DECEMBER SALON SATURDAY OPEN HOUSE CELEBRATES NINE YEARS AND COUNTING…

Photography Exhibit Showcases Kimiko’s The Art of Geisha and

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company holiday doors open for its ninth birthday celebration on Salon Saturday, December 17, from 2:00pm to 6:00pm.  Continuing the gallery’s near decade-long focus on the art of photography, owner Anne Brown presents a photographic extravaganza featuring two local photographers:  Kimiko highlights Japanese geisha society in The Art of Geisha and  Bob SchatzTennessee Simply Beautiful.  Signed copies of the book will also be available for purchase.

Nashville-based international photographer Kimiko explores the culture of the geisha in a photographic series entitled The Art of Geisha with images captured on a recent journey to Kyoto, .  The unique customs of the geisha, continuing to thrive today, are icons of .  The word geisha is translated from Japanese to English as the artist.  Renowned for their mesmerizing white painted faces, the geisha train in the arts of conversation, dancing, and singing with the sole intent to entertain men.  The geisha way of life is isolated, as the collective closed its doors to outside influence over 130 years ago.  Even as continues to evolve as a technological leader in the modern world, the geisha hold to established traditions.  “Kimiko’s artistic photographs capture several geisha as they pass casually on the streets of Kyoto.  Her photographs reveal the essence of this particular portion of Japanese culture…her images unmask the timeless geisha in their modern environment,” states Arts Company owner Anne Brown.  Kimiko is married to the legendary former official White House Photographer Joe O’Donnell.  Both photographers are represented by The Arts Company.

Bob Schatz’ photographic series from the book, Tennessee Simply Beautiful, showcases the diverse character of the Volunteer State; including the Grand Ole Opry, the Jack Daniels Distillery, rhythm and blues music, Tennessee Walking Horses, and Elvis Presley.  With photographs taken over a fifteen year period, Schatz captures the rich variety of Tennessee landscapes, from the brilliant fall colors of the Great Smoky Mountains in the east to the King’s Graceland in the west.  An introduction to the book is written by former second lady of the , photographer, and environmentalist Tipper Gore.  A commercial photographer whose career spans 25 years, Bob Schatz shoots primarily advertising and corporate work for local and national companies - such as Honeywell, Chevron Texaco, Pinnacle Financial, Arkema, and Bohan.  His photographs have won numerous regional and national awards, with his stock photography featuring over 200,000 images with an emphasis on people, lifestyles, business, and Americana.  His photographs have been published in numerous publications; including Elle, Forbes, Fortune, National Geographic Traveler, The New York Times Magazine, and Newsweek.   

THE ARTS COMPANY CHOSEN BY LIFE MAGAZINE TO EXHIBIT WORKS FROM NEW BOOK

“AS I SEE IT”

THE PRIVATE EYE OF JOHN LOENGARD

The Arts Company Salon Saturday, November 19 – 2pm to 6pm

Photographer/Author John Loengard to Appear for Special Signing

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown announce iPHOTOART, Inc., the exclusive sales and marketing agent to the trade for The LIFE Gallery of Photography, has signed The Arts Company to present an exhibition and sale of fine photography from a forthcoming photography anthology, As I See It.  Reviewing the 50-year career of LIFE photographer John Loengard, the exclusive exhibit and sale, entitled As I See It:  The Private Eye of John Loengard, will feature selected photographs spanning the career of the legendary photographer.  The Salon Saturday opening reception will be on November 19, from 2:00pm until 6:00pm, in the main downstairs gallery, 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts.  John Loengard, named one of “The 100 Most Important People in Photography” by American Photo magazine, will be present to discuss his celebrated photographs and sign copies of the book that will be available for purchase.  For collectors who purchase one of Mr. Loengard’s photographs during the opening events, the photographer will sign a personal dedication to be affixed to the back of the framed photograph.  As I See It is a 216-page book to be published October 15, by The Vendome Press and distributed by Harry N. Abrams, Inc.  As I See It:  The Private Eye of John Loengard exhibit will continue through December 31. 

 As I See It:  The Private Eye of John Loengard exhibit features photographs selected from the book, As I See It, written by John Loengard, including 128 photographs in duotone.  As I See It, with an introduction by award winning short story writer Ann Beattie, showcases a diversity of John Loengard’s photographs.  Additionally, the book offers Loengard’s reflections before and after each photograph was taken.  Loengard subjects include movie stars, writers, politicians, artists, and other photographers, as well as everyday people engaged in a host of extraordinary activities rendered unforgettable and compelling by the photographer’s vision.  From the shimmering Marilyn Monroe to a man dozing on the beach; a guffawing Ronald Reagan to Henri Cartier-Bresson flying a kite; a groundskeeper in Dublin to picnickers in Central Park – John Loengard’s vision captures the artistry of humanity.

