UTC DEPARTMENT OF ART N E WS L E T T E R , FA L L 2026 fall 2026 | 1
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Welcome Letter
Dear Friends, Students, Alumni, and Community Members, Welcome to Fall 2026 and to the third issue of the Department of Art Newsletter. As a new semester begins, we are excited to welcome our returning students back to campus, greet those who are joining us for the first time, and reconnect with alumni and community members who continue to support and shape our department. The start of a new academic year is always filled with possibility, and it is a pleasure to share that momentum with you through this publication. At UTC Art, our mission remains focused on creating an accessible, rigorous, and supportive learning environment for our students. We encourage exploration of creative processes and critical frameworks essential to contemporary practice, and we are committed to guiding students as they pursue their individual artistic goals at the University and beyond. Our vision is to lead in undergraduate art education by nurturing distinct and varied voices through thoughtful pedagogy, responsive curriculum, and meaningful extracurricular programming. Mentor-based instruction, personalized guidance, and inclusive learning environments continue to be central to how we teach and learn together. That mission and vision have not changed, but we have exciting developments and programs that I hope move those principles forward.
cover image: Nik Hudson installing for the Feinstein Scholarship exhibition. Photograph by Angela Foster.
This newsletter is an extension of our commitment to connection and shared creative life. If you have been following the newsletter since its inception, the following categories of stories are starting to become familiar: Spotlights on student work, including a feature on a High Impact Practices grant featuring the ICA and the Feinstein Scholarship and exhibition; Announcements for new initiatives, focusing in this issue on a collaboration with Theatre and Interior Architecture on a student competition to create a UTC tartan; Faculty focus, this issue addresses the construction at our faculty studios and new faculty/staff joining us this year;
And Alumni features, sharing the story of BFA Photography and Media Art Alum olen quinn’s amazing career.
As you explore this third issue at the start of a new semester, I hope you feel the energy, dedication, and promise that define our department. In the Department of Art, ideas take shape, risks are encouraged, and growth happens through sustained effort and curiosity. With appreciation and excitement for the semester ahead,
Katie Hargrave Department Head UC Foundation Professor of Art
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Student Spotlight Feinstein Scholarship and Exhibition Each year, the Lillian B. Feinstein Scholarship and Exhibition honors artistic excellence at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga while keeping alive the legacy of one of Chattanooga’s most distinctive and generous artists. Established to support student artists at UTC, the scholarship recognizes both creative achievement and potential, and the accompanying exhibition offers recipients the opportunity to present their work in a professional public context.
E Adam Cymer preparing for installation. Photograph by Angela Foster.
1. Chester Martin, “Chester Martin Remembers Lillian Feinstein,” The Chattanoogan, March 24, 2016 https://www.chattanoogan. com/2016/3/24/320622/Chester-MartinRemembers-Lillian-Feinstein.aspx.
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Lillian Brown Feinstein (1902–1983) was a sculptor whose artistic life unfolded largely outside the spotlight of national art institutions. Working primarily in wood and bronze, Feinstein’s work has a sensitivity to form. Local artist and historian Chester Martin described her as intensely curious and generous with her knowledge, eager to share materials, techniques, and conversation with younger artists. Feinstein’s path to sculpture was not linear; she returned seriously to art later in life, pursuing it with dedication and discipline, and joy. ¹ Feinstein’s commitment to the arts extended beyond her own practice. She was an active supporter of local cultural institutions, including the Hunter Museum of American Art, where her work is in the collection, and UTC. Established in her honor, the Lillian B.
Feinstein Art Scholarship is awarded annually to two art majors (one upper-division and one lower-division student) whose work demonstrates exceptional promise. The Lillian B. Feinstein Scholarship Exhibition brings this legacy into the present, showcasing the work of each year’s recipients and situating student art within a professional exhibition framework. Over the years, the exhibition has highlighted a wide range of approaches, materials, and conceptual concerns, reflecting the evolving nature of contemporary art practice at UTC. The exhibition of the 25-26 scholarship awardees, titled “Kudzu Paper”, included Nik Hudson (rising senior, BFA Painting and Drawing), Reese Nelson (graduating senior, BFA Graphic Design), and Adam Cymer (graduating senior, BFA Painting and Drawing). We took a sneak peek into the installation, saw some of Nik’s work in development, and took in the completed show at the opening following graduation. The selected scholarship recipients for the 26-27 academic year are Isabella Hutchinson (rising junior, BFA Painting and Drawing), Caleb Connery (rising senior, BFA Graphic Design), and Crowley Haworth (rising senior, BFA Painting and Drawing). Stay tuned for more about these students next year!
