Nashville Arts Magazine - October 2016

Zoey FRANK David YARROW External BALLISTICS Isabella INNIS The JOE DIAZ Collection

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O VER 10 0 SP ECI ALTY S H OP S & RES TAU RANTS H I L L S B O R O P I K E, I - 4 4 0 EXI T 3 • NAS H V I LLE, TN • S H OP GREENH I LLS .COM

MICHAEL MADZO

Iris by the Window

Oil on Panel, 44” x 72”

This Is What I Know (Among The Thousand Leaves Left Behind)

5’ x 4’

Leiper’s Creek Gallery in Historic Leiper’s Fork

4144 Old Hillsboro Road, Franklin TN 37064 • (615) 599-5102 www.leiperscreekgallery.com

From Darkness to Sight chronicles the remarkable life journey of Dr. Ming Wang, a world-renowned laser eye surgeon, philanthropist and Kiwanis Nashvillian of the Year.

A

s a teenager, Ming fought valiantly to escape one of history’s darkest eras—China’s Cultural Revolution— during which millions of innocent youth were deported to remote areas to face a life sentence of poverty and hard labor. Through his own tenacity and his parents’ tireless efforts to provide a chance of freedom for their son, Ming eventually made his way to America with $50 in his pocket and an American dream in his heart, where against all odds he would earn a PhD in laser physics and graduate magna cum laude with the highest honors from Harvard Medical School and MIT. He embraced his Christian faith and tackled one of the most important questions of our time—Are faith and science friends or foes?—which led to his invention of a breakthrough biotechnology to restore sight.

To date, Dr. Wang has performed over 55,000 eye procedures and has treated patients from nearly every state in the U.S. and from over 55 countries worldwide. He is considered the “doctor’s doctor,” as he has operated on over 4,000 physicians. Dr. Wang has published 8 textbooks and a paper in the world-renowned journal Nature, holds several U.S. patents and performed the world’s first laser artificial cornea implantation. He is the recipient

of the Honor Award from American Academy of Ophthalmology and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Chinese American Physicians. Dr. Wang is currently the only surgeon in the state who performs 3D LASIK (18+), 3D Laser Kamra (45+), 3D Forever Young Lens Surgery (50+) and 3D Laser Cataract Surgery (60+). Dr. Wang established a non-profit foundation which provides sight restoration surgeries for indigent patients who otherwise would never have the opportunity to receive them free-of-charge.

This is a story of one man’s inspirational journey, of turning fear, poverty, persecution and prejudice into healing and love for others.

It demonstrates how focus, determination, humility and profound faith can inspire a life that, in turn, impacts that of countless others.

Intoxicated by

Color

EDIE MANEY OCT 2016

215 5th Ave of the Arts N . • 615.254.2040

www.theartscompany.com

5TH AVENUE OF THE ARTS DOWNTOWN NASHVILLE

© E D I E MA N E Y

PUBLISHED BY THE ST. CLAIRE MEDIA GROUP

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Columns MARSHALL CHAPMAN | Beyond Words ERICA CICCARONE | Open Spaces JENNIFER COLE | State of the Arts 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 JUSTIN STOKES | Film Review

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 $6.40 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.

THE RYMER GALLERY

Iris by the Window

Oil on Panel, 44” x 72”

Buddy Jackson Amor Fati / Love Your Fate October 1 - November 1 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

On the Cover

October 2016 26

Didier Lourenço

Red Lips Oil on canvas, 32" x 26"

Features

Columns

10

16

Crawl Guide

49

The Bookmark Hot Books and Cool Reads As I See It

by Mark W. Scala

Elizabeth Ross Mysterious Collages

18 ArtCamp

Creating the "Un-Conference"

34

20

Southern Festival of Books

52

22

Hand Shadows Imagination in Glass

62

Open Spaces

by Erica Ciccarone

26

Isabella Innis Narrative of the Abstract

64

Arts & Business Council

70

Symphony in Depth

30

Fresh Paint by Julia Martin

32

And All That Jazz Jazzmania Returns to Celebrate an American Musical Tradition

90

Sounding Off

by Joseph E. Morgan

91

Film Review

by Justin Stokes

34

Whisper, Speak, Shout … Just

Say Something Selections from the Collection of Joe Diaz

93

And So It Goes

by Rachael McCampbell

42

David Yarrow International Photographer

94 Theatre

by Jim Reyland 96

42

Art Smart

by Rebecca Pierce

100 ArtSee

100 56

48

Memphis Brooks Museum of Art 100 Years in the Making

50

Q&A with J. Kline

56

Zoey Frank Connections & Changes

102 Poet's Corner

66

University School of Nashville Celebrates 20 Years of Artclectic

104 NPT

82

External Ballistics An Artistic Look at American Gun Culture

86

One-of-a-Kind Subtractive Art Paper and Pumpkin Carvings by Lundy Cupp

88

The Fall of the Philanderer Don Giovanni by the Nashville Opera

103 Public Art

109 Beyond Words

by Marshall Chapman 110 My Favorite Painting

88

TINNEY CONTEMPORARY

wild encounters DAVID

YARROW

S E P T E M b E R 2 4 - O C TO b E R 2 9 , 2 0 1 6 Opening Reception: October 1st, 6 - 9 p.m. book Signing and Lecture: October 1st, 2 p.m.

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

elizabethROSS

by Gracie Pratt

Mysterious Collages

Orange Afternoon, 2009, Acrylic and collage on glass, 5” x 7”

The Ride, 2015, Acrylic and collage on glass, 7” x 7”

T

he magic of Elizabeth Ross’s collages is the mystery.

Miniscule figures fly out of cages, an elephant marches atop sheet music, and birds pour teacups in an imaginative series of surreal scenes. Delightful and perplexing, Ross’s pieces offer only a page of the story.

Largely self-taught, Ross was originally inspired by the process of creating art glass—patterned plates, luminous vases, and framed work. Over the past decade, that idea became more precise as she began to craft one-of-a-kind collages.

As Ross begins a piece, she starts by sifting through books and magazines for something that catches her eye. “When something connects, I feel it in my gut.” For the artist, it is an instant physical, or even spiritual, reaction to the images, colors, and textures and how they fit together.

Her scenes boast unexpected images of fanciful proportions, and this is Ross’s favorite part of the process. “I love making intuitive connections between seemingly unrelated things,” she says.

From there, Ross carefully cuts out the images, usually drawing from 20 to 50 unique sources for one 9x12 collage.

She experiments with placement, adjusting the cutouts until the piece feels right. Once the layout is decided, she must begin the laborious task of tracing the design before gluing

Flying, 2011, Acrylic and collage on glass, 7” x 9”

each piece to the inside of the glass. Metallic paint adds luminous shade to the backdrop, and a final coat of sealant makes for the last touch before Ross places the collage in a simple white frame.

Ross is inspired by the “mystery of the universe,” a theme which largely informs her scenes. Further explored, Ross offers, “We have clues but the veil is never completely lifted.”

Ross’s collages embody this curiosity, provoking a visceral reaction in viewers. The lack of obvious connection between images in her collages makes the experience of her work even more impactful as viewers entertain their own interpretations.

Her work is ruled by its own “internal logic.” Each piece is its own little world, full of the imaginary and the real, with microscopic human figures and oversized butterflies. Ross likes to think of her work as isolated scenes offering a sneak peek of a longer narrative. “[My pieces] tell a part of the story, but I don’t even know the whole story.” na Elizabeth Ross’s work is displayed at Bennett Galleries in Nashville.

For more information, visit www.bennettgalleriesnashville.com.

Greely Myatt WhatNots (and gewgaws)

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Publisher's Note

A Great City Deserves Great Art Imagine this. You come home from work and find a hole in your living room wall. Immediately opposite there's another hole, both of them at head height. On closer inspection you find they are bullet holes. That's exactly what happened to Julia Martin at her gallery on Humphreys Street in the Wedgewood/Houston district. Noticing plaster on the floor, Julia found where a bullet had entered her gallery and, tracing the trajectory, found where the bullet exited. A visit from the local cops confirmed it was indeed a bullet hole. Concerned about what she had found, Julia decided to put those feelings into her art and invited other Nashville artists (19 of them) to create works about their own perceptions, ideas, and feelings about guns (see page 82). The exhibit External Ballistics opens at her gallery October 1 and runs through October 31. Nashville Arts Magazine is proud to sponsor this important show. Do not miss this!

David Yarrow, the internationally acclaimed photographer, is coming to Tinney Contemporary, and I could not be happier. His work is simply exquisite. His wildlife photography is as real as a camera can allow. Not one for the safe distance of telescopic lenses, Yarrow gets up close and personal with his subjects. You can almost feel the hot breath of that bear coming straight at you. (See page 42.)

At The Rymer Gallery, you'll find the incomparable Buddy Jackson.

Paintings, sculpture, photography—there seems to be no end to this man's creative spirit. The exhibit opens October 1, and I will be talking with Buddy about his art, his life, and his fascination with the female form at the gallery on October 28.

Guns, wildlife, and Buddy Jackson. Is there a more interesting city somewhere? I don't think so.

Paul Polycarpou | Publisher

FAMILY TIES September 17th - October 15th

| www.cumberlandgallery.com | 615.297.0296 | 4107 Hillsboro Circle

BENNET T GALLERIES Opening Reception featuring new work from

SCOTT E. HILL and JAMES GARRETT

Scott Hill, Storm Cloud, 45” x 45”

James Garrett, Winter Tree, 64” x 58”

November 11, 2016 6:00 PM to 8:30 PM 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

October Crawl Guide First Saturday Art Crawl Downtown Saturday, October 1, from 6 until 9 p.m.

The Arts Company is hosting an opening reception for Intoxicated

by Color: New Paintings

by Edie Maney (see page 55). Tinney Contemporary is exhibiting photographs

by David Yarrow (see page 42). The Rymer Gallery is unveiling Amor David Wolske, Hatch Show Print's Haley Gallery Fati/Love Your Fate, an exhibit of paintings, sculpture, and photography by Buddy Jackson. The Browsing Room Gallery at the Downtown Presbyterian Church is presenting McLean Fahnestock’s Sounds Like, an exhibition of sound-centered sculptural works, which explores how we experience the world through sound.

In the historic Arcade, Blend Studio is featuring Some/Any/No Place by Renee Couture, work that articulates the complexity and range of the public’s relationship with their nearby landscape.

40AU is opening Dead Trees and Dirty Leaves, the first duo show for married couple Jeff and Myka Bertrand who are both in love with local history. Open Gallery is presenting Eleanor Rigby, a series of photographs by Rachel Treide.

For those who wish to start crawling Renee Couture, Blend Studio early, “O” Gallery is open from noon until 3 p.m. showcasing new work by Olga Alexeeva.

Hatch Show Print’s Haley Gallery is showing new work by guest artist David Wolske who visited the print shop earlier this year to create his Synæsthetica series with some of the biggest wood type fonts in Hatch’s collection.

Arts & Music @ Wedgewood/Houston Saturday, October 1, from 6 until 9 p.m.

David Lusk Gallery is showing Kit Reuther’s exhibit Weights & Modules.

444 Humphreys Street Pop Up is hosting The Arcane and Cellophane featuring the reworked gadgets and video screen sculpture of ReTech and life-sized tape monsters by Chip Boles. Channel to Channel opens its new space inside The Packing Plant with Nashville artist Jonathan Edelhuber’s Cognitive Fields, which shows a playful yet organized way of achieving pattern and texture through Jonathan Edelhuber Channel to Channel

Harry Whitver, abrasiveMedia

illustrated abstract imagery. abrasiveMedia is exhibiting Lyrical Deconstruction, a collection of oil paintings by local illustrator and commercial artist Harry Whitver. COOP Gallery and Seed Space are joining together to present Asymmetric Kin, a multidisciplinary international collaboration between artists from Nashville and Istanbul, Turkey, including artists Kristi Hargrove and Bahar Yürükoglu, ˘ Jana Harper and Erdal Inci, Michael Dickins, Jonathan Rattner and Ay¸segül Süter. CG2 Gallery is reopening the doors of their new space located at 438 Houston Street with a reception and exhibit of work by Erik Mark Sandberg and Mark Hosford (see page 74). Julia Martin Gallery and Nashville Arts Magazine are unveiling External Ballistics featuring work created to examine the effects of gun violence (see page 82). Zeitgeist is presenting three exhibitions: Louisiana Trail Riders by Jeremiah Ariaz, Desire Lines by Josh Elrod, and Mono by Christopher Roberson. At 7:30 p.m. Ground Floor Gallery is hosting an exhibit of gallery artists including Sibley Barlow, Bobby Becker, Devin Goebel, Georganna Greene, Cassie Harner, Carri Jobe, Dez Hough, Mandy Jones, Jovanni Luna, Meg McGregor, Anna Merrill, Mihail Tomescu, and Janet Decker Yanez. In its latest effort to connect people with clay, InFlux is bringing 12 x 12, a curated show of cups and mugs, to Wedgewood-Houston’s Dozen Bakery.

Franklin Art Scene Friday, October 7, from 6 until 9 p.m.

Gallery 202 is featuring a show of new primarily largescale abstract paintings by artist Julie Harvey, who is inspired by her surroundings, thoughts, and emotions.

Boutique MMM is hosting artist Dolly Georgieva-Gode.

Hope Church Franklin is showcasing paintings

by Alyson Cannon. Parks on Main is exhibiting Julie Harvey, Gallery 202 woodworking and furniture

by Doug Regen. Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church is presenting art by Lisa & Derek Eisenga, Caroline Thompson, and Laura Neal, as well as cricket stools painted by many local artists as a fundraiser for FiftyForward (see page 72). See live glassblowing demonstrations by Jose Santisteban and Mike Ingram at Franklin Glassblowing Studio. Harlin Meyerhoff is showing bronzes and paintings of horses by Janel Maher.

Imaginebox Emporium is featuring the original illustrations created by Cory Basil for his young reader novel The Perils of

Dolly Georgieva-Gode, Boutique MMM

Fishboy. On view at The Registry is a series of 12 paintings

by Susan Frizsell that are on sale to benefit dogs in the Agape Animal Rescue program. Emily Venturino is exhibiting her paintings at Williamson County Visitor Center. Enjoy Bob Musgrove’s paintings and a demonstration of his Power Bike prototype at Williamson County Archives.

East Side Art Stumble

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

Gallery Luperca is hosting a closing reception for Donna Woodley’s show What’s in a Name? at their pop-up location in Fond Object. Betsy Stirratt is opening a solo exhibition Space & Volume, a body of work that utilizes light and dark and repulsion and attraction at The Red Arrow Gallery. Southern Grist Brewery is featuring work by Brian Somerville. Stop by The Box, Sami Wideberg’s mobile art gallery, to see her photo collage pieces, photography, and paintings.

Endeavor Fine Art

Saturday, October 8, from 5:30 until 8:30 p.m.

Enjoy work by this month’s cover artist, Didier Lourenço, during a reception and exhibit at Endeavor Fine Art, 265 White Bridge Road.

Boro Art Crawl

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

This month the Boro Art Crawl celebrates its one-year anniversary with art on display at multiple locations around Murfreesboro’s downtown business district and just off the square. Among the participating locations are Murfreesboro Art League, Mayday Brewery, Green Dragon, dreamingincolor, Quinn’s Mercantile, Cultivate Co-Working, and the City Hall Rotunda. October’s Boro Art Crawl is dedicated to Glenn Merchant, owner of Moxie Art Supply, who helped to found the event.

Sami Wideberg, The Box

Donna Woodley, Gallery Luperca

ArtCamp Creating the “Un-Conference” Nossi College of Art

|

October 15

T

Three years ago local graphic designer Joe Smith created the event because he felt that local artists could be pushed to do more. This year, the event will be focused on keeping what’s great about the community alive in the face of rampant growth and gentrification.

“It’s been amazing how the arts community has grown here,” Smith says. “The sense of creativity and the makers of the community are what make it so attractive. We want to keep it attractive to the creatives and keep it supportive of the creatives. We just want to continue to have that conversation with this event.”

Joe Smith and Amélie Guthrie

Photograph by Judith Hill

he third annual Nashville ArtCamp will welcome 400 members of the creative community to learn more about each other, about art as passion and profession, and about what it means to be an artist here.

The template for ArtCamp came from the technology “unconference” model made popular by Silicon Valley’s BarCamp.

The idea is that by inviting locals to speak and teach from their own experiences, attendees have more insightful experiences that pertain specifically to them at a lower cost.

The organizing team invited speakers for about half of the 26 sessions planned this year, including local gallery owners, Nashville Arts Magazine, representatives from the Arts and Business Council of Greater Nashville, and Mayor Megan Barry. The other half will be led by locals who filled out online applications.

“In one room it could be the leading gallery directors and curators of Nashville, and then the very next session it could be someone we’ve previously never met who is just going to talk about a photography technique that they’ve created and want to share and teach,” says Amélie Guthrie, director of this year’s ArtCamp.

ArtCamp sessions are designed to start thought provoking conversations

Guthrie, a metal sculptor, attended the first Nashville ArtCamp after having recently moved to the city with hopes of embedding herself in the scene. “The two goals for ArtCamp are connecting artists to each other and fostering education, and I definitely came away with those two exact things,” she recalls. “I met so many people that day who I not only kept in touch with, but we helped each other out in concrete ways in our careers. . . . Then, the presentations that I went to really opened my eyes to different things. Things you don’t necessarily learn at art school but are so important.” na ArtCamp will be held at Nossi College of Art, 590 Cheron Road, on October 15 from 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. For tickets and more information, please visit www.artcampnashville.com.

