Starry, Starry at the Brooks (Photo: Abigail Morici)
You don’t need to look too far in the sky to see the stars, not at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art. That’s where Greely Myatt has installed his Starry, Starry starscape for the museum’s inaugural Winter Art Garden. Consisting of four sculptural elements — Big Star, Star Fall, Star Sprays, and Sirius (Dog Star and Pup) — the starscape, which opened at the end of November, is a constellation of Myatt’s own creation, stemming from the artist’s recent obsession with stars.
It all started with a show last year for Eagle Gallery at Murray State in Kentucky. For each show, as with the Winter Garden, Myatt notes that “space is crucial,” meaning that he curates his pieces to suit the space they’re shown in, often creating pieces if he’s so inspired. And for “tool,” as the show was called, Myatt was inspired by the reflective black floor of Eagle Gallery. “I wanted to do something with neon,” he says.
What exactly, he didn’t know yet. Myatt toyed with the idea of ripples in water, but after playing with a metric folding rule and shaping into a five-point star, he found his subject. “It was a form that wasn’t just erratic. It was fun, and relatively easy to make,” he says. “And so that happened.” And he happened to have an extra five pieces of traffic sign post leftover from another project, so he made a “massive” star and “put neon under it to reflect light and bounce it back up.”
Now that massive star — aptly titled Big Star, with a nod to the Memphis-based band — sits against the Brooks Museum. To the side of it, on the pedestals where statues Spring and Summer once stood, another star is propped up, this one made of charred wood.
“It’s a fragmented star,” Myatt says of Star Fall as it’s called. “When I was making the other stars [for previous shows], I kind of became interested in, instead of the completeness of it, letting the mind mentally finish it. And I kind of like the incompleteness.”
Star Fall
The wood of this fragmented star comes from a pine tree Myatt grew himself, starting in the third grade. “It was kind of a common tradition that teachers would give students, or at least in Mississippi, a sapling that you would plant and nurture if you were a reasonably good student,” he says. “So I did that, and I planted it behind my mom’s house. And 55 years later, my twin sister called me and said, ‘Hey, I cut your tree. Do you want any of it?’ I said, ‘You did what!’ But my sister was nervous about the storms blowing through and the trees coming down. This was about eight years ago.”
Meanwhile, Sirius (Dog Star and Pup), which is suspended between two trees near the plaza, is made of broom handles, and Star Sprays, which spring up from the umbrella holes in the plaza’s tables like bouquets of sparklers, are made of traffic signs. “I like to have all these materials around because I will use them eventually,” Myatt says. “My mom was like that — some people would call us hoarders. I remember as a kid she taught us how to pull old nails out and straighten them because we had plenty of wood, but we didn’t have any nails and we didn’t have any money. It’s always stuck with me, you know, that kind of idea of reusing material and seeing the good in something old.”
Star Sprays
All in all, though, as he reflects on the use of stars in his work, Myatt says, “They’re abstract, but they’re real. It’s kind of like Dave Hickey once said, ‘A Pollock doesn’t mean anything, but it has meaning.’”
The installation was made possible through the work of Kristin Pedrozo, Jon Hart, Chris Little, Jennifer Draffen, and more, Myatt adds.
Starry, Starry, Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, through January 2025
Back in October, the city of Memphis hired its first-ever director of creative and cultural economy: DeMarcus Suggs. The arts, it seems, have taken priority in the Young administration, and Suggs, and the newly established Office of Arts and Culture where he will find his home, will lead the way.
Suggs describes his position as one of a centralized collaborator and convener, supporting artists and cultural organizations while boosting their economic impact. It’s about making sure the city’s ecosystem — businesses, restaurants, hotels, sports, and cultural policy — complements, welcomes, and retains the arts on a citywide scale.
“There are things we don’t always assume that are deeply connected to the arts,” Suggs says. “And so the role of this office, I think, is going to be helping to coordinate some major initiatives that can’t happen independently, but that we can coordinate and put government support behind.”
After all, not only are the arts an integral part of the “cultural fabric of Memphis”; they’re also an economic driver. “The National Endowment for the Arts produced a report that underlined that artists actually are three times as likely as any other industry to be entrepreneurs,” Suggs points out. “Memphis has a lot of really talented artists. We also have some really grit-and-grind entrepreneurs that have a vision. They have a dream, and they’re willing to build it.”
With this in mind, Suggs is ready to listen. So far, he’s been in conversation with arts organizations and philanthropists, and now he’s ready to talk to individual artists in a town hall listening event on Monday, December 9th, where wants to hear the strengths and weaknesses of Memphis. More listening events like this are to come.
“I’m an optimist that loves to have the full picture, and so I don’t ignore the challenges,” Suggs says. “I’m really excited to dig into what makes Memphis just so beautiful and amazing, in terms of our talent, in our artists, so that we can have more of that, and then really tackle the issues that make it prohibitive to experience those more of the good that we have.”
Once a performing artist himself, a dancer, Suggs understands the life of an artist and wants to create more community and equity in that space — especially in Memphis. “I love Memphis,” says Suggs, who, outside of the month or so he’s lived here since this position, spent a yearlong stint in Memphis for another job in 2021.
“My grandmother was from here,” he adds of his fondness for the city. “She was my first dance partner.”
This first year, Suggs says, will be about “reframing culture.” “That’s really us being able to use [and collect] data [from conversations and events like the listening session],” Suggs says. “We’re going to be framing what success looks like for us as a city, moving forward.”
Earlier this week, Arrow Creative announced its closure following its Holiday Bazaar, which will conclude on December 22nd. The Memphis Brooks Museum of Art will absorb the majority of the nonprofit’s programming, including workshops and camps, artist coworking spaces, and retail opportunities.
“Our goal has always been to empower creatives,” said Abby Phillips, co-founder of Arrow Creative, in a press release announcing the closure. “We know that the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art is already a very strong champion for this mission.”
The launch of Memphis Fashion Week, which sought to showcase Memphis’ fashion design industry, marked the beginning of Arrow Creative in 2012. In 2017, with the closure of Memphis College of Art (MCA), Arrow expanded its reach, outside of just fashion, to support creative entrepreneurs and engage artists of all skill levels in visual arts, hoping to fill the gap created by the school’s closure.
In that mission, this weekend, for instance, Arrow will host a Macrame & Mimosas: Tree Wall Hanging workshop ($54.13) and a Winter Watercolor Workshop ($49.87). It will also continue its Holiday Bazaar, where you can shop more than 100 local artists and makers (Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.) through December 22nd, which, as aforementioned, will be its last day of business.
(Photo: Arrow Creative | Facebook)
All programming added to the Brooks’ existing framework will be recognized under Arrow Creative’s name, with the transition taking place over the coming months. Expect a schedule in early 2025 at brooksmuseum.org.
“By integrating Arrow Creative’s innovative programming into the city’s art museum, we can provide even greater opportunities for artists and creatives of all ages to make and learn while ensuring these resources remain accessible,” said Brooks Executive Director Zoe Kahr in the press release.
Arrow had also purchased key equipment from MCA in 2019, including tools from the woodworking, ceramics, photography, illustration, painting, fashion design, sound lab, letterpress, paper-making, and print-making departments. Those pieces will be distributed to local and regional art organizations, schools, and individual artist groups.
“Memphis has an indelible legacy of incredible creativity and collaboration,” said DeMarcus Suggs, director of creative and cultural economy at the city of Memphis. “I am excited to see these groups come together to support our artists and the creative community.”
“The board, staff, and I are incredibly proud of our work over the last 12 years,” said Phillips. “We look forward to what the next 12 will look like under the helm of Memphis’ art museum.”
Robert Petkoff as Harold Zidler and the cast of the North American tour of Moulin Rouge! The Musical (Photo: Matthew Murphy | MurphyMade)
As the temperatures are cooling down, the Memphis arts scene is heating up — with exhibitions, performances, and unique experiences. See for yourself in our Fall Arts Guide.
“Dear Grandmother” Heather Howle explores themes of nostalgia and familial connection. ANF Architects, through Oct. 17
“Troubling the Line: New Dimensions in Drawing” The works of Melissa Dunn, Terri Jones, Paula Kovarik, Mary Reid Kelley, and Patrick Kelley complicate the idea of drawing. Clough-Hanson Gallery, through Nov. 9
“All Rise: Memphis Bar Association at 150” Through arresting objects and powerful images, the exhibition showcases the Memphis Bar Association’s historical significance and continuing relevance. Museum of Science & History, through Nov. 10
“Bracelets, Bangles, & Cuffs” This collection of contemporary bracelets reveals the wide-ranging creativity of artists working in the jewelry form between 1948 and today. Metal Museum, through Nov. 17
“The 6 Points Artists” This exhibition features Sharon Havelka, Mary Jo Karimnia, Paula Kovarik, Carrol McTyre, Jennifer Sargent, and Mary K VanGieson. Bornblum Library, Southwest Tennessee Community College, through Nov. 27
“Andrea Morales: Roll Down Like Water” Andrea Morales’ first solo museum show features 65 photographs spanning her decade of photojournalism in Memphis and the Mid-South. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, through January
“A Hidden Culture” Master Metalsmith Preston Jackson who gives voice to those overlooked in the history books. Metal Museum, through Jan. 26
“ANA•LOG” Lester Merriweather examines the concept of agency over Black visualization within American popular culture. Crosstown Arts, fall
Alex Paulus, “Size Matters” (Photo: Crosstown Arts)
“Size Matters” Alex Paulus’ current series focuses on the juxtaposition of small figures within expansive landscapes. Crosstown Arts, fall
“Still” Michelle Fair’s latest works delve into the process of painting. Crosstown Arts, fall
“Chromatic” This exhibit merges explores the two worlds of sounds and color in a synergistic full-bodied experience. Arrow Creative, October 3, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
“Two Rivers” Huger Foote captures the moments when day slowly turns to night from Memphis and the Mississippi Delta to the Hudson River Valley. David Lusk Gallery, Oct. 8-Nov. 16
“I Saw the Light in Your Eyes” Ceramic sculptors Renata Cassiano Alvarez and Anthony Sonnenberg work through complex ideas of identity through abstraction. Sheet Cake Gallery, Oct. 12-Nov. 23
“Our Love Is a Shady Garden” Yanira Vissepó studies the ecosystems between her birthplace in Puerto Rico and adopted home in Tennessee. Sheet Cake Gallery, Oct. 12-Nov. 23
MadameFraankie Works by MadameFraankie. Beverly + Sam Ross Gallery, October 21-December 8
“2024 Accessions to the Permanent Collection” This exhibition celebrations the more than 170 pieces added to the Metal Museum’s permanent collection. Metal Museum, November 27-November 2, 2025
ON STAGE
Concerts in the Grove GPAC presents some of the best musicians in the area in a park-like setting. The Grove at Germantown Performing Arts Center, select Thursdays, 6:30 p.m.