E Kudzu Paper, on view at the ICA Gallery. Photograph by Angela Foster.
H Reese Nelson (left) and Nik Hudson (right) preparing for installation Photographs by Angela Foster.
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High Impact Practices at the ICA Working closely with Prof. Bart Pushaw and UTC Facilities Manager Ted Ross, students selected works for exhibition, developed curatorial themes, and wrote exhibition labels and wall texts for a public audience. They also collaborated on the layout and design of the exhibition, testing arrangements and considering how viewers would move through the space. Through the process, students gained practical skills commonly used in museums, galleries, and cultural institutions that will support them should they decide to move into arts administration as a career focus.
E Student curated selections from UTC’s Permanent Collection on view at the ICA Gallery. Photograph by Angela Foster. Students in a printmaking workshop hosted by the UTC Art Collective. Photograph by Katie Hargrave.
Last spring, students enrolled in ART 4150, an advanced curatorial practicum taught by Prof. Bart Pushaw, curated an exhibition drawn from the UTC permanent collection after spending the semester researching individual artworks drawn from our collection of over 2200 works of art. The project, supported by a grant from the Walker Center for Teaching and Learning, gave students direct experience with professional museum practices including archival research, object handling, exhibition design, interpretive writing, and collection management.
F Professor Bart Pushaw and students exploring the Permanent Collection Archives. Photographs by Katie Hargrave.
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The exhibition, installed in the ICA this summer, highlighted the value of handson learning by allowing students to work directly with original objects from the university’s collection. It also demonstrated how research and curation can bring new attention to works that often remain out of public view. The exhibition will remain on display through the Fall 2026 semester, sharing student scholarship with the campus and broader community. Come check it out!
New Initiatives DESIGNING A UTC TARTAN The Department of Art, Theatre, and Interior Architecture are collaborating on an interdisciplinary design charrette for Fall 2026 centered on a challenge from the Chancellor to create a new UTC tartan. The multiweek program will bring together students from across the university to collaboratively research, design, and present a tartan that reflects UTC’s history, identity, and future. The charrette emphasizes teamwork, research, critique, and public presentation, and is designed to align with ThinkAchieve’s experiential learning initiatives, allowing students to receive credit towards the ThinkAchieve graduation designation. The program begins with a launch and mixer where students from across the university will learn about the cultural history of tartan before forming interdisciplinary teams. During the following weeks, students will develop concepts independently before returning for a collaborative studio workday with faculty feedback and access to artmaking materials as they develop their ideas for a tartan that is specific to UTC. The program concludes with a public pitch day in which teams formally present their tartan concepts to a panel of judges. Presentations will focus on research, design rationale, visual communication, and collaborative process, giving students experience that mirrors professional creative practice. The winning team members will each receive a scholarship and they will see their tartan come to life!
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Faculty Focus New Faculty and Staff
MARK BRADLEY-SHOUP Mark’s studio practice explores representational and abstract imagery through responses to the natural and built landscape and the ways humans inhabit and shape space. His work addresses themes of growth, consumption, construction, and the visual dialogue between architectural forms and their surrounding environments.
We have had some transitions over the summer and we’d like to announce a new role for a longstanding faculty member as well as welcome new faculty and staff to our community. Read on to hear about their backgrounds and learn more about their positions here in the department. Those of you who have been around UTC for a while would certainly know Mark Bradley-Shoup. We are very excited that Mark will be transitioning from a lecturer to an Assistant Professor of Art in Foundations starting this fall. While he has already had a big impact on the department and likely needs no introduction, we thought we would share a bit about his work and background.
H Vacancy: Improvised Trailer Oil on canvas, 20”x20” 2025 Photograph courtesy of the artist.
