CLARKSVILLE, TN – Austin Peay State University’s Department of Art + Design, in collaboration with the Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts and the Customs House Museum and Cultural Center, will present Rooted+Rising from Oct. 30 to Jan. 7 at the Customs House, along with a Nov. 7 reception.
The exhibition features the work of exemplary APSU students alongside faculty, showcasing the range, development, and skill within the Department of Art + Design. It emphasizes the connection between the legacy and future of APSU’s most visually impactful creative community.
Rooted+Rising is curated by Professor Paul Collins and APSU student interns Emily Crosby and Sabrina Sanford. It allows APSU student artists to participate in all parts of a professionally curated museum exhibition, from curation and installation to press and media outreach.
“I am so excited to tell the story of the Department of Art + Design because it’s so new and still so true to what we’ve always been,” Collins said. “I’m excited to share our new directions and still give witness to our heritage alive and in action through hands-on mentor-based instruction. It’s just part of our DNA at the Peay.”
Sanford said the exhibition also highlights the uplifting culture within the Department of Art + Design.
“Working to curate the show has been such a privilege because I get to see the relationships between artists and artwork unfold in parallel with the student and mentor dynamics, which is a feeling we’re really trying to capture for the show,” Sanford said. “Every time you see someone involved with the show, what you get is pure encouragement, and it’s that way within the department even when there’s no show on. Everyone is just as excited to see their peers and students succeed as they are to have success themselves.”