Sounds of Memphis Each week, a new Memphis powerhouse presents a unique concert — from the Handorf Company Arts of Opera Memphis to YOBREEZYE. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Thursdays, 6 p.m.
De Aquí y de Allá Accompany the courageous Don Quixote of La Mancha and his trusty sidekick, Sancho Panza, on an adventure full of fun, music, dance, culture and more. Orpheum Theatre, October 4-5
Paradise Blue This dynamic and musically infused drama shines light on the challenges of building a better future on the foundation of what our predecessors have left us. Hattiloo Theatre, through October 6
Girl from the North Country The Tony Award-winning musical reimagines Bob Dylan’s songs into a story about a group of wayward travelers. Orpheum Theatre, Oct.8-13
The Mousetrap Theatre Memphis presents this murder mystery. Theatre Memphis, Oct. 11-27
Lizzie: The Lizzie Borden Musical New Moon Theatre’s Lizzie is American mythology set to a blistering rock score. TheatreWorks@The Square, October 18-November 3
The Smell of the Kill This tantalizing dark comedy has malicious housewives and miserable husbands. Germantown Community Theatre, Oct. 18-Nov. 3
Amadeus: The Music and the Myth Opera Memphis explores Mozart through the lens of music from the award-winning movie Amadeus. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, Oct. 19, 7:30 p.m.
Rumpelstiltskin A young girl is locked away until she spins straw into gold. Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center, Oct. 26, 2 p.m.
Moulin Rouge! The Musical Baz Luhrmann’s revolutionary film comes to life. Orpheum Theatre, Oct. 29-Nov.3
The Three Bs: Bach, Brahms, and Beethoven Memphis Symphony Orchestra presents. Crosstown Theater, Nov. 1, 6:30 p.m. | Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, Nov. 3, 2:30 p.m.
Iris Collective Orchestra: Transformations Memphis-native Randall Goosby and conductor and Iris founder Michael Stern will be joined by the Germantown Youth Symphony. Germantown Performing Arts Center, Nov. 2, 7:30 p.m.
Taikoproject Taikoproject traces the history and lore of the ancient Japanese drums. Buckman Performing Arts Center, Nov. 7, 7 p.m.
The Orchestra Unplugged: Leonard Bernstein Music director Robert Moody of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra guides audiences through the life and legacy of the American Maestro. Halloran Centre, Nov. 8, 7:30 p.m.
Junie B. Jones: Toothless Wonder This family-friendly show takes audiences on a humorous journey of growing up with Junie B. Jones. The Circuit Playhouse, Nov. 8-Dec. 22
Parallel Lives Two actresses play men and women struggling through the common rituals of modernity. Theatre Memphis, Nov. 8-23
The Wizard of Oz Dorothy isn’t in Kansas anymore. Playhouse on the Square, Nov. 15-Dec. 22
The Rake’s Progress Opera Memphis presents Igor Stravinsky’s neoclassical opera. Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, Nov. 22, 7:30 p.m. | Nov. 24, 3 p.m.
NutRemix New Ballet Ensemble sets The Nutcracker on Memphis’ iconic Beale Street. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, Nov. 23-24
Peter Pan This high-flying musical comes to Memphis. Orpheum Theatre, Nov. 26-Dec. 1
Who’s Holiday Cindy Lou Who returns in this riotously funny and heartwarming adults-only comedy. Circuit Playhouse, Nov. 22-Dec. 22
A Motown Christmas Celebrate the holiday season with this musical of all your favorite Motown tunes. Hattiloo Theatre, Nov. 22-Dec. 22
Twelfth Night Shakespeare’s most charming comedy finds itself on the Tabor Stage. Tennessee Shakespeare Company, Dec. 6-22
A Christmas Carol ’24 Theatre Memphis presents this holiday classic. Theatre Memphis, December 6-23
Bright Star Steve Martin and Edie Brickell’s bluegrass musical tells a story of love and redemption in 1920s and ’40s North Carolina. Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center, Dec. 6-8
Tía Pancha Tía Pancha is Cazateatro’s bilingual adaptation of the classic A Christmas Carol but with a Latin and female twist. TheatreWorks@The Evergreen, Dec. 6-14
A Charlie Brown Christmas: Live on Stage The whole family can enjoy this adaptation of Charles M. Schulz’s timeless story. Orpheum Theatre, Dec. 7, 2 p.m., 5 p.m., 7:30 p.m.
The Nutcracker Ballet Memphis’ production of this holiday classic returns. Orpheum Theatre, Dec. 13-15
AROUND TOWN
Art Club The Brooks’ Art Club with Mallory Sharp gives participants an in-depth look at a different work of art each month. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, monthly
Appetite for the Arts Enjoy a picnic and/or food truck fare while feasting your eyes on music and dance films. The Grove at Germantown Performing Arts Center, Wednesdays in October, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
Super Saturdays Enjoy free drop-in art making workshops for families and free admission to the Brooks. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Saturdays, 10:30 a.m.-noon
Free Family Day On the second Saturday of the month, the Stax has live music, outdoors, food trucks, games and activities, arts and crafts for children, and free admission to the entire museum. Stax Museum of American Soul Music, second Saturdays of the month, 1-5 p.m.
Artoberfest Off the Walls Arts showcases Memphis artists and musicians for a day of music, vendors, a costume contest, activities, and fun. Off the Walls Arts, Oct. 5, 2-10 p.m.
V&E Greenline Artwalk 2024 Meet and shop from local artists, and enjoy music, entertainment, children’s activities, and artist demonstrations. V&E Greenline, Oct. 7, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Paint Memphis A hundred or so artists will be painting murals all day long and it’s a spectacle to behold. Willet and Lamar, October 12, noon-7 p.m.
Come as Thou Art Guests will don their most imaginative attire, either inspired by the night’s theme — the world of Tim Burton — or the spirit of a designer. The evening will be capped off with a fashion show by Sonin Lee. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Oct. 18, 8 p.m.
Art on Fire Enjoy tastings from local restaurants, live music, thrilling fire dancers, and a vibrant art sale — all set around a roaring bonfire. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Oct. 19, 7-11 p.m.
Dracula Party Celebrate Ballet Memphis’ reprise of Dracula and help raise critical funds to support its mission with a Halloween party where you can party like a vampire. Mollie Fontaine Lounge, October 19, 7:30-10:30 p.m.
Repair Days Bring your metal items to have them restored their former glory at the Metal Museum’s largest fundraiser, which also includes the Dinner + Auction and Family Fun Day, where visitors can participate in hands-on activities, explore the galleries, and watch metalsmith demonstrations. Metal Museum, Oct. 17-20
RiverArtsFest The region’s largest and longest running fine arts festival showcasing works from 200+ participating local and national artists returns with an artist market, artists-at-work demonstration station, hands-on artist station, performances, and plenty of food and beverages. Riverside Drive, Oct. 20, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
28th Annual Quilt & Fiber Arts Show and Sale View around 100 antique, vintage, and modern quilts, plus meet with vendors and demonstrators and see a new special exhibit. Davies Manor Historic Site, November 1-3, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
The Orpheum Soiree Enjoy an evening including glittering entertainment, live auction, specialty cocktails, exciting eats, and fun surprises. Orpheum Theatre, November 15, 7 p.m.
…
ARTSassist
In August, ARTSmemphis announced the inaugural distribution of ARTSassist grants to 22 individual artists, providing these artists in dance and visual arts an unrestricted $5,000. This makes it the only unrestricted grant program supporting individual artists in Shelby County.
The program comes as an expansion of a pre-pandemic grant program for visual artists, known as ArtsAccelerator. As ARTSmemphis CEO and president Elizabeth Rouse says, “About 10 years ago, thanks to some local artists in the community who asked questions of us, we began a grant program to support visual artists. … We started with visual artists because at the time, they had fewer other networks of support and fewer other opportunities to be hired.
(top) Dorian Rhea; (below) Therrious Davis (Photos: Courtesy ARTSmemphis)
“But that really, thankfully, put us in a position to launch an artist emergency fund for individual artists in 2020 as artists of all different types immediately lost work during the pandemic. And we supported about 800 artists during the pandemic with emergency funding totaling almost a million, right around $900,000. From 2020 through 2023, we focused on emergency and recovery funding, so coming out of 2023 we wanted to reintroduce an unrestricted grant for artists and expand it rather extensively.”
That meant bringing on an artist advisory committee made up of Memphis artists to make sure artists’ needs were met, and out-of-town jurors to select the grantees without local bias. That also meant, in addition to supporting the 22 selected grantees, partnering with Indie Memphis to support a filmmaker through Indie Memphis’ Black Creators Forum and partnering with Music Export Memphis (MEM) to support three musicians through its Ambassador Access program. “It was a way for us to be efficient and not create something new, but to support and complement,” Rouse says. “We hope, long-term, to be supporting even more types of artists. But it makes sense, just based on the makeup of artists in our community, that we start out with visual, dance, music, and film.”
This first cohort will use their grants for a variety of reasons, Rouse says. Therrious Davis, an illustrator, comic book artist, and occasional muralist, has used his grant money to buy a new computer and tablet. “I had this laptop for close to 10 years now,” Davis says. “It was starting to show signs of its age.”
Davis has been developing a comic project called Exodus of Love, premised on the question, ‘What if Cupid didn’t know what love was?’ But not having reliable or capable equipment has been holding him back from making headway. “The goal will be to make more videos following the development of the comic book project and to give people a chance to follow it from the ground up.” (You can follow Davis’ progress on Instagram @therrothekid.)
Meanwhile, choreographer Dorian Rhea plans to use his grant to fund future movement-based programming at the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library. “It’s going to be jazz. It’s going to be social dance, known as hip-hop styles, accompanied by excerpts and texts to contextualize the history,” Rhea says. The classes will be for young kids and their parents, an experience that Rhea, as a new dad himself, hopes will “sow the seeds for much more later down the road.”