“If I had a photographic creed, it would be to try to evoke feeling from objects that are not evocative, to find movement in situations that are still, and to capture beauty in subjects that have none,” said John Loengard. 

 “The Arts Company is proud to continue our exclusive relationship with The LIFE Gallery of Photography as we showcase the incredible images in this exhibit and sale," states Anne Brown.  "A photographer, such as John Loengard, can capture a moment on film that offers a particular perspective of history.  John Loengard's photos are timeless and compelling.” 

 John Loengard joined the staff of photographers at LIFE magazine in 1961, and became one of LIFE’s most distinguished staff photographers developing memorable essays on Georgia O’Keeffe, the Shakers, and the Vanishing Cowboy, to name a few.  In 1972, when LIFE suspended publication as a weekly, Loengard became a member of parent company Time Inc.’s magazine development group.  One of his projects was People magazine, where he served as the picture editor in 1974.  When LIFE revived as a monthly in 1978, Loengard became picture editor and remained in that capacity until 1987.  During this tenure as editor, Loengard worked with other legendary LIFE photographers Ed Clark, Loomis Dean, Alfred Eisenstaedt, Andreas Feininger, Martha Holmes, Ralph Morse, and Margaret Bourke-White.  Selected photographs from these masters will also be on display and available for purchase. 

 More recently, Loengard was a freelance photographer and author of a number of books including Pictures Under Discussion, which won the Ansel Adams Award for book photography in 1987, Celebrating the Negative, and Georgia O'Keeffe at Ghost Ranch.  His book, LIFE Photographers: What They Saw, was named one of the year's ten top books of 1998 by the New York Times.  The Great LIFE Photographers, edited by Loengard and released in October 2004, was well-received and favorably reviewed by NewsNight with Aaron Brown on CNN, Newshour with Jim Lehrer on PBS, and others.

 The LIFE Gallery of Photography, established in 1984, is owned by The Picture Collection, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Time Inc.  Time Inc. is the world’s leading magazine publisher, publishing 134 regular-frequency titles with 300 million readers.  Time Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX), the world’s leading media and entertainment company, whose businesses include filmed entertainment, interactive services, television networks, cable systems, and publishing.

 
iPHOTOART Inc. is the nation’s leading publisher and distributor of photographic prints to the trade.  The company publishes and sells museum-quality photographic prints covering the 165-year history of the art form to art and design trade accounts; including art and photography galleries, interior designers, corporate art buyers, lifestyle retailers and direct-market home furnishing catalogs.  iPHOTOART is the exclusive publisher and distributor of The LIFE Picture Collection and The National Geographic Collection and publishes and distributes fine photographs from The Associated Press, The George Eastman House Museum, and several other important photographers’ estates and private collections.  iPHOTOART markets both fine art photography and photojournalism, in subject categories such as sports, celebrity portraiture, Americana, world history, landscapes and nature, exploration and adventure, civilization and culture, music and fashion.  In addition to its publishing activity, iPHOTOART is also the exclusive distributor to the trade for The LIFE Gallery of Photography, which has published signed modern photographic prints since the mid-1980s.

THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY SERIES PRESENTS

French Emerging Artist Mohammed Lekleti

The Arts Company Salon Saturday, November 19–2pm to 6pm

Exhibit continues through December 31

 Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown present the American debut of French artist Mohammed Lekleti.  The exhibit, To Paint is to Look Beyond, will premiere on Salon Saturday, November 19, with a reception from 2:00pm until 6:00pm, in the upstairs gallery at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts.  The exhibit continues through December 31. 

ABOUT THE EXHIBIT

Mohammed Lekleti, hailing from the south of , makes his American debut in Nashville with his new series, To Paint is to Look Beyond.  Focusing on both human and animal figures, Lekleti uses empty spaces to sketch threadlike characters.  The need to embrace space in its entirety has led him toward rounded shapes and dynamic swells in a world of spirals.  Flowing movements, musical shifts from warm to cold tones, all aim at rich full strokes.  Rebelling from convention and external rules, he paints with a full brush, frequently relying on mythical narrative and legend to dominate the canvas.  Venturing into an imaginary inner world, he seeks to uncover man as the mirror image of God.  According to the artist, to paint is to look beyond, an attempt to defeat limits, and to transform doubts into joy.  A passionate believer in a peaceful world, Lekleti intends his work to represent man as God’s shadow on earth. 

Nashville, TN — Artrageous at The Arts Company, November 12, from 6:00pm until 9:00pm, 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts, will introduce the intricate works of Virginia-based emerging painter/sculptor Aggie Zed and Nashville-based sketch artist/illustrator Jonathan Richter. 