Clark Buckner interviews René Millán for an ArtCamp podcast

18 nashvillearts.com

HISTORY EMBR ACING A RT

“Nest” 60” x 48” Featured Artist

J UL I E

H A RV E Y

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

•

www.gallery202art.com

•

615-472-1134

Southern Festival of Books Various Nashville Locations

|

October 14–17

Words by Bob Doerschuk Photography courtesy of Humanities Tennessee

S

o you’ve been through your summer reading list. You’ve headed off to the ocean or up to the mountains with a suitcase full of bestsellers, classics, tell-all bios, or whatever helps pass the hours on a shaded beach chair or a comfy old couch.

Now what? With summer slipping away, is it time to stop reading? Not at all. In fact, for lovers of the printed word, the best time of year is just days away.

From Friday, October 14, through Sunday, October 17, the 28th annual Southern Festival of Books convenes on War Memorial and Legislative Plazas, inside the Legislative Hearing Rooms, and at the Main Branch of the Nashville Public Library. More than 250 authors from throughout and beyond the United States will give readings, discuss literary issues on panels with their peers, autograph their works, and generally make themselves available to any and all attendees.

Especially in this age of emoticons and 140-character tweets, books are more vital than ever. They offer a unique pleasure, elevating as well as informing through the reading process itself. Plus there’s something gratifying about holding a physical volume and turning pages, a pleasure now rendered exotic by smartphone screens.

“Well, I think it’s wonderful that people can download an ebook,” counters Serenity Gerbman, Director, Literature and Language Programs at Humanities Tennessee, which organizes the Festival. “People should be able to read what they want in whatever format they want. The important thing is that they’re reading. However,” she continues, “there’s something about having a physical book in your hand, particularly if you can meet the author and get that book signed.”

That’s one among many opportunities available at the Festival.

Authors confirmed to appear include J. D. Vance, whose

Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of Family and Culture in Crisis is a stark account of poverty in Appalachia. Tamara Saviano will discuss her new release Without Being Killed or Caught: The Life and Music of Guy Clark.

Look for country music legend Whisperin’ Bill Anderson and punk rocker Rob Rufus, both of whom have published recent memoirs. Or if you’re interested in doing your own autobiography, check out Deborah Wilbrink’s presentation Writing from Life: The Journey.

The 2016 program also celebrates the Pulitzer Prize’s 100th anniversary by welcoming winners, including journalists and photographers, to special sessions. Kids can enjoy live music and readings from Newbery Medal recipient Kwame Alexander and Nashville’s own guitarist, singer, and Nancy cartoonist Guy Gilchrist, among many others. Publishers will display their latest titles in outdoor booths, just steps away from stages offering live entertainment and an array of food trucks parked on Charlotte Avenue.

“Because it’s a book festival, I’m aware that some people might think it’s gonna be dry,” Gerbman admits. “But that’s the furthest thing from the truth.”

So just show up and enjoy. Admission is free. Until then, stay current with what’s in store at HumanitiesTennessee.org or by downloading the Southern Festival of Books app for iTunes or Android. na For more information, visit www.humanitiestennessee.org.

YORK & Friends fine art Nashville • Memphis

DAVID SWANAGIN

Peaceful Drive, Oil on canvas, 36” x 48”

NANCY RHODES HARPER

JADE REYNOLDS

Klimtish, Oil on canvas, 24” x 18”

Daisies Gone Wild, Acrylic on canvas, 48” x 36”

107 Harding Place • Tues-Sat 10-5 • 615.352.3316 • yorkandfriends@att.net www.yorkandfriends.com • Follow us 21 on nashvillearts.com

at York & Friends Fine Art

Hand Shadows: Imagination in Glass

by Catherine Randall

Customs House Museum through October 30

S

trong art deco colors in geometric shapes, intricate art nouveau flowing curves, and the play of daylight through textured glass are some of the classic features in Tammy O’Connor’s stained glass creations.

“I love what the spectrum of light does coming through colored glass,” O’Connor says, “It creates this ‘other-ly’ feel.”

Ming is a hanging piece representative of O’Connor’s technique. The amber-colored pendant encases a single sprig of baby’s breath. Fused glass triangles in yellow and brown blotches buttress the center burnt-umber vertical panels.

Shocks of emerald squares anchor the edges. Sunlight pushes through mullion panes then bursts into tiny muntins of splintered light. Curved fringes of clear textured glass hang low, asymmetrical, and angelic. Fern fronds and tiny maple leaves find eternal homes in other pieces.

Mamasa, 2016, Glass, 5” X 10”

For thirty years Tammy O’Connor has mesmerized viewers with these almost ethereal hanging sculptures. Her chosen medium lends itself to a holy impression. Stained glass has been used in cathedrals for centuries to defuse light and set a spiritual mood. “It causes you to slow down, come into calmness,” O’Connor says. In fact, it is her mission to use her art to bring “some peace and quietness” to an otherwise noisy world.

Rising Bird, 2014, Glass, 9”X 9” stand 48” tall

Her new collection Hand Shadows: Imagination in Glass is a bit of a departure, one that fuses a narrative with traditional stained glass style and form. On display are hands enclosed in rich colored-glass squares, which cast onyx images of a dove, snail, bunny, duck, fox, and camel. Each piece has her signature fused-glass elements and designs, which create the shadow puppet effects.

Soft beams of light cast from the Fresnel lanterns bounce off the gallery walls at the Customs House Museum and dance around the glass, mimicking natural sun rays. Unlike her hanging pieces, these panels are fixed in a stand, still and waiting like a storybook to be enjoyed.

This atmosphere is intentional: “Kids are so technical these days. We have lost the simple joys,” O’Connor says. This exhibit is an invitation to rediscover imagination. Standing in front of any of O’Connor’s work it is clear she has met her mission. Her work casts a space of sacred, peaceful silence. na Hand Shadows: Imagination in Glass will be on display at the Customs House Museum and Cultural Center in Clarksville, Tennessee, until October 30. For more information, visit www.customshousemuseum.org.

23 nashvillearts.com

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by Cat Acree

Isabella Innis

Narrative of the Abstract Of all the things that keep us from connecting with each other, the worst is certainty. Our walls are erected with the certainty that we’re right, that we’ve absolutely thought through our side of things, that what we feel in the space between our heart and our gut is the only way to feel. This goes for politics, justice, faith, art, music, everything. Los Angelesbased artist Isabella Innis, known to her friends as Izzi, calls the entire notion worthless.

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Photograph by Rebecca Wolseley

Some people love clear messages. They just want to understand, and they need the answers. But I find beauty in not having to have the answers.

The Narrative of the People, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, 60” x 96”

“S

ome people love clear messages,” says Innis during a call to California about a month before the former Nashvillian will have her first solo show in a Hollywood gallery. “They just want to understand, and they need the answers. But I find beauty in not having to have the answers. As much as I want to have a dialogue with whatever culture is right now, I also want the message to be that we’re all different, and we will always be all different. Accepting that there are things we’ll never understand, or will never be clear, is a vulnerable state to be in, but I think that vulnerability is what connects all of us in the end.”

With titles like Potomac Waters, Sea of Storms, and Alaska, Innis’s abstract paintings hover over Earth, looking like aerial landscape photographs or even detailed maps. This is what it must feel like to be an astronaut, staring down at the striking, clashing colors and unexpected patterns below with a mix of detachment and ownership.

Innis’s upcoming Hollywood show centers around one piece in particular. The 60x90-inch The Narrative of the People is the most like a map of all of her works, with the apparent landscape speckled with countless tiny symbols. But there is no legend to this map; the symbols don’t mean anything. It comes from the

Sea of Storms, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, 36” x 24”

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Jardin, 2015, Acrylic on canvas, 36” x 36”

artist’s fantasy that we could have a “universal language,” that we might find some common ground while honoring our diversity. “I wanted to make a piece that represented this universal language that connected all of us in the midst of these [disparate] positions that we have,” Innis explains.

“I wanted it to be abstract, but I want [viewers] to feel that energy, and so far they have.”

Innis describes how much of this work has been inspired by the current political climate, not just within the United States but worldwide. However, she never strays far from the place that originally fostered these Earth-laden abstract works, one that brought her closer to the textures and colors of untouched nature: Uganda.

Potomac Waters, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, 48” x 36”

Says Innis, “It’s been so interesting [to observe] how dividing not only politics are, but the polar opposites that we have in society, the divisions that we have, whether it’s Republican and Democrat, or black and white skin, Christian and Muslim … These titles create such huge wedges between us. Processing all that has led me to do this new series.”

This is the art of a young person who has gone out into the world and come back hopeful. Her work is searching, reaching out, and eventually coming to rest on the hope that the world offers in return. na Isabella Innis

See more of Innis’s work at www.isabellainnis.com.

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Photograph by Rebecca Wolseley

After graduating in 2012 from Westmont College in Santa Barbara with a B.A. in Studio Art, Innis was reluctant to commit to becoming a full-time professional artist and so pursued a number of careers with interior design firms and E! Entertainment.

Fulfilling the dream of every twenty-something who’s stuck in a job they hate, Innis quit everything in 2013 and went to Uganda for three months to work with a nonprofit.

She has since returned two more times, and plans to return immediately following her upcoming show.

Fresh Paint

by Elaine Slayton Akin

New Works by Julia Martin

Someday when you’re older…, 2016, Oil on canvas, 22” x 30”

USN’s Tibbott Gallery through October 18

J

ulia Martin’s figure paintings recall the emotional brushstrokes and rainbowcolored palettes of 19th-century post-impressionists that rely on the viewer’s eye to connect the compositional elements outside the realm of nature. Hair we describe as simply “brown,” for example, takes on shades of blue and yellow as light cuts through space—deflected by a jutting strand or weakened by a thin patch. Similarly, a Caucasian skin tone bears hints of purple and orange before it registers as a rosy cheek in our minds. Martin’s prolific and attentive rendering of the human form confirms her love of human experience, expression, and character. “My subject

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I’m a bit of a purist when it comes to painting. I don’t really have a choice.

La Esperalda, 2016, Oil on canvas, 36” x 24”

Rear Window, 2016, Oil on canvas, 48” x 32”

matter is often confined to one individual figure. This is where I feel most comfortable and free to push the boundaries of the conventional use of line and color,” explains the artist, whose solo exhibition at the University School of Nashville’s Tibbott Gallery this month will carry this typically singular application into multi-figure territory.

While Martin’s figures—overwhelmingly women to satisfying effect—are usually depicted from the shoulders up; “portrait” is not quite the right label. As the viewer, you get a sense that you’re not intended to see a particular person. Identity and personality, however, are not lacking. “I have to very deliberately press against my natural tendencies when rendering male features,” Martin admits. “The feminine flows freely out of me for obvious reason, but there’s a cocktail of deepseated strength and vulnerability in women that I find utterly fascinating. Each quality ebbs and flows differently from one to the next.” This “obvious reason” is that Martin is a woman herself and with this work positions herself in a long, beautiful line of women painting women. How backwards it seems today that the abstract-leaning style was once considered ideal for female artists because of its minimalist accoutrements—smaller canvas size for light transport, more casual subject matter, and ease of practice in the company of the same sex. Home interior’s most famous art historical inhabitant is the woman, after all. Looking at Martin’s paintings, one could say the former is still true, though for vastly different reasons.

Martin’s women engage with and withdraw from the viewer’s

Rosebud, 2016, Oil on canvas, 24” x 18”

gaze at their own (or the artist’s) will, direct eye contact and headphone zone-out, respectively. They are modern and free, facilitated more so by the artist’s own freedom of motion via her abstract painting style. “I’m a bit of a purist when it comes to painting. I don’t really have a choice. Past attempts at planning or sketching out compositions ahead of time inevitably crash and burn,” Martin explains. “My brain just doesn’t work that way. I have to work in the moment and let my instincts guide the way; otherwise, the work feels soulless.”

And soulless Martin’s figures are not; their shadow-encircled eyes tell interminable stories, yet keep you guessing for details.

“Men are beautiful in their own ways, but nothing holds a candle to the feminine mystique,” according to the artist. This reliance on the imagination adds a layer of otherworldliness to Martin’s paintings that allows bending of traditional portrait conventions. When the style does not conform to nature, happily the content doesn’t have to either.

“I’ve been enjoying applying elements of line and color to broader narratives,” says Martin. “Over the last few years, I’ve been working incrementally to broaden my focus. The University School show will highlight pieces that I feel are successful movements in that direction.” We will see groupings of more diverse figures, including some men and children, set within broader frames of time and space. Martin is a talented painter whose next steps will be exciting to watch. na New Works by Julia Martin is on view at University School of Nashville’s Tibbott Gallery through October 18. For more information, visit www.juliamartingallery.com, and www.usn.org.

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And All That Jazz

by Stephanie Stewart-Howard

The Jazzmania crowd at The Factory at Franklin

Photography by Duncan May

Jazzmania Returns to Celebrate an American Musical Tradition

T

he Nashville Jazz Workshop dates back nearly two decades, to 1998, when Lori Mechem and Roger Spencer introduced the Nashville Jazz Institute, aiming to teach students based on a traditional journeyman-apprentice approach. A few years later, they incorporated as a nonprofit and moved to their Germantown location where students remain the priority and where incredible music is made. This year, their wildly fun fundraiser Jazzmania, held at the Factory at Franklin, once again promises to let patrons dive deeply into amazing performances in the course of the best jazz party thrown in the city annually.

Sure, Nashville may be known for country music, but the Nashville Jazz Workshop underlines the city’s genuine, marvelous musical diversity. The opportunity for our residents, kids and adults alike, to grow their skills in the Jazz Workshop’s environment can’t be overstated, and it must be supported.

This is how our culture continues to thrive and grow rich.

Founder Lori Mechem says, “Jazz has been around here longer than you think. Most of the A-list session players 20 to 30 years ago were amazing jazz musicians. They just didn’t get to play that genre very often. There were many live venues that presented jazz; musicians went after their sessions, but sadly these clubs didn’t last long.

“The Nashville Jazz Workshop has been at the forefront of the jazz scene for over 16 years, providing a community center for jazz. We provide not only classes for all levels, but live performances in our own facility, The Jazz Cave. We also take jazz out to the community by providing concerts—free or at a minimal fee.

NJW scholarship recipient Caitlin Dobbins performs at Jazzmania 2015

“Community partners such as the Frist Center for the Visual Arts, Nashville Public Library, Parnassus Books, Discover Nashville, TPAC, Music for Seniors, and Music Makes Us help give back—and with Jazzmania, we can too.”

The evening includes catering by Sargent’s Fine Catering, an original cocktail by Lipman Brothers, and a guest performance by extraordinary Grammy-nominated and Dove Award-winning artist Donna McElroy, formerly of Nashville, now professor of voice at the Berklee College of Music.

Jazzmania also raises funds through a silent and online auction, offering Florida vacations, private concert events, and a host of more remarkable options for bidding.

If you’ve been there in the past, you know Jazzmania is the kind of event where you just enjoy yourself, carried away on incredible music. Not all fundraisers can say that, and that makes the tickets worth the price—and special.

Most important, attending this event and bidding in the auction means you help support incredibly talented people with a mission to bring more music to you. The whole community benefits, from the students in NJW’s workshops to the folks who take advantage of those concerts, listen to the recordings, and take joy in the power of jazz.

Who knows? Lori Mechem might yet get her ultimate wish— seeing more jazz clubs return to Music City. Jazzmania reminds us just how cool that could be. na For more information, visit www.nashvillejazz.org. Check out guest vocalist Donna McElroy at www.youtube.com/watch?v=iENf7FXIHmE.

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Cesar Martinez, La Fulana, Acrylic on canvas, 70” x 60”

Whisper, Speak, Shout...

Just Say

Something Selections from the Collection of Joe Diaz Middle Tennessee State University

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October 17–November 10

by Sara Lee Burd

T

o support his desire to engage viewers with contemporary conversations in art, collector Joe Diaz has opened his

collection of over 2,000 works to curators and cultural institutions around the world, including Middle Tennessee State University. In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage month, the Todd Art Gallery will feature Selections from the Collection of Joe Diaz, which includes powerful examples of contemporary American painting, sculpture, and works on paper made by American artists of Hispanic descent. In conjunction with the exhibition, a panel discussion will offer a focused explanation of contextual distinctions that define terms like “Hispanic,” “Latino,” and “Chicano.”

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Luis Jiménez, El Buen Pastor, Lithograph on paper, 42” x 30”

There are so many ways to paint a vase with flowers in it.

That just doesn’t excite me. I want art that people say they either hate it or love it.

Though it is sometimes called Latin American art, Hispanic art, Latino art, and Chicano art, collector Joe Diaz believes it’s more than art by and for particular people. “It’s just art” and should already be included within the the discourse of American art. However, he acknowledges the “Latino” distinction because it makes sense right now to people who live apart from Hispanic culture. While it is critical that art by all voices occupy museum walls, the way that art is collected and exhibited creates an identity for the group being represented.

This can be problematic because the taste of a curator or a collector or the mission of the exhibiting institution may determine what the public thinks about an entire group of people. Joe is clear that he draws a line against putting his art in exhibitions focused on superficial cultural expectations of Latinos simply making “happy, pretty, tropical” art.

