WPLN is Proud to Partner with Nashville Area Arts.

Nashville Public Radio is one of the few broadcast news organizations committed to coverage of the visual arts. We invite you to listen to our most recent features:

Vending Machine Dispenses Art at TPAC

( audio feature) A trip to see a show at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center often begins with a few purchases in the lobby: a program, maybe a visit to the concession stand. Now, as WPLN’s Nina Cardona reports, visitors will also find a new way to buy art.
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Arborist to Artist

( audio feature) This morning we begin a new series of storytelling focused on the people and places of Middle Tennessee. Upon First Meeting: A Series of Introductions begins with today’s subject: a man who was crushed by a nine hundred pound falling branch. WPLN’s Kevin Bouldin introduces us to Ethan Swiggart, a tree surgeon who possesses the skills of an ax man and the eyes of an artist.
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Art For Real: University School Of Nashville

( audio feature) Painting students at the University School of Nashville spent last month working directly with an artist in New York. WPLN’s Susan Knowles reports.
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The Arts Economy – A Tale of Two Galleries

( audio feature) As the economic recession continues, the always-risky art business has proved particularly vulnerable. In January, art sales were down by half at the Christies and Sotheby’s auction houses in New York. Here in Nashville, WPLN’s Joe Nolan reports on the fortunes of two local galleries trying to attract the difficult art dollar.
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Unfinished Units Transform into Galleries

( audio feature) Getting attention in this economy and saturated market can be hard—especially when what one wants to sell is contemporary art and high end real estate. A Nashville developer and local art gallery are trying for a competitive edge by combining marketing efforts. They’re doing it by hosting cutting edge art exhibits in unfinished lofts of a new downtown high rise. WPLN’s Adrienne Outlaw reports.
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“Quote” Inspires Artwork

When the band “Quote” tours, they don’t just play music, they put on an art show. WPLN’s Adrienne Outlaw reports on a musical experience for the ears and the eyes. A few years ago in California two friends were playing around with their music. One said to the other, “I’m writing a story about your song.”
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A River Odyssey – Photographs by John Guider

Five years ago, John Guider was making a good living as a commercial photographer. But he didn’t feel fulfilled as a man or as an artist. He spent long hours sitting by the creek behind his Franklin farmhouse, dreaming about a journey that might provide answers. The Tennessee State Museum is showcasing photographs from that journey — a canoe trip from Franklin to New Orleans. WPLN’s Kim Green reports.
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PhotoVoice and The Kids of J.C. Napier Homes

Earlier this year, a dozen middle-schoolers spent a couple of months combing South Nashville’s J.C. Napier Public Housing project, armed only with disposable cameras. Their assignment was to document their lives, to highlight problems in their community, and to share these insights with a wider audience. As a result, the kids started to see things in their neighborhood that they’d never noticed before. Including their own power to effect change. WPLN’s Kim Green reports.
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Aaron Douglas: Out Of The Shadows

In the midst of New York’s Harlem Renaissance, Fisk University invited a young African American artist to paint a mural for the library. Aaron Douglas squeezed trips to Nashville in between other big commissions in New York and Chicago. Because his best works were painted on walls, the starmaking machinery of galleries and museums ultimately bypassed him. Now a major traveling exhibition at the Frist Center for the Visual Arts promises Douglas some welcome visibility. WPLN’s Susan Knowles reports.
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“Field Guide” at Vanderbilt University Law School

Two years ago the Frist Center for the Visual Arts put on an exhibit of new artwork made by up-and-coming, Nashville-based artists. That show sparked the Vanderbilt University Law School to exhibit similar work — art that’s anything but traditional, art that’s edgy, contemporary and relevant to today. The law school’s current show, called “Field Guide,” connects the concerns of four young Tennessee artists, as WPLN’s Adrienne Outlaw reports.
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