Rhea will also use his grant to attain a technique certification in Giordano dance, a style of jazz that originated in Chicago. “I’m hoping that with bringing that style to Memphis, we elevate the cultural exchange that I think is already taking place [between Chicago and Memphis],” he says. “Knowledge is power. Art is all about telling a story and communicating the narrative, sharing an experience, and so as someone who believes in art activism — using arts as a vehicle for creating change and sparking the catalyst for evolution, growth, progress — the more grounded my work is in the history of those who’ve come before, the richer I can articulate lessons.”
No matter their personal goal, Rouse says, “We know how important it is to have a strong community of artists and to be a city that is a city of choice for artists. They’re just so critical to our culture and our economy, so … we intend for this to be an annual grant.”
On Monday, in alignment with this goal, ARTSmemphis, in partnership with Music Export Memphis, also announced a new, first-ever Artist Emergency Fund for local artists, which will support artists in times of unexpected and catastrophic emergency. For more information on both of these grants, visit artsmemphis.org.
…
Andrea Morales: “Roll Down Like Water”
Andrea Morales has been making photographs since she was a child, and yes, “making photographs” is the right phrase here. Not taking photographs, capturing, or shooting. For Morales, these words are too aggressive to describe a process that is about building trust and intimacy between the photographer and the photographed individuals, or, as Morales calls them, her collaborators.
She’s been working in Memphis as a photojournalist for a decade now, making photographs of the community. You probably recognize her name from her work as the visuals director at MLK50: Justice Through Journalism, but she’s also been featured in The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, Rolling Stone, and TIME Magazine, among many others. Now, to add to her impressive resume, the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art has opened an exhibit of 65 of her photographs of Memphis and the surrounding region, titled “Roll Down Like Water.”
Andrea Morales, Southern Heritage, 2017 (Photo: Courtesy Andrea Morales)
Taking its name from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s final speech in Memphis, in which he said, “Let justice roll down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream,” the exhibit, says its curator Rosamund Garrett, is “a portrait of America through Memphis.”
“There are some tremendously famous photographers from this area,” Garrett says, “but I really feel that Andrea looks at things through a very fresh lens, and she looks at this region very directly, very earnestly, in a way that still allows the magic of this place to come through.”
But in this exhibit, not appearing in a publication with someone else’s byline, a headline she didn’t choose, or quotes she didn’t pull, the photos can stand alone. “It does feel like something’s being restored, I guess,” Morales says. “I’m struggling with identifying exactly what, but it feels like something’s restored. It’s like back to that feeling of the moment [of making the photo] because you have that moment and then you kind of have to tuck it away because this photo has to exist in this one context [of an article]. But this is all existing in the context of me and Memphis right now.”
Binghampton is putting on a play. The actors are young and old, some seasoned and many freshly-minted to the spotlight. Kids at Carpenter Art Garden are building scenic elements, and community members are tuning their instruments for a show their stories helped create.
It all started over a year ago when the Orpheum Theatre Group launched its Neighborhood Play Program. After working with the Refugee Empowerment Program in Binghampton, making original plays out of participants’ stories, Orpheum staff “realized one of their favorite moments in it was when they got to step out of their story and play the characters that were in other people’s stories,” says Taylor St. John, Orpheum’s director of education and engagement. “There’s something powerful about telling your own story, but there’s also something powerful about participating as a community in a fictional story.”
Ann Perry Wallace (Photo: Courtesy Orpheum Theatre)
So came the Neighborhood Play Program, through which the Orpheum partnered with various organizations and formed “story circles” to create a neighborhood play. “For six months or so, we got people in a circle and asked them questions about their community, things that they found beautiful, things that they found challenging,” St. John says.
These stories, in turn, would be the inspiration for the fictional story that playwright Ann Perry Wallace, author of the one-woman play Live Rich Die Poor, would weave. They then presented this fictional story in another round of story circles for feedback.
“I felt like I had a lot of responsibility to deliver something that was representative of what I had heard,” Wallace says. “You are responsible for these stories that have been told, you are responsible for putting out this image of the people, and so that is a weight that I carry with honor and take seriously. There’s nuance. And so I’m having to hold all of that in a way that gives dignity where dignity is due and have to show the complex struggles where they are present. It is a dynamic place, and I hope for people to see the intricacies, or just a snapshot of those intricacies come out.”
As for the plot of the play, titled We All We Got, St. John says, “The story itself centers on two young Black girls living in the neighborhood, one from a generational home and one living in the apartments who’s a refugee, and how they navigate the world and encounter all of the various characters of Binghampton.”
The hope, both St. John and Wallace point out, is to highlight the different experiences within Binghampton. “It’s one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Memphis,” St. John says. “There’s over 20 languages spoken there, and so we really tried to honor the stories that do not otherwise get highlighted.”
With all those differences, St. John adds, “It’s been exciting, in the last couple weeks, to see all those people from all those different groups that do different things and have very different beliefs and sometimes cultures now all be in the same room, and we’re all working on this thing together, and it just feels like a great exercise in community.
“We think it’s so important that the people in Binghampton can hopefully see themselves in this play, or see reflections of their ideas and other stories in this play. But it’s also really important that as a city, we’re able to come together [by seeing the play].”
The play is set to premiere in November, with community members acting both in the scenes and behind the scenes. Already, just watching rehearsals has Wallace “thrilled.” “You are seeing people who have pride in the neighborhood come out to be a part of it and really stretch themselves in creative and artistic ways,” she says. “Not all of them are normally doing this in their day-to-day life, and then we do have some actors who are in it, but particularly the community members, them showing up and performing best, to me, that’s pride, and that’s dedication, and that’s belief in their community.”
All three performances, which will take place at First Baptist Broad Church in Binghampton, will be free to attend, and Backbeat Tours will provide free transportation at designated locations.
Paint with local women painters on the riverfront this March at Cossitt Library. (Photo: Courtesy Cossitt Library)
With winter melting away, now is the time to spring into the arts as new exhibits, performances, and happenings begin to pop up all over town. So be like the groundhog and come out of your hidey-hole. Spring has sprung, Memphis.
…
Painting on the River Series
With March being Women’s History Month, Cossitt Library has teamed up with five local women painters for a Painting on the River Series, offering a painting class each Saturday in March on the riverfront.
“We’re just trying to create an initiative that aligns with our commitment to promoting diversity and just celebrating women’s achievement,” Cobbert says. “I really wanted to highlight a lot of different artists. Me being in the art scene, it’s easily noticeable that sometimes the same artists are always on the pedestal, so I like to highlight local artists to just give them a platform. That’s something that the library can contribute since everybody can’t book out larger venues and stuff.”
Each artist will introduce their own style, Cobbert says. Baker will do a class on healing through watercolors, for instance, while Willoughby will focus on portraiture. “People should be able to find their fix within this group of five talented women.”
The classes are completely free, with all supplies provided through the Memphis Library Foundation. “We plan to have tables outdoors, so people can touch the grass a little bit and just paint,” Cobbert says. “It’ll be a way to build community through people who see painting as a hobby or a career and just come and learn.”
ARTSmemphis’ Art by Design will bring in vignettes of living spaces. (Photo: Laquita Tate)
After a pandemic pause, ARTSmemphis is bringing back its Art by Design fundraiser, a five-day series of events highlighting Memphis’ interior design community. At the core of the fundraiser is the gallery showroom where just over 20 designers will have created vignettes of living spaces. There will be arts activations, music, food, and more, during the showroom’s hours.
“It’s a great way for people to come and not only maybe get inspiration for their own houses, maybe buy a few things, maybe learn about some new Memphis artists they may not know about, but also to support our process,” says Elizabeth Rouse, ARTSmemphis president and CEO. “Most of our work is really focused on raising money and then granting it out and supporting arts organizations and artists in a variety of ways, and so this is just a really unique opportunity for interior designers, who in some cases are competitors, to come together for Memphis and to showcase their own work, which is very different.”
This will also be the first year that Art by Design will implement its Emerging Designers program, through which it will waive the vignette fee for regional emerging designers Colin Chapman, Brittney Murckson, Jurnee Kelley, and Baylor Pillow. “We really see this as an opportunity to help strengthen the interior design field in Memphis and bring that community together,” Rouse says.
Designer Carmeon Hamilton created this program in 2020, and even had designers prepared to participate, before the event was canceled due to Covid. Laquita Tate was one of those initial emerging designers, but she will now be joining Art by Design as a “fully emerged designer.”
“We were able to at least get together and plan some things out [in 2020],” Tate says. “I was able to see how some things work behind the scenes, which helped me, and so I’m just really excited to be able to do this even now, four years later. ”
Ultimately, though, Tate hopes that people will come out to the event for the sake of community. “Memphis is rich with a variety of different types of arts here,” she says, “and people might miss out on some of that with some of the other things that are going on currently in the city, but that should be the most important piece: Come out, support us, support the city of Memphis, and support the arts.”
Art by Design will have several accompanying events in addition to the showroom, such as Dinner with Designers, The Art of Mahjong game night, Cocktails by Design, and a special speaker. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit artsmemphis.org/art-by-design.
Art by Design will take place April 3rd to 7th at Agricenter International.
…
“The Concert Photography of Jack Robinson”
“Horns High, Sam & Dave Horn Section, Soul Together” (Photo: Jack Robinson | The Jack Robinson Archive, LLC)
In partnership with the Jack Robinson Archive, the Stax Museum of American Soul Music’s latest exhibit presents 15 of Robinson’s finest images from the iconic Soul Together Concert of 1968. Held just two months after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the Madison Square Garden concert raised more than $75,000 for two charities, and Robinson was on the job for Vogue magazine, capturing the star-studded roster of Atlantic recording artists such as Aretha Franklin, Sam & Dave, King Curtis, and more.
“Jack Robinson’s work is so well-known,” the museum’s executive director Jeff Kollath says, “and he has this incredible connection to Memphis. People have seen Jack Robinson photographs — they just might not know that they’re a Jack Robinson — but we’ve all seen Jack Robinson photographs. … His style and how he practiced his craft is just so unique and interesting and it really shows in these photographs.”
Yet unlike Robinson’s typical portraits and studio shots, the photos in this temporary exhibit are on-the-scene, so they have a different kind of “energy and raw power,” Kollath says. “He’s taking photo after photo after photo and they show how he’s able to capture movement in a way that still shows so much clarity — especially at a Sam & Dave day concert, where they’re dancing, the band is dancing, and you sense this movement, this speed at which they’re all moving and yet the photos are so clear. He’s a remarkably skilled photographer.”
