Meet FY21 Individual Artist Fellows Jana Harper, Marcia Goldenstein, Andrew O’Brien and Dycee Wildman

From Krishna Adams, Director of Visual Arts, Craft, Media, and Design –

In recognition and acknowledgment of outstanding professional Tennessee artists who, through their work add to the cultural vitality of the state, the Tennessee Arts Commission is pleased to award Individual Artist Fellowships ($5000 each) in Visual Art 3-D, Craft, Photography, and Film.

Jana Harper has been the Associate Professor of the Practice at Vanderbilt University Department of Art since 2013. She received her Master of Fine Art at Arizona State University and a Bachelor of Art from the Evergreen State College in Washington. In addition to teaching at Vanderbilt, over the years Harper has also curated numerous shows and has been a visiting artist, instructor, writer and presenter. Her works are in collections across the country such as the University of Miami in Florida, the University of Nevada in Reno, Bernard A. Zuckerman Museum of Art in GA, California State University in Chico, Kohler Art Library Archives at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, the University of Mississippi Museum in Oxford, the University of Colorado in Boulder, the J.S. Blanton Museum in Austin, TX; Library of Congress Special Collections in Washington, D.C.; Sackner Archive of Concrete and Visual Poetry in Miami, FL; and the Drawing Center, New York, NY among others.

“My work investigates human acts of meaning-making through a variety of media including sculpture, drawing, photography, and performance. I am interested in creating relationships between sensory and psychological experiences of weight. For the last several years I have been working on a project whose umbrella title is ‘The Burdens We Carry’ exploring how the body responds to and stores trauma; and how communal experiences of empathy can promote transformation and healing,” said Harper. 

By receiving the fellowship, Harper plans to promote her work through film festivals and other showings, as well as work on new projects and upgrade her studio equipment. Find out more about her work at www.janaharper.com.

Spending over 40 years sharing her skills and knowledge, Marcia Goldenstein retired in 2017 from teaching painting at the University of Tennessee where she was the first studio faculty woman to achieve tenure. Her work has been exhibited extensively throughout the state as well as in WI, KY, NE, VA, and Poland. Her work can be found in collections such as the Joslyn Museum in Nebraska, Hallmark Cards, Inc. in Missouri, Sioux City Art Center in Iowa, and the Little Rock Art Center in Arkansas. Tennessee collections include the Knoxville Museum of Art, University of Tennessee, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Tennessee State Museum, Aslan Foundation, and TVA. An accomplished painter; Goldenstein is also known for her delicate embroidered portraits. 

“My ‘Women Artists and Activists in Stitches’ is a catalog of iconic women who chose the challenge of professional careers in art and social activism. I embroidered them ‘in stitches’ as a metaphor for a laugh at any criticism they may have encountered while pursuing their passions. Using a domestic craft, I highlight the contrast between what activities society deemed acceptable versus how these women redefined ‘women’s work’ through their inspiring and extraordinary accomplishments,” Goldenstein said.

Goldenstein plans to use the funds from the fellowship to continue developing the two series of embroidered portraits, “Women Artists and Activists in Stitches”. The funds will help defray the cost of supplies, framing, shipping, and travel for these projects.

To see more of Goldenstein’s work and learn about her process go to https://vimeo.com/282872130  and www.marciagoldenstein.com.

Andrew O’Brien received a Master of Fine Arts with a concentration in photography from the University of Oregon and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography from the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia. His photography has been exhibited over the past 15 years in PA, FL, CA, IL, GA, NC, and CO. In Tennessee, his work has been shown at the Memphis College of Art, Stoveworks Gallery, Apothecary Projects, Shane Darwent Art and Framing, and the Terminal Station in Chattanooga, as well as Vanderbilt University, Seed Space Lab, and Ground Floor Gallery in Nashville.

“The current focus of my research and creative practice is a body of work titled ‘Drift Alignment’ that engages with the complex and contested history of the US-Mexico border through the practices of astrophotography and celestial navigation. Throughout the series, works oscillate between attempts at precision and its inverse – both subjective experience and mathematical error – in an attempt to arrive at a more nuanced and complex understanding of the region,” said O’Brien.

With the funds from the fellowship, O’Brien plans to continue working on the “Drift Alignment” series including preparing for an exhibition in 2021, purchasing new equipment to assist in the technical practice of astrophotography, as well as developing an artist book to be published with Skylark Editions in late 2020 or early 2021. Visit O’Brien’s website at www.andrewobrien.info to find out more.

For the last 10 years Nashville native, Dycee Wildman has been honing her craft through creating music videos, animation, and short films in roles such as director, writer, and producer. Her work is influenced by filmmakers and directors such as Miranda July, Wong Kar Wai, and Lynn Ramsey. Wildman founded the Defy Film Festival, an annual underground film festival in East Nashville, and works collaboratively with Daisy Dukes Films, a feminist creative group focused on horror storytelling.

Wildman plans to use the fellowship funds to work on the creation of “Hope Chest” with Daisy Duke Films, a short film that was put on hold due to COVID-19. 

“With this additional funding, we can provide the safety precautions, including masks, sanitizer, and COVID-19 safety professionals, necessary to responsibly resume shooting and bring this project to life. The cast, of mostly young tweens, has been reaching out for months about when we can finish and I am thrilled to be able to give them this good news … My hope is that this short film will help raise my profile as a female filmmaker in the South,” said Wildman.

See more of Wildman’s work at www.dyceewildman.com.

Individual Artist Fellowship grant applications are now open in the following categories:

• Visual Art: Two-Dimensional Work or Mural Arts
• Craft
• Media: Film or Photography
• Dance: Choreography or Solo Dance
• Music: Composition
• Theater: Playwriting
• Literary Arts: Fiction, Children’s / Young Adult Literature, or Poetry

Find out more at https://tnartscommission.org/grants/individual/