TAA PROFESSIONAL ART EXHIBITION OPENING, ARTIST TALK AND RECEPTION
Monday • July 13, 2026 • 4:30 - 6:30 PM
Todd Art Gallery
Todd Hall, Middle Tennessee State University
TAA PROFESSIONAL ART EXHIBITION
Todd Art Gallery
Todd Hall, Middle Tennessee State University
Exhibition Dates: TBA (Please check back regularly for updates)
Professional Exhibition
July 15–August 9, 2024
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Opening Reception
Monday • July 15, 2024 • 4:30 - 6:30 PM
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Professional Exhibition
Artist Talk
Monday • July 15, 2024 • 5:15 PM
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Artist Talk
Monday • July 14, 2026 • 5:15 PM
Todd Art Gallery
Todd Hall, Middle Tennessee State University
Todd Hall, First Floor Galleries
Exhibition Dates: TBA (Please check back regularly for updates)
The Tennessee Arts Academy is pleased to offer a student art exhibit as part of its summer enrichment experience. Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition is a collection of the best pieces in various media by student artists from the three grand divisions of the state. The students whose work will be featured have won college scholarships for their achievements and have had their work exhibited in museums throughout the state of Tennessee.
Todd Hall, First Floor Galleries
Exhibition Dates: TBA (Please check back regularly for updates)
The Tennessee Arts Academy is very proud to exhibit the work of practicing artists-teachers alongside the exemplary work created by their students. Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition is a juried show featuring the work of kindergarten through higher education art educators from across Tennessee.
Todd Hall, First Floor Galleries
Exhibition Dates: TBA (Please check back regularly for updates)
The STARS exhibition showcases the talent and hard work of K-5 grade level art students and teachers from across Tennessee. Nineteen pieces of art were selected by a panel of judges based on the alignment of the artwork to visual art standards, technique, personal expression, and composition. This year's exhibition was held at the Tennessee State Museum. The Tennessee Arts Academy STARS exhibition features the first-place winners at each grade level as well as the Best of Show winners..
Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition and Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition are co-sponsored by the Tennessee Arts Academy and the Tennessee Arts Education Association and are presented in partnership with the Middle Tennessee State University Department of Art and Design.
The STARS exhibition at the Tennessee Arts Academy is sponsored and organized by the Tennessee Art Education Association and co-sponsored by the Tennessee Arts Academy. The exhibition is presented in partnership with the Middle Tennessee State University Department of Art and Design.
Special thanks to Jimmy Mumford, MTSU Department of Art and Design Chair; Eric Snyder, MTSU Gallery Coordinator; Rick Rishaw, MTSU Gallery Preparator; and to Jim Dodson, the founder and creator of the Best of the Best and Connections exhibitions.
Each year on Tuesday during the Academy week, TAA hosts an afternoon community art crawl showcasing the TAA art exhibitions. The crawl also includes an invitation to visit the Belmont Mansion and participate in tours of the two museums on the Belmont campus. This year’s event occurs on July 16, 2024 from 5 – 7 PM. Details on all aspects of the art crawl follow below.
Tuesday • July 16 • 5:00–7:00 PM
Participants are invited to visit the following exhibits and museums during the TAA Art Crawl:
Belmont Mansion
As part of the TAA Art Crawl, participants are invited on Tuesday afternoon at 5:00 p.m. for a tour of the historic Belmont Mansion. The event features Susan Ramsay playing hammered dulcimer. Light refreshments will be served.
Lila D. Bunch Library, First Floor
Participants are invited to view the Frederick Hart Studio Museum and the Gallery of Iconic Guitars (GIG) Museum as part of the TAA Art Crawl. Both are located on the first floor of the Lila D. Bunch Library.