Robinson’s photographs will be on display through the end of March.
…
ON DISPLAY
Coe Lapossy’s “School of Ool”
“School of Ool: Whose Views Ooze Muse” Coe Lapossy revisits artifacts of queerness wedged within a seemingly straight world. Clough Hanson Gallery, through March 22
“Breaking the Rules” Seventy-five paintings, watercolors, and drawings spanning the entirety of Paul Wonner’s and William “Theophilus” Brown’s careers. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, through March 31
“Marking Time” Remy Miller’s landscapes and Joe Morzuch’s still-lifes and self-portraits. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, through April 14
Curtis Arima, Shifting Hierarchy, 2014. Recycled silver, copper, enamel, recycled gold, found objects. Courtesy of the Artist.
“Shelby Canopy: Our Shared Connection” An immersive public art project that aims to raise awareness of natural resources. Wolf River Greenway, through April 19
“Iliumpta” Birdcap’s retelling of Homer’s Iliad set in the Southernmost bayous of Mississippi. Crosstown Arts, through April 28
“The Earthworm and the Hawk” Melissa Dunn generates drawings intuitively from her imagination. Crosstown Arts, through April 28
“What Were You Meant For?” Kevin Brooks uncovers the seldom-seen layers of Black male identity. Crosstown Arts, through April 28
“Everyday People: Snapshots of The Black Experience” A photography exhibition showcasing Memphis artist Eric Echols’ photo collection of 20th-century African Americans. Museum of Science & History, through July 14
“Branching Out” Discover intricate connections between students, teachers, and casting communities. Metal Museum, through September 8
“A World Apart” Roger Allan Cleaves’ paintings exist in a rich and wondrous multiverse. Sheet Cake Gallery, March 9-April 27
“Christian Siriano: People Are People” Drawing from American designer Christian Siriano’s archive of bold creations. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, March 22-August 4
“Progression” Exhibition of work by Sowgand Sheikholeslami. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, April 14-July 7
Kong Wee Pang, Voyeur Moment, 2023, featured in “Memphis 2024” (Photo: Courtesy Kong Wee Pang)
“Memphis 2024” A dazzling array of work by the most creative men and women working in the Mid-South today. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, April 21-June 30
Kelly Cook, Amber and Ruth, 2023, featured in “Memphis 2024” (Photo: Courtesy Kelly Cook)
“It’s All Relative” Morgan Lugo’s pieces speak to the lasting effects of past experiences. Metal Museum, April 21-July 7
“No Place Like Home” This brief, month-long installation encourages the visitor to consider the concept of “home” in the queer community, and specifically in metalsmithing. Metal Museum, May 1-June 2
ON STAGE
Little Women at Germantown Community Theatre (Photo: GTC via Facebook)
Little Women Jo March gives us her greatest story: that of the March sisters, four dreamers destined to be imperfect little women. Germantown Community Theatre, through March 17
Succession Succession explores the world of Black theater through the actions of Steve Harrison, a promising young actor. Hattiloo Theatre, through March 24
LOCAL: Art Moves Memphis Dance concert presented by Company d dancers with Down syndrome and inspired by the vibrant urban art and murals throughout the Memphis community. Wiener Theater, Hutchison School, March 23
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical This jukebox musical takes you on a journey that realistically documents Carole King’s rise to fame and superstar status as a songwriter and performer. Theatre Memphis, March 8-30
Peter Pan Fly with Peter Pan, Tinkerbell, and the Darling children straight to Neverland for a timeless adventure. Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center, March 8-10
(L to R) Axel Bernard Rimmele (Christopher Hillard), Giselle Gutierrez (Lydia Hillard), Rob McClure (Euphegenia Doubtfire), and Kennedy Alexandra Pitney (Natalie Hillard) (Photo: Joan Marcus)
Mrs. Doubtfire Everyone’s favorite Scottish nanny comes to Memphis. Orpheum Theatre, March 12-17
You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown Experience the magic of childhood and the beloved Peanuts gang in this Tony Award-winning musical. The Circuit Playhouse, March 15-April 13
Zanna Don’t! A Musical Fairy Tale Emerald Theatre Company presents a play, set in a world where everyone is gay — well, almost everyone. TheatreWorks @ The Square, March 15-24
Opera Memphis:La Calisto A baroque masterpiece of love, lust, vengeance and … astronomy. Playhouse on the Square, March 22-23
MOMIX presents ALICE at GPAC. (Photo: Courtesy GPAC)
MOMIX: ALICE Presented by a company of dancer-illusionists, ALICE, inspired by Alice in Wonderland, takes audiences on a journey down the rabbit hole. Germantown Performing Arts Center, March 23
Pink Floyd And The Planets Memphis Symphony Orchestra presents psychedelic tunes and enchanting melodies. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, March 23 | Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, March 24
Feelings & Other Uncomfortable Things Get in your feels with this artistic experience centered around listening to music and creating a collage. Shady Grove Presbyterian Church, March 29
Hattiloo Theatre Presents: Sing, Sistah, Sing Hattiloo celebrates the indomitable spirit of Black women with concerts, step routines, original all-women dance performances, and spoken-word from talented Black female artists. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, March 30
Celia Hottenstein as Glinda and Olivia Valli as Elphaba in Wicked (Photo: Joan Marcus)
Wicked This Broadway sensation looks at what happened in the Land of Oz … but from a different angle. Orpheum Theatre, April 3-21
Fairytales on Ice Presents: Peter Pan and Wendy The beloved, classic story of Peter Pan and his pal Wendy comes to life with dramatic and imaginative enactment, as the Buckman stage converts into an ice rink. Buckman Performing Arts Center, April 4
Hamlet The tragedy by William Shakespeare. Tennessee Shakespeare Company, April 4-21
Master Class A fierce and clever production about diva opera star Maria Callas. Theatre Memphis, April 5-21
Out in the Woods Friends of George’s presents a dragnificent adventure. Evergreen Theatre, April 11-20
Blues in the Night The soul of the blues wails out full and strong in the scorching, Tony-nominated musical. Hattiloo Theatre, April 12-May 5
Science of Movement: Collage Dance Collective Witness how a dancer prepares for the stage and experience excerpts from Collage Dance Collective’s repertory. Museum of Science & History, April 13
American Roots Ballet Memphis’ celebration of Americana through dance. Crosstown Theater, April 19-21
ELEVATE Collage Dance’s spring program. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, April 20-21
Celtic Woman (Photo: Courtesy Orpheum Theatre)
Celtic Woman A blend of traditional and contemporary Irish music. Orpheum Theatre, April 25
Steel Magnolias A touching portrait of women. Theatre Memphis, performances April 26-May 12
Your Arm’s Too Short to Box With God An uplifting musical with gospel-inspired music and inspiring storytelling. Playhouse on the Square, April 26-May 19
Orchestra Unplugged: Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture Memphis Symphony Orchestra Music Director Robert Moody brings you inside the minds and music of composers to discover new connections and meaning to incredible works of art. Halloran Centre for Performing Arts, May 9
Constellations Quark Theatre presents a play about free will and friendship, but also about quantum multiverse theory, love, and honey. TheatreSouth, May 10-26
The Hot Wing King Katori Hall’s searing new comedy that follows a group of friends as they prepare for the “Hot Wang Festival” in Memphis. The Circuit Playhouse, May 10-June 2
Memphis Symphony Orchestra’s Symphony in the Garden (Photo: Courtesy Dixon Gallery & Gardens)
Symphony in the Gardens The annual Mother’s Day outdoor celebration in a beautiful outdoor setting featuring the MSO Big Band. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, May 12
Opera Memphis:La bohème Puccini’s timeless classic of youth, love, and freedom in a brand-new production. Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, May 17-18
Shrek the Musical This Tony Award-winning fairy tale musical adventure brings all the beloved characters you know from the film to life. Orpheum Theatre, May 31-June 2
AROUND TOWN
Resident Artist Talks Crosstown Arts’ spring 2024 resident artists will present artist talks. Crosstown Arts, March 20
Metal Petals & Healing Roots A one-day event where artists will create art from disassembled gun parts. Metal Museum, March 23
Art by Design A curated series of events and presentations designed to highlight Memphis’ interior design community and simultaneously support the local arts community. Agricenter International, April 3-7
Barrel to Barrel Grand Auction Enjoy exclusive wine pairings, premium bourbon tastings, incredible wine and bourbon pulls, and a grand auction filled with unique experiences, rare vintages, and whole barrels of bourbon. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, April 6
Central to the Arts Festival Celebrate the arts with live performances, film showings, fashion shows, and interactive arts booths. University or Memphis, April 6
Art in The Loop 2024 A juried artists market, plus craft demonstrations and performances of classical music. Ridgeway Loop Road, April 12-14
Chalkfest at the Brooks (Photo: Courtesy Memphis Brooks Museum of Arts)
Chalkfest 2024 Join local artists and transform the Brooks’ plaza into the most colorful work of art. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, April 27
Spring to Art with Creative Aging Activities, performances, and discussions for art lovers 65+ and carers. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, April 30
2024 Art For All Festival Arts and culture will showcase performances and art-making from across Shelby County through live performances, artist markets, food trucks, and more. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, May 11
Here Comes the Sun Community Day Enjoy art making, garden tours, musical performances, and more at this community gathering designed for all ages. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, May 11
Michael “Birdcap” Roy, Dove Hunt: The First Shot, acrylic on panel (Photo: Abigail Morici)
Homer’s Iliad begins with a promise of anger, of Achilles’ wrath that would bring about the ruin of Troy. “Many a brave soul did it send hurrying down to Hades,” goes the epic. “Many a hero did it yield a prey to dogs and vultures.”
It’s a story driven by men’s pride, cloaked as heroism, yet leading only to bloodshed and tragedy. Or, as artist Michael “Birdcap” Roy puts it, “All these men were doing all these sort of idiotic things under the guise to be heroic.”
But Birdcap doesn’t say this to belittle these characters, but instead to remark on their humanity that might go unnoticed under the prestige of classical literature. “I just found something very like comforting or familiar in these men,” he says. “It reminded me of just growing up in the deep South and what it means to be a man in Mississippi and how sometimes cleverness and wit are almost looked down upon. Like, your ability to be stoic within pain is more exceptional than your ability to avoid pain. So you stay during a hurricane or you work a hard job. … Those characters reminded me of my family and me.”
