Untitled by Lynne Ghenov
October 4–26, 2024 @ Arts & Culture Alliance
The Arts & Culture Alliance presents a new exhibition titled "50x50" in recognition of its 50th anniversary. The exhibition ison display throughout the Emporium Center in downtown Knoxville and opensFriday, Oct. 4, from 5-9 p.m. The free gathering with exhibiting artistsalso features live music by Variego3 inside the Emporium. As part of a special First Friday Block Party sponsored by the Alliance, Old City Association and City of Knoxville, the free gathering also features nearly 20 artist vendors and live music with Robinella along W. Jackson Avenue, which will be open to pedestrians only from 5-10 p.m.
Curated by John Douglas Powers,50x50is a survey of Knoxville and Tennessee-based artists exhibiting alongside peers from across the country. The exhibition is a celebration of the individual artistic voice and the essential role of organizations like the Arts & Culture Alliance in supporting and nurturing those diverse voices. The Arts & Culture Alliance serves and supports a diverse community of artists, arts organizationsand cultural institutions.
"You know, it’s a pretty big milestone for the Arts & Culture Alliance (formerly the Arts Council) to be able to celebrate 50 years of quiet, uninterrupted service to a community, its artists and arts and culture organizations," says Liza Zenni, executive director. "We remember and thank all the board and staff members whose devoted and unselfish service over the years has made this anniversary possible. We remember and thank the thousands of artists and arts and culture organizations whose belief in the concept of an alliance drove this organization forward with their constant participation in ACA’s programs and activities, the most visible of which in the last 20 years has been the Emporium Galleries. I couldn’t imagine a curator whose expertise and sophistication could be more perfect than John Powers to bring the many threads of ACA’s ethos together into one exhibition. He has somehow found a way to pair local art with art from further afield so that the cumulative effect is one that looks forward to the exciting future that is yet ahead of ACA."
Utilizing all the exhibition spaces at the Emporium,50x50includes more than 100 works utilizing a variety of media and conceptual approaches by 50 different artists:
Sergio Baroni (Pietrasanta, Italy)
Emily Ward Bivens (Knoxville, TN)
Bill Cook Jr. (Knoxville, TN)
Chelsea Couch (Chattanooga, TN)
Matthew Cummings (Knoxville, TN)
Lee Deigaard (New Orleans, LA)
Dawn Dickins (Clarksville, TN)
Hamlett Dobbins (Memphis, TN)
Travis Donovan (Boone, NC)
McLean Fahnestock (Clarksville, TN)
Casey Fletcher (Madison, WI)
Jonathan Gann (Palm Springs, CA)
Lynne Ghenov (Knoxville, TN)
Andrew Hayes (Asheville, NC)
Travis Head (Blacksburg, VA)
Elana Herzog (New York, NY)
Kelly Hider (Knoxville, TN)
Stacey Holloway (Birmingham, AL)
Risa Hricovsky (Knoxville, TN)
Mala Iqbal (New York, NY)
Brian R. Jobe (Knoxville, TN)
Jennifer Kaplan (Asheville, NC)
Mary Laube (Knoxville, TN)
Aaron Lockhart (Kingston, NY)
Ashton Ludden (Knoxville, TN)
Devin Lunsford (Birmingham, AL)
Elysia Mann (Knoxville, TN)
Brian Melton (Knoxville, TN)
Christina Molina (New Orleans, LA)
Guen Montgomery (Urbana, IL)
Donna Moore (Knoxville, TN)
Celestia Morgan (Birmingham, AL)
Althea Murphy-Price (Knoxville, TN)
Greely Myatt (Memphis, TN)
Raymond Padron (Chattanooga, TN)
Vesna Pavlovic (Nashville, TN)
Billy Renkl (Clarksville, TN)
Raymond Saa (New York, NY)
Karen Seapker (Nashville, TN)
Stephen Slappe (Portland, OR)
Jered Sprecher (Knoxville, TN)
Rylan Steele (Columbus, GA)
Denise Stewart-Sanabria (Knoxville, TN)
Caleb Taylor (Kansas City, MO)
Bob Trotman (Casar, NC)
Christina Vogel (Chattanooga, TN)
Samantha Wall (Portland, OR)
Carl Joe Williams (New Orleans, LA)
Chase Williamson (Knoxville, TN)
Thoryn Ziemba (Star, NC)
Powers is an artist and educator based in Knoxville, Tennessee and is Professor of Sculpture and Time-Based Art in the School of Art at the University of Tennessee. Powers received his M.F.A. in sculpture (with distinction) from the University of Georgia and a B.A. in art history from Vanderbilt University. His work has been featured in The New York Times, World Sculpture News, Sculpture Magazine, Art Forum, The Huffington Post, Art in America, The Boston Globe and on CBS News Sunday Morning. He is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Virginia A Groot Foundation Award, a Joan Mitchell Foundation MFA Grant as well as a Southeastern College Art Conference Individual Artist Fellowship. Powers was a founding member and co-director of C for Courtside, an artist run curatorial project space. He sees creativity as vital to humanity and remains committed to supporting the arts.
The exhibition is on display Oct.4-26,at the Emporium Center, Knoxville, Tennessee. The Emporium is open to the public Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.Most of the works on exhibition will be for sale and may be purchased by visiting in person or the online shop athttps://www.knoxalliance.store. For more information, seewww.knoxalliance.comor call (865) 523-7543.
Category: Exhibits