 Aggie Zed, sculptor and painter, will premiere her small figurative ceramic theatrical-like animal sculptures and colorful life-inspired paintings offering an additional interesting dynamic to this year’s Artrageous exhibit.  Using clay as her primary medium, Zed sculpts with this organic medium to create fist-sized people, some with animal inspired features.  The sculptor’s intention is to present the art with humor and poignancy.  Her drawings are a combination of dry pastel with ink and water, delivered through spray bottles and crude brushes.  Creating conscious and self conscious parts throughout her work, the pastoral imagery comes from years of living with various animals.  Her earliest visual inspirations were from her childhood spent on Sullivan's Island, South Carolina, a barrier island outside of Charleston, growing up with numerous dogs, donkeys, ponies, and other animals.  For over twenty years, Aggie Zed has been developing her clever ceramic sculptures and paintings.

Jonathan Richter, painter and animator, will debut his new series, Pigments, Figments, and Tremens.  The 99 small works that comprise his current exhibit were executed exclusively in pubs.  Working discretely at a corner table with limited palette, brushes, lighting, and scale - Richter completed multiple paintings per evening.  To capture the spontaneity of the moment and the images of the people interacting, he experimented with color, form, and concept.  His paintings, like those of Latrec, Degas, and Glackens, are created in bustling peopled places rather than in sterile studios.  Considering himself to be a public space painter, Richter was trained in fine art, illustration, and animation at Otis Parsons in Los Angeles.  Jonathan Richter followed his painterly path to Nashville where he discovered the city’s most populous places – the sidewalks, the watering holes, the juke joints, and diners – an abundant source of inspiration for his spontaneous portraitures. 

Artrageous, founded in 1987 as a benefit for Nashville Cares, has raised more than $2 million for the support of AIDS education and services in Middle Tennessee.  A group of Nashville's most prominent gallery owners began the event as a response to the AIDS epidemic and its devastating impact on the arts community.  In recent years, Artrageous has been staged entirely by the volunteers of Artrageous, Inc., a not-for-profit, tax-exempt corporation.  Attracting a stunning mix of glamorous partygoers from across the nation, Artrageous has attained near-legendary status as Nashville's largest indoor charity event. It was named the "Top Charity Event" of 1999, 2000 and 2001 by the Nashville Scene Readers Poll.  In 1996, Artrageous was selected for the short list of the South's top parties in The Gay Manual.  In 1997, Artrageous was given the highest possible rankings from Events Report newsletter, which reviews charity fundraisers nationwide.  

THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY SERIES PRESENTS

THE SWIMMERS

By

MULTIMEDIA ARTIST APRIL STREET 

October 15 – November 14, 2005 

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company/Nashville and owner Anne Brown present The Swimmers in a new series of compelling paintings by emerging American artist April Street.  The exhibit will premiere on Saturday, October 15, with a reception from 2:00pm until 6:00pm, in the downstairs gallery at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts.  The exhibit continues through November 14. 

ABOUT THE EXHIBIT

 April Street will debut The Swimmers, her newest series of colorful and dynamic figurative paintings.  The exhibition sensationalizes an underwater Shangri-la.  The large scale paintings on canvas contain the artist’s desire to arrange history and fantasy in a cause and effect relationship.  In “The Swimmers” Street references the historical discovery of cave walls containing prehistoric artist drawings of swimming figures at Gilf Kebir, southwest , near the border of Lybia, in 1933.  The area is now a desert, unlike the place where the ancient artist once swam, and these carvings are legend to the history of his world.  Another environmental event in 1933 was the United States passing the TVA Act enabling flooding of parts of the Tennessee Valley.  This flooding concealed remnants of history, and simultaneously added a layer onto the Earth's surface much like the process of applying paint to canvas, according to Street.  Since her recent move to Los Angeles, Street’s phantasmagoric narratives are concocted with characters, creatures, and textural passageways that occupy a reservoir of historical painting styles and mark making.  In these layered events on canvas, April Street’s stories float through a fantastical space escaping current reality, while engaging in dialogue with the past. 

Salon Saturday at The Arts Company, the third Saturday of every month, has become a popular Nashville tradition.  The gallery exhibit series brings together a broad range of fresh, original, and contemporary artwork in a variety of mediums – painting, photography, sculpture, illustration, and contemporary outsider art – previewing original artwork in various styles on a rotating basis.

ABOUT THE ARTIST

April Street, a Tennessee resident who is currently making art in Los Angeles, works in a variety of mediums including paint, resins, sculpture, video, and digital applications.  Her work is part of the permanent collections of Yasuko Sato; Disney, Tokyo, ; Dunns, London, ; The University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia; and Carol Reese Museum, East Tennessee State University, Johnson City, Tennessee.  Her collaborative work with Craig Freeman, Imagining Appalachia, Virtual View, received an NEA Project Grant.  Street was curator for national exhibitions including the William King Art Center’s The Human Habit benefiting breast cancer research.  This exhibition included the work of Petah Coyne and Polly Giragosian, as well as, other prominent artists.  Street is also the developer of the first permanent sculpture garden and outdoor sculpture competition, Blurring the Lines, in Southwest Virginia.