Fame Over Everything: Bust of Achilles, mixed media
Birdcap’s current show at Crosstown Arts plays with this idea. Titled “Iliumpta,” the exhibition is a retelling of Homer’s poem, set in the southernmost bayous of Mississippi in the fictitious county of Iliumpta. “It’s based on the word Ilium, which is the Latinized version of Troy, and umpta is sort of like a false noise to make it sound like a Mississippi county,” Birdcap says. “I thought it was a good way to have an introspective show that talked about myself but using this sort of universal reference.”
He writes in his artist statement, “The men in these works shout from a nihilistic void, and in their attempts to be heroic, they, like the ancients before them, choose death over happiness, a closed ear before sound advice, and doom before an apology.”
This is Birdcap’s first solo show in Memphis. While he is known for his large-scale murals seen throughout the city and around the world, Birdcap says, “This is my first chance to have like a big sort of homecoming show.”
It’s also been an opportunity for the painter to experiment with different media like mosaic, sculpture, and silk screen. “I think you have to keep you have to keep the learning process in your routine or you get bored.”
Michael “Birdcap” Roy, Father’s Legacy (Relic), stone on panel
Last year, he attended a mural festival in Pompeii, where he was fascinated by the ancient city’s mosaics. “I was blown away by just how anti-ephemeral the work is, how long it lasts.” Plus, it doesn’t hurt that mosaics have a built-in aesthetic of antiquity to go along with the Greco-Roman mythology at the core of the show. Yet, in true Birdcap style, his mosaics are “ridiculously cartoony” — as are the other pieces in the show.
“I like cartoons because when I was young, I would try to make dramatic work about my feelings or politics or whatever, but I would visualize it in this dramatic way,” he says. “And I think it had the opposite effect where people didn’t really want to pay attention to it. But I think cartoons are very safe and we all have this child-like relationship with it, and so it allows you to put these complicated or harder messages in but still be listened to. Like, it’s not baroque. It really is subtle.”
Too Much to Bear: The Suicide of Ajax, mixed media
His piece, Too Much to Bear: The Suicide of Ajax, he points out, deals with male fragility quite darkly, yet because it is presented with saturated colors and is an inflatable, reminiscent of holiday decorations or childhood birthday parties, it takes on a sort of softness. But Birdcap says, “My character is Ajax, who basically got drunk with rage and really embarrassed himself, and the next day, unable to deal with this shame, he committed suicide. And so that piece could be a fairly heavy piece. Suicide, it’s not fun.”
On a similar note, Birdcap later adds, “I’ve been pretty transparent about my own mental health over the last few years, and this work is an extension of that. The paintings are about the South and the Southern man, but in no way am I trying to divide myself from the Southern man. I am imperatively a Southern man. So all the faults displayed in the paintings, I see in myself.”
But he says, “I think there’s magic here, and I think there’s like room for mythology and folktales in a way that maybe other regions don’t have. I think we have a unique relationship to the power of myth, and so it’s not a big jump for me to think these make sense together. … I’m 36 now; I’m old enough to know I can’t be from anywhere else. I think there was a time when I was young, where I was like, if I try, I can be from somewhere else. And it’s like, no, your memories are there and they’re a part of you, they’re a part of your myth.”
Birdcap’s “Iliumpta” is on display at Crosstown Arts through April 28th.
This weekend, artists Robby Johnston, the late Anthony Biggers, and John Ruskey will present “Delta Chique” at Off the Walls Arts. “All three of us are inspired by living around the Delta,” says Johnston. “[The show] gives you three different perspectives, three different mediums, one subject, one night of fun.”
The longtime friends, who met “probably drinking beer,” as Johnston says, had always talked about doing a show together before Biggers passed away in 2020. “We just never got around to it,” Johnston says. “So this is just a way of paying respect to him now that he’s gone.”
Color pencil drawing by Anthony Biggers, courtesy the artist.
Biggers, who made his living as a graphic artist and later a graphic arts professor, never exhibited his work publicly, though he did design WEVL’s Blues on the Bluff posters. “His personal work kind of took backstage,” Johnston says. “When he passed away, we got with the family and found volumes of these incredible color pencil sketches. So we’re going to be showing his work in kind of a retrospective.”
The late artist was born legally blind, Johnston adds. “When he would draw, his face would be about three inches from the paper, sketching from memory. If you get to see his work, they look like photographs. It is amazing.”
While Biggers gravitated towards the people of the Delta for his drawings, Johnston is more interested in the landscapes of the Delta. “I’ve always been a Delta artist,” he says. “It’s a land of beautiful sunrises and sunsets, history, pain and suffering, but also, it’s a hotbed for creativity.”
Johnston works mostly with acrylics, having picked up his first paintbrush some 12 years ago. “It was a little bit of a midlife crisis, really just trying to find my voice, and, I don’t know, I just started painting. … I’m really coming into the realization that it’s something I want to try to transition into full-time.”
Like Johnston, Ruskey is a self-taught artist. He builds dugout canoes in Clarksdale and owns Quapaw Canoe Company, which offers voyages on the Mississippi River. Ruskey, Johnston says, “started taking sketchbooks on his trips [for note-taking], and then he started taking watercolors. And then they started evolving into paintings. The river taught him how to paint, that’s what he says.”
“Delta Chique” will be on view through November 17th at Off the Walls Arts.
Photo: Jarvis Boyland, Expectations, 2019, Collection of a Friend of the Brooks. Jarvis Boyland.
As the temperatures are cooling down, the Memphis arts scene is heating up — with exhibitions, performances, and unique experiences. See for yourself in our Fall Arts Guide.
Calida Rawles, United States, b. 1976, Thy Name We Praise, 2023. (Photo: Courtesy Terra Foundation for American Art and Spelman College Museum of Fine Art)
“Black American Portraits” at the Brooks
In the wake of the killing of George Floyd, the general public was flooded with images of Black pain and suffering. From news stations to social media feeds, these images, proliferated by modern technology, were and are instantaneous with nothing, really, to prevent them from surfacing on our screens.
To counteract this, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) curated the “Black American Portraits” exhibition, filled with portraits celebrating and depicting Black joy, power, and love. And now the exhibit has made its way to the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art.
As a majority-Black city, Memphis needs this, says Brooks executive director Zoe Kahr. “It’s so important to see every Memphian reflected back in the museum.”
Though this exhibition originated in Los Angeles, the Brooks has included additional pieces to lend the experience a Memphis touch. An Augusta Savage sculpture is on loan from the Dixon Gallery & Gardens, and works by Jarvis Boyland, Derek Fordjour, Catherine Elizabeth Patton, Jared Small, Ernest Withers, and the Hooks Brothers Photography Studio punctuate the gallery walls. “We wanted to highlight talent in Memphis and show it in a national context,” Kahr says.
With 129 pieces of art in total, the sheer number of works, encompassing a variety of media and spanning over 200 years in history, is in itself a feat. “One of the things that struck me about this show and taking it here is just this idea of abundance,” says Patricia Daigle, the Brooks’ curator of modern and contemporary art. “So there’s this idea about being prolific, and the impact of what it means to see this many portraits of Black people in one space.”
“Black American Portraits” is on display through January 7th. For more information about the exhibition and its related programming, visit brooksmuseum.org.
In his artist statement, Theaster Gates writes, “This is my small contribution to the possibility of healing.” (Photo: Patrick Coleman)
Tom Lee Park Activates the Community Through Creativity
In 1925, Tom Lee rescued 32 passengers from the numbing waters of the Mississippi River. The steamer they were on had capsized, and the Black river worker, passing by in his small wooden skiff, soon became their hero, even though he couldn’t swim. Today, his bravery is largely forgotten, but with the recently completed renovation of Tom Lee Park, named in his honor in 1954, the folks with Memphis River Parks Partnership (MRPP) are hoping to change that and to inspire Memphis to channel his spirit of community, heroism, and selflessness.
For the renovation, MRPP commissioned Chicago-based and world-renowned artist Theaster Gates to create an art installation, complementing David Alan Clark’s Tom Lee Memorial, which depicts Lee in a moment of heroism. Gates’ A Monument to Listening overlooks this original sculpture and features 33 “thrones,” representing those Lee saved in 1925 and Lee himself.
All the thrones are made out of the same basalt stone, are the same height, and are marked with imperfections — all except for one that’s taller and “is perfect in a sense. That’s the one that represents Tom Lee,” says Michalyn Easter-Thomas, MRPP director of education initiatives and strategic partnerships. The idea is that all who sit upon the thrones are made equal and are (almost literally) given an equal platform from which to listen and to be listened to.
To enrich visitors’ experience with the sculpture, MRPP has enlisted three organizations to curate activations: UrbanArt Commission, the Orpheum Theatre, and The Big We Foundation, a collective of local Black artists, creatives, and entrepreneurs. These activations are expected to be unique experiences that will evoke emotions, challenge perceptions, celebrate creativity, and foster dialogue.
So far, activations have included an American sign language class with UrbanArts Commission and an open meeting with The Big We Foundation. More activations will be held through the end of the year, and next year, a new cohort of curators — this time creative individuals — will build upon the work of the current group. “And ‘creative’ doesn’t necessarily have to be the arts,” adds Easter-Thomas. “We’ve searched out folks in the food scene, in architecture, in philanthropy. It’s really about how you envision connecting Memphis to the Tom Lee story — how can we ensure that everybody knows this story?”
Keep up with the activations surrounding A Monument to Listening at Tom Lee Park on MRPP’s social media and at tomleepark.org.
Cremaine Booker (Photo: Courtesy Iris Collective)
Iris Collective Introduces Its Small Business Series
When Iris Collective rebranded from being the Iris Orchestra in 2022, the group began to think of itself not as a concertizing organization, but as a “community music organization that does concerts,” says Iris’ executive director Rebecca Arendt. “The idea is that everything we’re doing is with community rather than for community.”
Over the years, Iris has mentored hundreds of high school and middle school students in Memphis and Shelby County, regularly visited patients at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, and worked with memory care and nursing home patients at retirement homes — just to name a few examples of the collective’s commitment to community.
For the 2023-2024 season, Iris will be debuting its new Small Business Series, through which they will partner with three small businesses to highlight the intersection of entrepreneurship and the arts. “It’s a fun and nontraditional way for people to engage in music and dialogue around things that are important to them,” Arendt says.
