CLARKSVILLE, TN − The New Gallery, with support from The Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts and the Department of Art + Design, is continuing the 2024-25 exhibition season with Lost at Sea, a solo exhibition by Brooklyn-based artist and Austin Peay State University alum Khari Turner.
The exhibition is open now through March 28 at The New Gallery, located at 15 Henry St. inside APSU’s Art + Design Building.
“Through abstraction and realistic renderings of Black features, Turner’s work explores ancestral connections to water—both spiritual and physical,” said Michael Dickins, the director of The New Gallery. “Turner collects water from oceans, lakes, and rivers tied to Black history and personal narratives, blending it with ink to pour onto his paintings. Crackled lines emerge as the ink and ocean water dry, resembling lightning, roots, and veins—traces of embedded memory.”
Transformation is central to Turner’s process, echoing water’s cycle from liquid to vapor. He shapes a world where water holds stories with each piece, guiding the journey like a vessel on an open sea.
“I am also excited to welcome Khari back to Austin Peay and to host his work in The New Gallery,” Dickins said. “His professional career has been exciting to watch as he has exhibited his work in various galleries and museums nationwide and in Sweden and Italy … but I am mostly looking forward to him returning to the Department of Art+Design to talk about his journey and artistic practice to our current students.”
Turner will present an artist lecture on his work and creative practice at 6 p.m. on March 4, in room 120 of the Art+Design Building. A reception and gallery talk with Turner will be held in The New Gallery beginning at noon on March 5.
This exhibition will also be open during Clarksville’s ArtWalk on March 6, with Turner in attendance from 5 – 7:30 p.m. All events are free and open to the public.
Hours for The New Gallery are Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Closed on weekends and holidays, and follows the university’s academic calendar. For more information on this exhibition, which is free and open to the public, contact Michael Dickins, Director of The New Gallery, at dickinsm@apsu.edu.