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He earned his BFA from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in Painting and Drawing and his MFA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in Studio Art. He has exhibited his work in Los Angeles, Boston, Atlanta, Nashville, Knoxville, Omaha, Miami, Birmingham, Santa Monica, New Orleans and Vancouver, B.C. In addition to his extensive exhibition record, Bradley-Shoup has been the recipient two Make Work grants, the Individual Artist Fellowship from the Tennessee Arts Commission, an Individual Arts Grant form Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga, and a Pollock-Krasner Grant, as well as nominated for the Dedalus Foundation, Joan Mitchell Award and a George Marshall Fellowship. His work has been published in New American Paintings and Collage: Contemporary Artists Hunt and Gather, Cut and Paste, Mash Up and Transform from Chronicle Books.
BETH REITMEYER are discovered as one explores the land and structures within it: waterfalls, wind, clouds, rivers, caves, geodes, stars. These environments allow viewers to explore the land and get to know one another in a more profound way, providing a space for renewal and hope for persevering.
We are delighted to welcome a new Art Education Assistant Professor to the Department: Beth Reitmeyer. She has valuable experience in K-12 education and in museum education departments that will help our BA Art: Art Education concentration students to be successful. Beth will also teach studio courses across the department, so she will put her varied studio practice to work in Foundations, Sculpture, and beyond. Beth is a visual artist who likes to make people happy with her colorful installations. Her work investigates landscapes and the joy of unexpected yet beautiful spaces and places that
Reitmeyer received her MFA from Northwestern University, MAT from Western Kentucky University, a Post Baccalaureate from the School of the Art Institute, and a BFA from the Pennsylvania State University. Her work has recently been exhibited at the Frist Art Museum, Nashville; ChaShaMa, New York; The Elizabeth Foundation, New York; OZ Arts, Nashville; TedX Nashville; 1708 Gallery/Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond, VA; FIGMENT, Chicago; The Downing Museum, Bowling Green, KY; Kindling Arts Festival, Nashville; Zg Gallery, Chicago. Reitmeyer has been an artist-in-residence at The Studios at MASS MoCA, ChaNorth, Pine Plains, NY, the Sam & Adele Golden Foundation for the Arts, New Berlin, NY; Craigardan, Elizabethtown, NY; The Ragdale Foundation, Lake Forest, IL; Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Amherst, VA; and Byrdcliffe Artist Colony, Woodstock, NY. Recent awards include the Tanne Foundation award and grants from Metro Nashville Arts Commission/National Endowment for the Arts.
E Garden of Earthly Delights mixed media installation 2025 Photograph courtesy of the artist.
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REBECCA BRANTLEY Rebecca Brantley is joining us as the new Curator and Director of the Institute of Contemporary Art and Faculty Associate for the Department of Art. We’re thrilled to have her join our team and bring her skillset to the gallery, permanent collection, and to our students in the classroom. Rebecca is a curator, writer, and educator whose work sits at the intersection of contemporary art, regional identity, and community engagement. During her decade at Piedmont University (2016–2026)—as Director of the Mason-Scharfenstein Museum of Art and Associate Professor of Art—she developed an exhibition program centered on the American South, elevating regional artists and expanding the museum’s reach and collection. Brantley led the museum through a phase of significant growth, notably driving a 58 percent attendance increase in recent years. Her curatorial work expanded the museum’s permanent holdings in contemporary photography, including works by Bud Lee and Chris Aluka Berry, and ceramics, ranging from historical Japanese ware to contemporary Southern makers. Temporary exhibitions featured artists including Richard Notkin, Cosmo Whyte, Joni Mabe, Art Rosenbaum,
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Cheryl Goldsleger, Ashlyn Pope, and Thaddeus Erdahl, among others. She worked with Dr. Matthew Teutsch to co-curate an exhibition devoted to writer and civil rights activist Lillian E. Smith and her art collection. Brantley is an accomplished author and critic whose scholarly contributions include chapters in The Focal Press Companion to the Constructed Image in Contemporary Photography (2018), The Grandeur of the Everyday (University of Alabama Press, 2017), and Contemporary Art About Architecture: A Strange Utility (Ashgate, 2013). Her criticism has appeared in The Brooklyn Rail, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Metalsmith Magazine, and she has served as a contributing writer for ArtsATL, Burnaway, and Athens’ Flagpole Magazine, profiling artists such as Paul Pfeiffer, Mickalene Thomas, and Sally Mann. Brantley holds a BFA, BA, and an MA in art history with distinction from the University of Georgia, where she was the first undergraduate to receive a CURO Fellowship focused on a project at the Henry D. Green Center for the Study of the Decorative Arts at the Georgia Museum of Art.