The first performance of this series will take place in December at the soon-to-be-opened Cafe Noir, Jasmine Settles’ bookstore that specializes in highlighting BIPOC and LGBTQ authors. Cremaine Booker, aka ThatCelloGuy, principal cello for Nashville Philharmonic Orchestra and Jackson Symphony Orchestra, will perform and will work “with an author of Cafe Noir’s choosing to put together a program that talks about being an artist from an underrepresented community.”
The following performances in this series will take place at Music Box in January and ARCHd in March. “As you know, these are all very small environment venues,” Arendt says, “and so you can get up close and personal. Not only will you get to hear great music, but you’ll be able to talk back and forth, express ideas, and use it as a chance to see how arts can make our community better. … The Small Business Series speaks to where we want to be, where we want to have that shared artistic experience, and we feel that one of the best ways to do that are small environments where people can come together with a shared interest.”
Cremaine Booker performs on Friday, December 8, 5:30 p.m., at Cafe Noir. Tickets are $20. For more information on Iris Collective and its upcoming season, visit iriscollective.org.
Chiffon Thomas, A mother who had no mother, 2018, is on display at Clough-Hanson Gallery. (Photo: Clifton Thomas)
ON DISPLAY
“Hued” Rachelle Thiewes’ jewelry empowers its wearer through rhythmic repetition, architectural forms, and vibrant auto paint. Metal Museum, through January 28
“Overstuffed” This exhibition features mixed media fiber artists Sharon Havelka and Paula Kovarik. Gallery talk on October 14, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. ARTSmemphis, through December
“The Molasses Man & Other Delta Tales” The show serves as an anthology of stories based on Ahmad George’s life and experiences with people they’ve encountered here and not. Crosstown Arts, through January 21
“Young, Gifted and Black” This show champions an emerging generation of artists of African descent. One of the artists, Sadie Barnette, will give an artist talk on November 2 at 6 p.m. An artist panel will take place on November 14. Clough-Hanson Gallery at Rhodes College, through December 9
“Lens Language” Explore the depths of love from behind the lens of MadameFraankie and Kai Ross. Opening reception on October 7, 4-7 p.m. TONE, October 7-December 12
“Woven Arts of Africa” This comprehensive visual exhibition defines the major woven artistic styles and traditions derived from cultural/regional groups from all over Africa. Opening reception on October 7, 3-5 p.m. Art Museum University of Memphis, October 7-January 20
Kaylyn Webster, Light Showin July, 2023; Oil on canvas; Courtesy of the artist.
“Commune” Memphis artist Kaylyn Webster’s paintings capture, with quiet honesty, the divine aspects of communing with those we love. Artist’s reception on October 26, 2-3 p.m. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, October 8-January 7
Zaire Love Zaire Love’s films and photography honor, amplify, and immortalize the stories and voices of the Black South. Artist’s reception on October 27, 5-8 p.m. Beverly + Sam Ross Gallery at Christian Brothers University, October 16-December 10
“Black Artists in America: From Civil Rights to the Bicentennial” This exhibition considers the various ways in which Black American artists responded to and challenged the cultural, environmental, political, racial, and social issues of the era from the Civil Rights Movement to the Bicentennial. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, October 22-January 14
Beetlejuice, pictured (l-r) Britney Coleman (Barbara), Will Burton (Adam), Isabella Esler (Lydia) and Justin Collette (Beetlejuice). (Photo: Matthew Murphy)
ON STAGE
Shout-Out Shakespeare Series: The Tempest Tennessee Shakespeare Company performs the Bard’s final romance for this free outdoor series. The final two performances will be ticketed. Various locations, through October 29
Father Comes Homes From the Wars An explosively powerful drama about the mess of war, the cost of freedom, and the heartbreak of love. Hattiloo Theatre, through October 22
Variations on a Theme Opera Memphis presents a new series of intimate, curated evenings of vocal music in all its forms. Opera Memphis, October 7, November 11
Funny Girl The indomitable Fanny Brice becomes one of the most beloved performers in history. Orpheum Theatre, October 10-15
A Midsummer Night’s Dream Ballet Memphis reimagines the iconic Shakespearean play. Playhouse on the Square, October 13-15
Blithe Spirit A spiritualist, a crime writer, an ex-wife back from the dead — what more could you want from this farcical and outrageous play? Lohrey Theatre at Theatre Memphis, October 13-29
Moody Conducts Beethoven 5 The Memphis Symphony Orchestra performs this revolutionary work. Crosstown Theater, Friday, October 13, 6:30 p.m. Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, October 15, 2:30 p.m.
Underwater Bubble Show This show incorporates drama, pantomime, dance, puppetry, juggling, aerial arts, acrobatics, contortion, sand art, and imagery with the beauty of soap bubbles. Participants of all ages will delight in this colorful, magical utopia that merges science, light, and imagination. Buckman Arts Center at St. Mary’s Episcopal School, October 26, 5 p.m. & 7 p.m.
Carmina Burana Opera Memphis and the Memphis Symphony Orchestra present a Halloween-inspired concert. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, October 28, 7:30 p.m.
Sons of Mystro Brothers Malcolm and Umoja interpret reggae classics, American pop songs, and their own creations, accompanied by a DJ and a drummer. Buckman Arts Center at St. Mary’s Episcopal School, November 2, 7 p.m.
Silent Sky The true story of 19th-century astronomer Henrietta Leavitt, who changed the public’s understanding of the heavens and Earth. Next Stage at Theatre Memphis, November 3-18
Schoolhouse Rock, Live! This show is based on the cherished animated series that taught generations of youth. The Circuit Playhouse, November 11-December 22
NutRemix New Ballet Ensemble presents an electrifying and innovative production set on Beale Street. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, November 17-19
Take the Soul Train to Christmas This holiday spectacle is a time machine through the evolution of the African-American Christmas experience. Hattiloo Theatre, November 17-December 17
The Wizard of Oz Dorothy Gale is whisked away by a powerful twister and finds herself in the mystical land of Oz. Playhouse on the Square, November 17-December 22
The North American Tour Boleyn Company of SIX. (Photo: Joan Marcus)
SIX This new original musical about Henry VIII’s six wives is the global sensation that everyone is losing their head over. Orpheum Theatre, November 21-26
Who’s Holiday See a whole new side of Cindy Lou Who. The Circuit Playhouse, November 24-December 22
Michael Flatley’sLord of the Dance A unique combination of high-energy Irish dancing, original music, storytelling, and sensuality. Orpheum Theatre, November 29
The Importance of Being Earnest Tennessee Shakespeare Company presents Oscar Wilde’s trivial comedy for serious people. Tabor Stage, November 30-December 17
A Christmas Carol Ebenezer Scrooge returns to the stage for this holiday tradition. Lohrey Theatre at Theatre Memphis, December 1-23
Magic of Memphis The Memphis Symphony Orchestra offers a beloved holiday tradition, complete with a collage of Memphis performing groups. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, December 2, 6:30 p.m.
The Nutcracker Ballet Memphis’ production promises to delight in both familiar and unexpected ways. Orpheum Theatre, December 9-17
Clara & the Nutcracker Tennessee Ballet Theater presents a charming rendition of the classic tale. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, December 10, 2 p.m.
The Nutcracker Ballet This production of Tchaikovsky’s famous ballet features dancers from Center’s Esprit de Corps Dance Company. Bartlett Performing Arts & Conference Center, December 15-17
Christmas Fiesta at the Dixon returns for a third year. (Photo: Angel Ortez)
AROUND TOWN
First Wednesdays at the Brooks Every first Wednesday the Brooks will have incredible live music. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, first Wednesdays of the month, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Jazz in the Galleries: Saturday Series Every third Saturday of the month enjoy good jazz and great times in the galleries at the Brooks. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, third Saturdays of the month, noon-2 p.m.
Munch and Learn Every Wednesday during lunchtime, join the Dixon for presentations by local artists, scholars, and Dixon staff sharing on a variety of topics. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Wednesdays, noon-1 p.m.
Super Saturdays at the Brooks The first Saturday of every month, the Brooks will have free admission from 10 a.m.-noon and art-making. (PS: Every Saturday, admission is free from 10 a.m.-noon.) Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, first Saturdays of the month, 10 a.m.-noon
Free Family Day On the second Saturday of each month, the Stax Museum offers free admission for everyone. There will also be food trucks, games and activities, arts and crafts for children, bouncy houses, face painting, balloon artists, and live music. Stax Museum of American Soul Music, second Saturdays of the month, 1-5 p.m.
Art History Lecture The Brooks’ art history lectures series covers virtually every aspect of human history and experience, with new topics each week. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, Fridays through October 27, 12:30-3 p.m.
Artwalk More than 40 local artists will be on hand selling a variety of handcrafted items at this year’s Artwalk. V&E Greenline, October 7, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
Teen Arts Fest Young artists (ages 13-19) are invited to an informal social and networking event. Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library, October 14, 2-5 p.m.
Repair Days Bring your metal items to the Metal Museum to have them restored to their former glory. Metal Museum, October 19-22
Family Fun Day The Metal Museum hosts a day of free hands-on activities, demonstrations, and kid-friendly games, plus free admission to the museum. Metal Museum, October 21, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
RiverArtsFest This two-day festival is a celebration of fine arts and fine local music with live artist demonstrations and hands-on art activities for all ages. Riverside Drive, October 21-22, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Art on Fire Enjoy live music, tastings from local restaurants, drinks, an art sale, and a roaring bonfire. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, October 21, 7 p.m.
Indie Memphis Film Festival This festival presents a range of independent features, documentaries, and short films from all corners of the world. Various locations, October 24-29
Night at the Museum AMUM will have several interactive, kid-friendly programs inspired by the visual arts in the collections that will bring the museum to life. Art Museum University of Memphis, October 27, 5-8 p.m.
Día de los Muertos Festival & Parade The Brooks, along with the Cazateatro Bilingual Theatre Group, invites you and your family to honor your ancestors and celebrate the cycle of life and death. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, October 28, 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Collage’s Annual Gala This brunch is an enriching affair with performances by Collage’s world-class professional company and students from the Collage Dance Conservatory. FedEx Event Center at Shelby Farms Park, October 29, 2 p.m.
ARTSmemphis Anniversary Celebration ARTSmemphis celebrates its 60th anniversary with a dynamic, lively, interactive, immersive, and spirited evening. The Kent, Thursday, November 9, 6:30 p.m.
