Past Exhibitions

Young boy with a mask on points to his work of art

Williamson County Schools Art Show

Feb 25–Mar 12, 2023
The 2023 Williamson County Schools Art Show features some of the finest artwork created by students in the school district. Nearly five hundred young artists, from kindergarteners through twelfth graders, are included in this exhibition. Elementary and middle-school art teachers selected two works per grade level, and high-school… Read More
Two women looking at the videos in circular painted frames on the wall

Matthew Ritchie:
A Garden in the Flood

Nov 11, 2022–Mar 5, 2023
Renowned transmedia artist Matthew Ritchie invites viewers to experience the richness and complexity of the world by connecting such fields as philosophy and mythology, epic poetry and music, and history and physics.  Interweaving dualities of harmony and chaos, the exhibition offers a meditation on art’s capacity to help overcome social… Read More
Entrance to the Weaving Splendor exhibition with deep blue walls and several Asian robes

Weaving Splendor: Treasures of Asian Textiles from The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

Oct 7, 2022–Jan 2, 2023
This exhibition presents rarely seen Chinese, Indian, Japanese, Persian, and Turkish textiles drawn from the renowned collection of The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. Made with fine materials, exemplary techniques, and stunning artistry, Asian luxury textiles have been integral to global trade for centuries.  The exhibition traces the history of these works… Read More
Father and son looking at a gold ham handing from the ceiling

Virginia Overton: Saved

Oct 7, 2022–Jan 2, 2023
Though she has worked in New York City since the early 2000s, Nashville-born artist Virginia Overton maintains strong connections with Middle Tennessee, where her family has owned a farm for more than a century. For her site-specific installations, Overton salvages such elements as plywood, refrigerator parts, and farm utensils, then… Read More
Mom taking photo of daughter at Student Art show

Sumner County Schools Art Show

Dec 10–Dec 31, 2022
The sixth annual Sumner County Schools Art Show features artwork created by over one hundred young artists from kindergarten through twelfth grade. Elementary and middle school art teachers selected two works per grade level, and high school art teachers selected two works per course. Fifteen schools are participating in… Read More
Two knights on horseback look like they are in a parade procession

Knights in Armor

Jul 1–Oct 10, 2022
Knights in Armor showcases stunning examples of European arms and armor from the renowned collection of the Museo Stibbert in Florence, Italy. More than one hundred rare objects—including full suits of armor, mounted equestrian figures, helmets, swords, and other weaponry—tell the tale of the European knight from the Middle Ages… Read More
Wildly multi-colored scene of Asian style architecture and decorations with a pencil drawing of a girl emerging through the center of the scene holding out her hand seemingly to beckon entry.

2022 Teens Take the Frist!

Jun 24–Sep 5, 2022
Prompted by our vision of inspiring people through art to look at their world in new ways, the Frist Art Museum invited teens to submit their artwork for this fourth edition of Teens Take the Frist! The resulting selection features artworks in a variety of mediums created by emerging Middle Tennessee artists. Read More
Young couple looking closely at a round pink reflective work of art

Light, Space, Surface: Works from the Los Angeles County Museum of Art

Jun 3–Sep 4, 2022
This exhibition includes sculptures, paintings, and immersive installations by a loose-knit group of artists working in Southern California from the 1960s to the present. The renowned Light and Space and “finish fetish” artists are united by an interest in manipulating the medium of light, projected or reflected, to alter the… Read More
View of the Conte Gallery showing several works of art by teachers

Nashville Art Teachers: Beyond the Classroom

Mar 4–Aug 28, 2022
Nashville Art Teachers: Beyond the Classroom salutes the heroic efforts of teachers during the challenging circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic. It features the work of elementary, middle, and high school art teachers working in Davidson County. Jurors narrowed over three hundred submissions from eighty teachers to this remarkable selection of… Read More
View of a wall of several of Alma Thomas's colorful paintings

Alma W. Thomas:
Everything Is Beautiful

Feb 25–Jun 5, 2022
Alma W. Thomas: Everything Is Beautiful provides a fresh perspective on the artist’s long, dynamic life (1891–1978) and multifaceted career that was defined by constant creativity. This major retrospective traces her journey from semirural Georgia to Washington, DC, to becoming the first Black woman to have a solo show at the… Read More