His taste is socially and aesthetically driven, and what he really wants to collect is art that provokes attention. “There are so many ways to paint a vase with flowers in it. That just doesn’t excite me. What I see out here [Texas] and in my artists is what I consider beautiful. I want art that people say they either hate it or love it. Who wants to go to a show where everyone is indifferent about the art.”

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Luis Jiménez, Tan Lefos de Dios, Tan Cerca de Los Estados Unidos, Lithograph, 25” x 50”

Diaz primarily builds his collection by maintaining relationships with artists and following their careers. As a fan and patron of visual art, he visits studios as the series are completed. “I don’t buy one or two pieces by an artist and move on; I go by decades,” Diaz notes, referring to the extensive surveys of art in his collection such as his steady purchases of Luis Jiménez’s art from the 60s until Jiménez’s death in 2006. Of the work coming to MTSU, Diaz says, “I have about 150 pieces just by Kathy Vargas, and the other artists, I may have 40 to 50 of their works. It’s a lot, but I just like their art.”

By repeatedly supporting the same artists, Diaz sustains their artistic practice and standard of living. “Many people think a mid-career artist or above is just rolling in the dough, but they need their prices to go up. They need to pay mortgages and feed their families just like everyone else.” Diaz’s purchases and exhibition loaning plans provide exposure for these artists and invigorate the market for their art. Vargus notes that Diaz’s support of her career “makes me feel free. If artists can be picky about their collectors, I’m going to pick collectors who will let me speak my mind as an artist. I’m not making art for anyone, but the fact that there is someone interested in my career helps me make art.”

Kathy Vargas, Broken Column: Mother, 6 silver prints with hand coloring

Among Vargus’s photography coming to MTSU, Broken Column: Mother stands out. This deeply personal work contains photographs of her mother taken at hospice three months before she passed. According to Vargus, her mother understood that photography is the way that she processes everything in her life. When she asked her mother if she could photograph her, she replied “go ahead and do what you need to do to get through this.” Vargus explains, “I wanted to understand the process she was going through— the deconstruction, deterioration of her body.” Vargus’s composition creates a narrative of the physical effects of time on the body. The deathly photographs of her mother losing

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Alfred J. Quiroz, No Soy Chicano, so Aztlano, Oil on canvas, 60” x 46”

control of her face and legs form a cross around found x-Ray images of a healthy spine reminiscent of youth. The right arm appears wing-like and speaks of her impending ascension, while the left arm holds a photograph of Vargus as a child, which recalls her mother’s past physical strength.

Diaz’s collection of art is filled with social and personal narratives that when brought together provide a meaningful dialogue about the issues impacting the Latino community and the United States in general. That the art is controversial is less important than the fact that it provides an opportunity for an artist to express an authentic perspective of his or her experience.

“Some of the works I collected 20 years ago are still relevant in our public discussions today.” Take, for example, Luis Jiménez’s painting El Buen Pastor from 1999, which remains germane in today’s political discourse around immigration, racism, and justice at the Mexico/USA border. The tragic inspiration for the painting is clearly written across the work.

Esequiel Hernandez “El Buen Pastor” a tragic consequence of this country’s insane and racist border policy was the murder of Esequiel of Red Ford, Tex. While he tended his goats the assassins were absolved since they were only following orders and he fit the profile of “drug smuggler” so they said.

Jiménez simultaneously creates a memorial for an individual while also honoring him as an icon of social justice. Depicted in jeans and a plaid shirt, the late Hernandez stands in a field filled with typical desert vistas at the southern international border, but hidden amongst the nature are camouflaged figures pointing long-range guns. Recalling the iconographic image of Christ as the good shepherd, Hernandez is presented holding a kid goat in his left hand mirroring that of Christ holding the lamb of God, while the right hand is upheld in a holy gesture and also a friendly wave. The golden circle behind his head looks like a halo but contains the tension that it could also be the crosshairs of a rifle. Blending vernacular and sacred imagery, Jiménez approaches the real and deadly consequences of fear and distrust that is fueled by pervasive stereotypes of Hispanics.

The positive impact of Diaz’s collecting and exhibiting on Latino artists’ careers is evident. “I started collecting Vincent Valdez when he was 20, but he’s certainly not just a young emerging artist anymore. Did you see that article on his mural in the New York Times? That’s not just controversy, that’s saying something.” The work Diaz was referring to, The City, is a large-scale painting of three Ku Klux Klan knights inspired by the rise of white supremacy in America evident in the current U.S. election. Valdez has stated that the idea started germinating out of concern with the problematic phrase “post-racial America” that was used frequently and erroneously in the Obama presidential race in 2008.

While this painting will not be in the MTSU exhibition, his I Lost Her to El Diablo, You Can Have Her, I Don’t Want Her Anymore, depicts an agitated man seated at a table filled with a slew of vices to prop him up.

While the title of the work suggests that he blames his lost love on the woman and that he is strong without her, the image reveals a common struggle to reconcile his real feelings with the macho-man ego society expects.

Alfred J. Quiroz’s No Soy Chicano, so Aztlano presents the prejudice and misunderstanding Mexican immigrants

Vincent Valdez, I Lost Her to El Diablo, You Can Have Her, I Don’t Want Her Anymore, Oil on canvas, 35” x 27”

John Valadez, Sofia, Pastel on paper, 50” x 38”

Jose Esquivel, Boxed in at 1638, Oil on canvas, 24” x 18”

experience by not belonging to either Mexican or American culture. The man in the center of the painting is depicted holding the American and Mexican flags indicating his dual national identity. Surrounding him, however, are images representing derogatory expressions used against MexicanAmericans. On the left the attacks used by Mexicans in Spanish, such as “Eres Pocho,” refer to Mexican-Americans who speak English fluently but not Spanish. “Traidor de Nacimiento” suggests being a traitor to his birthplace. On the right are representations of pejorative terms used by Americans against Mexican-Americans, such as “wet backs,” “taco bender,” “dirty Mexican,” and “destroyers of the Alamo.” This divided perspective shows how Mexican-American immigrants often feel alienated because they have no ground to stand on.

collector. “I was in a museum in Houston and I thought, this is how I want to live: simple floors with white walls covered with art and my TV, bed, coffee pot, clothes, and shower. That’s all I need.” Diaz has much more than that now, and his impact on the Latin American art world is evident, from inspiring viewers, supporting artists economically, to providing hope for a sustainable future for art that speaks and sometimes yells social, moral, emotional, and spiritual critiques from a perspective often neglected. na

Diaz cherishes each artwork he owns, calling them “my babies, my friends.” He remembers the moment that really changed him from being passionate about seeing art to becoming a

Selections from the Collection of Joe Diaz opens October 17 and will remain on view through November 10. The Todd Art Gallery is located on the second floor of MTSU’s Todd Hall and is open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays. Admission is free and open to the public. In conjunction with the exhibition, a lecture and panel discussion will be held in room 204A of Todd Hall on Monday, October 17, at 2:15 p.m. with Joe Diaz and artists Benito Huerta, John Valadez, Vincent Valdez, and Kathy Vargas.

A reception will be held on October 18, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in room 204A of Todd Hall. For directions and additional information visit, www.tinyurl.com/ToddArtGallery.

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didier Lourenço endeavor Fine Art

october 8

Didier at his studio in Premià de Mar, Spain

C

hances are good you have seen spain’s best-selling contemporary artist’s work. Perhaps it was on vacation when you encountered his lithographs adorning the walls at a Parisian cafe or tucked away in a tiny, intimate Mediterranean coffee shop. Maybe you found his framed print Balcón Venecia closer to home at Pier one. wherever it was, you most-likely remembered it, remembered the sun-swept ocean vistas, the crowded streets, the city blocks, the quite balconies, the intimacy, the hidden romantic alleys, but what you really recall are his people.

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d

idier is an astute observer of people. it is these people, these subjects that have been at the center of his paintings and lithographs since he rose to fame in the mid-to-late nineties. they are unmistakable. At a distance his appear stretched and supported on tapered thin legs, up close imagine, to think, to ponder on what he or she is thinking, or how it feels or would feel in the environment where the las One more. 89 x 116 cm. Original oil on canvas

out the way they do, and…it’s a gesture. it is like when you walk, you have a certain gait; you don’t know why, but it’s your way of walking.” didier lourenço returns to nashville, october 8th for a show and reception at endeavor Fine Art (his only planned us showing this year) after a worldwide exhibition tour throughout europe, with stops in singapore and most recently in Hong Kong.

com. More information can be found on our facebook page

Woman and apple. 130 x 97 cm. Original oil on canvas Pasos. 75 x 150 cm. Original oil on canvas

david YARROW

International Photographer

Tinney Contemporary through October 29

by Daniel Tidwell

Mankind 3, Archival pigment photograph

In a time when our experience of wilderness is, for most of us, a concept that is moderated by technology, photographer David Yarrow captures aspects of the world that are still wild and outside the inexorable reach of social media. Yarrow is an intercontinental globetrotter with a taste for danger—seemingly addicted to the thrill of the hunt for arresting images of wildlife, their environs, and man’s symbiotic relationship with the Earth.

Y

arrow’s extreme close-ups of potentially dangerous wild animals are dazzling but invoke a sense of disbelief in the viewer, making one wonder how these images were captured and what Yarrow’s process may have been.

One might wonder if these are staged scenes from a movie or perhaps outtakes from an ad campaign. This tension between the viewer’s initial gaze and the uncertainty of his process give Yarrow’s work the surreal quality that can be evoked by a highly unexpected image.

Funnel Creek, Archival pigment photograph

In reality the photos are the product of intense planning and arduous shoots in the wilderness with remotecontrolled cameras. Yarrow says that “logistics, bravery, and experience, but most of all logistics” are key to his process in capturing these images. In a recent blog post he goes on to say that “these variables collectively morph into one goal—precision. Without an obsession with precision, the game is down to luck, and luck is—by definition—a leveler.”

Yarrow keeps safety in mind on his shoots, but doesn’t let his work be compromised by it. “Of course there have been moments of concern,” says the photographer, “but nothing as dangerous as another day on the roads.

Animals are very predictable; bad drivers are not. I have two children and as a father, I will never be irresponsible, but I will push boundaries of what is seen as sensible. I guess I transgress but . . . why be bland or normal?”

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The Wild West, Archival pigment photograph

The Killer, Archival pigment photograph

Although he considers himself a “photographer, not a wildlife photographer,” Yarrow was originally drawn to the subject because he saw it as a genre that could be reinvented and one which could raise important issues about the environment.

“Wildlife photography had become dull—long lenses, little imagination, and little bravery,” says Yarrow. “We rent this planet, we don’t own it, and conservation has become a very relevant and topical issue. I sensed an opportunity to produce important work which may not have been possible with landscapes, sport, or beauty. The natural world has us all asking questions of ourselves in 2016.”

When selecting subjects, Yarrow takes an unabashedly commercial approach. “I am commercial and happy to admit it,” he says. “I photograph wildlife that we look up to, not down upon. No one wants a picture of a pigeon, or a rat, or a squirrel, even if they are caught doing extraordinary things. Alpha animals sell, because they are alpha animals—lions, polar bears, tigers, elephants are the stuff of dreams. I want an audience to dream and remove themselves from reality. We share our planet with majestic animals and with boring animals—let’s celebrate the majestic ones.”

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David Yarrow

Photograph by Dirk Lambrechts

Hello, Archival pigment photograph

The Circle of Life, Archival pigment photograph

“

I photograph wildlife that we look up to, not down upon.

Most recently Yarrow has been photographing bears in Alaska, which he describes as “the jewel in the crown of the most geographically spoilt country in the world. I have been there three times in the last three months.” The aforementioned research and logistics have played an important role in his work there, leading him to remote rivers with summer salmon runs to capture a picture he had in mind—an immersive close-up of a bear. After scouting several locations by bush plane, Yarrow was able to settle on an area on the Alaskan Peninsula with plentiful bears. “There is no mileage in photographing a bear with a long lens—it has been done before—it is hackneyed pulp. What I wanted was a bear three feet from my ground-up camera. It all happened in five seconds. I thought I had missed him to the right, but all was okay.”

admires Ansel Adams and takes inspiration from his quote, “You don’t make a photograph just with a camera. You bring to the act of photography all the pictures you have seen, the books you have read, the music you have heard, the people you have loved.”

One subject that Yarrow has yet to capture to his satisfaction is wolves. “The wolf is such a bright predator and so poorly understood,” says Yarrow, and “it was Jim Brandenburg’s iconic wolf shot that forced mainstream wildlife photography onto ‘art’s lawn.’ I will never be better than Jim’s image, but I can better my current images. I can always do better with all animals—why ever believe that we have peaked?”

Yarrow will be exhibiting his work at Tinney Contemporary through October 29. He hopes viewers of the exhibit will take away from his work the sense of “a profound commitment to the pursuit of excellence, but also humility and soul.” na

The well-known photojournalism of Robert Capa and his credo that “if your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough,” has been a major influence on Yarrow’s work. He also

Given the cinematic quality of Yarrow’s work, it’s not surprising that he pays close attention to contemporary film, taking inspiration from cinematographers and directors including Clint Eastwood, Ridley Scott, Alejandro Iñárritu and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki. “In The Revenant, for which Lubezki won an Oscar, wide-angle lenses at a yard away were employed wherever possible so that viewers could immerse themselves in the characters. That is very much my approach as well.”

Yarrow will host a lecture, Q&A, and book signing on Saturday, October 1, at 2 p.m. at Tinney Contemporary. The event is free and open to the public. Yarrow’s work will be featured later that evening as part of Nashville’s First Saturday Art Crawl and will remain on exhibit through October 29.

For more information, visit www.tinneycontemporary.com. To see more of Yarrow’s photography, visit www.davidyarrow.photography.

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Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

by Jennifer L. Sharp

100 Years in the Making

O

pened to the public as the Brooks Memorial Art Gallery on May 26, 1916, the Brooks Museum of Art celebrates 100 years. Located in Memphis, Tennessee, the Brooks Museum houses the oldest and largest collection of world art in Tennessee and is among the largest museums of its kind in the country. This is a major accomplishment for a museum in the South considering the fact that there are plenty of notable museums in the northern, western, and eastern regions of the United States.

Today, the Museum houses 9,000 works by artists from around the world in an 86,000-square-foot building.

Nearly 20,000 school children tour and participate in hands-on art activities at the museum free of charge each year. The museum also offers an independent film series, visiting lecturers, concerts, dance performances, and free family events.

With less than 12 percent of its funding provided by government resources, Brooks relies on the generosity of friends and supporters for meeting operating costs and other expenses.

for happenings and filmmaking, then started production of large-scale installations and environments.

“An inveterate storyteller with an infectious sense of humor, Red Grooms makes compelling works of art that offer visual pleasure to viewers of all ages,” explains Brooks Museum Chief Curator Marina Pacini. “From images of his adopted home, New York City, to the Tennessee landscape of his youth, he packs his works with hilarious details that render the scenes both touchingly familiar and engagingly odd. Humor in Grooms’s capable hands is an effective means of allowing Americans to see themselves.”

Red Grooms, The Funny Place, 2005, Oil on canvas

The accompanying catalog includes an essay that places Grooms within the longstanding Southern storytelling tradition that includes such writers as Mark Twain, Eudora Welty, and James Dickey. A chapter on Memphis on My Mind elucidates Grooms’s working method and demonstrates his formidable ability to capture the essence of his subjects.

First Tennessee Foundation is the presenting sponsor of Red Grooms: Traveling Correspondent. As an important patron of Tennessee artists through its First Tennessee Heritage Collection, First Tennessee Foundation is the ideal presenting sponsor for this exhibition.

The museum is hosting several activities to celebrate its 100 years and attract new museum goers. “We want the community—no, the world— to know that art is for everyone,” said Judith Moore, Director of External Affairs.

The Brooks is unveiling its new art The Brooks will also embark on a new gallery called Red Grooms: Traveling partnership with Christian Brothers Correspondent, which will display Adoration of the Magi, ca. 1520-1530, Oil on University to provide art therapy to 45 examples of Grooms’s paintings, wood panel the community while offering training sculptures, installations, prints, and mentorship to its students who are aspiring to become reliefs, and films that span from 1961 to 2015. The exhibition art therapists. embodies the attributes of a correspondent with a lens focused on New York and Tennessee. Red Grooms will be on “The museum has really moved into a new direction,” said view between October 15, 2016, and January 8, 2017.

Moore. The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is creating new and innovative ways to bring new museum goers to the As a Nashville native who moved to New York City in museum and keep them engaged. na 1957, Grooms is a natural-born storyteller who has a news correspondent’s eye for detail and is a fascinating figure in postWorld War American art. Grooms first received recognition

For more information about the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art celebrating their centennial, visit www.brooksmuseum.org.

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Eyes on the Street: The Life of Jane Jacobs Robert Kanigel Need a great new biography to read?

Here it is. Jane Jacobs was known for her indelible influence on urban planning. After all, she’s the woman who waged a successful protest to keep a proposed expressway out of Greenwich Village. She was also the author of seven books, including her best known work The Death and Life of Great American Cities. What you may not know about her—and what makes this book so enthralling—is that she had a rebellious streak starting in third grade, got into debates everywhere she went, raised three children, and got arrested twice.

What a character.

Born to Run

Today Will Be Different

The Rain in Portugal: Poems

Bruce Springsteen

Maria Semple

Billy Collins

In the opening of his memoir, Springsteen writes, “One of the questions I’m asked over and over again by fans on the street is ‘How do you do it?’ In the following pages I will try to shed a little light on how and, more important, why.” The Boss spent seven years working on this autobiography, and fans will eat up every word. As he recounts his upbringing, his indoctrination into rock-and-roll, the formation of the E Street Band, and the twists and turns his career has taken since, Springsteen tells a universal story that will resonate with everyone who has ever worked their tail off to achieve a dream.

