American Heroes Overseas Clarksville Customs House Museum • Through August 31 See the awfulness of war juxtaposed to the beauty of nature in the video installation Serving Abroad…Through Their Eyes. Accompanying the video are photographs by Greg Williamson, The Leaf Chronicle journalist who spent three weeks embedded with the 101st Combat Aviation Brigade.
Greg Williamson, Survey
According to Williamson, “The whole experience was phenomenal. Capturing the snow-covered mountains, villages, and landscapes was unforgettable. . . . When my convoy was hit by an IED (improvised explosive device) I witnessed first hand the dangers our military personnel are put in and the quick action they took to secure the area and tend to the wounded.” Serving Abroad…Through Their Eyes began as a juried photography project featuring photographs taken by active military, Foreign Service, and Civil Service personnel while serving overseas. Artist Lincoln Schatz was commissioned by the Office of Art in Embassies to create the video montage.
Greg Williamson, Medic
Serving Abroad…Through Their Eyes will be on view at the Customs House Museum in Clarksville through August 31. Greg Williamson will talk about his time with the troops at the Customs House Art & Lunch on July 16. For more information, please visit www.customshousemuseum.org.
Paul McLean Reexamines Old Hickory in 4D by Cass Teague
David Lusk Gallery • Through July 26
In his first solo exhibition in Nashville in over a decade, Paul McLean’s Code Duello, Old Hick & A Big Bang presents an interlinking series of mixed-media works covering a spectrum of compelling narratives, including the colorful and controversial history of President Jackson (“Old Hickory”), the practice of dueling in America, and the art and science of the universe’s origins as represented in modern technology. McLean’s impetus for weaving the Big Bang into the discourse underpinning the show arose from his doctoral course work at the European Graduate School. His approach, which he calls “4D” or “4th dimensional art,” provides an integrative framework for layered techniques. Most of the images in Code Duello, Old Hick & A Big Bang consist of abstract figures that confront space and time beyond the limits of strict 3D and 2D representation. For this exhibit, McLean partnered with long-time collaborator Shane Kennedy, who prepared lush surfaces for some of the paintings in the Jackson series and provided substantial technical support. Ultimately, Code Duello, Old Hick & A Big Bang is an exposition on questions we have about what it means to be human in contemporary society and how we recreate ourselves and our experiences to fit into the world. Code Duello, Old Hick & A Big Bang will be on view July 1 through July 26 at David Lusk Gallery, with an opening reception on July 5. For more information, visit www.davidluskgallery.com. 20 | July 2014 NashvilleArts.com
Untitled, Mixed media on canvas, 14” x 11”