Raised by Sound Fest This free event showcases local and regional talent, honoring Memphis music, new and old, across genres. Crosstown Concourse, December 12, 1-11 p.m.
¡Christmas Fiesta! Learn about the Christmas traditions of Latin America and the Caribbean with Cazateatro Bilingual Theatre Group, Opera Memphis, and the Dixon. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, December 9, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.
A trading card by Alex Paulus (Photo: Artist Trading
Cards Memphis)
Some collect baseball cards; others collect Pokemon cards. For Alex Paulus, a kid in the ’90s, it was Marvel trading cards. “That was my favorite thing when I was a kid,” he says. “They were like these fully rendered oil paintings of Marvel characters.” Little did he know that his childhood hobby would inspire him to start a new kind of trading card in Memphis, almost three decades later.
In 2020, when lockdown rolled around and boredom took over, the artist explains, he had an itch to return to those Marvel cards that had once excited him, so he purchased a box of them. “I found out that in one of the packs in the box, you could get an original hand-drawn piece of art on a trading card,” Paulus says. “And I got one of those cards. I was like, ‘Oh man, this is really cool.’ … So that kind of gave me the idea of what if I could buy a pack and it was just filled with all of these handmade cards and how cool that would be.”
Paulus, as it turns out, wasn’t the first to think of creating trading cards with original art. That honor belongs to a Swiss artist, M. Vänçi Stirnemann, who in 1996 initiated an ongoing and now worldwide performance whereby artists of all backgrounds create, collect, sell, and trade self-made unique works, 2.5-by-3.5 inches in size.
Inspired by this, Paulus became determined to bring the phenomenon to Memphis and started the Artist Trading Cards Memphis group, with local artists creating their own tiny art to sell and trade. In March, the group hosted their first event and are now gearing up for their second, this time at Crosstown Art Bar. The goal, Paulus explains, is to “inspire others to make their own artist trading cards and become part of the performance, too.”
For the event, a few artists will sell their limited-edition 2.5-by-3.5-inch works at affordable prices, some as low as $10. Some will sell them individually, and others will sell them in packs. Some cards you’ll be able to see before purchasing, and others will be a surprise. Some packs will even have golden tickets for full-sized artwork if you’re lucky. Of course, you’ll be able to trade cards with other collectors at the event, and you can even bring in your own 2.5-by-3.5-inch works to trade for the last hour from 8 to 9 p.m.
Participating artists, along with Paulus, include Mary Jo Karimnia, Sara Moseley, Nick Peña, Tad Lauritzen Wright, and Michelle Fair. “These are legit gallery-showing artists who are making these,” Paulus says of the artists. “It’s not just getting our friends who like to doodle on stuff.”
Photo: “Entrances, Exits and the Spaces Betwixt”
by Tangela Mathis at Crosstown Arts
If you’re looking for a retreat from the heat this summer, the Memphis art scene has you covered — with cool exhibitions, cool performances, and very cool experiences. Just take a look through our 2023 Summer Arts Guide, and you’ll see what we’re talking about.
Art For All will celebrate its inaugural Art for All Festival this weekend. (Photo: Courtesy We Are Memphis)
From Downtown to Whitehaven to Collierville and back, Shelby County’s government wants to make the arts inclusive and accessible to everyone countywide. Earlier this year, the Arts and Culture Nonprofit Subcommittee announced its “Art For All” campaign, a series of free arts and culture experiences. This Sunday, June 25th, marks its flagship Art For All Festival.
The festival will highlight a sample of what Memphis arts and culture organizations have to offer, with a variety of performances, installations, experiences, and more. Attendees can expect an interactive pop-up art gallery from TONE, demonstrations by the Mini Mobile Metal Museum, dance movement therapy from Image Builders Memphis, activities with Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, art activations from Orpheum Theatre and Stax Museum of American Soul Music, and performances by Opera Memphis and Hattiloo Theatre. The Museum of Science & History, the festival venue, will also offer activities linking art and science.
“Art For All [stems from] the fact that we have a multitude of organizations within Memphis and Shelby County with a variety of wonderful offerings that we want to bring awareness to and uplift,” says Nykesha Cole, Shelby County’s arts and culture liaison. “And we want everybody to have the opportunity to have access to arts and culture ’cause, truly, when you look at it, that is one of the most vibrant things in society.”
Museum of Science & History, Sunday, June 25, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., free
This September, Collage Dance Collective will host its third Memphis Dance Festival, and already, the organization has confirmed top-notch talent for the day — Memphis’ own Lil Buck, dancers from New York City Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (NYC), Alonzo King LINES Ballet (San Francisco), SOLE Defined tap company (DC), Nashville Ballet, of course Collage Dance Collective, and many more local dance organizations.
“We are really trying to curate something very special so that our community can experience these world-class national artists in their own backyard,” says Marcellus Harper, Collage’s executive director. “That’s meant to really get the community excited about dance and to elevate dance as a powerful transformative art in our community and our city.
“One of the taglines [of the festival] is, ‘Dance is for everyone,’” Harper continues. “So we’re hoping that really resonates throughout the festival, but also this focus on physical well-being, emotional well-being, how we prioritize those things. Whether it’s a physical wellness program or an emotional wellness program, movement is always a big part of that practice, so dance can really be great for the soul and the spirit, too.”
Collage Dance Center, September 16, free
Andrew Thornton’s Many Faces metalwork (Photo: Courtesy Andrew Thornton)
This month, the Metal Museum opened a juried exhibition of 40 works of art from 26 queer-identifying metal artists from across the country. For the exhibition, three jurors — matt lambert, Al Murray, and Memphian Lawrence Matthews — selected pieces they felt spoke to the intersectional spectrum of what it means to be a part of the LGBTQ community.
“Rather than the typical ‘the work looks like it’s queer,’ I think this show also really highlights that there are people from these backgrounds in all areas,” says lambert. “We’re making space for a lot of types of identity that include queerness, but it’s not just that. [The artists in the exhibit] place themselves [along] those spectrums, but for some it was an option to just be themselves, and maybe they don’t want to stress that part of them. Just applying [for the exhibition] already implies that they see themselves as part of this community.”
“[The exhibit] feels like it’s a celebration of LGBTQIA+ people,” adds one of the artists, Funlola Coker, “but it also feels poignant right now, especially given what’s happening not just in Tennessee but around America and the world, and how queer people are being oppressed. It feels really important to keep showing work like this and talking about it and supporting artists who talk about these issues because it’s a more nuanced expression of who we are.”
“We Are Here: LGBTQIA+ Voices in the Contemporary Metals Community” is on display at the Metal Museum through September 10th.
Zao Wou-Ki’s “Watercolors and Ceramics” is on display at the Dixon Gallery & Gardens. (Photo: Abigail Morici)
In 2018, Zao Wou-Ki became the world’s third best-selling artist, after Picasso and Monet, with auctions of the late French-Chinese painter’s work generating $327 million, according to Forbes. Now, he sits at a comfortable 23rd ranking, above names as recognizable as Botticelli, Degas, Renoir, Banksy, O’Keeffe, Manet, Pollock, and Matisse. Yet, as Julie Pierotti, a curator at the Dixon Gallery & Gardens, says, he’s not a household name in the United States. Even so, with its latest exhibit, “Zao Wou-Ki: Watercolors and Ceramics,” the Dixon is hoping to change that, with an impressive display of 80 works in watercolor and on ceramics, all drawn exclusively from European private collections.
Throughout his prolific and successful career, Zao channeled Chinese calligraphy in his abstract expressionist work on canvas, ink on paper, lithography, and engraving, and watercolor, bridging the artistic traditions of the East and the West. However, for the first time, his watercolors will be taking center stage in a museum setting at the Dixon.
“Watercolor [was] a kind of a constant medium for him,” says Pierotti. “He explored watercolor throughout his career, but with a lot of vigor in the last years of his life. He was known really for his oil painting, but these works really are authentic to who he was and what his artistic vision was.”
“For an artist who worked in a variety of media but has this kind of little-known dedication to watercolor, we feel like we’re showing, for those people who knew Zao Wou-Ki before, a different side to his career,” Pierotti adds, “and for those who didn’t know him, it’s a great time to get to know him.”
“Zao Wou-Ki: Watercolors and Ceramics” is on display at the Dixon Gallery & Gardens through July 16th. Accompanying the exhibit is “Susan Maakestad: The Expansive Moment,” on display through July 9th. Admission to the museum is always free.
Harmonia Rosales’ Beyond the Peonies (Photo: Courtesy Harmonia Rosales)
At a young age, Harmonia Rosales fell in love with the Renaissance masters who wove tales from Greco-Roman mythology and Christianity in their paintings, but years later when she showed these paintings to her daughter, her daughter didn’t fall in love with them. “She was like, ‘They don’t look like me,’” says Rosales, “It just hit me that I didn’t want her to feel like her hair wasn’t beautiful, her skin wasn’t beautiful.”
And so Rosales took to the canvas to give her daughter the representation she was missing in the Western Renaissance paintings that have been celebrated for centuries. As an Afro-Cuban American, she turned to the Lucumí religion of her ancestors and wove those tales into her paintings, made in the style of the Renaissance paintings that once filled her imagination.
At first, her peers discouraged her from painting these stories centered around African and Black figures in the Renaissance style. Her advisors told her she wouldn’t be able to sell them, but Rosales didn’t care. This work made her happy. “To see us in there, our ancestors, our history in a format where it’s just as time-consuming, looks just like the Renaissance paintings — the priceless paintings, the most beautiful paintings of the world, can’t touch ’em, can’t buy ’em — I wanted to do that in order to empower us and see our history in the same light,” she says. “Inclusion, it’s all about inclusion. Seeing this is what I want for my children.”
Rosales intended these pieces to be public-facing, wanting to reach as broad of an audience as possible, just like the Renaissance masters she reimagines and reinvents. And thanks to the Brooks, she is one step closer to that goal as her first solo museum exhibition, outside of her home state California, opened this spring. Titled “Master Narrative,” the exhibition contains more than 20 breathtaking paintings completed over the past few years and closes this weekend.
“Harmonia Rosales: Master Narrative” is on display at the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art through June 25th.