“Finally!” exhales everyone who demanded another novel from Maria Semple the minute they finished Where’d You Go, Bernadette. Much of what you loved about Bernadette is here in this new novel as well: a madcap sense of domestic adventure, quirky humor, and an irreverent perspective on the things the world tries to tell us are important.

Eleanor Flood is the woman at the center of the story, which takes us through one perfect mess of a day in which everything seems to go wrong. Semple will visit Nashville to read from and sign the book at Parnassus Books on November 17.

It’s clear in this 12th collection of poetry from former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins that his popular appeal endures along with his keen eye for the tiny details of modern life. Collins’ subversive humor is on display, as indicated by the title poem (rejecting “the rain in Spain” as too easy a rhyme), but so is his grace with somber remembrances and contemplations on beauty.

For current and former students of poetry, the person who already “has everything” on their bookshelf, or any readers who want to add a little verse to their lives.

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THEBOOKMARK

A MONTHLY LOOK AT HOT BOOKS AND COOL READS

J. Kline is a man with a plan. Recently relocating to Nashville from Eastern New Mexico University, Kline has accepted the presidency and the challenge of Watkins College. And he is loving it. Bold new plans to expand the facility are already in place, and you can feel the electricity crackling through the hallways. This one-time playwright and card-carrying actor is ready for his next scene and for his close-up.

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Interview by Paul Polycarpou Photography by Jerry Atnip

j.KLINE President, Watkins College

Which living person do you most admire?

I will never forget the best teacher I ever had—John Clark Pratt, an English Professor at Colorado State where I went as an undergrad.

He gave me terrific instruction on how to be a writer, through a combination of kindness and critique. He was also Ken Kesey’s editor, a novelist, and a career Air Force fighter pilot. That’s a pretty high bar.

Who’s your favorite artist?

Rauschenberg. I have always loved art, but a visit to a Rauschenberg exhibit at the National Gallery in D.C. left me enamored and challenged and changed my perception of modern abstract art.

Who would you like to have a long conversation with?

Maybe the novelist Thomas McGuane. A brilliant writer with a great understanding of human nature. He has a gift for articulating the not uncommon, cascading continuum of bad decisions men can make.

What do you like least?

The traffic is a nuisance but it’s really not that bad. I lived in both D.C. and L.A.; try that for serious traffic. I’m a middle aged American with a great job. I have nothing to complain about, ever.

If I have to sit in traffic in my nice car for ten minutes, for me it’s almost a privilege.

What was the last great book you read?

Purity by Jonathan Franzen.

The last great movie?

The Godfather, for the eleven-billionth time. I think it’s just perfect.

What’s the hardest part of what you do?

There’s nothing I don’t like doing. The most challenging aspect is that I have the primary responsibility for the perpetuation of this institution and, more important, the people who make us up.

What gives you the most satisfaction?

We’re educating artists, and for me there is nothing more important than that.

What do you do when you’re not working?

I watch a lot of politics. For me it’s an art form. I like the discussion. I feel very privileged to live in this country at this time for the freedom of thought and expression we get to enjoy.

What do you think of the art galleries in Nashville?

Zeitgeist is great. The Red Arrow Gallery is interesting to me every time I’m out there. Fortunately for us there are a lot of really good art galleries in town.

What music do you listen to?

Right now I’m addicted to Lake Street Dive; I like the blues. My favorite song is “Nessun Dorma,” which I acknowledge is a cliché; after that “Thunder Road” by Springsteen.

What do you like most about Nashville?

It’s a real Southern town and although not by birth, I am by inclination a Southerner. There’s a genuineness and a warmth here that I have not found in other places I have lived.

What would you tell your 12-year-old self?

You didn’t see that coming! And then I would tell him that, whatever it is, this too shall pass.

Describe the characteristic you most like about yourself?

I am almost always in a mild good mood.

And what do you like least?

I can be judgmental. I can define a person or situation by a very limited number of factors.

I’m working on it.

What would you like to change about yourself?

I’m perhaps overly content with being by myself. I would like to make more of an effort to be social, but I’m kinda ok hanging out with me. We always agree on what to watch on TV. What would surprise us to know about you?

I am personally and professionally very transparent. It’s very easy to know what I’m thinking; just ask me. I don’t have any deep, dark secrets.

What annoying habits do you have?

I am compulsively neat.

If you could live anywhere else, where would that be?

My favorite city is Venice.

What is your greatest extravagance?

I don’t drink cheap liquor. I don’t drink that much liquor, mind you, but I’ve given myself permission to have the good stuff.

What would you be doing if you weren’t doing this?

I would work in the theatre again; I was a playwright and an actor for a long time. There is nothing more immediate, frightening, and transcendent than telling a story in real time—at least for me.

What’s your greatest fear?

I try to live in the moment; I have wishes but not expectations.

That said, the responsibility for the institution sometimes keeps me awake at night.

What is a treasured possession?

They don’t make shrouds with pockets in them. It’s all just stuff.

What’s your motto?

It’s not enough to be an abstract good person; you must do good works.

What are you most proud of?

In the early 90s I wrote a play, The Angels Share, about the Vavilov Institute in Leningrad, which we toured in Russia. It was very well received in a time of U.S.-Russian tension. I’m proud of that.

Photograph by Jerry Atnip

ASISEEIT

Chief Curator

Frist Center for the Visual Arts

Photograph by Rob Lindsay

BY MARK W. SCALA

Mark W. Scala

Artist Jeff Danley in his studio

I

had dinner recently with an old friend—a mid-career artist who has spent decades developing an imagery, technique, and vision (what we often think of as “style”) that is undeniably virtuosic and critically acclaimed. Yet our conversation, not unlike the last one we had, was about frustration: my friend’s work continues to meet with uneven traction in the marketplace. Sales are not the only sign of success, but New York is expensive. Too, when somebody likes your art enough to pay for it, there is validation—a recognition that your aesthetic offspring has a place in the world.

Style, Money, and the Long Game

The next day, I mentioned this conversation (without naming names) to another artist of the same generation, and she said yeah, she too has been hearing this over and over again. Is there too much art, too many artists, not enough discerning collectors?

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And then she said the thing that everyone knows is true: you have to be in it for the long game, knowing that there are no guarantees—ever—of success, at least as defined by sales or critical acclaim. To endure is to succeed.

The slow burn seems to operate best in a culture that appreciates the poetics of nuance over spectacle, deep excavation over breadth. The historian Hannah Arendt once spoke of culture as being defined in part by its objects, including artworks—things that withstand the passage of time and embody communal memory and ideals. She distinguished culture from entertainment, with its relationship to people and to life over things. I wonder if this dichotomy holds true today, when our communal identity is based less on continuity than change, and art and entertainment often merge in the arena of spectacles created for an audience that craves experiences of the new. If anything, art and entertainment are intertwined, entering culture simultaneously and almost immediately, which may explain why in so many newspapers they are presented as one and the same thing.

Even our viewing habits have changed: we are easily distracted, and with the vast number of artists and artworks around today, it has become more common to look quickly than to see thoughtfully. Does pursuing the long game mean ignoring the world’s short attention span, burrowing ever more deeply into that one idea or medium, and adhering to a singular perception of the world? There is certainly a valid argument to be made that in a fast world, art that reflects constancy, that slows us down to look and think, has a vital role in balancing our lives and restoring our breadth. Finding emotional power in reflective meditation, the celebrated performance artist Marina Abramovic says, “I give the audience tools to look into themselves. . . . And then we ask the main questions that we never ask: Why are we here, what is our contribution to this planet? When I do long durational performance, my proposition is that life is fast. Let’s do art slow.”1 Working in the studio is also a kind of performance, involving deep reflection as much as resolute action. And if 1

Photograph by Rob Lindsay

The long game has to do with managing your career to give yourself a sequence of opportunities to reach and affect new audiences, and yes, to possibly join the 1 percent who make a living from their work. But more important, it relates to how an artist maintains a meaningful aesthetic position despite the marketplace. When I was in school, the prevailing belief was that you have to focus like a laser—ignoring the trendiness of the art world—to do one meaningful thing extremely well and consistently. If your work develops slowly and thoughtfully, astute collectors may come to appreciate its depth, seeing it as something worth owning, not just as an investment but as a way of participating in the building of culture. Even if collectors don’t recognize the work’s value but other artists, art lovers, critics, and curators do, there is sustenance to be had in the long game.

“

The slow burn seems to operate best in a culture that appreciates the poetics of nuance over spectacle, deep excavation over breadth.

the artist finds meaning in this performance and its product, the audience might, as well.

The long game does not justify stagnation. Even artists who have really mastered their mediums, whose works are original and beautiful like my friend’s, stay sharp by analyzing and questioning their assumptions, occasionally setting them on fire. They avoid the harbor of insularity, where virtuosity comes at the sacrifice of a willingness to fail, to step outside of one’s comfort zone to make whatever seems necessary.

With this approach, style is less a kind of personal brand than a framework for the evolution of ideas. Artists can most effectively live the long game when they have faith in themselves to pursue their work with acuity while nurturing a healthy dose of self-criticality, restlessness, and openness to possibility. na

Julia Payne, “Five Questions for Marina Abramovic,” T: The New York Times Style Magazine, August 26, 2016, nytimes.com

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2016 Martin Masters FiftyForward Martin Center

|

October 14–15

Every year, FiftyForward Martin Center hosts a fine art show and sale to benefit its senior center, a non-profit organization encouraging people 50+ to live active and healthy lifestyles.

As in previous years, the exhibit will feature a diverse and extensive collection of art with work from nearly 40 artists, including Bitsy Hughes, Lisa McReynolds, Frank Baggett, Jade Reynolds, Shannon Haas, Ron York, Streater Spencer, John Cannon, and newcomers to the visual arts scene, including Nashville’s renowned theatre veteran Nan Gurley. This year’s featured artist is J.J. Sneed. New to this year’s show are pottery and sculpture, from potter Al Sherick and sculptor Steve Kaczmarczyk.

Sherry Coss, Martin Center Associate Director, has again enlisted artist and gallery owner Ron York to curate the exhibit. The event provides an opportunity for the public to view and purchase the work of several talented regional artists while enjoying the magnificent setting of the Martin Center. Proceeds benefit the FiftyForward Martin Center. Martin Masters presenting sponsor is Cigna HealthSpring.

On Friday, October 14, from 5 until 8 p.m., meet and greet the artists and enjoy wine and hors d’oeuvres compliments of Grapevine Wine and Spirits and G Catering. Admission is free, but donations are welcome. The 2016 Martin Masters Art Show and Sale continues on Saturday, October 15, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. Martin Center is conveniently located at 960 Heritage Way, off Concord Road in Brentwood. Parking is free. For more information, visit www.fiftyforward.com or www.themartincentertn.org.

Jade Reynolds, The Stand, 2016, Acrylic on canvas, 40” x 30”

Empowerment through Disarmament Mike Kahnle’s Red Rocket In a lot north of East Nashville, a 25-foot-tall rocket stands at an angle, nose buried in the dirt, fins jutting sharply from its body, flame and smoke occasionally bursting from its thruster. Despite its ominous presence, bystanders are unlikely to worry about it detonating. The purple and pink color scheme—not to mention the fact that it resides on the grounds of a benign studio space—won’t raise alarm. It will elicit curiosity.

“It really is a kind of feminist statement in that it’s supposed to provoke questions,” says Mike Kahnle, the landscape architect and public artist behind the replica warhead. “I think it’s successful in that regard. For me, it’s like, if women were in charge what would the world be like? How would a woman design a rocket? Then it becomes this whole interesting dialogue.”

Kahnle, who has three daughters and considers himself a “hyper feminist,” titled the piece Red Rocket to reference the Soviet S-75 Dvina air defense systems that inspired his design. “It’s a replica of the missiles that caused the Cuban Missile Crisis,” he explains. “We took that and put it into the ground.

We castrated it in a way. To drive that point home, [I used] the idea of painting it pink or novel colors to further inoculate it, to make it less deadly, less threatening.”

The idea for the project struck in the showroom of local metal fabricator and artist Coburn Gullen. Gullen and Kahnle had been commissioned by a local developer to add a focal point to his property, Studio 615, and the two were brainstorming when they noticed a rocket-shaped fireplace. Six months later, Red Rocket was complete.

Red Rocket, 2015, Steel plate, acrylic paint, and fire, 25’ x 3’ x 3’

Red Rocket can be found on the grounds of Studio 615, 72 Broadmoor Drive.

For more information, please visit www.mikekahnle.com.

Barbara Coon Pays Tribute to Christian Moeller’s Stix Inspiration can be hard to trace, but it’s been said that art begets art. That is the case for local painter Barbara Coon, whose latest piece, A Tribute to Christian Moeller’s Stix and Nashville’s Music City Center, was inspired by the modern sculptor’s large-scale installation in the Korean Veterans Boulevard roundabout.

Moeller was commissioned by the Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission in 2013 to annotate the roundabout. The 35 painted red-cedar poles that make up Stix were inspired by the Native Americans who first lived in Middle Tennessee.

Coon found Moeller’s work to be the perfect complement to the site. She wanted to pay homage with a piece that would strike others as she had been struck. “I would want a viewer to get a sense of the craftsmanship that Stix actually has and just feel that it’s a joyful piece,” Coon says.

The painting took Coon four months to complete and demonstrates the feeling that Moeller’s poles can radiate onto the scene, flecking their background with color and energy. It now lives in the Nina Kuzina Gallery, a longtime home for Coon’s work.

“I am always amazed at Barbara’s process, the layering of paint, and the uniqueness of her subject matter,” Kuzina says. “It’s a beautiful tribute to this new sculpture and to Nashville.”

A Tribute to Christian Moeller’s Stix and Nashville’s Music City Center is on display at the Nina Kuzina Gallery, 4231 Harding Pike. For more information, please visit www.ninakuzina.com.

A Tribute To Christian Moeller’s Stix and Nashville’s Music City Center, 2016, Acrylic on board, 48” x 36”

Intoxicated by Color: New Paintings by Edie Maney The Arts Company | October 1–28 In her exhibit Intoxicated by Color: New Paintings by Edie Maney, the artist presents a series of abstract paintings on canvas and small marble squares. Her use of color in this new work is sometimes bold, sometimes subtle, but always expressive and complex.

Starting in a chaotic manner with layer after layer of color and strokes, Maney works toward balancing intensity and motion.

Using brayers, credit cards, squeegees, and fingertips, in addition to brushes, she creates her art with an intuitive approach to each piece.

Her distinct abstract expressionistic style is reminiscent of her artistic mentor Helen Frankenthaler and reflects the many years she studied with esteemed abstract expressionistic artist Anton Weiss.

A Splash of Cognac II, 2016, Oil on canvas, 48" x 48"

“Edie began painting with watercolor and acrylic, but she now prefers oil, including water soluble oil. This choice has given her work more intensity and depth. She creates pockets of explosive colors, using repetition of gesture and color to make each canvas or other surface an active adventure in chasing colors and interactions throughout each piece, large or small,” notes Anne Brown, owner of The Arts Company.

Intoxicated by Color: New Paintings by Edie Maney opens with an artist’s reception on October 1 at The Arts Company during the First Saturday Art Crawl Downtown and continues through October 28.

For more information, visit www.theartscompany.com.

zoeyFRANK

by Margaret F. M. Walker

Connections & Changes Haynes Galleries

|

October 7–November 9

Z

Photograph by Ioulia Kouskova

oey Frank’s new body of work is wonderfully varied in both subject and style, from intimate and highly realistic still lifes to grand, modern genre scenes, to portraits comprised of thousands of triangular planes, and everything in between. It is full of experimentation, fittingly, as Frank describes her work space: as much a scientist’s laboratory as an artist’s studio.

Zoey Frank in her studio

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Pere Lachaise, Oil on panel, 12” x 8”

John, Oil on panel, 16” x 10”

Frank has a deep appreciation for old masters and is one of those people you see sitting in a gallery sketching before works that many tourists breeze right past. She sits with these famed centuries-old scenes, cogitates on them, sketching to discern how she might take something from them to make her own.

In Brunch, which is on view in the Haynes Galleries’ exhibition, the connection is actually quite clear. The composition, the subject, even the smile of a rugged man who looks directly out at the viewer are informed by Diego Velázquez’s The Feast of Bacchus. Yet Frank has truly made it her own, showing us the modern era with a daintier feast attended by both men and women and an infusion of bright color. This color is notable in most of her paintings: clean, vibrant, and very real.

Though a fan of old masters, she wants her works to be about

and interact with the modern world which, of course, includes far more fluorescent than candlelight.

In addition to color, there are threads of this painting—the lemon tree and triangulation of the figures and table—in several of the other canvases, giving viewers some insight into her creative process and the elements that have captured her imagination. Frank elaborated on her many works that incorporate an element of geometric abstraction, such as the Still Life of a Pot and Sonya Study. She described how small triangular bits of tape caught her interest, inspiring tessellated abstract scenes. From there, she thought about how an abstract shape in a conglomeration of distinct planes could be used to build something more realistic—a pot, a table, the

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“

Frank has a deep appreciation for old masters and is one of those people you see sitting in a gallery sketching before works that many tourists breeze right past.

