Arts & Culture Alliance Presents “Here and Now” in the Balcony

Date: 12/02/2009

The Arts & Culture Alliance is pleased to present “Here & Now”, a collaborative visual installation presented by The Carpetbag Theatre as part of their 40th Anniversary Year Celebration.  Carpetbag has invited regional visual and performance artists to produce a collaborative, interdisciplinary installation in the Balcony gallery during the month of December.  The conceptual touchstone for this installation is an examination of what it means to each artist to be living in this moment at this time in this place. 

The installation opens on Friday, December 4, and will continue to evolve and grow over the following week as the six featured artists continue to respond to each other’s work and create additional work in the gallery space.  The participating artists are Patricia Tinajero, Eddie Davis, TeaYoun Kim-Kassor, Sammy Nicely, Emily Bivens, and Melody Reeves.  Their work represents a diverse range of formal innovation and conceptual investigation, comprising a mix of disciplines, genres, and cultural backgrounds.  The installation has received generous support from the Tennessee Arts Commission Arts Build Communities program, the Arts & Culture Alliance of Greater Knoxville, and The University of Tennessee.

The installation is featured as a satellite event of the National Performance Network’s Annual Meeting hosted by The Carpetbag Theatre in Knoxville from December 10-13.  The Carpetbag Theatre is a multigenerational ensemble company whose mission is to give artistic voice to the issues and dreams of people who have been silenced by racism, classism, sexism, ageism, homophobia and other forms of oppression.  The National Performance Network (NPN) is an organization of 61 diverse cultural presenters and artists, working to create meaningful partnerships and provide leadership for the practice and public experience of the arts in the United States.  NPN supports the creation and touring of contemporary performance such as dance, theater, music, visual art and spoken word.  Visit http://www.carpetbagtheatre.org for more information.

The exhibition will be on display in the Balcony at the Emporium Center in downtown Knoxville from December 4-23, 2009.  An opening reception will take place as part of First Friday activities on December 4 from 5:00-9:00 PM.  The Emporium Center is located at 100 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902.  Exhibition hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM with additional hours on Saturday, December 5, from 10:00 AM- 5:00 PM in conjunction with the 6th Annual Emporium Holiday Extravaganza.  For more information, please contact the Arts & Culture Alliance at (865) 523-7543, or visit the web site at http://www.knoxalliance.com.

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