MACC Talk at Monthaven Arts and Cultural Center

Denice Hicks plans to step down from her post as executive

Lisa Jennings is one of Middle Tennessee’s most strikingly original artists. Her work is deeply rooted in her love for nature. She creates statues from the stones she finds in nearby streams; her paintings are layered masterpieces depicting scenes from the natural world. In this episode of MACC Talk, Jennings discusses the influences and creative processes that produced the works in her exhibit On the Wings of Blessings.

Giancarlo Guerrero is the six-time Grammy Award-winning conductor and music director of the Nashville Symphony Orchestra. Since picking up the baton in 2009, Guerrero has led the Nashville Symphony in 11 world premieres and 15 recordings of American music. Last summer, Guerrero surprised everyone when he announced that the 2024-25 season would be his last in Nashville. In this episode of MACC Talk, Guerrero talks about his time in Nashville and his plans for the future.

America is a deeply divided country. People seem angry, fearful and mistrustful. They inhabit a house divided that is certain to fall. Or do they? The photojournalist David Robert Farmerie recently went on a quest to answer this question. Traveling more than 300,000 miles, he met with and photographed ordinary Americans leading extraordinary lives. He found that there were indeed divisions. But he also learned that we have more in common than not. In this MACC Talk podcast, Farmerie recounts his remarkable journey. He also discusses the continuation of his In Search of America project, which will culminate with a 2025 photo exhibition at The MACC’s Papillon Gallery.

Nashville is known around the world as Music City. But it’s also known as “The Athens of the South.” That nickname is partly due to the city’s glorious state capitol building, famously created in Greek revival style. Kem Hinton knows a thing or two about Nashville architecture. He’s lead designer of Tennessee’s celebrated Bicentennial Mall, a magnificent 19-acre park located north of the capitol. In this episode, he gives us the story behind Tennessee’s crowning architectural achievement.

Valentine Adams is Nashville’s premier metal sculptor. A retired U.S. Air Force captain, Adams is one of Monthaven’s healing arts facilitators. His “blue collar” art serves as a tribute to a time when American workers forged durable goods.

Thompson Mayes, vice president and general counsel of the National Trust for Historic Places, paid a recent visit to Sumner County. Author of the important book Why Old Places Matter, Mayes explains why old places like Monthaven should matter to all of us.

The exhibition 1968: A Folsom Redemption is on display at Monthaven Arts and Cultural Center through May 25. Gene Beley, the journalist who attended the 1968 Folsom concert with Johnny Cash, provides a first-hand account of that historic event.

In this episode, we talk with MACC Healing Arts Coordinator Sarah Huffman. She explains how Monthaven uses the arts to empower adults, teens, and military veterans suffering from trauma.

Artist Michael McBride discusses the fine art of illustrating children's books. His exhibit, Color, Culture and Children, is on display at Monthaven Arts and Cultural Center through March 24, 2024.