Exhibits

2024

Joseph Love: Paint Your Passion

February 2, 2024–March 29, 2024 Growing up with only a smattering of arts classes and drawing lessons from his father, Love is largely self-taught. An equal rights activist, Love recognized […]

2023

I Am/We Are

February 3, 2023-March 31, 2023 Online Artist Talk with Lakesha Moore Calvin Friday, February 17 at 11am Central/12pm Eastern RSVP here!  Artist and educator, Lakesha Moore Calvin earned a M.F.A. […]

Immerse Yourself

4.7.2023–6.2.2023 Join the online Artist Talk with Marty McConnaughey Friday, April 28 at 11am CT/12pm ET RSVP here! Why gourds and pine needles? McConnaughey believes it was divine inspiration. She […]

Craft Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) Virtual Exhibition 2023

October 6, 2023–December 1, 2023 In its 14th year, the Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) is an established cooperative partnership between the Tennessee Arts Commission and Tennessee Craft. The mission […]

Ling Lu: A Traveler with Watercolor a Virtual Exhibition

December 8, 2023-January 26, 2024 In 1997 Lu received her B.A. in Graphic Design from Qilu University in China. After graduating, she worked as a graphic artist before moving to […]

2022

Felix Maxwell: A Personal Vision in Realism

February 4, 2022–April 1, 2022 Born in Cornersville, TN and long-time Lewisburg resident, Felix Maxwell has made a name for himself as a photorealist artist, gallery owner, and educator. Through […]

Annabelle Meacham: From Dream Time to This Time

April 8, 2022–June 3, 2022 Artist Online Talk Tuesday, April 19, 2022 at 11a.m. Central/12p.m. Eastern RSVP. Whimsical, fantastical, dreamy, and at times opulent, are just a few ways to […]

Becky Ross McRae: Tennessee Wildlife and Landscapes

August 5–September 30, 2022 Always interested in the creative process of art in a variety of mediums, McRae was interested in photography but was afraid of the technology involved with […]

Craft Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) Virtual Exhibition

October 7, 2022–December 2, 2022 The Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) is a cooperative partnership between the Tennessee Arts Commission and Tennessee Craft. The mission of this collaboration is to […]

Nick Peña: Familial (Selected Works from 2005-2018)

December 9, 2022 – January 27, 2022 “I feel like Familial works as a show title because my umbrella subject throughout the series is family. Additionally, the work, in general, […]

2021

Tema Stauffer: Southern Fiction

August 6, 2021 – October 1, 2021 Tema Stauffer is an award-winning photographer based in Johnson City, TN. She specializes in capturing the social, economic, and cultural landscape of American […]

Kimberly Dummons: Reflections on the Geometry of Place and Time

April 9, 2021–June 4, 2021 “For several years my work has explored the concept of home, through sculpture, prints and collage. In my two-dimensional work, I am using color, pattern […]

Paula Kovarik: Threaded Narrative

February 5–April 2, 2021 Fiber artist, designer, quilter, and instructor, Kovarik actively expresses her thoughts and views through the sharp point of a needle, treasured scraps of colorful material, and […]

Master Artist Apprentice Program 2021

October 8, 2021 – December 3, 2021 The Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) is a cooperative partnership between the Tennessee Arts Commission and Tennessee Craft. The mission of this collaboration […]

Michelle O’Patick-Ollis: Winter

December 10, 2021–January 28, 2022 Artist Talk on Tuesday, January 11, 2022 at 11a.m. Central/12p.m. Eastern with O’Patick-Ollis where we will discuss her work, process, and future plans. RSVP here.  […]

2020

Historic Doors Project: Borderless Arts Tennessee Teapot Diplomats

December 3, 2020–January 29, 2021 The Historic Doors Project virtual exhibition kicks off on December 3rd honoring the International Day of Disabled Persons. This observance was proclaimed in 1992 by […]

