August 20, 2022 | 9:00 AM - 9:00 PM
From morning to night, Cheekwood will celebrate Black artists with music, dance, storytelling, spoken word and more. Families will enjoy storytime and hands-on activities for children as well as a collaborative art project. Plus Colah B. Tawkins will do a live taping of her podcast Black in the Garden. Tasty fare from local Black chefs will be available for purchase.
Performances:
Main Stage | Arboretum Lawn
Cuisine:
Chefs from Onyx Foods, including David Swett, Jr., Albert Lovelace, and Troy Stovall, will serve homecooked favorites from 11 AM – 8 PM. Southern comfort options will be available throughout the day in Lot B.
Additional Food Trucks:
Massey Auditorium | 10 – 11 AM
A mom, comedian, podcaster, and lifelong nature-lover, Colah B Tawkin draws on the strength of her ancestors and her awe-inspiring range of life experiences as she becomes the ultimate “plantrepreneur.” Her aim is to grow and foster village-building, education, and healing through gardening. And she’ll make you laugh while she does it, too. During this live taping of her popular podcast, Black in the Garden, Colah will interview Nella Pearl Frierson, known to Nashvillians as Ms. Pearl, about her work in the North Nashville community gardens before enlightening the audience with Black Botanicals History Trivia. The session will conclude with “Story Time” about Colah’s journey and a brief Q&A opportunity with the audience. Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to be a part of Black in the Garden, which has reached the Top Ten of Apple’s Home & Garden Podcasts and was an Apple featured podcast in Black History Month in 2021.
Massey Auditorium | 12 – 5 PM
Learn about the colors and symbols in African textiles, including Kente cloth, Adinkra cloth, and Ankara prints and see how artists, including Frank Frazier and Yinka Shonibare, brought these fabrics to canvas. Drawing inspiration from the meaningful patterns and brilliant colors, participants will choose a fabric square and use stamps depicting traditional symbols and designs to create their own design. Each completed square will be added to a larger canvas to create a “community quilt” display.
Joining the activity will be designer, Christiana Afotey, owner of Threads by Dreads, who will have pieces of her African clothing on display and for sale.
Across from Botanic Hall | 10 AM – 2 PM
Storytime: 10 & 10:45 AM
Aaron Douglas is internationally recognized as the foremost visual artist of the Harlem Renaissance. Douglas’s association with Fisk University dates from 1930, when he was commissioned to create a set of murals for the Cravath Memorial Library depicting African American contributions to American history and society. In 1939 Douglas accepted a part-time teaching position while he completed a master’s degree at Teacher’s College, Columbia University. In 1944 he became a professor of art at Fisk and later chaired the department before retiring in 1966. During this hands-on activity, families will use a variety of pre-cut paper to collage a picture based on Douglas’ murals.
Café 29 | 12 – 3 PM
Note: 21+
Take a break from the heat and visit the Urbaanite Nashville Lounge for a fun cocktail tasting experience by African-American owned spirits brands under the Bevmatic Brands portfolio: La Leyenda Mezcal, Earl Stevens Selections, and Timeless Vodka. Learn about the brands, find your new favorite drink of the summer, and meet the incredible women behind Urbaanite and Bevmatic Brands.
Notes: Café 29 will not be open for regular service on August 20 and the Lounge will be restricted to those 21 and older.
Frist Learning Center Great Hall
Meet the Emerging Artists: 11 AM – 12 PM and 4 – 5 PM
Established Artists Panel: 5:30 – 6:30 PM
Black Arts Bash aims to celebrate Black arts in all forms – performing, culinary, literary, and, in this space, visual. Featuring both emerging and established artists, this exhibition is part platform and part mentoring opportunity. This show aims to tell the stories, both mundane and powerful, that the community has to share.
As a first step, Cheekwood sought work from Nashville-area 10th-12th students who identify as Black or mixed-race. The pieces on view were then selected by the working artists who are also featured in the show. Through different media, including illustration, pottery, photography, and painting, visitors are invited to view the world through the lens of several generations of artists of color.
Featured Artists:
Emerging Artists:
Frist Learning Center Lawn | 11 AM – 3 PM
Visit Cheekwood’s newest garden space for a hands-on gardening activity and scavenger hunt. Come see what is currently growing in the space and learn about easy-to-start fall vegetables, herbs and flowers and organic methods for growing plants from seed successfully. Visitors will also plant seeds to take home.
Frist Learning Center Hill Room | 9 am – 4 PM
“Chipping Away: The Life and Legacy of Sculptor William Edmondson” combines original research, interviews and rare archival images, including the only known motion picture footage of the artist at work. Interviews include respected art historians David. C. Driskell and Jennifer Marshall, historian Bobby L. Lovett, and legendary journalist, the late John Seigenthaler, as well as some of the few living individuals who knew William Edmondson personally.
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