As the temperature descends, the thought of curling up by the fire with a book is certainly enticing. But to stave off going stir-crazy before the end of the month, three Nashville art institutions — the Parthenon, the Frist Art Museum and Cheekwood Estate & Gardens — have exhibits sure to lure even the strictest of homebodies out this winter.
“Harmony,” Christy Lee Rogers, Image Courtesy of The Parthenon
The Muses at the Parthenon
The work of internationally acclaimed artist Christy Lee Rogers has graced the walls of top galleries across the world. For the first time, her work is being shown in the South. The contemporary photographer uses water as a medium, combining it with models, fabric and light. Christy’s work has been featured globally in exhibitions and prestigious projects, including commissions for James Cameron’s Avatar franchise, the Walt Disney Company and The Nature Conservancy.
Fittingly, Christy’s exhibit The Muses is on display at the Parthenon. “The Muses embody the essence of artistic creation,” says Christy. “By drawing from various collections, I hope to show how their influence transcends time and discipline, remaining as relevant to artists today as they were in ancient Greece.” Each work features a submerged model, flowing fabrics and ethereal light to create the desired effect.
Inspired by the Greek muses and their unique areas of influence, the museum will host a series of hands-on workshops and events, including modern dance instruction, comedy improv, writing seminars and more. Complete details will be available on nashvilleparthenon.com.
The Muses is on display in the East Gallery of the Parthenon until June 1.
“La Meule (The Haystack),” Claude Monet, Image Courtesy of the Frist Art Museum
Farm to Table and Tennessee Harvest at the Frist Art Museum
Long before modern restaurants touted menus filled with local ingredients and social media changed the way we plate a dish, the people of France had already woven gastronomy into their nation’s identity. Artists of the late 19th century documented not only food, but the farmers who grew that food and the chefs who prepared it. In the new exhibit Farm to Table: Art, Food, and Identity in the Age of Impressionism, viewers are invited into a world that intersects art, gastronomy and national identity in late-19th-century France.
Focusing on the work of artists like Rosa Bonheur, Gustave Courbet, Paul Gauguin, Claude Monet and Camille Pissarro, the exhibit features approximately 50 paintings and sculptures portraying farmers in fields, gardens and bustling urban markets, as well as chefs and diners in the age of grand banquets and France’s burgeoning cafe scene. The juxtaposition underscores connections between urban and rural life.
The companion show, Tennessee Harvest, focuses on a relationship with food that’s a little closer to home. This exhibit highlights 19th- and early-20th-century realist and impressionist painters depicting food and culture throughout Tennessee. Featuring artists like Lloyd Branson, George Chambers, Gilbert Gaul, Cornelius Hankins, Willie Betty Newman, Catherine Wiley and more, the exhibit shows how local Tennesseans adapted European influences in both subject matter and style.
Farm to Table: Art, Food, and Identity in the Age of Impressionism and Tennessee Harvest are on display until May 4 at the Frist Art Museum.
“The Dutch House (Maeve’s Room),” Becky Suss, Courtesy of JLS Collection
The Dutch House at Cheekwood Estate & Gardens
Renowned artist Becky Suss has arrived at Cheekwood Estate & Gardens — at least, her work has. A Philadelphia-born artist, Becky has created a portfolio that’s as imaginative as it is frank. Using flattened architecture, her large-scale paintings show interiors through the lens of memories — both her own and those of her subjects.
The 10-painting exhibition builds on details in the novel The Dutch House by award-winning author Ann Patchett. Becky also uses her own experiences to influence the works, inviting viewers into a visual interpretation of Ann’s novel based on the memories of the characters and the architecture of the period.
The novel centers around the lives of Danny and Maeve Conroy, siblings who grow up in the Dutch House, a historic mansion outside of New York. When their mother abandons the family, they’re left to be raised by a wealthy, emotionally distant father. Using bold colors, repeating patterns and intricate details, the works create their own narrative that complements the book.
The Dutch House is on display until March 16 at Cheekwood Estate & Gardens.