Faculty and Staff Awards Congratulations to members of our team who were celebrated with College of Arts and Sciences and University-level awards during the 2526 Academic Year. It is such a joy to be able to celebrate our colleagues!
CHRISTIANNA BONIN Christianna Bonin is joining us as an Assistant Professor of Art History. This fall she is teaching a special topics course “Art and Crime” as well as “Critical Theory for the Visual Artist” and “Contemporary Art.” We could not be more thrilled to have her join the faculty in the Department of Art! Her research examines art institutions, education, and environmental change across imperial and Soviet-era Russia, Central Asia and Mongolia. She has received fellowships from the Fulbright Program, Clark Art Institute and Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture. Her current book project, Terrains
of Modernity: Art, Land, and Empire in Kazakhstan investigates how land use and its representation impacted Kazakhstan’s contemporary ecological and cultural worlds. Her co-edited volume, Soviet Materialities: Socialist Things, Environments and Affects was published with Manchester University Press in April 2026. Bonin’s curatorial projects include Art Dubai Modern 2024 and Lkham Gallery, the first international contemporary art gallery in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, where she was founding curator from 2022 to 2024. She was a contributing critic at Artforum and serves on the advisory board of ARTMargins Online. She holds a PhD in art history and theory from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
ROWAN BUFFINGTON College of Arts and Sciences Lifetime Research and Creative Activity Awardee MATT GREENWELL University of TN at Chattanooga Lifetime Teaching Awardee LINDSAY GODIN College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Lecturer TED ROSS College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Staff Member
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Faculty Studio Renovation Over the last year and a half, the studio complex at 801 McCallie Avenue that houses most of our BFA studios and our faculty studios has been undergoing a renovation. We received a new roof during summer 2025 and major repairs to the interior in spring and summer of 2026. We are so grateful to the campus staff in Public Safety and Facilities who ensured that we have safe working conditions. They also
supported us to limit the impact to students. While we were concerned that we would need to vacate the whole building, it was only the faculty on the second floor who were impacted due to careful timing of when the project was scheduled. As we come close to the end of this major project, we thought we’d give you a look behind the scenes and a look back at where we came from.
E Professor Vogel’s studio, before and after renovation.
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We couldn’t have taken on this project without the support of Pamela Riggs-Gelasco, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, UTC Vice Chancellor Brent Goldberg, our Facilities Manager Ted Ross, and student worker Jackson Hussey (BFA, 2026 Sculpture). Now to get back to our creative research in this beautifully renovated space. If you’d like to see what we’re up to in the space, stay tuned for a faculty open studios event to come!
E UTC faculty studios at the 801 McCallie Building during demolition (above) and after completed renovations (below).
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Alumni Features: olen quinn We recently caught up with PMA graduate olen quinn (BFA, 2023) who shared about his experiences since he graduated from UTC Art. We loved hearing an update from him in this short interview. For current students and recent alumni, there are great nuggets of wisdom to help you consider how you build on your experiences in the classroom to develop your own path following graduation. Take a read! Q: What are you doing professionally right now? A: Currently I am working as the content coordinator and tour videographer for the artist BBNO$, helping handle social media content, live visuals, and any content collabs we come across during tour. Outside of touring, though, I spend a good majority of the year traveling alongside BBNO$ (Alex), shooting photos and BTS of projects he takes on. From this career my photos have been published in Times Square, Rolling Stone, YouTube Blogs, Spotify, Soundcloud, and Apple Music. E olen quinn. Photograph courtesy of the artist.
