Reminders of COOL

So, with a nice weekend behind us and rain up ahead, I figure now would be a better time than any to remind everyone of a few very cool things going on in our neck of the woods that might be off the normal radar.  Without further ado, here it goes.

This Thursday, February 28^th (the day after one of my favorite birthday dates ever), marks a couple of very cool events and things.  First, at the Main Branch Nashville Public Library (615 Church St.), from noon-1:30pm, you can witness the Civil Rights Public Art Project.  Back in 2012, the Metro Nashville Arts Commission issued a national call to artists for the creation of a public artwork honoring the role Nashville played within the Civil Rights Movement.  Thursday, there will be a public workshop for the upcoming project where participants will have the opportunity to share personal thoughts and experiences on the matter.  There will be another similar workshop on March 12^th as well.  Then, also Thursday at the same spot, FREE and OPEN to the PUBLIC, you can come listen to this month’s featured poet David M. Harris read original prose.  A native New Yorker, and now Nashville area author found at East Side Story,  he will wow you like no other from 7-8pm.  He has been published many times over and is also the host of a Radio Free Nashville show called Difficult Listening on Sundays from 10am-noon.  The Third thing about Thursday, February 28^th, is that it marks the deadline for the call for local artists by Two Moon Gallery and their “Ten and Two” competition.  Basically, ten artists will be chosen to exhibit their work on April 4^th.  Also, two winning artists will be awarded a two-person show on September 5^th (also one of my favorite dates of the year ever).

 

Fast forward to Friday, March 1^st, and realize that Friday is the last day that Seed Space will have “Real Images” by Vesna Pavolovic  on display.  Pavlovic has created a photographic installation that transformed the gallery space into a site of the camera body itself.  It is a very unique show that you should check out before it is gone.

This Saturday is the first of the month.  You know that means that everyone will be packed around the Downtown art crawl and all of the great art galleries and artists that we have to offer.  One in particular you should check out is OPEN Gallery and their opening reception of “beneath hearth and campfire.”  It is work by ADDS DONNA and will be on display through the month of March.  As with the rest of the crawl from 6-9pm, everything is FREE and OPEN to the Public.  But remember, just because it is free to attend, that doesn’t mean that you can’t spend a few dollars and support the local artists and galleries that make all of this wonderfulness happen for you and all of us.  Don’t take that for granted, please.

 

Another thing going on Saturday, during the day, is a film screening at Scarritt-Bennett to celebrate Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day.  The film is set in Southern India and is about family disputes being settled by Jamaats and Islamic Sharia law without equal rights for women and how a special group of women were able to attain the rights to defend themselves.  It is very powerful and worth the watch.  The film has English subtitles and there will be an audience discussion following.  It is FREE to attend but RSVP is requested at the Harambee Auditorium, Fondren Hall.  The event is from 5-7:15pm and you can RSVP by emailing programs@scarrittbennett.org or calling 615-340-7557.

 

Then, for the kicker of the weekend, you should mark your calendars for “The Main In Black” night that will be all about Johnny Cash.  Live music and paintings to be announced, but all of the art is about Johnny Cash and a dress code is obviously all black.  Starting at 7pm, it will only cost you $10 to get in at That’s Cool (2309 B Franklin Pike) to experience a night for Johnny Cash like none other in town any night of the year.  If you have more questions, email – thatscool@thatscoolnashville.com.

 

That’s cool indeed and that pretty much wraps things up perfectly for your week and rainy days ahead.  I hope this reaches you well and I hope to see you next Tuesday, March 5^th, at Fat Bottom Brew Co. (900 Main Street) for a local beer and burger deal for $10 and to witness our first East Side Storytellin’ event at the new location.  We will begin as always at 7pm sharp and will feature author Victoria Schwab and musician Grace Adele (with Keenan Wade and more)!  If you need reservations for a table or two, call Fat Bottom Brew at (615) 678-589.  Otherwise, I’ll see you there!  It’s FREE, LOCAL, and AWESOME!!

 

Enjoy your week and be nice to one another.

Much love,

chuck

 

www.eastsidestorytn.com

www.nashvillesheart.com

HERE and NOW and HERE yet again

I give you the question and some things to talk about from time to time, but I’ll be honest that I don’t have any of the answers. I’m just going to things that make me feel good. Maybe you can do the same with a few of the below.

