November 10-24, 2023
Artist Statement
Scott A. Emrick views art as a means of communication - a way to visually express ideas and feelings using God's gift of creativity. Working almost exclusively in oil on panel or canvas, he prefers to paint in a realistic way that represents his interpretation of the subject rather than a photo-realistic recreation.
A Fine Arts graduate from Middle Tennessee State University, Scott studied oil painting with Shirley Pharris of Hermitage in the early 1990’s; and later with Mary Veazie of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He has participated in numerous oil painting workshops over the years with artists such as Jennifer Gennari, Victoria Kalaichi, Mia Bergeron, and world-renown artist Daniel E. Greene.
The greatest artistic influence in his life was his mother, Carol Ann (Rivenes) Emrick; who nurtured a love of art and creativity at an early age. Other artistic influences include John Singer Sargent, Diego Velasquez, Michaelangelo, Frank Frazetta, Scott Waddell, and artist/teacher Robert Henri.
In 2022, Scott began a partnership with the Church Street Gallery in Murfreesboro Tennessee to create pet portraits for clients. Having had pets throughout his life, he knows the special bond that forms between pets and their humans; and he strives to capture the personality of the pet to elicit those warm feelings in each of his pet portraits.
Scott and his wife Renee have called Murfreesboro home for over 30 years and he enjoys giving back to the community through his art. He is a member of the art ministry at Experience Community Church assisting with various creative projects for the church and community. He enjoys working with the Center of the Arts to create stage props for their productions such as Spamalot, The Wiz, and The Hunchback of Notre Dame; and is honored to have been asked to display his work during their production of Misery.
“I am interested in art as a means of living a life; not as a means of making a living.” ~Robert Henri
October 13 -November 3, 2023
Artist Statement
In the transitional space between wakefulness and slumber, a unique phenomenon emerges: fleeting visions of places that feel almost real, yet, like dreams, are unmistakably out of reach. "Portals: Places Unseen" is an exploration of this liminal realm, a series of visual narratives that straddle the tangible and the ethereal, reality and dream.
At the heart of each piece lies a portal—a circular scene nestled within another, mirroring the very nature of dreams within dreams, or worlds within worlds. These portals are not passive windows; they are vibrant, living entities. Bathed in a dreamy haze, they beckon the viewer to peer inside, revealing vast, otherworldly expanses. Some of these expanses are inhabited by beings that have become known to me as Guardians.
The Guardians are not mere creatures of fantasy; they carry a heavy mantle. They are the sentinels of the unknown, protectors of the portals—gateways to parallel universes. These universes, though seemingly distant, echo our own desires, fears, and dreams. The Guardians' sacred duty is to shield these entrances from discovery, occasionally leaving the confines of their home realms to ensure the sanctity of the portals.
Drawing inspiration from my own pre-slumber visions, this collection invites the viewer on a journey—a foray into the depths of the imagination, where one can traverse the boundaries of their known reality and dive into the infinite possibilities of the unseen. Each piece serves as a reminder of the expansive universe within us all, urging us to question, to dream, and to explore beyond the familiar.
Artist Bio
Maile Lani is a self taught artist and illustrator with a love for color theory and a background in Asian art. Working with a variety of mediums, she blends surrealism with modernist elements to create dream-like imagery that has deep roots in the natural world. Her main source of inspiration comes from her upbringing in art and antique business, where-in her family has been collecting Japanese art for close to 40 years. Maile currently lives outside of Nashville, sharing her home with her husband, infant daughter, and her own little Guardians: Waffles and Peaches, her beloved dog and cat.
August 11 -September 8, 2023
Lindsay Kixmiller is a local watercolor and sketch artist. In grade school you could always find drawings lining the margins of her papers.
“For me, the simplicity of paper and ink is so raw and beautiful," she shares. In 2018, Lindsay experimented with a personalized watercolor of her close friends first home as a moving gift and from then on her love for watercolors has grown. "Watercoloring has taught me to be patient with my work. Each layer needs time to dry and can't be rushed.”
