The Arts & Culture Alliance will present five new exhibitions at the Emporium Center in downtown Knoxville from October 6-27, 2017. A reception will take place on Friday, October 6, from 5:00-9:00 PM as part of First Friday activities downtown to which the public is invited to meet the artists and view the artwork. Knoxville Shimmy Mob and the UT Electroacoustic Ensemble will perform during the reception. Most of the works are for sale and may be purchased through the close of the exhibition.

Printmaking by Elyse-Krista Mische

Tennessee Artists Association: The Fall Juried Show: 43rd Fall Art Exhibition in the lower gallery
The Tennessee Artists Association (TAA) will feature original art by over 20 Tennessee artists including oils, watercolors, acrylics, pastels, photography, and mixed media. “This is TAA's eighth show at the Emporium Center, and we are very excited about the opportunity to present the breadth and quality of Tennessee artists' works represented by our members,” said Kay List, TAA president. The 43rd Fall Show is juried by Connie Gaertner. As sponsors of the show, FastFrame, FrameWorks, Jerry's Artarama, and CMI Moulding have made it possible to provide awards and recognition to the artists.

Tennessee Artists Association (TAA) was founded in 1972. The TAA is a civic organization of fine artists with 50 members. TAA encourages each individual artist to grow and develop through fellowship with other artists, educational programs, and opportunities to exhibit and sell art, and it serves the community through classes. Membership in TAA is open to anyone age eighteen years and older and a resident of the state of Tennessee. Dues are currently $50 for single membership, $60 for family and $15 for students. Meetings are held on the third Tuesday of the month at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 6500 Northshore Drive, which includes a business meeting, a program, and a time for fellowship and refreshments. Guests are always welcome to attend. For more information, visit www.tnartists.org.

The Arrowmont Experience in the Balcony gallery
The Arrowmont Experience will feature work by its current Artists-in-Residence, Max Adrian, Emily Culver, Elyse-Krista Mische, Paige Ward, and Xia Zhang, as well as a small selection of works from its permanent collection. This exhibition is presented in conjunction with Tennessee Craft Week, October 6-15, a collection of craft events and happenings across the state each October. The purpose is to connect and celebrate Craft Artists, the work they create and the businesses that support them. View tennesseecraft.org/tennessee-craft-week for more information.

The Artists-in-Residence Program provides early career, self-directed artists time, space and support to experiment and develop a new body of work in a creative community environment. Each year, five artists of different media are selected for the eleven month program, which begins mid-June and continues through late May of the following year. Participants receive exhibition opportunities, teaching experience, professional development and a private studio. Arrowmont's artists-in-residence will showcase contemporary, craft-based works using a range of media including ceramics, fiber, mixed media, drawing, and installation. The current Artists-in-Residence include:

• Max Adrian - fiber artist creating three-dimensional sculptural forms: www.maxadrian.com
• Emily Culver - multimedia jeweler: www.emily-culver.com
• Elyse-Krista Mische - printmaking, drawing, and ceramics: www.lifepropaganda.com
• Paige Ward - ceramic and sculpture artist: www.paigeward.com
• Xia Zhang - multi-media artist creating work centered on the vessel: www.xiayzhang.com

The exhibition will also include a small selection from Arrowmont's permanent collection, which includes nearly 1,000 works in a variety of arts and crafts media. Made by the hands of current and past Arrowmont instructors, individuals from the settlement school's days, and past artists-in-residence, the works represent the arts and craft school's history, present, and future. Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts is a national art education center. The school enriches lives by developing aesthetic appreciation and fostering self-expression with hands-on experiences in a variety of media, classes, conferences and seminars. On the leading edge of arts education, Arrowmont utilizes contemporary and fine arts techniques to build upon a foundation of traditional arts and crafts. For more information, please visit www.arrowmont.org.

Synthia Clark: Anthropomorphize in the display case
With a background in photojournalism, Synthia Clark is an award-winning photographer based in Knoxville with a focus towards what she calls “the little things.” To Synthia, these are the obscure, usually unnoticed details all around us. In this exhibition, she focuses on finding faces in our surroundings. When she isn’t completing coursework towards her MS in communication studies or working at the University of Tennessee, Clark displays her work in various outlets and enters photo competitions. From tree bark in her hometown of Rockwood, Tennessee to faded graffiti in the alleys of Bergen, Norway, she has traveled to parts of the world photographing the minute details for which she has a passion.

Artist statement: In a crowd of people on a beach pointing at a gorgeous sunset, I would be the one person crouched in the sand with my camera aimed at some seaweed draped on a rock. Not because I’m the one person in the world who hates sunsets. Because I love to photograph the little things, both literally and figuratively. I frequently focus on capturing small, intricate scenes with my lens. So many things in life go unnoticed by people. Through my camera, I am able to notice things from a different perspective. There’s a special beauty in this perspective – a beauty that spurs the imagination and invokes feelings. The best aspect of sharing my work is the opportunity for other people to experience the same range and depth of emotion evoked from a scene I’ve captured.

For more information, visit https://tltphotos.com.

Richard Jansen: Painting with Light on the North Wall
Photography has been Richard Jansen’s passion since 1970 after he returned home from Vietnam. As a freelance photographer, his motivation comes from his surrounding world. “It is what I believe to be a beautiful gift from God,” says Jansen. Scenic and landscape photography is his main area of interest, and he enjoys the spontaneity of creative photography. After his experience in Vietnam, he realized how much he had taken for granted in his environment. “I began to look beyond the everyday routine views and became a very visual person, which thus transformed my way of seeing and understanding the world around me.”

Richard Jansen was born and raised in Kansas, attending Wichita State University before doing a tour of duty in Vietnam. In 1971, he enrolled at University of Washington, Seattle and also attended the University of Colorado, Boulder. He completed Command & General Staff College in 1987 and retired as Lieutenant Colonel in 1997. He has been a freelance photographer for over 45 years. His work has appeared in numerous publications, and he is an active member of the Arts & Culture Alliance and Broadway Studios & Gallery. For more information, visit www.accentphotographyrj.com.

Melanie Fetterolf: The Love of Nature in the Atrium
The Love of Nature Painting series reflects a spiritual belief by the artist that a higher power has a hand in all that we do. The paintings are begun by hand, then given to nature (rain), and finally finished again by the artist. The paintings are a study of the juxtaposition of color and line, an experiment in the use of texture, and the abstract, uncontrolled nature of falling rain. They reflect a need by the artist to let go of control and allow the random and chaotic nature of the technique to create beauty.

Local art educator and watercolor specialist Melanie Fetterolf manages Painting Your World Studio located in Seymour, where art and painting classes are offered in six-week sessions for all ages in addition to paint parties. Fetterolf has displayed at the Davis Gallerias, Smoky Mountain Arts, and the Center for Peace. For more information, visit www.facebook.com/Paintingyourworldstudio.

The exhibitions are on display at the Emporium Center, 100 S. Gay Street, in downtown Knoxville. Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM. For more information, please contact the Arts & Culture Alliance at (865) 523-7543, or visit the Web site at www.knoxalliance.com.