Master Artist Apprentice Program 2020

October 8 – December 3, 2020 The Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) is a cooperative partnership between the Tennessee Arts Commission and Tennessee Craft. The mission of this collaboration is […]

Places and Faces: Marcia Goldenstein and Tom Riesing

August 7–October 2, 2020 1973. In the midst of Elvis Presley’s famous concert in Hawaii, President Nixon in the White House and a peace agreement between the United States and North […]

Loretta Ana Kaufman: A Curated Survey 1988-2018

February 7, 2020–May 8, 2020 For nearly five decades Nashville sculptor and painter, Kaufman, has and continues to work with wood, fiber, metal, clay and paint. Her work has been […]

2019

Hei Park: Now and Then (2006-2019)

December 13, 2019—January 31, 2020 Born in Inchon, South Korea, photographer, and graphic designer, Park earned a B.A. in Piano and an M.A. in Music Education at Ewha Womans University […]

Vesna Pavlović: The Art History Archive

Nashville artist, Pavlović (Serbia/USA) creates work that examines the evolving relationship between memory in contemporary culture and the technologies of photographic image production. The Art History Archive explores the institutional history, […]

Master Artist Apprentice Program 2019

Master Artist Apprentice Program   October 11—December 12, 2019 The Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) is a cooperative partnership between the Tennessee Arts Commission and Tennessee Craft. The mission of this […]

2019 Tennessee Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program

By Bradley Hanson, Director of Folklife – This exhibit presents photographs and objects documenting the third year of the Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program. The twelve master and apprentice teams include […]

Reinvented Virtual Reality: Works by Denise Stewart-Sanabria

Stewart-Sanabria received an Individual Arts Fellowship in FY19 from the TN Arts Commission. She is also a freelance writer with her work read in Number: Inc., Nashville Arts Magazine, Knoxville Mercury […]

In Communion With Soil: Works By Joe Reynolds

Joe Reynolds earned an M.F.A. in photography from the Massachusetts College of Art & Design in Boston, MA; a B.F.A. in photography from East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, […]

2018

Sophie Glenn and Lydia Johnson: Crafting Contemporary Furniture and Ceramics

Last year, ceramicist Lydia Johnson and furniture maker Sophie Glenn both received Individual Artist Fellowships in craft through the Tennessee Arts Commission. Read more …

More Please: Works by Althea Murphy-Price

Althea Murphy-Price’s work has been recognized for its nonconventional approach to traditional printing techniques and content. Often manipulating manufactured synthetic and human hair she emphasizes its role as embellishment as […]

Master Artist Apprentice Program 2018

The Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) is a cooperative partnership of the Tennessee Arts Commission and Tennessee Craft. The following partners worked together to sustain craft for the next generation: […]

2018 Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program

This program is designed to encourage the preservation of our state’s diverse folklife traditions, especially those that are rare or endangered. Learn more.

Spirit To Clay: Works By Tina Curry

Exhibited at the Tennessee Arts Commission Gallery October 5—November 30, 2018. Recognized primarily for her hand-built, clay animal sculptures (especially equine), Curry creates her own distinctive style through using alternative […]

Sarah Ahmad: My Oasis

Exhibited at the Commission from December 7, 2018—January 4, 2019. Currently living in Memphis, first generation American and award-winning mixed media artist, Ahmad actively exhibits her work nationally as well as […]

2017

Celebrating Contemporary Art from the Commission’s Collection

Over the past 50 years, the Commission collected contemporary art produced by twenty-first-century artists who were living and working in Tennessee.  

Celebrating 50 Years: An exhibition of folklife from the Commission Collection

Tennessee is fortunate to have a rich and vibrant history of folklife artists. This commemorative exhibition highlights a small selection of folklife objects purchased by the Commission over the years […]

Tennessee Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program 2017

This program is designed to encourage the preservation of our state’s diverse folklife traditions, especially those that are rare or endangered. Learn more.    

