwavering hope, of solitude, of journey, of joy. His musings are excruciatingly personal. They’re big, important stories rendered in paint and oil pastels and graphite and bits of paper—and I feel a bit like a voyeur watching him painstakingly find his voice. Watching him talk to himself, really, because his work never feels like it was meant for anyone but him. And maybe that’s why every scribbled word, every drip of paint, every jagged bit of color feels so intentional and so intimate. Layer after layer after layer the story unfolds, captured only after many hours of inspection and introspection. Though even then, perhaps not completely. Jason paints from the soul, and his is a deep one. So, I keep trying. I keep listening. Carefully. na

www.ali.perry@mizzouri.com Ali Perry

Photograph by Sheri Oneal

There’s a lot to be said about anything that curls its way around your spine

Inauguration Day II, 62x60 inches, oil on canvas, 2017

DANE CARDER BETTER ANGELS A p r i l 8 — M a y 14

RED ARROW GALLERY t h e r e d a r r o w g a l l e r y. c o m

C RY S TA L WA G N E R APRIL 1 - JUNE 25

2017 Martin Shallenberger Artist-In-Residence Experience art that can spark imagination and conversation.

cheekwood.org 1200 Forrest Park Dr, Nashville, TN 37205