Sayward Ratliff has named her exhibit "ROOTS". She traces her roots back to ancestors who were among the pioneers who settled central Alabama in the early 1800’s. Growing up hearing her dad’s songs about these roots led her to create paintings that reflect memories, places, and people. Sayward was born in Selma, Alabama, a city rich in history. As a child, Sayward remembers the great oak trees that hung with Spanish moss. She often would peel the curling bark off the trees to see the layers beneath. This memory inspired the use of layers in her artwork. Each layer of color and texture is a part of her story, but the roots are what keep her grounded.
Sayward moved to Franklin, TN in 1997, where she was immersed into the Nashville scene while her dad was a part of the songwriting and music industry. Her roots grew a bit more as she attended Middle Tennessee State University, graduating with an Arts Education Degree, and Murfreesboro became her home with her husband and three children.
Sayward is passionate about sharing her artwork with others to encourage them that our roots grow deeper and stronger as we grow, they help us withstand storms, keep us grounded, and remind us where we come from. This is our story and a part of who we are.
April-May 2023
Pamela Pinkerton Mack is a self-taught oil painter, with interests in portraiture, landscape, still life, and abstract works. Although she did not begin painting until she was 50 years old, she has been drawn to art since she was a child. Located in the rolling hills of Middle Tennessee, she finds inspiration in nature.
Pamela enjoys and finds everything about the painting process exhilarating, especially the creation of something that was not there before - bringing art out of the void.
March 2023
Jeff Carlton is a full-time print marketing specialist and part-time artist. He minored in Commercial Art at Middle Tennessee State University, and has used visual arts as a creative outlet his entire life.
His art is also displayed at Greenhouse Ministries and The Experience Community Church.
“What I especially enjoy is visualizing a beautiful image in my mind and making it visible for others to see as well”, he says.
Jeff is a father of three and grandfather of three, and lives in Murfreesboro with his wife Lisa.
February 2023
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“Music paints a picture and colors sing.” American painter and bilingual singer/songwriter Dalia Garcia grew up in Madrid, Spain and Irmo, South Carolina. She has now lived in Nashville, Tennessee for over 25 years. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Art Studio from the University of South Carolina and is a former Miss South Carolina. Dalia grew up in a U.S. Military family, like a modern nomad, traveling and living around the world. Madrid, Spain was her home for seven years. After college, Dalia was lucky to have many passions. Music took her around the world, singing backup and a duet with Julio Iglesias. She also landed two record deals, one with Universal Music, and has performed with numerous bands over the years. “I’ve always thought of visual art and music as coexisting.” Dalia uses bold and vibrant colors which she says are, “emotional synonyms for happiness and exhilaration.” Her expressionistic-style paintings are the result of her exploration of the peaceful harmonious coexistence of nature, people, and the power of color, shape, and movement. Her objective is to remind us of the gift of childlike wonder and innocence that pulls at the heart strings and enkindles the imagination. “We’re bombarded all day long with news and information, mostly negative. I choose to unplug, live in the now, and hone in on the optimism, playfulness and serenity of a simple, beautiful moment.” Dalia uses her passion for music, dance, and travel, to make her dream world come to life!
December '22 & January '23
Gréti grew up overseas and lived in the beautiful land of Transylvania for about twenty years. The faith and love of her family, along with the rich history and breathtaking landscapes of her home, have left a lasting impression on her and to this day, this heritage often finds expression in her paintings. Gréti began to spend more of her time painting shortly after she moved to the United States in 2019. She found that in a season of great joy and profound changes, as well as deep loss, form and color speak even when words fall short. Her paintings tell stories of God’s faithfulness in any and all situations.
November 2022
"My subject matter is whatever catches my heart at the time, whether it is a landscape, a tree in all its fiery glory, a bird singing outside my window, or a snowman visiting my home for the season, I bring it to life on my canvas. Most of my work is acrylic however I do dabble in oils and watercolors as the mood hits.