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Leu Center for the Visual Arts
Gallery 121
Leu Center for the Visual Arts
Lobby Gallery
Belmont University
Daily Exhibition Locations Throughout Campus
Art Crawl
Tuesday • July 14, 2026 • 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM
MTSU Todd Art Gallery & Todd Hall First Floor Galleries
On Tuesday, as part of Visual Art Recognition Day, TAA Summer Institute participants, faculty, and guests will take part in the annual TAA Art Crawl from 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM. Many of the visual art student winners whose works are featured in the Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition will be standing in front of their artwork to offer commentary and answer questions. The four art exhibitions on display are located in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus and will include:
• The TAA Professional Art Exhibition
• Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition
• Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition
• STARS: The State of Tennessee Art Review and Showcase
Visual Art Recognition Day
Awards and Reception
Tuesday • July 14, 2026 • 5:00 PM
MTSU Todd Art Gallery, Todd Hall
The Tennessee Arts Academy invites all TAA Summer Institute participants and faculty to attend a special recognition ceremony in honor of the 2025 students and teachers who received commendations for their artwork in both Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition and Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition. Prizes and certificates will be awarded. The recognition ceremony is sponsored by the Tennessee Art Education Association and will be held in the Todd Art Gallery in Todd Hall on the Middle Tennessee State University campus. The event will begin at 5:00 PM and will be followed by a reception, sponsored by the Tennessee Arts Academy, in honor of all the student and teacher winners. The public is invited to attend.
TAA PROFESSIONAL ART EXHIBITION OPENING, ARTIST TALK AND RECEPTION
Monday • July 13 • 4:30 - 6:30 PM
Todd Art Gallery
Todd Hall, Middle Tennessee State University
Todd Art Gallery
Todd Hall, Middle Tennessee State University
July 7–August 1, 2026
From a peaceful lake to the hills of southwestern Wisconsin to a brooding storm over an Iowa farm, Steele creates oil paintings with a depth that pulls the viewer into the paintings. He has experimented with different styles of art, including abstract and non-objective paintings in colored inks or oil, and silk screens on aluminum, but he has always come back to landscapes. Regardless of style, his main objective has been to create a four-dimensional image on a two-dimensional surface.
Steele’s paintings are a blend of light and shadow, using both impressionism and realism to invite the viewer into the painting. People often say that they feel as if they could walk into the painting. Steele frequently adds a surprise, such as an animal or an object that appears to be left behind. He’s said, “In this world of turmoil and pressure, I paint peace. I paint the places I have been. Places that people would like to be at. The scenes I paint are those that bring back memories. Using a mixture of realism and impressionism, I create paintings that draw the viewer into the image.”
About the Artist
Gregory Steele was born in Morrison, Illinois, and attended a two-room rural school for four years. He decided to become an artist when, in first grade, his teacher held up a drawing of his and explained that it was done correctly. With only a few art courses in high school and college, he is primarily a self-taught artist. At the age of eighteen, Steele began selling cartoons to newspapers. He then worked for advertising agencies as a designer and illustrator, and later as a freelance illustrator for many companies including John Deere, Nissan, Yamaha. His work was primarily illustration done with pen and ink, wash, tempera, oil, acrylic, and computer-generated images. In 1992 he began to focus on his passion for painting and gradually dropped his commercial clients.
Since 1969, he has lived in Davenport, Iowa, because of its proximity to the Mississippi River. Both the river and the surrounding landscape have been a big influence on his art.
Steele is a Midwesterner who believes the Midwest offers a rich assortment of landscapes and people that deserve to be painted. His work has been featured in many galleries and shows throughout the Midwest, and in Palm Beach, Chicago, and New York. His artwork has been on display at the United States Embassies in Uzbekistan and Kuwait, and in the Iowa Governor’s mansion. He is a signature member of the National Oil and Acrylic Painters’ Society.
Professional Exhibition
July 15–August 9, 2024
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Opening Reception
Monday • July 15, 2024 • 4:30 - 6:30 PM
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Professional Exhibition
Artist Talk
Monday • July 15, 2024 • 5:15 PM
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Artist Talk with Gergory Steele
Monday • July 13 • 5:15 PM
Todd Art Gallery
Todd Hall, Middle Tennessee State University
My View: Midwest Memories is co-sponsored by the Middle Tennessee State University College of Art and Design and is made possible by generous gifts from Rena Ellzy; David and Galen Fott in memory of Solie Fott; and the Tennessee Arts Academy Foundation.
Todd Hall, First Floor Galleries
July 7-August 1, 2026
The Tennessee Arts Academy is pleased to offer a student art exhibit as part of its summer enrichment experience. Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition is a collection of the best pieces in various media by student artists from the three grand divisions of the state. The students whose work will be featured have won college scholarships for their achievements and have had their work exhibited in museums throughout the state of Tennessee. The work displayed to the left is the East Tennessee Best of Show High School winner. Click here to see the other Best of Show winners.