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Q: How did your path unfold after graduating from UTC? A: This career came on quite unexpectedly, to be honest. I moved to Nashville and started working on film and photo sets as much as possible, mingling with people who I met on set, and staying in touch with people I met. One day I received a message from an old friend, Turner Frilling—Alex’s graphic designer and creative director—saying they were looking for a product manager for Alex’s brand Funjob, and took on that role for about 6 months, until Alex’s DJ, Dan, texted me and asked if I’d be interested in going on tour with them. This led to me traveling to over 35+ countries and making more TikToks than I could ever imagine. Crazy.
as little money as possible. Now as we navigate rollouts and new projects, I think of “how would I have achieved the desired outcome in DIY? How can we effectively communicate through visual language?” Great classes, I would highly recommend. Q: What has been one of your proudest accomplishments or milestones since graduating? Q: What skills, experiences, or lessons from UTC’s Art Department have been most valuable in your career? A: There are multiple skills that have become integrated into my daily workflow, but most importantly I would say the ability to be critical and reason through why I am critical of something is probably my greatest strength in this role. One of my favorite parts of this job is Alex asking my opinion on projects he is working on, and him knowing I am going to be brutally honest and not a “yes man.” Another big skill is the ability to creatively work through ideas and concepts and lend my opinions to the team on larger projects and activations.
A: I think my proudest accomplishment since graduating has to be having my work published across so many major publications, most notably being Rolling Stone Q: What advice would you give to current UTC art students who want to follow a similar path?
A: The most important advice I could give anyone is to not be afraid to reach out to people you look up to. The biggest opportunities come to people who show up but are also always around. Send DMs, show up to shows, talk with people, take on creative gigs if they are offered. But most importantly, be kind and grateful always. Also share your work! I know it can be intimidating (I struggle at showing my work, still!), but people won’t know what you are capable of if you don’t show it off. Q: Where can we see your work or follow your career? A: Keep up with me on my instagram! @olen G The artist BBNO$ (above left and below). Photographed by olen quinn.
Q: Was there a particular professor, project, or moment at UTC that influenced your direction? A: Not necessarily direction career-wise, but there are two classes that helped a lot in framing what is capable when marketing (I don’t like using the word marketing, I think it sounds quite lame and uninspiring). Special Topics: Do it Yourself with David Court and Visual Literacy with Matt Greenwell really inspired me moving through my post-grad to make as much with
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Connect With Us UTC ART ON SOCIALS We want to hear from YOU! The Department of Art is working on building a stronger connection with our alumni community, and we’d love for you to be part of it. Going to grad school or starting a new job? Have a new exhibition or collaboration? Tell us about it! We want to highlight the incredible things our graduates are doing. Email Katie at kathryn-hargrave@utc.edu or fill out our alumni survey here: tinyurl.com/ yzwf36tn Follow us on Instagram: @utchattanooga_art #UTCArtAlumni #UTCArt It’s your go-to spot for student work, faculty highlights, events, and alumni features. Help us grow our community by sharing it, tagging us in your work, or dropping us a DM! Reach out, reconnect, and represent what makes our community unique. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Student Organizations
THE ART COLLECTIVE TAC is a student-led organization that promotes artists and art activities on campus. Instagram: @utc.artcollective SEQUOYA REVIEW Sequoya Review highlights UTC’s best undergraduate work, including fiction, poetry, creative nonfiction, and visual art. The publication is created in the ENGL 3780R course. Students gain practical experience with editing, layout, and production of the journal. The course is taught in the English Department, and Professor Matt Greenwell serves as the Art Faculty Advisor. Instagram: @sequoya_review
Spark Creativity: Support UTC Art Students! Imagine empowering the next generation of artists, innovators, and thinkers right here at UTC. Your gift to the UTC Department of Art isn’t just a donation; it’s an investment in creativity, opportunity, and student success. Why your support matters: • Fuel artistic growth ans access. Contributions to the Friends of the Cress Gallery directly enable student exhibitions and public programming.
• Support hands-on learning. Gifts to the Art Gift Fund support studio supplies, exhibition materials, and creative tools. Your generosity ensures students can explore, experiment, and excel.
Support UTC Art by visiting UTC’s secure giving portal. give.utc.edu/art
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E Students in UTC ART’s Contemporary Art History course (above and previous page). Photographs by Angela Foster.