    October 15 through November 14

                        The Swimmers by April Street       

Salon Saturday, October 15, 2:00pm – 6:00pm
At 4:00pm, the painter will join guests in a conversation about her artwork

THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY SERIES PRESENTS

Carving • Bronze • Canvas • Brush

Fresh, Original, and Contemporary Sculpture

Bill Starke                                      Teena Stern

Don Haugen                         Joe King

&

Paintings by Charles Keiger

The Arts Company Salon Saturday, September 17 – 2pm to 6pm

Exhibit continues through October 7

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown present an autumn sculpture event, entitled Carving • Bronze • Canvas • Brush, at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts.  On September 17, Salon Saturday begins with an opening reception from 2:00pm until 6:00pm.  The exhibit continues through October 7. 

 Carving • Bronze • Canvas • Brush offers unusual insight into a number of nationally recognized emerging sculptors, with an exhibit complemented by a singular painter.  Art & Antiques Emerging Artist Bill Starke presents his newest series of figurative bronzes.  From his Colorado studio, Starke’s conceptual work began first with drawings and paintings; this led to working with metals now showcased in his celebrated limited editions of bronze sculptures.  As an artist philosopher, Starke’s intent is to produce thought-provoking ideas through his works and to generate dialogue.  “Human beings interacting, colliding, cooperating, striving, and achieving are the themes I wish to portray in my sculptures,” states Starke.  “My observations on the human condition are meant to be both humorous and thought provoking.”  Georgia-based artist and former professional dancer Teena Stern produces her work in bronze.  “Far beyond what I could do in dance, with clay I can take the body to its limit,” says Ms. Stern.  “Now, my hands continue the choreography.”  She creates in clay, makes a mold, and casts each piece individually.  Stern’s husband and bronze sculptor Don Haugen joins the exhibit with his newest figurative works.  Sculptor Joe King uses a hammer, chisel and his imagination to discover his own style as he fine-tunes his technique.  Hailing from Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee, King presents sculptures including a farm boy made from limestone and a horse and a lady made from turtella agate.  Commenting on his smooth, glasslike sculptures, King explains, “God gives me such pretty rocks to work with.  I want it to show.”  Completing the exhibit, painter Charles Keiger uses oil and mixed media on wood and canvas, and presents a fresh take on how precision in gesture, design, color, and sparse details can reveal the tremendous depth of anxiety and emotion.  His paintings symbolize universal feelings of experience and understanding that connect with the viewer.  Charles Keiger describes his works stating “Paintings communicate to us from a place that is not seen, but felt.  It is a reflection of our inner life.  Colors and symbols are the vehicles I use for this task."  Keiger is an excellent technician and provides a solid painterly base for the visual magic he creates.

At 4:00pm, the artists will join guests in a conversation about their artwork

THE ARTS COMPANY AND
TAG ART GALLERY TO COHOST
THE SIXTH ANNUAL ART OF MUSIC SHOW
“If You Could See What I Hear”

The Arts Company Salon Saturday, July 16 – 2pm to 6pm
Exhibit continues through August 12

New Paintings by Popular Artists of The Arts Company
California-based Artist Luther Tatum, Memphis-based Artist Lamar Sorrento,
Nashville-based Artist Jack Isenhour
Featuring the Images of Legendary Musicians

Introducing Renowned “Symphony Artist” Billyo O’Donnell
&
TAG Art Gallery Artists Opening Reception, July 16 – 6pm to 8pm

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and TAG Art Gallery are co-presenting If You Could See What I Hear: The Sixth Annual Art of Music Show, at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts, beginning with an opening reception on Salon Saturday, July 16, featuring The Arts Company artists from 2:00pm to 6:00pm, with TAG Art Gallery artists from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. Presenting a collection of music related art, the featured artists and their artworks are inspired by diverse musical genres from classical, country, opera, and blues to jazz. California-based painter Luther Tatum makes a much-anticipated return to Nashville showcasing his 3-dimensional images of blues and jazz legends. Highlighting the Salon, Tatum will perform the slide guitar with well-known selections from the musicians he depicts in his paintings. Another high note of the Salon is Memphis-based painter Lamar Sorrento bringing celebrity worship to new star struck heights in his latest series of music star primitive portraits featuring the Beatles; and Jack Isenhour will debut his own new painting series featuring Nashville landmarks. The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown will introduce to Nashville nationally acclaimed St. Louis-based artist Billyo O’Donnell, one of the top plein air artists in the country. The artistic concert will continue at TAG Art Gallery featuring self-taught artists, including Chicago's Jon Langford and Nashville's Sheila B., Richard Cook, and Chattanooga woodcarver Shane Campbell. The Sixth Annual Art of Music exhibit continues through August 12.

