Artwork by G. Sanford McGee
Tennessee Craft-South invites the public to its annual Holiday Studio Tour on the mountain on Saturday, Dec. 4, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., CST and Sunday, Dec. 5, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., CST. Tennessee Craft-South is the regional branch of Tennessee Craft, the state-wide organization which supports and promotes all handmade crafts in Tennessee.
Several dozen local and regional artists will show their work during the weekend: textiles, sculpture, jewelry, pottery, glass, paintings, metal work, and woodwork. Sewanee artist studios open to the public include those of Bob Askew, Pippa Browne, Ben Potter, Claire Reishman, and Merissa Tobler. Other Sewanee locations are the American Legion Hall, Locals Gallery, and The Frame Gallery. In Monteagle, open studios include Th e Gallery in the Monteagle Sunday School Assembly and Hallelujah Pottery. Light refreshments will be available at most locations and masks are required at all locations.
Once again, there is a group exhibition of multiple artists’ work in the St. Andrew’s-Sewanee Art Gallery, located in the center of the Simmonds Building at SAS. While many sites host individual artists showing their work, the SAS Art Gallery presents an exhibition from members of the group, in addition to SAS faculty and students and other members of Tennessee Craft-South.
A special addition to the Tour this year is the Empty Tables project, an artist initiative sponsored by Tennessee Craft-South—partnering with Sewanee Locally Grown, the Community Action Committee, and Morton Memorial Church—designed to address local hunger. While many artists don’t have the means to donate substantial funds to programs addressing this issue, they do have talents to contribute. Participating artists will set aside time to create art celebrating the growing, serving, and eating of food: bowls, plates, napkins, paintings, candlesticks, etc. These art pieces will be available for purchase at the American Legion Hall and 100 percent of money raised will be used to purchase food for those in need.
There are six sponsors for the Holiday Studio Tour this year: The Blue Chair, The Lemon Fair, Locals, Mooney’s, Shenanigans, and the Sewanee Inn. Studio Tour brochures are available at each of these local businesses and at all participating studios.
Bright yellow signs mark the tour route, and maps are available at all locations on the tour as well as at all sponsors’ locations, in the Sewanee Messenger (see page 9 of this issue), and on the Tennessee Craft website .