Celebrating 50 Years of Craft from the Commission’s Collection

Across the three grand divisions that make up the east, middle and west Tennessee regions, craft artisans have continued to heighten and hone their original and inventive skills in every […]

Master Artist/Apprentice Program 2017

The Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) is a cooperative partnership of the Tennessee Arts Commission and Tennessee Craft. The mission of this collaboration is to encourage and invest in the […]

Georgann DeMille: Purposeful Repurposing

Fondly nicknamed the “Hippie Bag Lady” due in part to having made bags as well as often being seen hefting bags stuffed with repurposed materials gifted by friends, DeMille incorporates […]

2016

Marga Hayes and Jay Mcbride

2 x 2: Wisdom is a Work in Progress on exhibit January 22–March 11, 2016 A collection of works by East Tennessee artists, it features ceramics, paintings, wood turning and more. Read more…

Gopal Murti

Science to Art, on exhibit from March 18-May 13, 2016 This exhibition highlights Murti’s work as both a scientist and an artist, as well as the transition seen through his […]

Jered Sprecher

Recent Prints and Paintings, on exhibit May 20—July 15, 2016 “As an artist I make paintings that exist in the sliver of space between abstraction and representation,” says Sprecher, “ […]

TWIN/Jerry and Terry Lynn

Evolution: Twin/Jerry and Terry Lynn on exhibit July 22–September 16, 2016 Memories and reflections of growing up in a close family in TN and hearing relatives’ antecdotes have become the brothers’ visual […]

MAAP

Master Artist/Apprentice Program (MAAP) on exhibit September 23—November 11, 2016 A cooperative partnership of the TN Arts Commission and TN Craft, MAAP’s mission is to encourage and invest in the continuation, advancement and creation of Tennessee craft by […]

Photography by Ear

Photographs by Charmaine Lanham on exhibit November 18, 2016–January 13, 2017 As one of the original owners of Nashville’s legendary Station Inn and photographer Charmaine Lanham honed her pen, ear and eye […]

2015

MAAP 2015

Master Artist Apprentice Program (MAAP) on Exhibit September 24–November 14, 2015 The mission of this collaboration is to encourage and invest in the continuation, advancement and creation of Tennessee craft by […]

Baldwin Lee

Photographs of Black Americans in the South on Exhibit July 31–September 18, 2015 The show is a compilation of seven years worth of photographs that form the collection Lee refers to as […]

Joanna Higgs Ross

A Mini-Retrospective 1956-2015 on Exhibit May 29-July 24, 2015 The show highlights Ross’ journey using artistic expression through diverse themes, mediums and styles. Her prolific portfolio extends nearly 60 years […]

Robmat Butler

Sojourn on Exhibit April 1-May 22, 2015  This solo exhibition studies how objects relate to each other, how we relate to these objects and how these objects create the environment in which […]

30 Years of Folklife Program

At his retirement from the Tennessee Arts Commission in December 2014, Dr. Robert “Roby” Cogswell left a legacy of 22,000 photographs documenting Tennessee’s traditional arts and culture. This exhibit is […]

Lendon Noe

Inspired by The Forest Unseen on exhibit November 20–January 15, 2016 This installation is inspired by David Haskell’s writings, and is the beginning of Noe’s response to the book. Read more…  

2014

Hattie Duncan

African American Folk Sculptor on Exhibit July 31-September 19, 2014 Duncan’s expressive sculpture offers a loving, humorous portrayal of her hometown community in Jackson, Tennessee. Read more…

Denice Bizot

Baxwin’s Best on Exhibit April 3–May 30, 2014 Creating treasures from discarded metals intrigues Bizot. She spends hours searching through junk and muddy slosh pits to hunt down interesting shapes, some suitable for […]

Clorinda Chávez Galdós Bell

Cuzco School of Religious Art on exhibition February 13,2014-March 28, 2014 Featuring the Peruvian painter whose work exemplifies the style of Peruvian painting that was introduced to Cuzco by Italian artist/Jesuit monk […]