First, if you haven’t already RSVP’d for tomorrow night’s last East Side Storytellin’ event at Rumours East featuring a reading from the bestselling author Kevin Wilson and the very talented musician Amanda Shires (starts at 7pm and you might be able to hear it from the bar where happy hour will be going on beforehand), then you might want to go ahead and mark your calendars for our move over to Fat Bottom Brewery beginning March 5th. I’ll give you more details later. Point being, we were already booked to capacity about a week ago. This thing is getting really fun and you should be a part of it.

If you can’t make it to our show tomorrow night, you should definitely head over to
the other side of town and experience another extraordinary show about music and local things. String Theory: a one-man show about music, is the talented author/musician/music man behind Music City Roots and everything good they are about, Craig Havighurst will once again take the stage at Bongo Java After Hours Theater at 7pm for another performance/monologue like no other. Friends who saw the first run of the show have called it insightful, warm, personal, and inspiring. I say it is a must-see!

Then, skipping over hump day right into Thursday, February 21st, you should come back to the East Side over to The Building (1008 C Woodland Street) at 6pm to see what Plowhaus is doing with their Third Thursdays at The Building extravaganza. It costs $10 at the door and is a new monthly event series that promotes the collaboration and intermingling of artistic disciplines with established artists as well new people in the city (or new kids on the block if you will and I just did). Some visual artists featured this week will be Mandy Peitz Mood and Keith Carter, and some of the musical artists will be Warren Pash, The Blackfoot Gypsies, Matt Moody, and MurderVet. It will be worth your time for sure!

Meanwhile, another spectacular event of local greatness will be Friday, at 9pm, at The Stone Fox (712 51st Avenue North). And they will call it “Hags-A-Nova!” It is your time and opportunity to come out and celebrate the Bossa Nova! Enjoy the sounds of Jobim, Getz, Gilberto, Sinatra, Elis REgina, Jorge Ben and more. Plus it is a very dynamic, hip spot to be at too.

After you rock out on Friday, you can spend some quality time with the visual arts scene over at another unique building … 427 Chestnut Street. For it is there where threesquared will be having fun with “Still Lifes, Landscapes, and Posers.” From 6-9pm, artist and guest curator, Mary Addison Hackett, is bringing together 6 painters from across the country who have simple subjects with deep and complex meaning to it all. If in doubt, let wine and light refreshments be the reason to get you there and then let the art keep you there and have you talking about it long after you leave. Parking is FREE and 427 is rad. Enough said.

Sunday, you might relax with your favorite television shows. Then again, you might head over to The Belcourt Theater for Oscar Experience: Nashville. For the 12th year, the Belcourt is hosting the Academy Awards on a big screen with a red carpet party, a glamorous VIP lounge, and an amazon silent auction to be bought (I know a few things there already that will totally rock).

And speaking of something that will totally blow your mind. A little birdie at the Metro Arts just told me that Nashville Metro Transit Authority (MTA) and Nashville Scene, have teamed up to bring the Poetry Society of America’s Poetry in Motion program to Nashville for the 2nd year. Basically, they are going to pick several contemporary, local poets’ work to be displayed on our public transit around town and beyond! Emerging and established poets in Nashville are invited to submit entries to be considered for the 2013 program. 10 finalists will be selected to be printed and displayed in MTA buses to be read by over 800,000 riders during the month of April (the best month of them all and Nashville Poetry Month). The Nashville Scene will feature the winning poems too. Also, the winners will be given the chance to read their poems at a public event on April 4th, the day before the best day of the year 🙂 The deadline is March 8th, and you can read more if interested about how to submit here-
http://www.nashville.gov/Arts-Commission/Community-Arts/Poetry-In-Motion.aspx

That is all for now. Have a great day and week ahead. Be well and nice to one another.

much love,
chUck

www.eastsidestorytn.com
www.nashvillesheart.com

This week … oh boy, this week

This week is going to be a fun one from start to finish. I won’t waste your time. I’l begin with the fun.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, February 12th, there will be quite a two for Tuesday that involves animals and art. You and all your friends are welcome to come out from 6-8pm to Village Community Gallery inside Jacob’s Well Coffee Shop (1053 Donelson Ave) to see Animalia: a solo exhibition by Sarah Shearer. Not only is it a solo exhibition for the talented Sarah Shearer, it is also a Valentine Making Workshop. Percentages of sales will benefit animals in need in the Old Hickory Village area. Donations are welcome to add to the pot of goodness to be had for animals’ sake.

Then, Wednesday at 7pm marks another lovely art show out of the blue. This might be a first and I’m excited to share that there will be a Valentines art show at fooBAR (2511 Gallatin Road). Yes, Wednesday, at 7pm, there will be an art show that may or may include art related to love-hate-valentines at all. All I know is that there will be art and it will be a collective of different artists selling affordable art to give to the sweetheart in your life. Plus, it’s an art show at fooBAR!!!! Brilliant!

