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Nashville’s Most Expansive Art Gallery

By Ned Andrew Solomon

Originally published in Nashville Arts Magazine

About 20 years ago visitors to the Nashville International Airport noticed something was afoot, and aloft. Breaking up the continuity of the glass, steel and concrete structure there were suddenly gorgeous colors and shapes, suspended near the ceiling, or at eye and ground level. Nashville was welcoming the birth of an idea: airport travel, transient as it is, does not have to be boring.

Created in 1988 by the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA), Arts at the Airport is an ever-changing showcase of artistic and musical expression. Organizers were hoping to reflect the abundance of talent in the region, and to offer artists and musicians a vibrant venue with nine and a half million passengers passing though on an annual basis.

Arts at the Airport is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization, supported largely by the MNAA along with grants from various organizations including the Tennessee Arts Commission, the Metro Nashville Arts Commission, the Memorial Foundation, Delaware North Companies, Inc., and The Hudson Group. It is governed by a 15-member Board of Directors, made up of individuals representing the business, community, and arts sectors, and chaired by Sandra Fulton, who has been involved with the project since its inception.

Fulton took part in the initial planning process for the new airport. She also served in Governor Ned McWherter’s cabinet as Commissioner of Tourism. “Creating an environment within the airport which shares the culture and creativity of Nashville and Tennessee with our visitors is beneficial in many ways,” says Fulton. “As we welcome visitors through the terminal with a sense of who we are, we offer the opportunity to those who help make Nashville unique by showcasing their musical and artistic talents.”

The Permanent Collection

The Airport’s exhibited art falls into two categories: a Permanent Art Collection, and Flying Solo, a quarterly exhibition series featuring four installations by four different artists in the airport terminal. “We are one of the only facilities where regional and local artists have the opportunity to create museum sized pieces,” says Andee Rudloff, curator for Arts at the Airport. “The way people move through the space forces an artist to really take on the challenge of capturing the energy and purpose of the space.”

Energy and a sense of purpose are certainly exemplified by the work in the airport’s Permanent Collection, comprised of the commissioned works of numerous artists. The Airport Sun Project, a large scale sculpture by Dale Eldred features light interference and transformation panels situated along the south wall of the ticketing level.

Jack Hasting’s Dancing on Air greets passengers entering and exiting the concourse areas on either side of the terminal. The two 15-foot aluminum mobile sculptures “dance” slowly in the wind currents, and the vivid colors stand out majestically against the white terminal walls.

Children adore--and climb all over--Sherri Warner Hunter’s Flights of Fantasy in the ground transportation level, which features mosaic sculptures of smiling airplanes, a magic carpet, a monarch butterfly, a luna moth and a dragonfly.

However, the Permanent Collection is comprised of much more than the large public art installations. There are 239 pieces by Tennessee artists from across the state, from stained glass to cast bronze, paintings to pastels, and even several Hatch Show Prints, which are on display in Concourse A.

Flying Solo

Initiated in 1996 and supported by the Tennessee Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts, the rotating Flying Solo Exhibitions exist to further augment the airport space, and to provide a highly visible venue for contemporary artists with a connection to Tennessee. The Summer 2007 Flying Solo artists are Megan Lightell, Aletha Carr, Pam Cobb, Dar Maleki and Jahni Moore, presenting painting, drawing, installation, digital prints, assemblages and mixed media works.

“The art exhibitions give the traveler a sense of place, time and community,” says Rudloff. “While greatly enhancing our airport environment, we also hope it allows an experience to interact with art and furthers art dialog within the region. As the curator, I enjoy developing exhibitions within the space. I feel the narration and how I design the exhibition should allow the viewer to share their story too, and in a public space, this is very important.”

BNA may be the city’s most expansive art gallery, but exhibit space is in demand. “Due to the professionalism of the program and the high-visibility, Flying Solo exhibitions are highly sought after opportunities for artists,” says Rudloff. “Our program receives interest from artists who reside worldwide, and have a Tennessee connection.”