July 7 – August 1, 2026
Todd Hall, First Floor Galleries
The Tennessee Arts Academy is very proud to exhibit the work of practicing artists-teachers alongside the exemplary work created by their students. Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition is a juried show featuring the work of kindergarten through higher education art educators from across Tennessee. The work displayed to the left is the First Place winner. Click here to see the other winning pieces.
Todd Hall, First Floor Galleries
July 7-August 1, 2025
The STARS exhibition showcases the talent and hard work of K-5 grade level art students and teachers from across Tennessee. Nineteen pieces of art were selected by a panel of judges based on the alignment of the artwork to visual art standards, technique, personal expression, and composition. This year's exhibition was held at the Tennessee State Museum. The Tennessee Arts Academy STARS exhibition features the first-place winners at each grade level as well as the Best of Show winners. Thework displayed to the left is the Best of Show (Grade 3-5) winner. Click here to see the other winning pieces.
Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition and Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition are co-sponsored by the Tennessee Arts Academy and the Tennessee Arts Education Association and are presented in partnership with the Middle Tennessee State University Department of Art and Design.
The STARS exhibition at the Tennessee Arts Academy is sponsored and organized by the Tennessee Art Education Association and co-sponsored by the Tennessee Arts Academy. The exhibition is presented in partnership with the Middle Tennessee State University Department of Art and Design.
Special thanks to Jimmy Mumford, MTSU Department of Art and Design Chair; Eric Snyder, MTSU Gallery Coordinator; Rick Rishaw, MTSU Gallery Preparator; and to Jim Dodson, the founder and creator of the Best of the Best and Connections exhibitions.
Each year on Tuesday during the Academy week, TAA hosts an afternoon community art crawl showcasing the TAA art exhibitions. The crawl also includes an invitation to visit the Belmont Mansion and participate in tours of the two museums on the Belmont campus. This year’s event occurs on July 16, 2024 from 5 – 7 PM. Details on all aspects of the art crawl follow below.
Tuesday • July 16 • 5:00–7:00 PM
Participants are invited to visit the following exhibits and museums during the TAA Art Crawl:
Belmont Mansion
As part of the TAA Art Crawl, participants are invited on Tuesday afternoon at 5:00 p.m. for a tour of the historic Belmont Mansion. The event features Susan Ramsay playing hammered dulcimer. Light refreshments will be served.
Lila D. Bunch Library, First Floor
Participants are invited to view the Frederick Hart Studio Museum and the Gallery of Iconic Guitars (GIG) Museum as part of the TAA Art Crawl. Both are located on the first floor of the Lila D. Bunch Library.
Leu Art Gallery (Lila D. Bunch Library)
Leu Center for the Visual Arts
Gallery 121
Leu Center for the Visual Arts
Lobby Gallery
Belmont University
Daily Exhibition Locations Throughout Campus
Art Crawl
Tuesday • July 15, 2025 • 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM
MTSU Todd Art Gallery & Todd Hall First Floor Galleries
On Tuesday, as part of Visual Art Recognition Day, TAA Summer Institute participants, faculty, and guests will take part in the annual TAA Art Crawl from 11:15 AM to 1:15 PM. Many of the visual art student winners whose works are featured in the Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition will be standing in front of their artwork to offer commentary and answer questions. The four art exhibitions on display are located in Todd Hall on the MTSU campus and will include:
• My View: Midwest Memories by Gregory Steele
• Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition
• Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition
• STARS: The State of Tennessee Art Review and Showcase
Visual Art Recognition Day
Awards and Reception
Tuesday • July 15, 2025 • 5:00 PM
MTSU Todd Art Gallery, Todd Hall
The Tennessee Arts Academy invites all TAA Summer Institute participants and faculty to attend a special recognition ceremony in honor of the 2025 students and teachers who received commendations for their artwork in both Tennessee’s Best of the Best Student Art Exhibition and Connections: Tennessee Art Education Association Member Exhibition. Prizes and certificates will be awarded. The recognition ceremony is sponsored by the Tennessee Art Education Association and will be held in the Todd Art Gallery in Todd Hall on the Middle Tennessee State University campus. The event will begin at 5:00 PM and will be followed by a reception, sponsored by the Tennessee Arts Academy, in honor of all the student and teacher winners. The public is invited to attend.