ABOUT THE EXHIBIT

In a duet presentation by The Arts Company and TAG Art Gallery, art and music join forces this summer in If You Could See What I Hear: The Sixth Annual Art of Music exhibit offering art and music lovers a chance to experience the direct impact of music and its effect on the creation of art. This annual exhibit features music-related artwork produced by some of the gallery’s most popular artists. California-based Luther Tatum brings his deep love of music into his 3-dimensional paintings of musical figures. Tatum’s artistic style reveals the story and character of the people he paints, through unique wood shapes and use of color. Lamar Sorrento, a self-taught artist and musician from Memphis, focuses solely and often on painting portraits of his own favorite country and rock and roll artists, especially those whose work he feels has been overlooked and underrated. Jack Isenhour takes his surreal visions of Nashville and combines famous city landmarks and legends. Billyo O’Donnell’s artwork reflects his personality, whether painting outdoors as part of nature, or within the serene setting of an orchestral performance, or creating artwork of an historical landmark. Together, these artists are passionate about both art and music, and especially about giving contemporary life to the shapes, forms, and ideas of music translated into art.

"The Art of Music series makes connections between two art forms, indicating influences from one to the other. Artists are inspired by many diverse elements, but music and art often play off each other," states Anne Brown. "It is exciting to present this collaborative show with TAG Art Gallery, our new in-house gallery partner. Just as music and visual art inspire and complement one another, the synergetic presentation of our joint Salon Saturday offers additional sizzle for the arts market of our region."

July 16 through August 12
If You Could See What I Hear: The Sixth Annual Art of Music Show

Salon Saturday Part I, July 16, from 2:00pm – 6:00pm (The Arts Company)
New Paintings by Luther Tatum, Sorrento, Jack Isenhour, and introducing Billyo O’Donnell
At 4:00pm, Luther Tatum and Jack Isenhour will join guests in a conversation about their artwork.

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THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY
PRESENTS FIFTH ANNUAL EMERGING ARTISTS
FROM NEAR AND FAR EXHIBIT

The Arts Company Salon Saturday, June 18 – 2pm to 6pm
At 4:00pm, the painters will join guests in a conversation about their work
Exhibit continues through July 8

French Artist Elisa Cossonnet Returns as Artist-in-Residence at The Arts Company Showcasing a New Series of Self Portraits and Large Canvases

French Figurative Painter Bohemus Presents New Traveling Portrait Series

American Watercolorist Jim Hubbman Debuts Photorealist Watercolor Paintings

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown present the Fifth Annual Emerging Artists from Near and Far, introducing up-and-coming artists whose work has gained momentum and recognition in the last three years, in the downstairs gallery at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts, beginning with an opening reception on Salon Saturday, June 18, from 2:00pm to 6:00pm. Always fresh, original, and contemporary, The Arts Company searches for the most innovative and promising artists, with this year’s exhibit focusing on two French painters and an American watercolorist. The French connection at The Arts Company continues with the return of painter and Artist-in-Residence

Elisa Cossonnet. Elisa offers her personal emotions and experiences with a new series of Self Portraits made each morning upon looking in the mirror.

International figurative artist Bohemus debuts his new Traveling Portrait series.

St. Louis-based watercolorist Jim Hubbman premieres his newest series of Photorealist Watercolor Paintings. Past emerging artists introduced at The Arts Company have included Greg Decker, Bill Starke, Bill Steber, April Street, and Herb Williams, among many others. The Fifth Annual Emerging Artists from Near and Far exhibit will continue through July 8.

ABOUT THE EXHIBIT

Following her popular American debut at The Arts Company in 2004, Elisa Cossonnet will present her new series entitled Self Portraits. With her signature wit, she looks in the mirror each morning and sketches what she sees there, a daily exercise she uses to test new colors, lines, and ideas. A recent visit to Mexico has influenced her newest works with a crisp palette of colors. For a couple of weeks, Cossonnet will be Artist-in-Residence at The Arts Company as she also travels the United States to gather new insight and experiences for her artwork.

International figurative painter Bohemus travels the world in search of unique faces, bringing them together in his new series, Traveling Portraits. His paintings are based on his drawings sketched during his layovers on his multiple roundtrips from Paris to Atlanta. He has made over 100 portraits of the various people he has encountered. “This collection represents a snapshot of people’s lives as they rush from one place to the next. The people I have painted represent to me individuals experiencing a longing for freedom after confinement in a predefined space, such as an airport.”

Jim Hubbman, with his new series entitled Photorealist Watercolor Paintings, is a photorealist in style working primarily in watercolor on paper. The detailed images he creates are still life tableaux. He begins a painting by uniting odd materials and arranging them to make an engaging, realistic image. As he builds a narrative scene, the artist juxtaposes the original functions of the featured objects with contrasting physical properties of shape, color and mass. His photorealist watercolors have the appearance of a digital image with a surreal twist.