According to Rudloff, the pieces are chosen with the airport space and audience in mind.  “Most importantly, the Selection Committee is looking for quality and professionalism. The artists chosen each year vary greatly in age, background, medium and experience.”

Artists interested in exhibiting are asked to submit to an annual Call for Proposals, with a deadline in early April each year. The Selection Committee is comprised of members from the Arts at the Airport board as well as staff from the Community Affairs and Customer Service department.

No Muzak Here

Beyond the visual stimulation, visitors to the airport are treated to the sounds of live music. Beginning with one stage in 1988 and one performance a week, the positive public response to the free performances inspired organizers to expand the offerings to three stages throughout the facility. The music component of Arts at the Airport is coordinated by Lawanda Mason.

The selected musicians represent the diversity of musical styles in the region, including traditional and contemporary country, jazz, rhythm and blues, pop, classical, gospel and bluegrass. Performances are sponsored by MNAA, Delaware North Companies, Inc. and The Hudson Group.

Reaching Out to the Community

The Arts at the Airport program has worked hard to reach out to the surrounding community, working with numerous public and private schools and arts organizations to produce exhibitions and hands-on workshops for children and adults. “We enjoy partnering with professional organizations like the Frist, Cheekwood, Country Music Hall of Fame, Watkins School of Design, TACA, local galleries and many more,” says Rudloff. “Our goal is to create a contemporary art space representative of the region, while providing an ever-changing environment for the public.”

That artistic environment includes taking advantage of a long-standing relationship between Art at the Airport and the Tennessee Association of Craft Artists (TACA), whose members provide craft demonstrations regularly in the terminal. Funded by the Tennessee Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts with support from the Metro Nashville Arts Commission, craft artists give participants hands-on experience in the art of weaving, stained glass, pottery, fiber arts, papermaking, wood carving and wire sculpting.

“TACA demonstrations occur every other Friday from 2-4 pm, which is a high-traffic time in the Airport,” says Rudloff. “The demonstrations last two hours and the craft artists draw a crowd, ranging from airport employees to tourists looking for last minute, authentic gifts. The craft artists allow on-lookers to touch the art while they create it on site. It is a tactile experience that is completely unique to the Nashville airport.”

In addition, community outreach became charitable with the advent of MNAA’s PENCIL program, which hosts a successful golf tournament each year. All proceeds from the event go to the purchase of art supplies and musical instruments for several schools.

The Future Looks Even Brighter

BNA is about to become an even greater artistic presence in Nashville. Following an extensive renovation, the Arts at the Airport music program will grow exponentially, with several new stages on both the secure and non-secure sides. On the art side, the airport will have many new exhibitions, including specifically designed cases for art, new art purchases and space designated for community art projects. Arts at the Airport will also be posting a call to artists in the coming months for the purchase of new public art.

“Skylights will be added, there will be new possibilities for installations, new wall space for expanded exhibit areas and perhaps a mural,” says Rudloff. “We’ll have rotating community exhibits and temporary art space right in the middle of several new gathering places for our visitors.”

For more information on current and upcoming exhibits and musical performances, visit www.flynashville.com.

***

Nashvillian Testifies in D.C. for Campaign to Reduce Poverty

By Ned Andrew Solomon

Originally published in The Tennessee Register

Before this past February, Anita Crawley had never been to Washington, D.C., nor flown on an airplane. And like most people, she had never spoken about her life behind a microphone, as she did when she testified before the House Ways and Means Committee's subcommittee on Income Security and Family Support.

“I was very nervous at first that morning,” recalled Crawley. “But when I got in there and people were so nice and they were coming up to me and shaking my hand and thanking me for testifying, I just went right in and did my thing!”

Her “thing” was telling U.S. Representatives about her personal experiences, to help members of Congress understand the challenges that she and more than 37 million people living in poverty face. In her speech she asked legislators to help people who leave public assistance for low-income jobs, by continuing income supports, and by creating other incentives such as education, training and housing assistance.