I’m sure you’ll take the time to visit your favorite restaurant, art gallery, or tree this Thursday for the worldwide day devoted to LOVE for Valentine’s Day, but you might not already know that you can have all 3-in-1 in sorts with the opening of “Affectionately Yours” at Cheekwood. From February 14-August 25, this exhibition not only showcases the Raymond and Linda White Collection of American miniature portraits at Cheekwood miniature artwork, but pieces together the stories that have stayed with these portraits as they were passed from generation to generation … ilke LOVE.

And Speaking of love, love, LOVE, let me remind you that this Saturday marks the reception of artist Duy Huynh’s latest art at Art & Invention Gallery. Aside from my wife, I don’t think art gets any better in my world than Duy’s. This Saturday, February 16th, from 6-9:30pm, Meg will be all smiles with doors open for one and all to experience the world of Duy and party. It, like all of Duy’s works, will be amazing and more than words. Seriously, make it a point to mark your calendar NOW to visit this reception on Saturday.

I think that the party for Duy on Saturday will allow you to rest on Sunday for a change. You don’t have any football or other errands to keep you too busy until you have the tough decision to make between The Walking Dead or Downton Abbey later in the evening (for those without TiVo that is). But, that written, there is something that is NOT a tough decision to make for next Tuesday night. Next Tuesday, February 19th, marks the final East Side Storytellin’ show that I will host at Rumours East. It is FREE to attend but you need to call 615-262-5346 to reserve a seat for you and your friends to witness a night celebrating a reading with National Bestselling author Kevin Wilson, music by rising star Amanda Shires, and sponsored by The University of the South: Sewanee and it’s School of Letters program. But please don’t cry for East Side Storytellin’ though, we are moving the show to another location on the East Side beginning in March. I will spare you the information right now so that you remember to come to Rumours East one more time on February 19th. Just saying, it will be a night to remember.

Have a great day and week ahead. I told you it was going to be fun. Now go out and have fun!

much love,
chUck

www.eastsidestorytn.com
www.nashvillesheart.com

The month of LOVE and temperatures rise again

To properly jumpstart this post and this week/weekend, I’d like to let you in on something that isn’t a secret and you should already know about going on in East Nashville. I’m talking about the over-weeklong Valentines Making Workshops going on from now until February 12th at Art & Invention Gallery. It’s that time of year again to decorate your card or wooden heart for your loved one. You supply the time and Meg and Bret will supply the materials and proper instructions to totally make your Valentine special. Reservations are a must for groups over 5 people, but you can always drop by on the whim and check to see if they are open and come see me at my East Side Story bookstore or call Meg ahead at 615-226-2070 if you want.

Speaking of spreading the love here and everywhere, we had another spectacular East Side Storytellin’ show last night (that will air on WAMB radio- 1200 am/ 99.3 fm- at 2 pm this Saturday and then on a blog I’ll post next week) that involved the brilliance of Alice Randall reading from her book “Rebel Yell” and the new music of Jonathan Sexton. One of the faces in the crowd that I had a chance to meet was the multitalented Sage Galesi. A wonderful actress and singer/songwriter in her own right, she is apparently not wasting any time making her mark on Music City. If you don’t have plans tonight, you should show her your support by attending her latest show at The Basement. It starts at 8pm, is only $5 to attend, and she puts the Sage in Sage and the Saints w/  Jack and Jillie and Mallorie Haley. It will be a good show to see.

If it’s a road trip that you want to partake in, you can always take a drive this Thursday, February 7th, from 5-7pm, for a reflective journey of sorts. Specifically, you can check out Miranda Herrick’s latest work in “Reflective” in an art reception being the first time that the Custom’s House has had a reception that is part of the Downtown Clarksville Art Crawl! The show will be on display through March 3, but this will be a golden chance to hit the road and meet a Nashville artist on the go in Clarksville, TN.

On Thursday, you can drop your books and paintbrushes and get your butt on over to Communion Nashville. What and where is it? Communion Nashville is at The Basement and is some of the best music you’ll experience on the fly. There will be a DJ Set by Wells & Lt. Dan from Lightning 100 beginning at 8pm, with advanced tickets at Grimey’s, and then the real fun begins. The bands for this show will be St. Paul & The Broken Bones, White Violet, The Farewell Drifters, Neulore, but the all-time greatest of all and will be on billboards everywhere sooner than later (my humble opinion of course) will be the group Eastern Block (http://easternblockmusic.com). Yeah, I said it. Go to the Basement on Thursday night because you want to and because you read it here.