TAG Gallery Upstairs at The Arts Company and its owners Jerry Dale and Julie McFadden will be celebrating its fifth anniversary presenting new work by New York-based painter Lori Field, Chattanooga-based artist Lisa Norris, and Kansas City-based artist Maura Cluthe. The exhibit will begin June 18, and continue through July 9.

THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY WELCOMES BROTHER MEL IN HIS ANNUAL ARTISTIC PILGRIMAGE TO NASHVILLE…WITH SPECIAL GUEST BROTHER BRIAN

The Arts Company Salon Saturday, May 21 – 2pm to 6pm
Exhibit continues through June 10

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company Salon Saturday and owner Anne Brown announce the return of sculptor and painter Brother Mel in his annual artistic pilgrimage to Nashville, where The Annual Brother Mel Art Adventure Continues... On May 21, from 2:00pm until 6:00pm, in the downstairs gallery at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts, the celebrated St. Louis-based Marianist Brother will exhibit a selection of his most recent artwork. Since his Nashville introduction over six years ago, Brother Mel continues to generate excitement for what's next from the artistic repertoire of this prolific and inventive artist. The adventure of art has been a life mission of this celebrated monk, and The Arts Company is once again honored to welcome him to the city, this time to help celebrate his 77th birthday. As an additional highlight this year, Brother Mel will introduce Brother Brian, who will exhibit drawings, commissioned by The Arts Company, documenting Brother Mel at work in his studio. The exhibit will continue through June 10.

ABOUT THE EXHIBITS

Brother Mel Meyer uses a variety of materials both as a painter and a sculptor to, as he says, "bring beauty to space to lift up spirits." His work has been inspired by his travels through which he has perceived a spiritual connectedness that he believes unites the world. As a sculptor, he typically brings a second life of beauty to cast-off items – from tools to construction materials to house ware items. His particular interest in taking these available materials and translating them into sculptural forms results in a broad range of styles, from iconic to abstract to practical. As a painter, Brother Mel makes the same intentional use of color and technique in his watercolors and paintings, creating distinctive landscapes, figures, and abstractions. "As an artist, Brother Mel is indefatigable, intense, and original all at once," notes Brown. "Brother Mel is driven daily to discover new ways to create and use materials, techniques, and colors to express his ideas of beauty in a contemporary world. This year, a fellow Marianist, Brother Brian, will add some new dimensions to the artwork of these two artists who live their lives dedicated to expressing their faith through their art."

Brother Brian Zampier is an artist devoted to producing detailed environmental sketches in daily journals. This year, The Arts Company commissioned Brother Brian to capture Brother Mel at work inside his studio, as well as in the countryside during his annual plein-air painting trips.

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THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY
CELEBRATES FRESH ART PAINTING

WES SHERMAN • CHARLES IVEY • DAVID SWANAGIN
NEW YORK       MEMPHIS       NASHVILLE

Salon Saturday, April 16 – 2pm to 6pm
Exhibit continues through May 13

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown present a Fresh Art Painting Salon - from New York to Memphis to Nashville, beginning on Salon Saturday, April 16, from 2:00pm to 6:00pm, featuring a trio of innovative painters: New York-based abstract painter Wes Sherman, Memphis-based encaustic painter Charles Ivey, and Nashville-based landscape oil painter David Swanagin. Continuing through May 13, in the main downstairs gallery at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts, this exhibition explores three different artistic approaches and processes. Whether musically stirred, inspired by noted painters, or stimulated by awe-inspiring views of landscape and light, the diverse works developed by the three artists of this April Salon Saturday offer inventive painterly processes. All three artists will attend the reception and talk to guests about their individual approaches.

EXHIBITS

Wes Sherman is an abstract painter who “mentally collects" paintings and painters in order to develop an inner measuring stick for his own artwork. Inspired by the potential knowledge and creativity gained through art, his personal “mental art collection” directs the choices he makes from a painting's start to finish. Sherman’s mental collection of works by Caravaggio, Lasker, Marden, Matisse, Nozkowski and Vermeer illustrates the idea that a compilation of artists’ visual ideas can inspire. According to Sherman, the work of each artist generates intimacy in the same personal way a collector lives with any collection - holding each artist's images and ideas up for study, reflection, and inspiration. “When I step into the studio each day, I draw upon the artists I am currently studying in my ‘mental art collection’" said Mr. Sherman. “Because I am always learning, my artistic references are in flux and can change. As I paint, I consider the relationship that one artist has to another and I try to weave their imagery and referential aspects into my own paintings.”

