Category: Artists
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Jerry Machen, Sr.
Jerry Machen, Sr. Jerry Machen, of Kingsport, has been creating innovative, pictorial textile wall hangings and custom carpets for over forty years. The owner and operator of Agape Carpet and Rug Specialists, Jerry is also one of the foremost rug restorers in the southern region. Interested in art since he was a young boy, Jerry…
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Elise Kendrick
Elise Kendrick Creating art has been an intrinsic part of my being for as long as I can remember. While my artistic path has varied, coming from a long line of storytellers and educators has contributed to my desire to visually tell stories. By using painting and printmaking as a vehicle to create, I am…
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William ‘Bill’ Johnson
Bill Johnson Arts educator and Tennessee State University (Tennessee A&I University) alumni, Johnson taught art at Stratford High in Nashville, TN. Johnson received his first formal arts training at the Vancouver School of Art and traveled through Canada studying the art of Native peoples in the 1950s. He served as artist in residence at George…
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Barbara Hodges
Barbara Hodges Barbara Hodges has loved the idea of art making from the age of about seven, when she became fascinated by the works of Romare Bearden. She is a native of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Upon graduation from Oakland High School, Barbara earned her way to Middle Tennessee State University on an academic scholarship. After completing…
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Leroy Hodges
Leroy Hodges A native of Meridian, Mississippi, Leroy Hodges attended and graduated from Harris High School. After high school, he attended Mississippi Valley State University where he earned a Bachelors of Arts in Mathematics with a minor in Physics. Upon graduation, Leroy served his country, joining the United States Air Force in Upstate New York.…
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Willard Hill
Willard Hill When local artist Willard Hill was born, a gallon of gasoline cost 19 cents, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president of the United States and desegregation of public schools was still 20 years off. Now 88 years old, the lifelong Manchester resident is gaining worldwide attention with his mixed media sculptures. Hill’s work ranges…
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Bessie Harvey+
Bessie Harvey A new creative voice in the region emerged in Alcoa, Tennessee, in the late twentieth century. Entirely self-taught, Bessie Harvey (1929–1994) used little more than roots, sticks, shells, and paint to assemble a diverse cast of spirited figures—biblical characters, African ancestors, mythological creatures—infused with uplifting messages of human perseverance and divine compassion. Harvey’s…
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Cynthia Gadsden
Cynthia Gadsden Cynthia Gadsden is an Associate Professor of Art History at Tennessee State University in Nashville, Tennessee, where she teaches courses in Art History, African American Art, and African American Film. As a researcher, she focuses on the interconnection of African American art, history, and culture. Through this lens she explores the lived experience,…
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Art Eubanks+
Art Eubanks+ Alumni and international arts educator, Eubanks worked in a variety of mediums; oil pastels, clay to collage, displaying subjects and places that he lived and experienced. Graduating from Cameron High School in 1966, he then earned a degree in Art Education from Tennessee State University. He taught and studied in various European, Caribbean,…
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William Edmondson+
William Edmondson+ William Edmondson, son of Tennessee slaves, did not consider himself an artist when he began carving around 1932, after retiring from his job as a laborer. Inspired by a vision, he emphasized his divine calling, claiming, “Jesus has planted the seed of carving in me,” and describing his works as “mirkels.” Edmondson carved…
CRAFTING BLACKNESS 