My show title says it best,
It is Just a Hobby." - Mary Frank Reed
September & October 2022
August 2022
A.J. Montague
A.J. recently found herself in a place where her physical health could not maintain a job, and all she had left was an attic space, some old materials, and time. The attic space has been turned into her at-home, live-in studio where she paints all day and sleeps all night (in fact, all pieces of 2022 were created there)! Art has become her primary work, and she's finding herself happier than she's ever been in any other place!
Sandra Swayne
Sandra’s work has been described as emotive, expressive and detailed. Her style is realistic, and she prefers to use strong colors and painting in tonal values. She strives to challenge herself in the hopes of capturing emotion in her pieces. She gets inspiration from music and nature, but also enjoys painting a variety of subjects. Sandra finds that painting is a form of meditation, allowing her to escape from pain that she suffers from having autoimmune issues and traumatic losses in her life.
June & July 2022
Ashleigh Newnes
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May 2022
robin j. caddell
Robin’s art is a joyful celebration of color, texture and movement. Of freedom, discovery and expression. Reminders of optimism, hope and the power of love in a tactile, visual form. “I have worked with paper and fabric for years, yet when I allowed myself the freedom to create without any pattern, restraint or limits did the artistry begin to materialize. Each piece is created with joy and love, and is meant to lift the spirit of the viewer.”
Robin Jackson Caddell is a multi- media artist and maker. Working with fabric, paper, fiber and acrylic paint, this self-taught artist draws from her fashion degree and experience to create pieces full of movement, texture and color. Robin’s influences range from couture fashion, nature and music to faith, the evidence of which is seen in the detail of her fluid paintings, the romantic whimsy of paper canvases and fiber sculpture. She lives with her fur baby, Wyatt, in Murfreesboro, TN.
April 2022
Katrin was born in Frankfurt, Germany and grew up near Salzburg, Austria - or, as she tells people around here, “where they filmed The Sound of Music”!
She received her Master’s Degree in American and German Literature and Art Education at the Goethe University in Frankfurt. Over the years, she has taken many art classes and workshops throughout Austria and Germany. While studying in Frankfurt, she spent 4 years doing theater with the US Army/USO, both onstage as well as backstage. That's where she discovered her love for theater set work.
She met her American husband Titus during that time, they moved to the States in 1997 and now live in Nashville with their 2 awesome boys, Alex and Chris. Since living here, she participated in numerous art crawls and exhibits, is teaching art classes, and loves painting sets for community theaters around town. She also just wrote and illustrated her first children's book, eager to do many more!
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February & March 2022
Shannon Juliano is a southern girl with a born passion for art. At the age of twelve, her world was flipped upside down when she was diagnosed with Leukemia. It was a 7 ½ year battle, but it really helped to change her perspective on life. Her faith, prayer, friends, family and love for art carried her through it — triumphantly. So, naturally, she wanted to continue that passion.
The abstract expressionistic artwork she creates is a celebration of life. It’s a labor of love that flows from her heart, filled with gratefulness and thanksgiving. All the layers, textures, marks and colors are there for the viewer to examine and explore. They echo the “layers’ and events in our lives — all woven together in their imperfection, creating something rich and beautiful.
She feels she’s still here for a purpose, and that purpose is to celebrate this journey called life through the creation of her artwork! And she hopes that viewers are blessed with joy and inspiration as they pause to experience her work — lifting their souls one piece at a time.
January 2022
The Murfreesboro Art League is one of those “hidden gems” that has been around for a long time. Locals are constantly coming in and saying: “How long have you been here?” When they learn that we’ve been in this same location for over 40 years, they are shocked.
The Murfreesboro Art League was founded back in 1966 by Clarice Nelson when she moved to town. She and two of her friends decided they wanted an art club. At first, they met in the basement of a local bank, but when the city of Murfreesboro was making Cannonsburgh Village as part of the Centennial celebration in 1976, the art league purchased a part of an old warehouse in the village and converted it into an art gallery and classroom. We have been meeting in the same location since that time, although we have undergone a couple of name changes, as well as many interior changes.
The members of the art league are as varied as the art that hangs on the walls. We invite everyone, from beginners to the more advanced. We can each learn from each other, no matter what our level of expertise. Membership is open to individuals, as well as families with children ages 10 and up. The children may participate if a family member attends the classes with them.