Charles Ivey focuses on creating art primarily through three mediums: acrylics, encaustics, and Venetian plaster. In his new series, Contemporary Part I, the unusual and fascinating abstract results are colorful, exuding a depth of texture. With an appreciation for texture and natural elements, Ivey’s process involves applying layers of paint to a board or canvas and then removing certain aspects of the layers. Using such tools as razor blades to paint scrapers, he reveals his desired effect. Encaustics are particularly complex using pigmented molten wax. When using Venetian plaster, Ivey’s custom mix returns to a solid state as soon as it is removed from the heat, allowing the artist only a few seconds to make a brush stroke. “When everything is flowing (ideas, technique, and good music), I lose track of all external distractions,” says Mr. Ivey. “Using the different mediums and textures affords the meshing of color in the finished pieces. What excites me most about my work are the colors and depth.”

David Swanagin paints landscapes, as well as still life and interior scenes. His oil paintings in his new series are mostly moody scenes capturing strong sources of light akin to the works of the French impressionists. Through light and shadows, this self-taught painter presents realistic views resulting in appealing contemporary works. Wanting viewers to feel an emotional resonance in his work, Swanagin attempts to incorporate a sense of connection between the artist and the scene. “Most important to me and really the basis of my work is strong shadow and light,” said David Swanagin. “I think it makes a scene much more powerful. If I can convey a sense of place and how it makes me feel, then I think I have succeeded as an artist.''

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THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY PRESENTS NEW PERSPECTIVES
BY PAINTERS
JIM BRAY AND MICHELE LAMBERT HERBERT

PLANES, TRAINS, SIRENS, AND MORE…

Two Artists Teaching through their Art Reveal Painterly Passions in New Series of
Drawings, Paintings, and Sketches

Salon Saturday, March 19 – 2pm to 6pm
Exhibit continues through April 8

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown place the spotlight on drawing and painting through Planes, Trains, Sirens, and More…, beginning on Salon Saturday, March 19, from 2:00pm to 6:00pm, featuring artists and teachers Jim Bray and Michele Lambert Herbert. Continuing through April 8, in the main downstairs gallery at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts, this exhibition of drawings and paintings is inspired by careers in teaching and a sense of carpe diem (seize the day). As a college professor in Joplin, Missouri, Jim Bray gains inspiration and creates his works entirely from his classes, teaching his students to start with an idea and elevate concepts by defining new perspectives. Nashville-based artist Michele Lambert Herbert, after a recent life-altering near-death experience, pursues newfound approaches affecting her process in a series recounting the difficulties of her recovery. In addition, The Arts Company explores the artwork of the late Nat Cole (1919 – 1989), who also was a professor from Joplin. The exhibition will include his studio sketches, paintings, and personal sketchbooks of many pieces which later became paintings.

Jim Bray wears two hats: one as a professor and one as an artist. When he retired as head of the art department at Missouri Southern State College, he found himself painting alone. He missed the classroom exchange and discovery of innovative ideas and progressive techniques as he led his students to realize their artistic gifts, so he decided to return to the classroom. “The kids in my classes keep my art current,” says Mr. Bray. He paints with his students, offering, by example, his process of how an artist captures his/her own artistic perspective. Observing the unordinary in ordinary places and objects, Bray takes his college classes to common spots such as shopping centers, railroad depots, airplane hangers, and theater stages. The students discover unexpected subjects and perspectives in these common locations.

Michele Lambert Herbert’s new series, Sirens, is an exhibition of drawings, paintings, and sketches of what she calls the “warrior women.” She represents these women abstractly in her work: nurses and friends, her sister, and other family members who fought along with her as she achieved a full recovery during her recent hospitalization following a ruptured appendix. Herbert’s large charcoal drawings embody spiritual expression. For her, emotion-based art is more about artistic process than the resulting product; simply knowing the techniques of artistic design does not make an artist.

“This new series of work is highly personal for me and represents a new approach to painting due to a brush with death,” said Ms. Herbert. “In October, my appendix burst. During my recovery, I gained a new perspective on life, and it has affected how I make art. Before, I tended to be more careful, almost leaning toward tedium. Now, as I approach the canvas, I am more aggressive with my artistic choices. All of my new paintings allude to the struggles of life, and they also embrace the gifts we gain from the challenges. This traumatic experience helped me to rediscover my joy in painting.”

Salon Saturday at The Arts Company, the third Saturday of every month, has become a popular Nashville tradition. The gallery uses the exhibit series to bring together a broad range of fresh, original, and contemporary artwork in a variety of mediums – photography, painting, sculpture, illustration, and contemporary outsider art – previewing original artwork in various styles on a rotating basis.

“This month’s Salon Saturday brings together two artists who look beyond ordinary perspectives of commonplace objects and events,” said Ms. Brown. “Both of these artists celebrate the connection of spirit and place, using aesthetic expression and technique to make their statements.”