On Friday, i have a Call for Teachers of sorts to let you know about. At 5pm, at Belle H. Bennett House at Scarritt-Bennett Center (1807 Grand Avenue), you can come out and learn more about the Nashville Folk + Free Skool. In fact, you might be able to talk someone into letting you lead your own workshop and take another during the spring term upcoming (May-March). Come out, meet some wonderful people in the process, and learn more what Nashville Folk + Free Skool is all about – http://nashvillefolkandfree.com.

Saturday, there are two great opportunities for you to enjoy the day to the fullest. First, Regions Bank and the Frist Center for the Visual Arts present “Regions Free Day at the Frist.” It coincides with the debut of “Rembrandt and the Dutch Golden Age: Highlights from the Detroit Institute of Arts.” Also showing during Regions Free DAy at the Frist, guests can enjoy “German Expressionism from the Detroit Institute of Arts” one more time this weekend before it moves out, as well as “Young Tennessee Artists: 2012 Statewide Upper-Level Studio Art” and more. Regions Free Day at the Frist, which is from 10am-5:30pm February 9th only, is the bank’s February installment in the 2013 “Regions Free Days” program- an annual initiative offering free access to one area blockbuster attraction or event each month.

Secondly on Saturday, your second choice can turn into two other things. I’m splitting events so you don’t have to split hairs. First, the Boheme Collectif (www.bohemecollectif.com) will present “Into the Night: A Twin Peaks Themed Art Show and Prom.” Starting at 7pm, this will be a celebration like no other for the 25th anniversary of Twin Peaks and approaching rumors of a 3 season abound. To celebrate everything Twin Peaks, the Boheme Collectif has amassed a number of Nashville’s finest artists to present themed works- paintings, pictures, sculptures, and more. Also, in addition to the art show, there will also be a Twin Peaks costume prom in the performance space upstairs. You can dance the night away with electronic music, witness the David Lynch themed burlesque performance, and then close the night with a local quartet playing swing-blues and early rock and roll sounds. There will also be coffee, doughnuts, and cherry pie in case you were wondering. But before you go to bed that night, you might want to get over to The Row at 1108 Woodland in East Nashville. Despite seeing me to buy the latest and greatest all-Nashville book at East Side Story, you should help celebrate the 3rd birthday for Goodbuy Girls! From 6-9pm, as part of the 2nd Saturday revival now that the weather is warming up, Kim and Miss T are having a major sale from 50-75% off of their coolest items with snacks and refreshments to boot on the side. I’m just saying … it’s a party y’all! The 5 points party also just so happens to coincide with the monthly Second Saturday @ 5 points from 6-9:30 that has Bryant Gallery (featuring work by Solomon Behnke), Art & Invention Gallery, John Cannon Gallery, and more staying open later to show off their best festivities and art. Don’t miss it!

Then, with Sunday approaching your world without any football to watch, I’ll give you two other events to close your weekend and keep your eyes on. First, at 5pm, YOU should come to Cafe Coco to see “Make Ups, Break Ups, and Match.com.” Melanie Vare and the rest of the “That Time of the Month” club is putting together a dating show like no other. You can find more information and ticket stuff for the event at www.brownpapertickets.com/event/323784. It is amazingly funny women storytelling and 1 token man, but this month they are coming out with TWO token men for an added plus for everyone. In all seriousness, it will be a blast for all that come out. Secondly for Sunday, and back to the visual arts to close this weekend out, YOU NEED to come see the show called “Peculiar Citizens” at 7pm at Octane! Art Gallery. Located at 1000 Main Street in East Nashville, this show is a new body of work by Ryan M. McCauley (who was featured in Native magazine in a story and the cover of the January 2013 issue- a GREAT issue by the way- see here- http://issuu.com/nativenashville/docs/issue7?mode=window). In Ryan’s artwork, he tries to approach the idea of people being naturally robotic, conforming to modern society, and rarely thinking outside of the box while living in patterns. You know, exactly the opposite of how most of my friends try not to be like. That said, Ryan’s art is very thought provoking and visually dynamic. If you are well rested from visiting all of the above, you should close your week by visiting Octane!

With that written, I’m tired. See you next week or somewhere up above (better than seeing you down below).

Enjoy your day and week and be nice to each other.

much love,

chUck

www.nashvillesheart.com
www.eastsidestorytn.com