House Party, Oil on linen, 68” x 76”

Brunch, Oil on linen, 52” x 70”

White Bed, Oil on linen, 55” x 76”

human face. Using this technique has been an exercise in not over rendering her subjects and in simplifying select portions of a larger scene like Brunch.

House Party, another of these classically inspired grand scenes, is a fun, whimsical, and layered work. Frank describes it as a collage, a word one rarely hears in association with a realist rendering in a single medium. And yet it makes sense.

The canvas as a whole depicts a raucous party where small groups congregate in merriment of diverse forms. They are all partaking in the same spirit, jumbled together in a way that is at once unified and quirkily disjointed. It is a collage of human experience and interaction.

Frank shared that she is drawn to sculpture as well, and it’s perhaps an area we may see her explore in the future. With this in mind, White Bed becomes far more interesting. In this scene of two lovers, one is sprawled on the bed and the

other, his face hidden, sits in a hunched position beside her.

His figure is still and detailed as marble, all shades of white and shadow. It is an intimate painting, but also clinical in its use of white throughout and the inclusion of this statuesque man who sits like an anchor on a corner of the bed. Her focus on light hues and the play of geometries between the actual squares of pillows or doorframes and the triangular swaths that create wrinkles in a sheet make White Bed a wonderfully subtle painting.

Two paintings that will feel familiar for Nashvillians are Construction 1 and Construction 2, still frames in a larger story of newness, potential, and growth. While they could easily be the view from Haynes Galleries down Demonbreun this was in actuality the artist’s view out her old studio window in San Jose. They capture two moments in the story of a structure but were born of hours of observation. It is easy for consumers of art, myself included, to forget how very long most artists

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Construction 2, Oil on linen, 20” x 31”

Lemon Tree, Oil and graphite on panel, 36” x 36”

Laura, Oil on linen, 36” x 36”

Britney Standing, Pencil and white chalk on toned paper, 24” x 18”

will spend looking at a single scene, capturing nuances of the smallest details. In a fraction of that time, each of us can bring our own stories and associations to these paintings and even more as we, too, take a good long look.

Connections & Changes is an apt title for this body of varied scenes that gently but clearly relate to one another. Gary Haynes says that “In the years since I met her she has grown by leaps and bounds . . . she strives to make art that connects, and she is making a lot of connections.” It is exciting to see the evolution of her experiments through this exhibition and to think where they will take her next. na Zoey Frank: Connections & Changes is on view at Haynes Galleries October 7 to November 19. An opening reception will take place on Friday, October 7, from 5 to 7:30 p.m. with Frank in attendance. An Art Talk with Frank led by arts writer Sara Lee Burd where they will discuss her work and take questions from guests will take place the following morning, October 8, beginning at 10 a.m. For more information, visit www.haynesgalleries.com. To see more of Frank’s work, visit www.zoeyfrank.com.

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H AY N E S G A L L E R I E S PRESENTS

Z O E Y F R ANK: C O N N E C T I O NS & CHANGES O C TO B E R 7 TO N O V E M B E R 1 9 RECEPTION: O C TO B E R 7 , 5 TO 7 : 3 0 P M

ZOEY FRANK, B. 1987, SONYA, OIL ON PANEL, 36 X 36 INCHES. INQUIRIES: GARYHAYNES@HAYNESGALLERIES.COM OR PHONE 615.430.8147 OR 615.312.7000. HAYNESGALLERIES.COM. GALLERIES: ON THE MUSIC ROW ROUNDABOUT IN NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE AND SEASONALLY IN TH O MA STO N , MAINE.

Photograph by Tony Youngblood

OPENSPACES

BY ERICA CICCARONE

Erica Ciccarone is an independent writer. She holds an M.F.A. from the New School in Creative Writing.

She blogs about art at nycnash.com.

Blackness at the Carnival: Ashley Mintz Mounts Her First Solo Show

Mother Embraces Son, 2016, Crayon and colored pencil on paper, 10" x 8"

Sitting in the one-room apartment of Ashley Mintz, I had the feeling of being at

a carnival. Her paintings and drawings hang on all the walls and lean up against them on the floor; dozens are stacked on a shelving unit. Her long keyboard sits in place of a desk, and her workspace is a small strip of carpet next to her bed.

Mintz’s paintings and drawings are deceptively cheerful. Like imagery associated with carnivals, they are bold and dramatic, conveying wonder and excitement. But they also communicate a sense of tension boiling beneath the surface. Handwritten messages in her loopy handwriting accompany warm colors and media-inspired

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Ashley Mintz

Photograph by Jerry Atnip

Does Not Identify, 2016, Acrylic and ink on paper, 9" x 7"

“

Like imagery associated with carnivals, they are bold and dramatic, conveying wonder and excitement.

imagery. The heads of two women extend from a cassette tape train, their necks long and their eyes blindfolded, their lips set in pouts. A rosy-cheeked girl in a top hat holds up a baton, a musical score etched across her chest. Figures cast furtive glances and reach their long, skinny arms to pass a secret message between them.

This month, Scarritt Bennett Center will host an exhibition

by Mintz. Being Black in America: A Comparison of Past and Present will investigate blackness as historical and contemporary identity. In doing so, the artist hopes to identify stereotypes and push viewers to consider how they interact with each other regarding racial identity. Mintz’s work is very much centered on the experiences of black women in particular, thus looking at the intersection of racism and sexism in American culture.

Mintz uses paint and collage to achieve texture, choosing wood panels over canvases because they’ll hold up to more abuse. She layers scraps of newsprint, bits of fabric, pieces of maps, and pages of old books with paint. Does Not Identify shows a woman’s portrait from the bust up, her lips red, her black hair curly. Her face, however, is a thatched patch of color, as if scratched out with crayons, her identity obscured. Does Not Identify is not a self-portrait, but it may very well be one conceptually. Mintz is of mixed race—her mother black and her father white—and she says that her show is as much about her own identity as it is referencing issues affecting black Americans as a whole—specifically, how the effects of slavery are still deeply felt and referenced in contemporary practices, such as mass incarceration, treatment of people of color by police, the objectification of black women, and disruptions of family structures. Mintz says, “Creating these works is a way to figure out how I, a mixed woman who has always felt confused about where I ‘belong,’ fit into the black community myself; to find my own identity.

Consumption, 2016, Mixed media on wood, 26" x 24"

“I’ve been thinking about why I’ve come back to doing work that deals with the struggles of the black community,” she adds. “I grew up with the black side of my family, and my grandparents used to talk about how things were for them growing up and the racism they dealt with.”

Mintz moved to Nashville from Las Cruces, New Mexico, in 2007 to pursue songwriting; she produces music under the name Wild Enemy. She also writes and performs spoken word, and Being Black in America will incorporate these multidisciplinary elements. na An opening reception for Being Black in America: A Comparison of Past and Present will be held on October 7 at 4:30 p.m. at Laskey Gallery at Scarritt Bennett Center. The exhibition will remain open until December 20. For more information, visit www.scarrittbennett.org and www.ashleymintz.weebly.com.

Colored Boy Dreams, 2016, Mixed media on wood, 17" x 17"

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NeLLie Jo

ARTS&BUSINESSCOUNCIL

BY SUZANNE KESSLER

Art Most “Appropriate” Throughout art history, artists have used pre-existing thirdparty-owned copyrighted materials in their own works— sometimes with permission from the third-party copyright owners and sometimes without.

Such use has often resulted in lawsuits, famously with respect to works by Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Richard Prince, and others. After Andy Warhol appropriated photographer Patricia Caulfield’s picture of flowers for his silk-screened work, Caulfield sued Warhol for copyright infringement. The parties settled out of court. After Jeff Koons appropriated photographer Art Rogers’s picture of a couple holding multiple puppies in their arms for Koons’s String of Puppies sculpture, Rogers sued Koons for copyright infringement.

Rogers won. And in recent months, Richard Prince was hit with yet another copyright infringement lawsuit in connection with his New Portrait series, which consists of blown-up Instagram photographs appropriated from various third parties’ Instagram accounts. The latest legal action by Ashley Salazar claims that without her permission, Prince used a selfie from her Instagram account in his own work.

watercolor, 5 x 7, by Nellie Jo Rainer

Works Available at Bagbey House 134 4th Ave. No., Franklin, TN 37064

But not all appropriation in art is unlawful. In fact, Andy Warhol, Jeff Koons, Richard Prince, and many other artists have successfully incorporated third-party copyrighted materials into their own works with impunity. In certain instances, artists have entered into license agreements with the copyright owners for such use (e.g., Warhol’s purported agreement with Disney for Warhol’s use of Mickey Mouse images). In other cases, artists have claimed “fair use” defenses to copyright infringement lawsuits, and they have prevailed. For example, in 2013 an appeals court found that Richard Prince’s appropriation of Patrick Cariou’s photographs in Prince’s own works constituted “transformative” fair use—i.e., not copyright infringement.

The fair use concept is of great relevance to visual artists.

Understanding fair use can make the difference between artists feeling comfortable incorporating third-party materials into their creative expressions and feeling constrained not to do so for fear of facing copyright infringement claims.

This article is the first in a series exploring the fair use doctrine. Subsequent articles in the series will delve into the definition of fair use, the factors used in evaluating fair use, and other fair use issues of special significance to visual artists.

Nellie Jo Art Studio • 615-519-0258 COTTEN-4-border.ai 1 11/11/2015 10:46:02 AM

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Suzanne Kessler Suzanne Kessler is Of Counsel at Bone McAllester Norton PLLC and Adjunct Professor at Vanderbilt Law School, where she teaches courses in intellectual property licensing and entertainment law.

Cotten music center since 1961

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While we know consistency is the key to success in life, it is also one of the hardest qualities to master. At The Lipman Group Sotheby’s International Realty, we, like the Lipman’s, have mastered consistency with our extraordinary level of service. Our clients are provided with the distinguished Sotheby’s brand that exceeds all expectations in all price ranges. #liveyourextraordinary

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University School of Nashville

by Karen Parr-Moody

Celebrates 20 Years of Artclectic

Jay McGougall, Five Elements, 2015, American Elm on steel stand, 29” x 34” x 5”

Peter Grimord ,Terra, 2014, Anodized aluminum, stainless steel cable and fasteners, brass, 72” x 72” x 12”

USN is a private coed school comprised of students enrolled in kindergarten through 12th grade, who receive art instruction as part of the curriculum. Artclectic is a juried art show that brings together more than 50 artists from across the country to show their work, which includes painting, sculpture, photography, ceramics, mixed media, jewelry, glass, and more.

This year’s Artclectic takes place from October 27 to 29 at the school’s campus at 2000 Edgehill Avenue. It is organized by chairs Angie Howard, Loraine Lippolis, and Dana Strupp.

The atmosphere at this three-day event is typically informal and friendly, no matter how prestigious its participants. Thirty percent of the artists’ sales go toward a fundraising effort that generates about $70,000 each year.

The show launches on Thursday evening with the Patron’s Party, a passed-appetizers event during which about 600 guests will hobnob with two “anniversary” artists, Nashville’s Ed Nash and Charlotte Terrell. Tickets are $125.

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Delia Seigenthaler, Detail of Sisters, 2016, Mixed media collage, 24” x 16”

N

ow in its 20th year, the University School of Nashville’s lively and inviting Artclectic has become an annual tradition. It elicits excitement for all involved, while raising funds for USN’s Artclectic Endowment Fund for Innovative Teaching.

Wade Lincoln, New Morning, 2015, Oil on canvas, 30” x 40”

“It’s a room full of energy and excitement,” Artclectic coordinator Susan Chapman says of the party. “I love seeing people walk out with huge pieces of art at the end of the night, carrying it to their cars.”

This elevated party that kicks off the event has been sold out for three years in a row. “It’s been very successful for us,” Chapman says.

More Artclectic events will unfold on Friday, as students from USN tour the gallery, meeting the artists and viewing demonstrations. The excitement will continue Friday night with ARTBash, a gallery party and art sale that is open to the public for $10 per person and offers light fare and a cash bar. It will include a pop-up gallery hosted by David Lusk Gallery.

says. “It’s such a different-looking show. The art just really glows. We bring in a professional lighting company and it’s just stunning.”

While it isn’t unheard of for a school to produce an art show as a fundraiser, Artclectic is certainly different in its look and feel. “It’s a gallery feel in the school gym, where most of the events are held; it doesn’t look like a school gym,” Chapman says. “And our Patron’s Party is $125 to attend, so that is a bit more unusual.”

On Saturday, October 29, the Artclectic gallery is open to the public, with free admission, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nashville sculptor Alex Lockwood will demonstrate his process during Family Art Activities from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“That’s new and fresh,” Chapman says of the pop-up gallery.

“It’s going to be spectacular.”

Also on Saturday, POPclectic Market will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It is a curated artisan market that features crafts and goods priced at $75 or less, as well as food vendors for lunch.

About 60 people serve on the Artclectic committee, bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to the event. One of the more dramatic aspects of Artclectic is the “gallery”—the school’s gym, which is transformed into a black backdrop for the artists’ work, complete with high ceilings and gorgeous lighting.

Loraine Lippolis organizes POPclectic Market and says, “It just provides some diversity to what’s available, and it provides an opportunity for the kids to shop.” Lower-priced items are available at POPclectic, including T-shirts, small ceramics, bracelets, and headbands. na

“We impress the kindergarteners and the adults,” Chapman

For more information and a complete schedule of events, visit www.artclectic.org.

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SYMPHONYINDEPTH OCTOBER 2016

Vinay Parameswaran Since his appointment to the Nashville Symphony in 2013, associate conductor Vinay Parameswaran has led the orchestra in everything from education and family programs to pops concerts. But on October 7 and 8, he will embark on an entirely new endeavor when he conducts his first-ever Aegis Sciences Classical Series concerts, with a program that features Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony, Grieg’s Piano Concerto, and Nashville Symphony Composer Lab fellow Gabriella Smith’s Tumblebird Contrails.

This month, Parameswaran talks about his classical series debut: How did this conducting opportunity come about?

What are you particularly excited about on this program?

It’s customary for an associate conductor to get the chance to conduct a classical series concert after a few seasons with an orchestra, and the discussions about this program, potential repertoire, and soloists started about a year ago. I love the mix of styles and eras on this particular program, and I’m very grateful for the opportunity.

The Prokofiev is one of my favorite symphonies and one of the pieces that made me want to become a musician. I had the opportunity to play it both as a percussionist in middle school and also perform it where it was premiered at the Moscow Conservatory. The Fifth stuck with me at a young age, so I’m excited to be on the podium to conduct it for the first time.

Are you preparing for these performances any differently than you do for other conducting opportunities?

I’m really looking forward to conducting Gabriella Smith’s piece. She and I were classmates at the Curtis Institute of Music, and I conducted many of her works while we were both students. I’m familiar with her language as a composer, and I’m thrilled she’ll have an opportunity to work with our wonderful orchestra.

Courtesy of Nashville Symphony Orchestra

I’ve been spending much more time living with the pieces. For most concerts I conduct, I have only one rehearsal. But these performances will require five, which demands that my level of preparation be as high as possible. For a conductor, the score is always where we focus most of our attention, but I’ve been doing some extra background research so I know the pieces inside and out.

What are some things people should listen for during the performances?

In the Prokofiev, audiences will notice the wonderful combination of broad sweeps and grandeur mixed with humor that makes the Fifth one of the most beloved 20th-century symphonies. And Gabriella’s piece will be a new listening experience for our audience because her compositional voice is so unique. She is able to extract an amazing array of sounds and colors from the orchestra through her vocabulary of extended techniques, and people will really be able to hear the ocean vividly in her piece. na Visit NashvilleSymphony.org for tickets and more information.

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Courtesy of Nashville Symphony Orchestra

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FiftyForward’s No Rules Online Auction October 17 – 28 FiftyForward is a nonprofit organization with seven locations in Davidson and Williamson Counties that serve adults 50+ who strive to live longer, healthier, more fulfilling lives. To celebrate its 60th anniversary FiftyForward invited 18 Middle Tennessee-based artists to transform footstools, or “crickets”, into works of art.

Each FiftyForward center and program director selected an artist to participate, with the work of that artist benefiting their center or program. Guidelines for participation were simple: there were “No Rules”!

Valuable in early American homes that were often small and cramped, crickets measure approximately 8” high x 13” wide. Their diminutive size, flat top, and versatile display options make them an ideal canvas for artists, who were given free reign to create whatever their cricket inspired them to create. As a result, 18 one-of-a-kind pieces, each unique like the artist who created it, are available to bid on.

Participating artists are: Donna Bryant, Randy Bryant, Penny Gammons, Anne Goetze, Paul Harmon, Candace Jones, Michael J. McBride, Eli Moody, Bethanie Peadro, Phil Ponder, Randy Purcell, Doug Regen, Andee Rudloff, James Threalkill, David Washburn, Terry Warren, Emily Whitlow, and Leigh Williams.

On Friday, October 7, as part of the Franklin Art Scene’s First Friday art crawl, the collection will be available to view at the Historic Franklin Presbyterian Church at 435 Main Street. Several of the artists will be present. From October 10–31, the collection will be at Gallery 202 in Franklin.

Paul Harm on, Houn d

Thanks to underwriting by SunTrust Bank, 100 percent of the proceeds from each sale will benefit FiftyForward.

The online auction begins Monday, October 17, and runs through Friday, October 28. For more information, visit www.fiftyforward.org. To view and bid, visit www.fiftyforward60th.auction-bid.org.

