CLARKSVILLE, TN – The Department of Art + Design at Austin Peay State University is excited to announce its 2021-22 season of exhibitions and visiting speakers. Generously supported by the Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts (CECA), the Department of Art + Design can bring nationally/internationally recognized artists and thinkers directly to Clarksville with programming that is free and open to the public.

The New Gallery, APSU’s contemporary art gallery, hosts five curated exhibitions showcasing contemporary art from regional and national artists, as well as the annual juried student exhibition each year.

“I say this every year, but I’m really excited about this year’s slate of exhibitions and speakers,” said Michael Dickins, gallery director and Visiting Artist program chair. “We’re beginning our fifth year in the new Art + Design building, and we are continuing to bring world-class artists directly to Austin Peay and the residents of Clarksville. With invaluable support from CECA, this excitement will continue as The New Gallery will host an exciting exhibition lineup of contemporary artists that will challenge, awe and inspire our students to push themselves in their individual practices. And our Visiting Artist Speaker Series will allow our students and community to directly interact with the influential artists of our time.”

The New Gallery has extended its availability to give more people a chance to see the exhibits and artists.

“Though the gallery is open and free to the public during the week, many people find it difficult to visit during this time,” Dickins said. “Every exhibition this year will be open during Clarksville’s First Thursday Art Walk to make the exhibitions more accessible to the community. For those outside of our area, each exhibition will be accompanied by a 3D virtual tour, a technology that we adapted to make our exhibitions accessible during the shutdowns of the pandemic. The virtual tours were so successful, it would be a shame to not continue that part of our programming. We hope this year will bring more people to campus to see the work in person versus virtually as they did last year.”

Exhibitions

The New Gallery exhibition season includes contemporary art and artists visiting from Richmond, Virginia; Oakland, California; Atlanta, Georgia; Richmond, Virginia; Nashville, Tennessee; Swannanoa, North Carolina; and three from New York City:

Recent Acquisitions: Selections from the past 5 years of new acquisitions of the University’s Permanent Art Collection. Aug. 18-Sept. 17, 2021. Reception: Sept. 2 from 5-7:30 p.m. with a brief gallery talk by curator/director of The New Gallery. Selected works from over 150 new pieces accepted into APSU’s art collection within the past five years.

Wansoo Kim: Table Monsters. Sept. 27-Oct. 22, 2021. Reception/Gallery Talk: Oct. 7, noon-1:30 p.m., gallery talk begins at 12:15 p.m. at The New Gallery. First Thursday Art Walk: Oct. 7, 5-7:30 p.m. at The New Gallery. Artist Lecture: Oct. 7, 6 p.m. at the Art + Design Building, Room 120. New works by APSU Art + Design faculty member Wansoo Kim.

Preserve & Protect. Nov. 1-Dec. 10, 2021. Curator Talk with Erika Diamond: Nov. 1, 6 p.m., Art + Design Building, Room 120. Reception/Gallery Talk: Nov. 2, noon-1:30 p.m., gallery talk begins at 12:15 p.m. at The New Gallery. First Thursday Art Walk: Nov. 4, 5-7:30 p.m. Artist Talk: Paul Rucker, Nov. 9, 6 p.m.; First Thursday Art Walk: Dec. 2, 5:00-7:30 p.m.

Christina West: Mere Mortals. Jan. 12-Feb. 12, 2022. Artist Lecture: Feb. 1, 6 p.m., Art + Design Building, Room 120. Reception/Gallery Talk: Feb. 2, noon-1:30 p.m., gallery talk begins at 12:15 p.m. at The New Gallery. First Thursday Art Walk: Feb. 3, 5-7:30 p.m.

Listening: The Fourth String. Raheleh Filsoofi, Reza Filsoofi. Feb. 21-March 25, 2022. Artist Lecture: TBD. Reception: TBD at The New Gallery. First Thursday Art Walk: March 3, 5-7:30 p.m. Musical Performances/Nowruz celebration: March 19, time TBD. This project is a series of interactive multimedia installations.

54th Annual Juried Student Exhibition. April 4-27, 2022. First Thursday Art Walk: April 7, 5-7:30 p.m. Reception/Awards Night: April 27, 5-7 p.m. at The New Gallery; Awards Ceremony: April 27, 5:30 p.m.

Visiting speakers

The 2020-21 CECA Visiting Artists Speaker Series features artists from Richmond, Virginia; Canyon Country, California; Baltimore, Maryland; Brooklyn, New York, and two based in Los Angeles, California.

Sept. 21, 2021: Little Friends of Printmaking is a husband-and-wife team, JW & Melissa Buchanan.

Nov. 9, 2021: Paul Rucker is a multimedia visual artist, composer and musician.

Feb. 8, 2022: Jean Shin, recognized for her monumental installations, transforms large accumulations of everyday objects into expressions of identity and community engagement.

March 24, 2022: Kenturah Davis is an artist working between Los Angeles and Accra (Ghana).

March 29, 2022: LaToya Hobbs.

April 12, 2022: Jordan Koch.

The New Gallery will be open 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday or by appointment. Curator-guided tours are also available upon request for small groups. Closed on weekends and holidays and follows the university’s academic calendar. For more information on the exhibitions or lectures, contact Michael Dickins, gallery director, at dickinsm@apsu.edu. To stay informed of upcoming events or scheduling changes, follow both The New Gallery and the Department of Art + Design on Facebook and Instagram.