March 19 through April 8
Planes, Trains, Sirens, and More…

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THE ARTS COMPANY SALON SATURDAY SERIES

ENHANCES NASHVILLE ARTS MARKET WITH
CONTEMPORARY AND VINTAGE ILLUSTRATIONS BY
WORLD-RENOWNED ILLUSTRATORS

NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW ILLUSTRATOR
ROBERT GROSSMAN
&
FAMED TIME MAGAZINE COVER ARTIST
ERNEST HAMLIN BAKER

Salon Saturday, February 19 – 2pm to 6pm
Exhibit continues through March 11

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and owner Anne Brown explore the inventive world of Illustrators: Contemporary and Vintage on February 19, from 2:00pm to 6:00pm, featuring critically acclaimed illustrations by nationally recognized illustrators, Robert Grossman and the late Ernest Hamlin Baker. Continuing through March 11, in the main downstairs gallery, at 215 Fifth Avenue of the Arts, this diverse exhibit will include Grossman’s national, sometimes controversial, book illustrations regularly featured in The New York Times Book Review, among others. Also available, in an exclusive arrangement with The Arts Company, are vintage illustrations by Ernest Hamlin Baker, often known as the Time Cover Artist, whose original drawings and paintings often embellished the 20th century covers of Fortune and Time magazines. Both of these influential American illustrators have added a legacy of legitimacy to illustration as an established art form. These illustrations communicate a visual message designed to clarify a subject with a single sketch. Increasing this exhibit’s artful contribution, limited edition bookmarks and bookplates by Grossman and Baker will be available for purchase at the opening Salon.

Robert Grossman will attend the Salon Saturday matinee and discuss the style and breadth of his distinctive works at approximately 4:00pm. The discussion will be highlighted by a lively and entertaining slide-show of illustrations, with subjects ranging from politics to music to current events, showcased in publications such as Time, Rolling Stone, The Nation, The New York Times, among others. A New York resident, Mr. Grossman was first introduced to The Arts Company by his daughter, Leila Grossman, owner of Grannis Photography and The Grannis Archives. Through The Arts Company, Robert Grossman’s original illustrations are exclusively available to the public for purchase.

“Illustration connects ideas, people, and even government policy through character sketches and comedic satire,” said Mr. Grossman. “I try to find a common element that depicts the subject, whether humorous or controversial, and then draw the extremes…a kind of funhouse-mirror of society that hopefully captures the message.”

Some six years ago, The Arts Company presented for sale selections from the original portfolios of the late Ernest Hamlin Baker. The exhibit featured original Time magazine covers by Baker; many are now part of the Smithsonian collection in the National Portrait Gallery. During this year’s exhibit, additional vintage - at times provocative - sketches and other artwork by this fascinating illustrator, best known for his Fortune and Time magazine cover art, will be available.

“Sometimes a picture really is worth a thousand words! The Robert Grossman and Ernest Hamlin Baker illustrations cross the boundaries of language and survey our culture through their personal visual parodies,” said Ms. Brown. “These drawings offer commentary on our contemporary world and provide compelling insight as we ponder issues, events, and personalities of a given era.”

 

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A NEW PAINTING SERIES BY GRAMMY AWARD WINNER
GRAPHIC DESIGNER BILL JOHNSON FEATURING
THE FELINE PAIR YIN AND YANG IN THE YEAR OF THE CAT
Salon Saturday, January 15 – 2pm to 6pm

Upcoming 2005 Exhibitions to Feature New York Times Book Review Illustrator
Robert Grossman, Painters Jim Bray and Elisa Cossonnet, and Sculptor Brother Mel, among others…

January 15 Salon Saturday Opens the New Year with the
Annual Gallery Artist Preview to Showcase Works in 2005

Nashville, TN — The Arts Company and Owner Anne Brown launch the 2005 Salon Saturday Series with award-winning graphic designer and painter Bill Johnson’s new exhibit, The Year of the Cat - Yin and Yang, in the main downstairs gallery, 215 Fifth Avenue, North, on Saturday, January 15, from 2:00pm to 6:00pm; the show continues through Valentine’s Day, February 14. In a delightful series of colorful paintings featuring two cats - Yin and Yang - Bill Johnson explores the ancient Oriental philosophy of opposites. Joining Mr. Johnson will be an ensemble of The Arts Company 2005 featured artists previewing works to be showcased in upcoming Salon Saturdays.

Bill Johnson’s Yin and Yang acrylic-on-canvas series depicts two fanciful felines in antithetical situations. Strategically drawn lines and saturated color distinguish the personalities and characters of Johnson’s cats. He uses vibrant color to explore the juxtaposition of night and day, right side up or upside down, male and female, and interior or exterior. In his process, Johnson adds the first color, a second to excite the first, and a third color to complement the original choice - adding spectrums of painterly adventures through new perspectives.

“As a painter, I have pursued this series as my exploration of the relationship between opposites and colors,” said Mr. Johnson. “My inspiration began while creating a wedding gift for a couple whose marriage combined two households and united two cats – a feline odd couple. With that first painting, I became fascinated with the magnetic personality of the cats and the idea of opposites. I’ve tried to represent them as being in relationship both with each other and with their individual worlds.”