July 29 through November 6 Women, Art, and Social Change: The Newcomb Pottery Enterprise, an exhibition created and organized by Newcomb Art Museum, Tulane University, and the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), was made possible in part through the generous support of Henry Luce Foundation and an award from the National Endowment for the Arts, Art Works.

Smithsonian Institution The Frist Center for the Visual Arts is supported in part by

Harriet Coulter Joor, decorator; Joseph Meyer, potter. Plate with cactus design, ca. 1903. Incised; underglaze painting with glossy glaze. Newcomb Art Collection, Tulane University, gift of Mrs. Arthur L. (Harriet) Jung Jr.

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New Location Celebration CG2 Gallery | October 1 After a summer of pop-up shows in the Wedgewood/Houston Arts District, CG2 Gallery has opened the doors to their new location at 438 Houston Street. An opening reception featuring works by Erik Mark Sandberg and Mark Hosford is slated for Saturday, October 1, during Arts & Music @ Wedgewood/Houston.

Established by Carol Stein and Jason Lascu, CG2 Gallery is an extension of Cumberland Gallery.

Through CG2, Stein and Lascu aim to offer more attention to promising emerging, mid-career, and national-level artists who are creating challenging, cutting-edge, Mark Hosford, Attachment 1, and evocative artwork.

Screenprint (Edition 1 of 11), 37” x 26” The exhibition of work by Erik Mark Sandberg and Mark Hosford remains on view through October 29. For more information, visit www.cg2gallery.com.

www.worthingtongalleries.com

Broken Home by Omari Booker Tennessee State University through October 28 “The reality is that every home is made up of broken people and is therefore a broken home. Divorce, death, and oppression are manifestations of the brokenness that we all bring to our families and communities. The myth is that there are actually homes or families that do not have some level of brokenness,” says Omari Booker about his exhibit Broken Home.

Booker believes that to be broken is a real and natural state, not something to be hidden or frowned on, but something to be understood and even celebrated. His works examine marriage, family, and the effects of oppression in our communities.

Broken Home is on view through October 28 at the Brown-Daniel Library on the main campus of Tennessee State University. An art talk is scheduled for September 30 at noon. For more, visit www.tnstate.edu/library. See more of Booker’s work at Run For Your Life, 2016, Oil on Canvas, 40” x 30” www.omaribooker.com.

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Broadway Series sponsored by

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Event, date, time, guest artist, and repertoire are subject to change. Some shows contain mature content. TPAC.org is the official online source for buying tickets to TPAC events.

SIGNATURE SERIES

Thursday, October 27: Patrons Party

Blair Brass Quintet

Featuring 20th Anniversary Artists Ed Nash and Charlotte Terrell 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. $125 per person

Friday, October 28: ARTbash Featuring the David Lusk Pop-up Gallery 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. $10 per person

Saturday, October 29: Artclectic Featuring POPclectic Artisan Market and Family Arts Activities with Alex Lockwood 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Free Admission

artclectic.org

Monday, September 24 • 8 p.m.

Steve & Judy Turner Recital Hall Please join us as we welcome Jose Sibaja, new associate professor of trumpet and a multiple Grammy and Latin Grammy winner, as new first trumpet of the Blair Brass Quintet!

Presented with gratitude to an anonymous friend for generously supporting the Blair School

2400 Blakemore Ave. Nashville, TN 37212

For the complete concert calendar, please visit blair.vanderbilt.edu

Pictured: Steven Kraski and Cori Anne Laemmel | Photo by: Shane Burkeen

NOISES OFF

BY MICHAEL FRAYN

OCT 15 - NOV 5, 2016 (PREVIEWS: OCT 13 - 14) Performances Located @ Johnson Theatre, TPAC TICKETS: (615) 782-4040 // NASHVILLEREP.ORG SEASON PARTNERS

INGRAM

The HCA Foundation on Behalf of

CHARITABLE FUND

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Photography Competition

7th annual photography competition Local and international photographers Amateur and professional

+ First Place $500 cash

+ Second Place

$300 Chromatics gift card

+ Third Place

$200 Chromatics gift card

Top entries will be featured in the November issue of Nashville Arts Magazine and entrants may be given the opportunity to shoot an assignment for the magazine.

Submissions due: October 20, 2016

Winners announced: December 2016

You may enter as many photographs as you wish for $5 per photograph.

See www.nashvillearts.com for details.

by Peter Chawaga

Julia Martin Gallery

and

Nashville Arts Magazine Present

External Ballistics An Artistic Look At American Gun Culture Julia Martin Gallery October 1–31

Devin Goebel, Human Targets, 2016, Block prints

“

Ultimately, this show is about the different artists’ perspectives. What viewers take away from it is up to them.

W

hen Julia Martin returned to her WEHO gallery following the Fourth of July, she was surprised to find loose pieces of plaster on the floor. This was odd, she thought, because she remembered leaving the space spotless. Looking around for answers, Martin found three small holes in the walls, each at about the height of an average person’s forehead.

That’s when she called the police to report that a stray bullet had pierced her gallery.

Metro Officer Justin Fox was dispatched to investigate. There wasn’t much he could do but file a report about what appeared to be the result of celebratory gunfire. He did so, Martin says, but stayed long after to speak with her about how the incident fit into an increasingly familiar pattern. Maybe it was the five officers who had been killed the night before by a gunman in Dallas or the 9-year-old girl who was hit by a stray bullet in Nashville over the weekend, but Fox seemed introspective. Just before leaving, he suggested that the bullet holes could make for an interesting art project.

“I immediately sat down and emailed artists that I admire and respect, explained the situation, and asked if anyone had time to contribute a piece,” Martin recalls. “The response has been overwhelming and makes me insanely proud of our art community.”

The culmination of that call for submissions will be External Ballistics, an October exhibition at the Julia Martin Gallery. The featured pieces will accompany a string marking the trajectory of the stray bullet as it traveled through the gallery walls “You ask me what my gallery means to me,” says Martin. “It means a great deal, but nothing compared to a human life.

Highlighting this particular bullet hole is simply a metaphor for the countless injuries and lives being lost every day. The statistics on the number of incidences like these are disgustingly high.”

doughjoe, BANG!, 2014, Ballpoint pen, crayon, shell casings., 14" x 11"

Entering the Fray Nineteen artists have answered Martin’s call with works on the subject, including Devin Goebel, who created a series of prints inspired by targets in the shape of human bodies.

“My first reaction [to Julia’s email] was to be excited, but also kind of intimidated,” says Goebel, who grew up in a family of hunters but never felt comfortable around guns. “After all of the recent events, I wanted to see how I could respond as an artist. The invitation came at the perfect time. There was no excuse to say I didn’t want to participate.”

Without any personal experiences with gun tragedy, Goebel found that he had a difficult time understanding a victim’s perspective. This exhibition became a chance to work through that challenge and grapple with the issue in his own way.

“Something that’s present in my work because of my own emotions is a recognition of my lack of empathy for these events and trying to force myself out of that,” he says. “It’s about trying to empathize with the families of the victims and also to force myself not to be so passive or apathetic about gun violence in general.”

While news of gun violence seems to be ever present, those that haven’t experienced it firsthand may have similar difficulties approaching the subject. External Ballistics will include a number of discussions about gun violence, its effects on the community, and how participating artists wanted to explore it through their work.

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Michael McBride, America the Mystery, 2016, Oil on canvas, 48” x 36”

Brett Douglas Hunter, One Less Gun, 2016, Disabled .38 caliber revolver, acrylic, and paintbrushes

“I don’t think I have an answer for anything, but I do think it’s important to communicate in every language about the problems of our time,” says J. Elizabeth Williams, a contributing artist from a gun-owning family in Eastern Tennessee. “We’ve purposefully said it’s a show about guns, not a show about gun control or how guns are ruining America.”

Williams was inspired by the topic to create a multimedia piece on wood panel and a sculpture made from ballistics jelly. She was moved by the toll that gun violence takes on its victims and their families, not by any desire to convert viewers.

“I’m focusing on the emotional aspect of the loss that happens because of guns,” she says. “Everybody can understand the value of human life to a degree.”

Jodi Hays, Bundle, 2016, Oil on panel, 30” x 24”

Taking Aim, Without Agenda Among the 19 artists participating in the show are Olivia Hill, Rob Matthews, Sam Dunson, Trevor Mikula, and Michael McBride. Each artist has approached the epochal issues of gun violence from a different perspective. Martin’s goal was to organize something that reflects the milieu of the time, one that has been undeniably littered with bullets and understood in countless ways.

Officer Fox may not have known just how fertile his suggestion for an art project would prove to be, but it seems that he had a sense of the power that art has to help us work through some of the most polarizing issues we face.

“Art is a universal language that can be spoken and understood by anyone taking the time to try,” Martin says. “Every work of art invites its viewer to commune and therefore presents an opportunity to expand one’s consciousness.”

“There’s no agenda,” says Martin, who has spent time shooting recreationally but also has friends affected by gun violence.

“My personal hope for this exhibit is to hold a mirror up to the way things are, the way they’ve been, and hopefully where they may go. Ultimately, this show is about the different artists’ perspectives. What viewers take away from it is up to them.”

It’s difficult to imagine art speaking more clearly than it does through nearly fatal bullet holes traced with thread, bolstered by attempts to understand our overwhelming desire to fire deadly weapons. In the face of persistent tragedy and increasingly deafening debate, that may be the only language to break through. na

Despite any personal attachment to firearms or the right to use them, every potential visitor to External Ballistics will agree that senseless gun-related injuries and deaths happen far too often.

External Ballistics, sponsored by Nashville Arts Magazine, will open at the Julia Martin Gallery, 444 Humphreys Street, with a reception on October 1 from 6 to 9 p.m. and remain on view until October 31. For more information, visit www.juliamartingallery.com.

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One-of-a-Kind Subtractive Art

by Jane R. Snyder

Paper and Pumpkin Carvings by Lundy Cupp

M

ichelangelo found his masterpieces hidden within blocks of marble. Middle Tennessee carver and sculptor Lundy Cupp discovers his in basswood, hickory, oak, pine, poplar, red cedar, and walnut. Occasionally, he employs more unusual mediums like discarded books, elk’s horn, or even golf balls.

When fall’s cooler temperatures arrive, this talented artist turns to colorful produce—pumpkins, squash, gourds, and sweet potatoes.

This year, you can join in using his just-published illustrated book REALISTIC PUMPKIN CARVING, 24 Spooky, Scary, and Spine-Chilling Designs as your guide. Be forewarned though, in the true spirit of All Hallows’ Eve, some of Lundy’s characters might raise goosebumps! He will be signing books and carving pumpkins at Green Door Gourmet on Sunday, October 2, and at Cheekwood Museum of Art on Saturday, October 8, leaving you plenty of time to practice before the holiday actually arrives.

Even though Lundy Cupp has been successful in other jobs— criminal fraud investigator and professional drummer among them—there is no doubt that carving is what he was born to do. If you ask this Minnesota native about his art, he speaks with unbridled enthusiasm.

“Carving is in my heart. It’s my passion. It’s in my soul. I can’t wait to begin another piece. I can’t wait to continue to create.

A true artist can’t not create—you have to do whatever makes your heart soar!” And soar the artist does, preferably in the evenings and, often, without even realizing how much time has gone by, straight into the wee hours of the next morning.

“Being a professional musician for so many years I’m a night guy, primarily. In my studio, it’s quiet, it’s dark, and the music is on—usually something ambient or jazz—so I can concentrate.

As a former investigator, I’m into details.”

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Details are as necessary as breathing in a studio where chisels, gouges, knives, scalpels, chainsaws, angle grinders, ribbon, and rotary tools abound. Lundy explains with pride that some pieces of equipment, including his father’s Industrial Age tanker desk, are still-operational family heirlooms.

Lundy Cupp

“

His Kingston Springs workspace is filled with intricate works in progress, completed pieces in a wide range of sizes, and tree branches or logs just waiting their turn beneath his nimble fingers. With hands as steady as a surgeon’s, no matter what his design or medium, it is essential that the artist pay careful attention as he carves deeper into each composition.

When I let go and make cuts freestyle I don’t really know who will show up—I’m just as surprised as anyone else.

“My favorite thing to do is to take a piece of wood, pumpkin, or whatever, and just begin without any preconceived ideas and just see who shows up. Commission work or a portrait is very specific, but when I just kind of let go and make cuts freestyle, that is the most fun because I don’t really know who will show up—I’m just as surprised as anyone else. I know it sounds strange, but it happens. That action of creative spontaneity is pure joy for me.”

Because they started out as trees, more recently Lundy decided to explore what would happen if he carved into books. Gluing together multiple volumes of obsolete encyclopedias, he has sculpted Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, and other iconic faces. His experiment has proved to be a fascinating one, and it has attracted equally fascinated collectors.

Viewing Lundy’s work, it’s hard to imagine how much patience is required to create these lifelike faces. To complete a single book portrait takes him about one hundred hours.

“Since mine is a subtractive art,” he reveals with a wise, accepting smile, “once it’s gone; it’s gone. So, when a face comes out right, it’s just amazing.”

If you happen to be at a Halloween party and find an inquisitive fellow studying the contours of your face, introduce yourself.

Lundy Cupp will be the talented artist standing just beyond your glass of pumpkin punch! na Visit Lundy Cupp’s website: www.lundycupp.com.

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Words by Joseph E. Morgan Photography by Reed Hummell

The Fall of the Philanderer Don Giovanni by the Nashville Opera Tennessee Performing Arts Center

|

October 6 and 8

“D

ite di no!” (“Tell him no!”) Leporello screams at his master, an Italian aristocrat whose hubris will not allow him to repent—even in the face of eternal damnation. The scene is the dramatic denouement that results from the seduction, intrigue, and betrayal found in Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s masterpiece Don Giovanni, being produced this month at the Nashville Opera.

If you’ve never seen it, the plot is the timeless moral tale of how the legendary libertine Don Giovanni (Don Juan) gets his due.

The story has been told by the likes of Molière and Byron, but what sets Mozart’s opera apart from these other narratives is his, and librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte’s, ingenious depiction of characters drawn from the worlds of serious and comic opera; and the contrasts are drawn most sharply amongst his women.

Donna Elvira, for example, is an aristocratic woman and a former conquest of Don Giovanni who is seeking revenge. Her voice and melodic line are as serious as the knife she wields in

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her first act aria “Ah, chi mi dice mai.” For this part, Nashville Opera brought in Alyson Cambridge, a Washington, D.C., soprano. Zerlina, played by Iowa native mezzo-soprano Laura Krumm, is a village girl that the Don attempts to seduce on her very wedding day. Her simple life, uncomplicated by the rules of the nobility, is depicted in the simple form of her arias and her less ornamental vocal line. Look for her beautiful first-act duet with the Don, “Là ci darem la mano.” Played by soprano Karen Slack, Donna Anna connects the other two women. She is of the aristocracy, but she is also youthful—the opera opens in the middle of her “seduction.” As for the men, Don Giovanni is framed by the comic Leporello, played by the baritone Donovan Singletary (listen for his terrifying patter line in the Grand Finale) and the serious Commendatore/Statue, played by bass Peter Volpe (listen for his deep call “Don Giovanni!” also in the Grand Finale). Playing the title character, David Adam Moore joins the cast from New York where he will make his Metropolitan Opera premiere next season.

When asked how the music of Don Giovanni differs from that of Cosi fan tutte, produced by the Nashville Opera last season, Music Director Dean Williams said, “Whereas Cosi is like a delicate piece of lace that can’t be handled roughly, Don

Giovanni is like a meat and potatoes meal. It’s sturdy, brilliant, and text/drama driven.” The staging, a John Hoomes original, looks to be quite exciting. Hoomes revealed to me that with this production he brought “a bold new visual language to Mozart’s Don Giovanni, while still maintaining the various messages and integrity of the opera.” The world of this opera is set in an abstract playing field where each character is forced to confront their own inner demons, allowing their hidden motivations to slip to the surface.

Whether traditional or controversial, the best productions of Mozart’s operas tend to make the moral message applicable to a contemporary audience; it is part of what makes these works timeless. As Hoomes states, his production “views the character of Don Giovanni not so much as one specific man out of history, but more as an archetypical character who revels in flaunting his unchecked desire in the face of an orderly society.

And whether we like it or not, it seems the desires of Don Giovanni will always be with us, in one incarnation or another.”

This extraordinary production of Mozart’s masterpiece might just be what we need right now. na See this production at Andrew Jackson Hall, TPAC, on October 6 and 8. For more information, visit www.nashvilleopera.org.

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SOUNDINGOFF

BY JOSEPH E. MORGAN

Photography by Michael Whitney

Together and Apart: Intersection and New Dialect at Cheekwood It was the golden hour at Cheekwood, that hour just before dusk when the fading sunlight seems to cling to earthly things, when Intersection and New Dialect began their Third Season in the color garden with Steve Tobin’s Naturalist/ Modernist sculptures as a backdrop.

Dressed in grey and off-white, the dancers of New Dialect, a local dance collective, were grouped in flocks and migrating across the grass for Murmuration, a choreography written

by Banning Bouldin to Sophia Gubaidulina’s Concordanza as performed by Intersection, Nashville’s contemporary music ensemble. The two groups had performed this piece together two years ago, but for this concert it was “re-envisioned and recreated to engage with Tobin’s tree-root sculptures.” The original inspiration, a contrast between a starlinginspired sharp and delicate individual movement and the fluidity of group migration, was still present, but the sylvan setting leant it a natural authenticity. The end of the piece was the one truly disappointing moment of the evening: The New Dialect dancers moved on to perform structured improvisations in other parts of Cheekwood, leaving the music (and me) behind.