Crawley was the first to testify as part of a panel of six people, with each panelist having five minutes to speak. “I just basically told my story,” said Crawley. “How my daughter was hit by a car, I was going through a divorce, I lost my job, all right after one another. I didn’t have a chance to recover from one before the next thing happened. Then I lost my house.”

The Nashvillian’s stirring testimony was one of the initial efforts of the Campaign to Reduce Poverty in America, launched in January 2007 by Catholic Charities USA and its local agencies and organizations nationwide. The goal of this major initiative is to cut poverty in the United States in half by 2020, and to urge Congress and the Administration to give a much higher priority to the needs of the poor in budget and policy decisions on issues such as health care, housing, nutrition, and economic stability.

Her speech also included the message that Crawley was no slacker. “I wanted them to see that I had a job for twelve years, working at Vanderbilt since I was seventeen,” said Crawley. “I have skills, and some college education. I’m not the normal face you see on welfare. Poverty can affect anyone. It wasn’t because I didn’t want to work, or did something wrong. It was things that happened in my life that pushed me into poverty.”

On public assistance, Crawley was forced to live in low-income housing in an unsafe neighborhood. One night, Crawley ran to her daughters’ bedroom when she heard the sound of gunshots close by. “It was so loud, and I was so scared a stray bullet was going to kill one of my girls,” said Crawley. “But I had no choice, since I was only given $185 a month until my child support kicked in, which only came now and then.”

Catholic Charities USA is leading a collaborative effort that will recruit partners in social service agencies, the faith community, and other groups in a sustained effort to convince government officials of the importance of making systemic changes in government programs to support the most vulnerable in our society.

The Catholic Charities agencies in the Dioceses of Nashville, Knoxville and Memphis are planning a related campaign that will be launched this year. "We are very supportive of the poverty reduction effort," said Bill Sinclair, executive director of Catholic Charities of Tennessee. "I endorse the Campaign's statement that poverty in the United States is a moral and social wound on the soul of our country."

The wound is indeed deep. Approximately 12 % percent of the U.S. population lives below the official federal poverty level of $20,000 for a family of four; 15% in Tennessee. It may surprise many that most of those disadvantaged are working. In fact, nearly two-thirds of the families living in poverty include one or more workers, and Catholic Charities is serving an increasing number of people in Middle Tennessee who are employed, but struggle to pay for the most basic necessities such as food and shelter.

For Crawley, one of the biggest obstacles is the fact that those in poverty are not allowed to transition gently into the workforce. Besides her health insurance—she’ll be covered by TennCare for a specified period of time--there is little overlap between receiving assistance and employment. “Abruptly, my food stamps were cut off,” said Crawley. “And here it is I’m not making that much, but I have to take what I’m making to buy food and pay my children’s daycare. So I’ve got a job, but I don’t feel like I’m moving anywhere!”

Still, as a former client of Catholic Charities herself, Crawley is extremely grateful to be employed again. She works half of her time in the Catholic Charities North Nashville Outreach Program, and half at the White Bridge Mary’s Villa location as support staff. In the Outreach program Crawley is a case worker, providing short-term assistance to families like her own. “I assist people financially who need help with their utilities, rent, or whatever they might need,” said Crawley. “We also have clothes and food, and we refer the clients we can’t help to different agencies. We help about 300 families a month.”

May 15^th will be Crawley’s first year anniversary working for Catholic Charities. “I love it here; it’s such a blessing,” said Crawley. “I love the people here, and I love helping people. It’s like a dream come true!”

After the panelists’ prepared statements, Representatives were given the opportunity to ask questions of their guests. “And that was the part we didn’t practice!” laughed Crawley. “One representative asked me, ‘How do you make it?’ I wanted to say by the Grace of God, because that’s the only way I’m making it! But I just told him that my faith and my beliefs are very strong. That’s what takes me through.”

To find out more about the Campaign to Reduce Poverty, visit the Catholic Charities website at www.catholiccharitiesusa.org.