The Murfreesboro Art League is an ideal way for new artists to begin to show their work. Not only do we have the gallery in Cannonsburgh, but we also show several times a year at different locations, such as the City Hall Rotunda and the Center for the Arts. We show at the Greenway Arts Fest, and several of our artists participate in other local events like the Studio Arts Tour. We also have our own “showcase artist” as well as a spot in the foyer of the Linebaugh Library where we show the “artist of the month”.
The art gallery is open to the public for free viewing. See our blog for current open times (murfreesboroartleague.blogspot.com).
December 2019
Hearts of Tennessee is a community-building project that has involved local artists of all ages, races and socioeconomic categories. The project consists of three phases. In Phase I of the project, 24 local artists painted 24 large (24") aluminum hearts fabricated by local blacksmith Joe Brown. Local artists, painter Norris Hall and sculptor Lewis Snyder, consulted with project organizers on materials that would be weather sustaining. Project organizers contacted local businesses to sponsor the hearts. This money was used for paint and materials for the hearts, and the remaining will be used toward the final sculpture. In October 2018, at the Boro Art Crawl, on the public square in Murfreesboro, the hearts were displayed on easels for the public to view. After the event, the hearts were displayed around the courthouse square in business windows.
In Phase II, they will be collected and assembled into public art with a 14' centerpiece sculpture that will reside in the Breezeway by Gateway Island. The design of this sculpture was developed by Michael Baggerly, Sharon Kolli and Ginny Togrye with the theme of Hearts of TN promoting the love and inclusiveness of our city. The hearts will be a secondary element around the centerpiece sculpture and placed in a lower base and concrete pad. A honeycomb grid fence will be around the entire sculpture installation fitting in with the Breezeway's theme of pollination. Phase III of the project will add an open gazebo with seating. Our goal is for this to be the first of many public sculptures our citizens can enjoy and to set our city on a path as a cultural destination.
Participating artists include Lisa Sims, Richard Spry, Susan Rodehaver, Diane Stockard, Sharon Mayeux, April Broussard, Susan Gulley, Kay Currie, Lewis and Eric Snyder, Sheryl Ann Miller Turman, Suzanne LeBeau, Phil Wagner, Delaney Fitzhugh, Carol Berning, Dawn Magliacano, Norris Hall, Mira Patel, Ashley Buchanon, Lisa Browning, Abby Reish, Sharon Kolli, Ginny Togrye, Kory Wells, Lynn Anthony, and Janice Reeves.
October & November 2019
Casey Malone is a retired educator who began pursuing digital photography after spending 32 years in the middle school classroom.
Casey has been creating digital fine art for the past seven years. He has won numerous awards and has shown his art in multiple exhibits in the Southeast. Casey’s image, “Reflecting” recently won Runner-up as Best in Show at the 2019 Focus on the Boro Photography Exhibit.
Through his landscape images, Casey seeks to capture the emotion of the land or the sea and those things which make nature so soothing and comforting to us all. He also enjoys photographing objects of Americana that have stood the test of time. He is passionate about creating images which evoke a determination to overcome and survive.
To Casey beauty can come in a rusty car, a well worn fishing boat, a weather-beaten flower, or a cliff shrouded in morning fog.
August & September 2019
Woman's Work is a collective exhibition featuring a group of women working across multiple mediums. Featuring the works of Laine Bratcher Cantrell, Heloise Shilstat, Robin Caddell, Pamela Mack, Sheryl Thurman Miller and Susan Carter.
LAINE BRATCHER CANTRELL: I began my art career in photography focusing primarily on black and white hand tinted portraits. Expanding to landscapes and interiors using bold colors of oils on photographic prints, I started to blend photography and painting. At the advent of digital technology, I turned to acrylic and oil on canvas and included digital paintings as part of my artwork. I am now exploring encaustics, the art of painting with heated bees wax. According to Wikipedia, the word encaustic originates from the Greek word enkaustikos which means to burn in. Earliest works date back one hundred to three hundred A.D. It is an old art form that I find fascinating. Using a heat gun and heated bees wax, I try to create pieces that are luminous, colorful and free.