Intersection then performed Jonathon Holland’s His House Is Not of This Land (2015). Holland’s work features a haunting, gospelinfluenced dialogue among the strings played with nuance and eloquence by Alicia Enstrom (violin), Carl Larson (viola), and Chrissy Kim (cello). Next came Osvaldo Golijov’s Lullaby & Doina, a Yiddish lullaby set in several variations, which slowly metamorphoses into a gypsy theme. Here the enchanting, nostalgic klezmer sound of Emily Bowland’s clarinet was warmly accompanied by a latesummer breeze in Cheekwood’s majestic trees. It was a magical moment.

As the sun slipped past the horizon, Intersection closed with Chen Yi’s somewhat menacing Wu Yu, and the dancers of New Dialect returned to the flower garden. I could tell from the smiles on the faces of the audience that followed the dancers that, in their absence, New Dialect had probably performed as beautifully as Intersection.

For information about their respective seasons, visit www.intersectionmusic.org and www.NewDialect.org.

ARRATT GALLERY AT VANDERBILT

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Frank vs. God at the Jewish Film Festival The rules of religion and law are meant to hold people accountable to a higher authority. But what if they were against such an authority as a means of social retribution?

A selection of the 2016 Nashville Jewish Film Festival, Frank vs.

God is the story of a former corporate attorney who experiences a succession of bad fortunes that take from him almost everything that he loves. After the loss of his homestead due to an “Act of God,” Frank decides to test the infallible reputation of the Almighty in court. Wanting both financial compensation and personal vindication for the damages accrued in his life, the attorney’s pursuit of justice makes a national spectacle that makes the country collectively wonder how far he can go. Will God prevail? Or will Frank disprove his omnipotence with a ruling in his favor?

It’s a ridiculous concept, but it is presented with enough law knowledge and sincerity to the world that it becomes buyable after the first twenty minutes. The film is funny and flips the hero’s journey by having viewers follow an unlikable protagonist. Though it might sound heretical to anyone of faith, that’s actually the movie’s target audience: followers of God who want more from their viewing.

It’s not a bad watch for an indie film. Henry Ian Cusick and Ever Carradine do great as the principals. It does feel like it could have been more aggressive in its theological inquisition. Perhaps it could have read a bit more like Mamet instead of C.S. Lewis. But for what it is, it does deliver as a funny film that probes the rules of religions without being too anchored on Judaism, Christianity, or other theologies.

The 2016 Nashville Jewish Film Festival will take place from Wednesday, October 19, to November 12 with various events planned at the Gordon Jewish Community Center, the Belcourt Theatre, and other venues. Frank vs. God will screen Saturday, November 5, at 7 p.m. at the Belcourt. For further information about the Nashville Jewish Film Festival, be sure to visit their website www.nashvillejff.net.

Justin Stokes is the founder of the MTSU Film Guild, a student organization which functions as a production company for student filmmakers. He is a filmmaker, screenwriter, and social media manager.

FILMREVIEW

Still from Frank vs. God

© Susan W. N. Ruach

BY JUSTIN STOKES

Peerless beauty…stochastic screening with Merrick Printing!

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

Merrick Makes It Happen.

ANDSOITGOES

Photograph by Ron Manville

Rachael McCampbell is an artist, teacher, curator, and writer who resides in the small hamlet of Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee. For more about her, please visit www.rachaelmccampbell.com.

BY RACHAEL McCAMPBELL

JUST START

Encroachment #3, Acrylic and oil on birch panel, 36” x 36”

I

wish I could have a dollar for every time someone has said to me, “I can’t draw or paint.” I’d be rich! I don’t believe there is any truth to this statement, because most anyone can apply paint to a surface, but what is true is that a great many people don’t have the patience to paint. I have witnessed it time and time again. It’s like the child who whines in the back of the car on a road trip, “Are we there yet?” With the constant checking of the clock and odometer, stress levels rise and the journey becomes unbearable—no one can focus on the joy of traveling. It’s the same with art. My students often want to be at the end of the process before they have even committed an hour to it. They toss their brushes down and state, “I’m not good at this—I give up.”

I understand this feeling because I fight the same instinct daily. If my work doesn’t manifest in the way I envisioned it, then I want to toss it in the trash and indulge in a massive pity party, but I don’t. Because after years of this, I finally learned that the challenge of remaining present and embracing the process (no matter how painful it is) improves not only my art but my whole existence. By turning the painting against the wall for a few days and giving us both a break, I come back with a new vision and attitude. I listen to what the painting wants to say, and I begin again.

I have noticed that the most difficult part of making art is rarely about the art. What comes up while making art can be a microcosm of what you are challenged by in your life. I have dried numerous tears of students whose impatience with painting turned out to be the sideways manifestation of other

frustrations at home—lack of control over children and family, fears about an imminent career change or marital problems.

To acknowledge our problems and funnel that energy into our art can be both therapeutic and create amazing results if we embrace it.

But to get from a blank canvas to something we feel good about requires slowing down, going within, and observing both ourselves and the world around us. Being slow and intentional in our society is rarely honored. It’s much easier to stay busy and avoid all this, but then we would miss out on the joys and challenges of personal growth.

So, to test your patience and yourself, pick up a brush or pencil and make some art. It doesn’t matter what you paint; just begin on your own or in a class. Make marks, lay down color, and feel the joy of creating something out of nothing, and suddenly you will experience your whole life there. And if you feel like giving up, go look in the mirror and ask why. It’s not always easy, but I guarantee that you will learn something.

You will grow and you will like yourself more for trying.

Note: These images represent my process in creating a painting about my feelings on the encroachment of our wide-open spaces by developers. The chandeliers represent the opulence, waste, and disregard for what is truly important about nature. I began in charcoal, moved to acrylic, and finished in oil. na

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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. Jim’s new Christmas music comedy, MOTEL NOEL, starring Barry Scott and Jamey Green, opens December 1 at the 4th Story Theatre. jreyland@audioproductions.com

BY JIM REYLAND

one step at a time like this to Nashville

o

ne step at a time like this—a forward thinking, one step ahead of all of us theatre company from Australia, refuses to use capital letters or punctuation. Why should they?

They specialize in extreme maverick. OZ Arts Nashville, our very own special creative place, welcomes the celebrated Melbourne, Australia-based theatre company for the creation and performance of a new version of their acclaimed work Since I Suppose, based on Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, exploring city government, its corruption and morality. one step at a time like this creates place-responsive and conversation-based works, focusing on the activity of the

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“The experience feels like you are inside some giant movie, where only you know it is a movie. Invigorating and revealing.”

—The Chicago Tribune

Photograph by Paul Moir

OZ Arts brings

company will work with local actors and theatre students for the production, and prior to the premiere, October 5–23, they will be in residence with OZ Arts, September 23– October 4.

Photograph by Paul Moir

A heads up about Since I Suppose—if you plan on attending, it’s a 21+ event with adult themes. Reserve your spot early; there is limited capacity. Dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes.

The starting location will be provided via email after booking. Audience members are required to use a basic media device but will be given a short tutorial at the beginning of the show. na

What exactly is this again? They won’t share too many details because there’s an element of surprise that adds to the experience. The odds are you buy your ticket and show up at an appointed time in a specified place. Then, you hit the streets of downtown Nashville, one person at a time, for an utterly unique take on William Shakespeare’s classic urban play Measure for Measure. Participants walk from one city locale to another, using a custom app on a smartphone and wearing a headset to guide them through the performance. Meanwhile, Since I Suppose transposes the narrative to Nashville, employing shards of text, music, instructions, and video to move audiences through the scenes of the story—sometimes as voyeurs, other times as active participants in the experience.

Over the course of the performance, each audience member is guided to landmarks and venues throughout downtown.

Hopefully, one step at a time like this, even longtime Nashvillians will see their city in a new light. OK, I get it. That’s cool.

Since I Suppose was premiered in Chicago in September 2014, following the success of their site-specific theatre piece En Route, created for Melbourne Fringe Festival in 2009. The company has created more than twelve original works since 2001 and has been presented at prestigious institutions across the globe, including London Olympics, Seoul Performing Arts Festival, Traverse Theatre Edinburgh, Melbourne International Arts Festival, Auckland Arts Festival, and Clonmel Junction Festival (Tipperary, Ireland), among others. In Nashville, the

Tickets start at $75.00 and can be purchased online at www.ozartsnashville.org/one-step-time-like-since-suppose.

Since I Suppose

Photograph by Chuck Osgood

audience as an essential element in the work, exploring ways to allow audience members to find a point of relaxed engagement, involvement, and activity in the imaginable and real worlds unfolding before them. Since I Suppose, directed

by Suzanne Kersten and commissioned by and developed with Chicago Shakespeare Theater and Richard Jordan Productions, in association with the City of Melbourne through Arts House, arrives in Nashville and runs October 5–23, 12 to 8:30 p.m., 140 minutes in length, one person at a time.

Since I Suppose

Photograph by Michael Litchfield

Since I Suppose

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ARTSMART

A monthly guide to art education

State of the Arts With Artober Nashville 2016, the collective movement behind this celebration further empowers hundreds of local arts organizations and individual artists to collaborate and create and to lift one another up with the knowledge that Nashville is stronger when all people have a sense of belonging. It elevates the awareness of our city’s diverse cultural landscape and emphasizes how the entire community can enjoy the arts not just in our world-class galleries, studios, and music venues but also in libraries, community centers, and street corners across the county.

On October 1, join Metro Arts and Mayor Megan Barry to officially kick off Artober Nashville at the free Celebrate Nashville Cultural Festival in Centennial Park. Celebrate Nashville ushers in its 20th anniversary this year and provides the opportunity to experience dance and music performances, food offerings from around the world, hands-on children’s activities, a marketplace, and more.

2015 Celebrate Nashville Cultural Festival in Centennial Park

Photograph by Gary Layda

On October 15, join Nashville’s creative community at the third annual ArtCamp Nashville, an all-day event of educational opportunities and a source for creative inspiration. Nashville artists, creators, and makers will present sessions about fostering community, sustaining careers, and even hands-on workshops.

Five years ago, Metro Arts had a vision of showcasing our city’s cultural vibrancy in a unique way, emphasizing that the arts are everywhere and for everyone. As a result, the first Artober Nashville was launched in October 2011 (which is also National Arts & Humanities Month) as a movement to celebrate the ways the arts tell our collective story as a community and to highlight opportunities where Nashvillians could experience the arts where they live, work, and play.

Throughout the month, some of Nashville’s thought leaders will guest write for our Artober Nashville blog about issues like sustainability, affordability, and youth empowerment.

By accessing the calendar of arts and cultural events on ArtoberNashville.com, Nashvillians can curate their own artistic experiences to explore their community in new and exciting ways. Follow Artober Nashville on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and share stories and photos of how you participate in a creative life this month.

by Rebecca Berrios Director of Community Engagement Metro Nashville Arts Commission

2015 Celebrate Nashville Cultural Festival in Centennial Park

Photograph by Gary Layda

As Nashville has grown with new venues, events, and residents, that vision for our agency has only sharpened into focus.

We believe that arts access and inclusion drive a vibrant and equitable city and that all Nashvillians should have access to a creative life.

Photography by Tim Broekema

ARTSMART

Jon Upleger teaching

Nashville Ballet: Artistry and Athleticism Consider as standards of athleticism the ability: • to effortlessly lift and hold in the air, as if light as a feather, a moving adult • to maintain control of balance while leaping and rotating • to extend spatial awareness and to develop confidence by exploring the body’s full range of flexibility, extension, and power • to develop breathing to sustain long performance without panting or gasping for air.

These standards are increasingly recognized in the sports world as more top professional athletes (including Willie Gault, Emmitt Smith, Jerry Rice, Herschel Walker, and Hines Ward) have included classical dance/ballet in their repertoire of skills.

Combining art and athleticism, Nashville Ballet and Director of the School of Nashville Ballet Nick Mullikin recently launched the Young Men’s Scholarship Program, offering one-year, tuition-free training for boys ages 6–18, followed by merit-based scholarships for continued training. Open enrollment is extended through the inaugural year. With advancement, boys have an opportunity to feed into the dance company.

Young male dancers, accustomed to being a minority in classes packed with girls, now explore and gain confidence in the vital male role in ballet. Nashville Ballet company dancers Jon Upleger, Judson Veach, and Gerald Watson are principal instructors, offering skill in technique and the physics of ballet through a male-specific ballet curriculum.

“Nashville becomes one of the few cities to offer such a program to young men,” says Gerald Watson, who developed skills through a similar program while growing up. Through the years, Watson had opportunities to receive instruction from powerful role models, including David Holberg, the American who achieved world-wide acclaim as the principal dancer for Russia’s prestigious Bolshoi Ballet.

Gerald Watson teaching

The artistry and athleticism of ambassadors such as Holberg are giving American men an increasing role and worldwide voice in ballet. “We want to allow these boys to be that voice,” says Watson. “We want to send these boys out for people to see them.

We want the community to be proud of them.”

1317 16th Ave South Nashville, T N 37212 www.littlearthousenashville.com

by DeeGee Lester Director of Education The Parthenon

Photograph by Drew Cox

Art classes for all ages!

For information, go to www.nashvilleballet.com.

ARTSMART

Marlos E'van brainstorming for Mapping McGruder in the classroom/studio at M-SPAR

Housed in an old, abandoned Metro school on 25th Avenue North, McGruder is one of seventeen United Way Family Resource Centers scattered across Nashville in schools or run by agencies such as PENCIL Foundation or Catholic Charities.

Courtney Adair Johnson began in April of this year as the first artist-in-residence in a pilot for the program to determine its feasibility and has since moved into the role of administrator for M-SPAR. For participating artists, free studio space is provided on site under the non-profit Nashville Cultural Arts Project Seed Space in exchange for a community-based project.

That pilot project, Mapping McGruder, was designed using questionnaires to collect community assets and information on art and community in building a template to share in brochure form with the community. It includes the history of Curlie McGruder and the McGruder Family Resource Center (FRC) and its potential to be a service-based hub for the community.

Johnson visited several FRCs with United Way. “We are hoping by this time next year to be a more vibrant resource for North Nashville and see art helping to create that.” McGruder’s location in the former school offers hallways, classrooms, and even an auditorium for projects.

The M-SPAR application process is open. In order to be considered, artists should submit a letter of interest and an artist statement. According to guidelines, M-SPAR applicants may “activate public spaces and raise visibility for specific issues” by choosing to focus on Public Art. An alternative is the focus on Cultivation for projects including “promoting workforce development, lectures, tutoring/ mentoring, and activities that further conversations on contemporary art in Nashville.”

“The letter of interest is the starting point,” says Johnson.

“But over time, the project can change. It can be fluid. The community will influence the direction the project takes, and it’s possible to expand and to bring in partners for the project.”

The space and the needs and dynamics of the community will enable artists to move beyond their normal artistic expression and to experiment with and include events, performance pieces, and new media such as using light and sound to project onto the building.

As the program develops, Johnson is exploring opportunities to attract funding and to build dynamic partnerships with area HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities).

The artistic platform to express social concerns, to expand community awareness for topics such as social justice, sustainability, and neighborhood/cultural preservation is now available. Artists may send a letter of interest and artist statement to courtney@seedspace.org. For more information, visit www.seedspace.org/M-SPAR.

Photograph by Courtney Adair Johnson

If Social Practice Art—exploring the power of art to inspire, to ignite, to engage, and to motivate into action—is your passion, M-SPAR may be your great opportunity. M-SPAR (McGruder Social Practice Artist Residency) is an innovative program with the C.E. McGruder Family Resource Center, offering opportunities to conceptualize and develop transformative projects for the North Nashville community.

Photograph by Courtney Adair Johnson

M-SPAR: Art Engaging Community

ARTSMART For young musicians, the Accelerando scholarship is rich in possibilities. The Nashville Symphony initiative brings together for its inaugural class six talented students from diverse backgrounds in a unique program for development of the next generation of musicians.

Selected students include four MNPS students: Isabel Evernham (9th grade, flute, Overton High School), Emily Martinez (9th grade, viola, Hume Fogg Academic Magnet High School), Cedric Quinn (10th grade, bassoon, McGavock High School), and Antonio Thai (7th grade, violin, MLK Jr. Academic Magnet High School), and two students from Rutherford County: Bernard Ekwuazi (9th grade, trombone, Blackman High School), and Aalia Hanif (10th grade, flute, Central Magnet High School). Each brings a passion for music and a unique musical heritage.

Two dozen young musicians began the selection process in March. Competitive rounds of auditions were adjudicated by Symphony musicians and reviewed by Symphony education/ community engagement staff as well as partner organizations (Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music, MNPS, Conexion Americas, and Choral Arts Link), according to Walter Bitner, Director, Nashville Symphony Education/Community Engagement.

Following selection on August 23, the six scholarship recipients began this groundbreaking music education program, combining

Educator’s

SPARK

Evenings

Cedric Quinn, Bernard Ekwuazi, Emily Martinez, Antonio Thai, Aalia Hanif, Isabel Evernham

mandatory participation in local youth orchestras with classes in music theory at Blair and lessons with Symphony musicians. As part of their emersion into the world of music, each also receives complimentary tickets to the Nashville Symphony’s 2016–2017 Aegis Science Classical Series.