“Build a Heaven of My Own: African American Vernacular Art and the Blues” This group show explores how the musical and verbal tropes, meaning, and context of the blues not only share traits, but have informed the visual culture of African-American artists from Memphis. Art Museum at the University of Memphis (AMUM), through June 24
(Photo: Courtesy Frederick Asbury)
Art at Artvision Witness over 100 years of combined experience from artists E.P. Simon and Frederick Asbury, featuring works in realism, impressionism, expressionism in painting, drawing, photography, and computer-driven image-making. Guest artist Missy Isely-Poltrock (Kenosha, WI) will show her work through July 4th. Artvision Fine Art Gallery, 484 N. Hollywood
“Passenger Pigeons and Ecological Tipping Points” Experience the powerful collage art of local artist Jennalyn Speer, exploring the extinction of passenger pigeons and currently endangered bird species. Morton Museum of Collierville History, through July 8
“Reimagining the Real: Ana M. Lopez & Natalie Macellaio” These artists take everyday objects — air-conditioning fixtures, fences, road signs, and construction debris — and transform them into unique works of art as statements about power, privilege, and the environment. Metal Museum, through July 9
“Susan Maakestad: The Expansive Moment” Susan Maakestad highlights the marginal spaces of the urban landscape in her watercolors. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, through July 9
Ed Hall’s Dancing in the Sky at L Ross Gallery (Photo: Courtesy Ed Hall | L Ross Gallery)
“Paper Palooza” L Ross Gallery presents a group show of works on paper, featuring work by special guest artists Brantley Ellzey and Ed Hall. L Ross Gallery, through July 22
“RE(de)FINED” Johnson Uwadinma’s exhibition reflects on the fraught but integral relationship between humans and nature. Urevbu Contemporary, through July 31
“Deceive the Heavens to Cross the Seas” McLean Fahnestock presents videos from his “Stratagem” series, where the sea and sky flip and merge to generate a new, seductive yet false horizon. Crosstown Arts, through August 6
“Entrances, Exits and the Spaces Betwixt” Tangela Mathis presents contrasting aspects of personality, showcasing the yin and yang of pneuma. Crosstown Arts, through August 6
“Echoes of Home: Memory and Belonging” Yangbin Park reflects on his memories of home in this exhibition of prints on hanji paper. Porch Window Gallery, Studiohouse on Malvern, through August
“Rich Soil” Created by American artist Kristine Mays, the 29 sculptures in this exhibit are inspired by the movements and gestures of Alvin Ailey’s Revelations. Memphis Botanic Garden, through October 1
MoSH celebrates the guitar with two new exhibitions. (Photo: Collins Dillard)
“Grind City Picks: The Music That Made Memphis” Learn about the evolution of notable music genres in Memphis through an impressive display of instruments, band merchandise, and photographs. Museum of Science & History, through October 22
“Tommy Kha: Eye Is Another” Photographer Tommy Kha explores themes of identity, (in)visibility, and sense of place in this site-specific installation for the Brooks’ Rotunda. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, through October 29
2022 Accessions to the Permanent Collection Take a look at the 24 objects the Metal Museum welcomed into its permanent collection last year. Metal Museum, through November 12
“The World in Pieces” Beth Edwards showcases her contemporary still-life paintings, referencing and reinventing historical vanitas paintings with sensuous, metaphorical realism. David Lusk Gallery, June 27-July 29
“Mud Huts to Paper” Collierville artist Amruta Bhat offers a contemporary interpretation of the centuries-old practice of Madhubani painting, an ancient Indian folk-art technique. Morton Museum of Collierville History, July 11-September 9
“Sally Smith: Adrenaline Rush” Sally Smith’s canvases demonstrate her careful observation of the natural world and deft handling of oil paint. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, July 11-October 1
“To See With New Eyes, Richard Carr” Blacksmith Richard Carr uses salvaged local materials to share his love of architecture, organic forms, and the Memphis community in this exhibition. Metal Museum, July 16-September 24
“Black American Portraits” The exhibition chronicles the many ways in which Black Americans have used portraiture from 19th-century studio photography to today. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, August 17-January 7, 2024
“Mary Sims” David Lusk Gallery presents an exhibition of work by Mary Sims, who was celebrated for her extraordinary, stylized oil paintings based on both real and invented environments. David Lusk Gallery, September 5-September 30
ON STAGE
Mary Poppins The arrival of Mary Poppins brings whimsical imagination and a bit of magic to the Banks family of London. Theatre Memphis, through July 2
Jersey Boys The Broadway smash hit, chronicling the rise and eventual breakup of the legendary doo-wop group Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, makes its regional premiere in the Bluff City. Playhouse on the Square, through July 16
Caroline Bowman as Elsa in Frozen (Photo: Deen van Meer)
Frozen An unforgettable theatrical experience filled with sensational special effects, stunning sets and costumes, and powerhouse performances, Frozen is everything you want in a musical. Orpheum Theatre, June 22-July 2
24 Hour Plays: Memphis Witness this electrifying theatrical event as six new plays are written, rehearsed, and performed within a thrilling 24-hour time frame. TheatreWorks@The Evergreen, June 24, 7 p.m.
Don’t Hydroplane Winner of the 2022 NewWorks@TheWorks Playwriting Competition, Don’t Hydroplane follows a family as they navigate the difficult task of finding a final resting place for their loved one. TheatreWorks@The Square, July 7-July 23
The Color Purple The musical adaptation of The Color Purple features awe-inspiring soul, gospel, jazz, and blues vocals underpinned by raw dialogue and a masterful plot. Hattiloo Theatre, July 28-August 28
(Photo: Courtesy We Are Memphis)
Karlous Miller: At the End of the Day Karlous Miller is an American comedian, actor, writer, host, and co-founder of the 85 South Show. He began his comedy career in Atlanta, Georgia, and is widely known for his star roles in MTV’s Wild ’N Out, HBO’s Def Comedy Jam, and BET’s ComicView. Orpheum Theatre, August 5, 7 p.m.
Billy Cherry … The Final Curtain Bill Cherry pays tribute to CBS’s Elvis in Concert, the posthumous 1977 television special. Halloran Centre, August 12, 2:45 p.m.
Sister Act When a disco nightclub singer witnesses a crime, she is relocated to a convent for her protection. Her stay with the nuns helps her and the sisters, quite literally, find their true voices. Theatre Memphis, August 18-September 10
The Prom A group of Broadway stars comes to the rescue when a student is refused the opportunity to bring her girlfriend to the prom. Playhouse on the Square, August 18-September 17
A Raisin in the Sun Set on Chicago’s South Side, Lorraine Hansberry’s celebrated play concerns the divergent dreams and conflicts in three generations of the Younger family. Hattiloo Theatre, August 25-September 24
Fat Ham In a deliciously funny retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet set in the American South, William returns home after his father’s death and must confront corruption and betrayal. The Circuit Playhouse, September 15-October 8
The Crucible Based on events which took place in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1692, this tragedy tells the story of a village that becomes embroiled in a witch hunt. Theatre Memphis, September 15-October 1
Father Comes Home from the Wars An explosively powerful drama about the mess of war, the cost of freedom, and the heartbreak of love. Hattiloo Theatre, September 29-October 22
Pictures at an Exhibition & Chris Brubeck Guitar Concerto Memphis Symphony Orchestra brings you the world premiere of Chris Brubeck’s double guitar concerto, featuring both classical and blues guitar. Cannon Center for the Performing Arts, September 30, 7:30 p.m.; Scheidt Family Performing Arts Center, October 1, 2:30 p.m.
AROUND TOWN
First Wednesdays at the Brooks Every first Wednesday the Brooks will have incredible live music. Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, first Wednesdays of the month, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Munch and Learn Every Wednesday during lunchtime, join the Dixon for presentations by local artists, scholars, and Dixon staff sharing on a variety of topics. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Wednesdays, noon-1 p.m.
Super Saturdays at the Brooks The first Saturday of every month, the Brooks will have free admission from 10 a.m.-noon and art-making led by art educator Mrs. Rose. (PS: Every Saturday, admission is free from 10 a.m.-noon.) Memphis Brooks Museum of Art, first Saturdays of the month, 10 a.m.-noon
Free Family Day On the second Saturday of each month, the Stax Museum offers free admission for everyone. There will also be food trucks, games and activities, arts and crafts for children, bouncy houses, face painting, balloon artists, and live music. Stax Museum of American Soul Music, second Saturdays of the month, 1-5 p.m.
Oil Painting with Glynnis In this class, students will paint a still life composition using oil paints. Arrow Creative, June 25, 11 a.m.
Rich Sounds at the Garden Join the Memphis Botanic Garden on the last Sunday of each month to enjoy performances and demonstrations from local arts and culture organizations. Memphis Botanic Garden, June 25, July 30, August 27, September 24, 2-5 p.m.
Whet Thursdays Enjoy a free after-hours event held at the Metal Museum on the last Thursday of the month with games on the lawn, food truck fare, live music, metalsmithing demos, and more. Metal Museum, June 29, July 27, August 31, 5-7 p.m.
Public Art Yoga UrbanArt Commission will offer free 45-minute outdoor public art yoga sessions this summer. Various locations, July 8, August 12, September 9
Art Club with Joi Purvy Decorate and take home your own terra-cotta pot with acrylic paint and gold foil! Arrow Creative, July 10, 6 p.m.
Fairy Garden Planting Party (21+) Put together your own unique fairy garden! All supplies will be provided, including plants, pots, soil, and decorations. Bring your own drinks and snacks to enjoy while you’re creating. This event is for adults only 21+. Memphis Botanic Garden, July 21, 6:30 p.m.
Crown Me Royal Film Fest This noncompetitive film festival showcases panels, workshops, and independent films from BIPOC behind-the-scenes filmmakers and creatives from all media platforms. Various locations, August 4-6
Night at the Museum Explore the Dixon galleries like never before as works step out of the canvas for an evening of special performances and music, activities, and much more. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, August 12, 5-8 p.m.
Marketplace in Motion Shop colorful new prints, creative cards, and fun stickers to throw onto your new notebooks. Stop by Friday night to grab a cold drink while you shop, or bring your kids through on Saturday for them to pick out their own decorative school starter pack. Arrow Creative, August 18-August 19
Art on the Rocks: Garden Cocktails & Craft Beer (21+) Enjoy botanical cocktails, craft beer, and wine in the Dixon Gardens. Each admission ticket includes all drink tastings and bites from local restaurants along with live entertainment. Dixon Gallery & Gardens, September 8, 6-9 p.m.
Marketplace in Motion Shop from local makers, grab a drink, and catch a football game with some friends. Loflin Yard, September 23, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