HELOISE SHILSTAT: My paper mosaics are “painted” using quality magazine paper and Elmer’s glue. The first ones I made in 2005 were from seed catalogs: a turkey and a mosaic version of Picasso’s Le Coq. Some of my next pictures were farm scenes with round hay bales, for which I used photos of blond hair. I try never to use leaves for leaves, flowers for flowers, etc., but the shortage of non-plant green in fashion and architectural magazines (the best paper) is a challenge. Subjects are usually inspired by my time in the woods or on the river, and sometimes from dreams. Occasionally, I copy Childe Hassam or Gustav Klimt paintings. I have no formal training and my degree is in engineering. My formal career related to advising on environmental regulations.
SUSAN CARTER: I paint abstract and representational acrylic paintings on canvas, bright whimsical watercolor portraits of people and animals, and murals. People, plants, birds, animals and insects that I encounter in my daily life are often featured in my artwork. I am also a Creativity Coach. Although all of the creativity gatherings are about empowerment some are centered on calmness and relaxation others are fun-focused.
SHERYL THURMAN MILLER: Art came to me in my darkest hour. I was struggling to survive my life’s tragedies. The death of my beloved son and my mother’s battle with & loss to Alzheimer’s. Having found no comfort in therapy, the struggle for peace and normalcy consumed me. A Valentine’s gift of drawing pads and pencils from my now husband, and encouragement from a local artist opened a window. Letting light into dark corners. I discovered that when I put pen to paper and eventually paint to canvas I could stop thinking to be in the moment. I finally found peace. I am happiest when I am creating whether it be a complete abstract or a goat driving a pickup my heart has remembered how to feel the good stuff again.
ROBIN CADDELL: Robin Jackson Caddell is a mixed media artist. Working with fabric, paper and acrylic paint, this self-taught artist draws from her fashion background to create pieces full of movement, texture and color. Robin’s influences range from couture fashion, nature and music to faith, the evidence of which is seen in the detail of her fluid paintings and romantic whimsy of paper canvases. She lives in Christiana, TN. I have worked with paper and fabric for years, yet never considered myself an artist until recently. It is when I allowed myself the freedom to create without any pattern, restraint or limits did my ideas flow more fully! Each piece is created with joy and love and is meant to lift the spirit of the receiver.
PAMELA MACK: I came from a family that loved to draw. I attempted my first serious drawing when I was just five years old. That is when I drew a one-dollar bill on a piece of scrap paper. It was a very convincing piece of realism and George Washington never looked better. At least my three-year-old sister thought so, as I had persuaded her to buy some candy with it. The cashier, apparently not an art lover, wasn’t convinced and the endeavor failed. My counterfeiting days are behind me and for the past many years I’ve poured my passion, energy and creativity into oil painting. There is so much to love about the entire painting process: learning to see, sketching, holding the brush, mixing colors, the first kiss of paint to the canvas and of course, the exhilaration of creating something from the void, something that wasn’t there before.
June & July 2019
May 2019
Cody Hale is a contemporary artist currently based in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He earned a B.F.A. in illustration from the Savannah College of Art and Design in 2005 and has been creating and showing work for over 13 years. While Cody creates work in a variety of mediums and techniques, he primarily works in ink, and his signature technique consists of splattering ink in multiple controlled layers on illustration board. Cody uses toothbrushes instead of traditional paint brushes as tools to create his ink splatter pieces. Visually, his work largely focusses on texture and sharp contrasting values, and the themes in his work are derived from his interpretations of popular cultural icons and his interest in the mysterious and the unknown.
March & April 2019
February 2019
A hidden beauty of the world is revealed through the Chinese brush paintings of Xie Weiqiang. Although a contemporary fine artist from China, Xie is well-known for his expertise in the classic Chinese style of painting. These exquisite paintings show the natural balance of bright feathered birds and colorful flowers.
January 2019