“This pioneering class represents everything we envisioned when we announced Accelerando more than a year ago: talented and dedicated youngsters from different corners of our community who have the potential to shape the future of American orchestras,” says Bitner. “I am thrilled to welcome these gifted young musicians into the Nashville Symphony family, and I know everyone in our organization is excited to follow their development and progress in the coming years.”

The Frist Center for the Visual Arts launched Educator’s SPARK Evenings, echoing the tradition of the salon—the meeting of interesting and creative people for intellectual dialogue and the exchange of ideas.

Three area arts teachers, Mike Mitchell (Father Ryan), DeeDee Melton (McGavock) and Lauren Blake (Churchwell Elementary Museum Magnet) approached Frist educators with the idea for the program. Intrigued by the notion of dynamic art conversations, the Frist hosted a “soft launch” for the program in August. Monthly SPARK Evenings are free and will be offered to arts educators the third Thursday of each month from 5:30 to 8 p.m.

The next meeting will be Thursday, October 20. Participation is open to art teachers from public or private schools, home schools, or colleges and universities from Davidson County and throughout the area.

Shaun Giles, Educator for Community Engagement at the Frist and host of the evenings, emphasizes the fluidity of the SPARK Evenings in the sharing of ideas, with conversations continuing after the presentation or flowing over into the Frist galleries. “Presentation opportunities are open to any teacher to share a brief idea, hands-on project, or classroom experience,” says Giles. Those wishing to enjoy the dynamic “salon” environment and SPARK arts conversations do not need to register or RSVP. Educators interested in presenting may contact Shaun at sgiles@fristcenter.org.

In addition to the Educator’s SPARK Evenings, the Frist Center is spotlighting outstanding student art with the 2016 Young Tennessee Artists and Selections from Advanced Studio Programs exhibit on view through February 26. The sixth biennial exhibition focuses on 2-D artwork created by Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate Studio students from across the state of Tennessee. The 29 works, including paintings, drawings, photographs, and mixed media, were selected from 800 submissions.

Emma Whitehorn, Duality, 2016, Digital print, 10” x 8”

For more information, visit www.fristcenter.org.

Courtesy of Nashville Symphony Orchestra

Accelerando!

ARTSEE

The Jake Leg Stompers outside at The Arts Company

Halle Sandoval and Danielle S. at Tinney Contemporary

ARTSEE

ARTSEE

Supportprisonersresistance.net Solidarity Action on 5th Avenue

Celebrating the 5th Anniversary of the Franklin Art Scene Outside Gallery 202

Photograph by Tiffani Bing

Ashley Obel and Marleen De Waele-De Bock at Blend Studio

Photograph by Pat Casey Daley

Edward Belbusti at The Arts Company

Photograph by Pat Casey Daley

Ted Whisenhunt and Herb Williams at The Rymer Gallery

Lulu Chustz at Zeitgeist

Artist Cory Basil at Imaginebox Emporium

Bill Steber and Sammy at The Arts Company

Photograph by Madge Franklin

Leslie Harter, Mickenzie Smith and Caresse Haaser at Mickenzie Smith Studio

Photograph by Tiffani Bing

At TheCamino Drew Arts Company at Channel to Channel

Bill Steber at The Arts Company

Photograph by Pat Casey Daley

Cami Laster and Cara Wallace at Fort Houston

Michael Catalano, Sarah Wilson, Raeanne Rubenstein, Susan Tinney, Marilyn Murphy, Kris Kristoffersen, and Bobby Schindel at Tinney Contemporary

ARTSEE Photograph by Tiffani Bing

ARTSEE

Sheila Odusote and Jim Milliman at Tinney Contemporary

Photograph by Tiffani Bing

Cheryl Anderson, Marie Busch, and Meg Brown at Jack Yacoubian Fine Jewelry and Art Gallery

Madison Ward at Imaginebox Emporium

County Mayor Roger Anderson, Michael D’Amico, Kelly Harwood, Mary Pearce, Ellie Chin, Debbie Smartt and Nancy Williamson at Gallery 202

Rebekka Seale and Manley Seale at The Rymer Gallery

Kristy Williams and Debbie Smartt at Gallery 202

Photograph by Tiffani Bing

Showcased Artist Joanna Ahlman at Imaginebox Emporium

Photograph by Tiffani Bing

Lain York and Anna Zeitlin at Zeitgeist

Photograph by Tiffani Bing

PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN JACKSON

ARTSEE

POET’SCORNER

Nina Donovan is a graduate of Franklin High School and presently attends Columbia State Community College. She competed in Philadelphia and Atlanta as part of the Nashville area youth slam team and performs regularly with Southern Word. Learn more at www.southernword.org

BY NINA DONOVAN

Mommy

Photograph by Carla Ciuffo

She woke up like dis....

She woke up like dis….

She woke up like dis FLAWLESS. My mother is flawless.

When people say an ugly Puerto Rican does not exist, they use her photo as further proof.

My mother is a howler monkey: the second loudest animal on Earth.

My mother holds grudges like I hold books, and I’m lucky I don’t read because I’ve heard her heart scream with pulled muscles and twisted ankles chasing after my recovery.

My mother has climbed mountains to find my courage to breathe.

She is a Ford Fiesta driving reason back into my irrational teenage mind.

An angel, who never thinks twice before lending me her wings when my sins nail my feet to ground.

She’s heavenly.

A holy masterpiece of watercolor dripping hope into the cracks of my spine.

If you pressed her rose palms to canvas and watched her fingerprints dry I swear, they would spell out beautiful.

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PUBLICART

BY CAROLINE VINCENT DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC ART

Learning Lab artist participants chat over lunch during a training session

This summer 25 Nashville-based artists have been on a journey with Metro Arts. We took one assumption: that communities work better with artists at their core and that collaborative partnerships including artists can make our city better. From that we built a program, with expert guidance from the Center for Performance and Civic Practice (CPCP) and the Arts and Business Council of Greater Nashville (ABC), that investigates the various ways artists can work in community. Michael Rohd of CPCP says, “At this moment, artists around the nation are working alongside publics to build healthier, more equitable communities. Art is no longer limited to object and event—art can be a tool; art can be a process. Artists are redefining what they can create, how they create, with whom, and for what purposes.” One of the community partners participating in the Learning Lab, Pearl Sims of the Edgehill Coalition, said, “It has been a very long time since I was so invigorated about discussing the needs of our neighborhood. The artists that worked with me were amazing, and they gave me hope for the citizens of our city.”

At the next training session, workshops centered around learning the basics of a public practice. Participants heard from public practice artists Mel Ziegler of Nashville and Isaac Duncan of Chattanooga. In addition, there were workshops on Communicating Effectively About Your Work presented by poet and social practice artist Stephanie Pruitt, Common Legal Considerations for Public Art by Casey Summar of the Arts and Business Council, and Collaborations, Deep Listening Skills and Conflict Management led by CPCP’s Rebecca Martinez.

Next up, participating artists apply for funding to conduct a community-based project. For more information and updates on the Learning Lab, please visit publicart.nashville.gov.

This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. The Learning Lab is a program of Metro Arts in partnership with the Arts and Business Council of Greater Nashville and the Center for Performance and Civic Practice.

Courtesy of Metro Nashville Arts Commission

Learning Lab: The Path to Social/Civic Practice

Arts Worth Watching

Last month, we showed a documentary about the 1966 flood in Florence. On Monday, October 3, at 11:30 p.m., Invisible Women: Forgotten Artists of Florence returns to Italy for a survey of six women artists of the Renaissance era.

The Emmy-winning production shows how modern-day artists, restorers, and others are working to bring hitherto unknown works out of storage and onto the radar of art lovers. Among the pieces highlighted in the film are Lamentation with Saints, a painting by Plautilla Nelli (1524–1588), a cloistered nun who is the first known female Florentine painter.

One of the many challenges faced by early women artists was lack of access to training. Craft in America: Teachers, airing Thursday, October 6, at 11 p.m., celebrates the importance of art education and artists who share their passion and skills with subsequent generations.

In the 1940s, even before becoming synonymous with drip paintings, Jackson Pollock caught the eye of Peggy Guggenheim, a cultural force in her own right. Jackson Pollock’s Mural: The Story of a Modern Masterpiece, airing Wednesday, October 13, at 11 p.m., explores the colossal results of a 1943 commission the artist received from his new patron. The 20-foot-by-eight-foot

Concept art featuring Ryan Green and his son Joel from the video game “That Dragon, Cancer.”

MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENT Great Performances: Grammy Salute to Music Legends, airing Friday, October 14, at 8 p.m., is the television version of this year’s Recording Academy special merit awards presentation and tribute concert.

Honorees include Ruth Brown, Celia Cruz; Earth, Wind & Fire; Herbie Hancock, Jefferson Airplane, Linda Ronstadt, and Run-DMC for Lifetime Achievement; and Trustee Award winners John Cage, Fred Foster, and Chris Strachwitz. The list of performers paying tribute includes Patti Austin, Ry Cooder, J’Nai Bridges, Kris Kristofferson, Shelby Lynne, Martina McBride, Magnolia Sisters, and JD Souther.

PBS’s annual Fall Arts Festival kicks off Friday, October 21, at 8 p.m. with Hamilton’s America, an in-depth look at Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton, winner of both the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award.

This Great Performances documentary chronicles the development of the show using footage of the original cast, visits to relevant historic sites, along with interviews with Miranda, The Roots’ Questlove, and Stephen Sondheim. The impressive list of interview subjects also includes Presidents Obama and George W. Bush, as well as other political leaders.

Lamentation With Saints by Plautilla Nelli (1524-1588), from Invisible Women: Forgotten Artists of Florence

A new season of Music City Roots Live from the Factory, recorded here in Middle Tennessee, begins this month with an American Festival showcase featuring Shemekia Copeland, Canadian mod duo Whitehorse, and alt-country icons The Mavericks. Season 4 launches Friday, October 28, at 7 p.m.

TELEVISION STAR Watch them now and sitcoms like All in the Family, Good Times, The Jeffersons, and Maude still leave viewers howling with laughter and often wincing at lines too provocative for modern broadcast television. Through these shows, Norman Lear changed the medium and American society at large. American Masters – Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You, premiering Tuesday, October 25, at 8 p.m., puts the now-94-year-old legend’s career in context using clips from his formidable portfolio and interviews with John Amos, George Clooney, Bill Moyers, Rob Reiner, Phil Rosenthal, and Russell Simmons.

There’s no trick to supporting NPT; simply go to www.wnpt.org and click the donate button.

Here’s a treat: Encore presentations of many of our programs and other favorite shows air on NPT2, our secondary channel.

104 nashvillearts.com Kris Kristofferson and Shelby Lynne in Great Performances:

2016 Grammy Salute to Music Legends

Photograph courtesy of Kevork Djansezian/WireImage.com

ART CRAWL

Mural was destined for Guggenheim’s New York townhouse; the documentary tells how it ended up in Iowa, survived a flood, and underwent a year-long restoration at L.A.’s Getty Museum before traveling to the Venice Biennale last year.

Courtesy of That Dragon, Cancer

Appropriately for Artober, NPT’s October schedule is packed with a variety of arts programs!

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 WordWorld Bob the Builder Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Clifford the Big Red Dog Curious George Nature Cat Ready Jet Go! Wild Kratts Sewing with Nancy Sew It All Garden Smart A Chef’s Life (beginning Oct.15) Moveable Feast with Fine Cooking Jaques Pépin: Heart & Soul noon America’s Test Kitchen pm Cook’s Country Kitchen Pati’s Mexican Table Lidia’s Kitchen New Orleans Cooking with Kevin Belton Fons & Porter’s Love of Quilting Best of Joy of Painting Rough Cut – Woodworking with Tommy Mac A Craftsman’s Legacy This Old House Ask This Old House Woodsmith Shop PBS NewsHour Weekend pm Tennessee’s Wild Side

This MonTh

October 2016

Nashville Public Television

Sunday

am Sid the Science Kid Cyberchase Sesame Street Caillou Curious George Nature Cat Ready Jet Go! Wild Kratts Tennessee’s Wild Side Volunteer Gardener Tennessee Crossroads Nature Washington Week with Gwen Ifill noon To the Contrary pm Music Voyager Burt Wolf: Travels & Traditions Expeditions with Patrick McMillan Globe Trekker California’s Gold Travels with Darley America’s Heartland Rick Steves’ Europe Antiques Roadshow PBS NewsHour Weekend pm Charlie Rose: The Week

Hamilton’s America Great Performances takes an in-depth look at the groundbreaking musical, Hamilton.

Friday, October 21 8:00 pm

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

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

Nashville Public Television

Poldark on Masterpiece A second season of the swashbuckling drama.

Sundays 8:00 pm

Music City Roots Live from the Factory Americana music before a live audience.

Fridays, Beginning October 28 7:00 pm

wnpt.org

Casa Testosterone It all started with a one-way ticket to Reno.

My friend Joseph and I had decided to attend a life-celebration ceremony for a mutual friend near the Sierra Nevada mountain range north of Truckee, California. This would be the first time in a long time I’d traveled anywhere that wasn’t work related. Some people would call this a vacation. But I’m not sure the word exists to describe what actually happened.

Joseph is a free spirit—a world-traveling adventurer based in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, which is where I met him while playing a gig there years ago. For a while, I had the wildest crush on him. Now, thank God, that phase is over. We get to be friends, and I get to act sane again.

Just for the record, I like to have my travel details nailed down before I take a trip. Years of playing music on the road taught me the importance of this. Now that I’ve retired from the road, I am fast learning that if I want to travel with Joseph, I have to let go of this concept.

“Let’s just get a one-way ticket then figure it out from there,” Joseph said. “We might want to hang out in Truckee for a few days.”

“Oh ... okay,” I said.

We ended up staying just outside of Truckee at an Airbnb on Donner Lake. After the memorial service, it was a great place to relax. For two days we took walks, swam in the lake, and I took a restorative yoga class while Joseph went exploring on a bicycle.

On the third day, Joseph asked if I wanted to go to Los Angeles.

“We can stay at my former brother-in-law’s house,” he said.

As it turned out, Joseph’s former brother-in-law was a former prominent judge now in recovery (and on probation) after an incident whereby he had summoned the police to his West L.A. house while under the influence. When the police arrived, mistaking them for intruders he began shooting at them. In no time at all, SWAT teams were on the scene with helicopters buzzing overhead. Fortunately, no one was hurt.

Okay. So we’re met at LAX by a tattooed muscular guy driving a black truck that rumbled like those trucks in No Country for Old Men. I mean, this truck could eat a Humvee for lunch.

When we arrived at the judge’s house (which I later dubbed Casa Testosterone), we were greeted by three Dobermans plus another bodyguard-looking guy. Evidently the judge had gone to bed. As it turned out, my bedroom was upstairs next to his.

After a nice hot bath, I remember laughing as I fell asleep. After all, this was a first—never before had I fallen asleep in a room adjacent to the room of a man wearing a GPS ankle bracelet.

Strange as it sounds, I felt at home. And safe. And when I texted my circumstances to my sister, she immediately texted back: “Bad boys in recovery. Sounds like heaven.” na Marshall Chapman is a Nashville-based singer/songwriter, author, and actress. For more information, visit www.tallgirl.com.

BEYONDWORDS

Photograph by Anthony Scarlati

BY MARSHALL CHAPMAN

MYFAVORITEPAINTING

BY AMY ESKIND, ART COLLECTOR, WRITER, MOTHER, ADVENTURESS

N ashville sculptor Bruce Peebles donated her to the Swan Ball

auction, back in 2003. As soon as I spotted her I knew she was something else. Carved meticulously and miraculously from a single piece of wood, her gracefulness and confidence were alluring to my younger self. My husband and I placed a bid and won.

Bruce personally delivered the piece. Truth be told, not much thought went into her placement. Mostly, she needed to be kept safely out of the traffic patterns of my children, which relegated her to life as a wallflower in the living room. She could be viewed only from the front, rendering complete obstruction of both the masterful curve of her hair as well as her right arm, outstretched to rest on her buttock in a way that says everything her joyous left arm can’t. It was easy to overlook her entirely as her honey color blended in with the woodwork behind her. Art imitates life and life imitates art. While she stood there almost invisible, I began to feel that way too. My marriage dissolved.

When I sold that house in 2011 and temporarily put my furniture in storage, I worried that she would not survive it. In a panic, I called Bruce for advice. He drove right over with a truck to save her, remarking that she was one of his favorites.

A year later, I bought a new house. All of my furnishings were now being carted through the front door. Leah Sohr, a designer with an otherworldly ability to create roomscapes, looked over each table and mirror and bench and knickknack and expertly assigned them new missions. In walked Bruce with my sculpture, and Leah instantly called it: front hall.

And there she stands, in a place where her curvaceous form can be viewed from all angles, where she supremely and most rightfully reigns over the house. She is on her own, enjoying her 360-degree freedom and relishing the moment. If Bruce originally gave her a name, I don’t know it.

No matter—she is me. na

Nashville sculptor Bruce Peebles (1963–2016) worked primarily in wood, metal, and fiberglass to create beautiful, organic sculptures of fluid lines and movement. After a trip to Zimbabwe, Africa, to meet the great sculptural artists that live there, Peebles declared, “Africa is the key to everything as far as my sculpture is concerned.” Later in his career Peebles delved into electronic art and created animated sculptures from painted balsa wood. You may read more about Peebles in a June 2010 article online at www.nashvillearts.com.

Amy Eskind

110 nashvillearts.com

Photograph by Jerry Atnip

ARTIST BIO: Bruce Peebles, Sculptor

111 nashvillearts.com