Written by Rick Glass
Clarksville, TN – When the winds of the creative universe blew many moons ago, they must have been pointed in a Southernly direction. Like the seed pods of a dandelion floating on the summer breeze, artists and artisans were scattered all over the communities of Palmyra, Port Royal, and Salem in a greater concentration than maybe anywhere else in the county.
The area’s wealth of talent and beautiful locations were on full display the last Saturday of September as the Central Civitan Club in partnership with the Clarksville Arts & Heritage Council, presented the Second Annual “South of the River – Tour d’Art”.
Guided by the experienced hand of APSU Professor Emeritus Dr. Ellen Kanervo, this year’s Tour (or TDA) increased its number of stops, with eight artists displaying (or creating) their work at seven locations, including a “Plein Air” outdoor painting event.
Margaret Morgan Adames provided a beginning history and focus of the Tour at Salem Community Church, where the “Sew Simple” Quilting Club had just about every pew covered with their meticulously crafted pieces.
Plein Air painting took place at the amazing home of Kris & Charlie Faust, perched high on a bluff overlooking the Cumberland River. Longtime patrons of the arts, the couple opened their spectacular view to the artisans, and the tour participants watched them.
Although architect Lane Lyle designed the house fairly recently, the property has been in the Faust family for over 100 years. It still has the remnants of an iron furnace that dates from Palmyra’s smelting and metal-producing days. The property and equipment were part of an industrial operation for a good while. The Fausts purchase quite a few pieces of art and have hosted events like this in the past.
Mike Andrews is one of their favorite artists, as is Carol Lebaron, who created a beautiful textile piece with butterflies and plants commemorating their late daughter. As does that piece, most of their art holds deep meaning for them.
After a stop at the Central Civitan Hall to see the exquisite work of nonsighted tactile artist Tracy Bettencourt, our tour went to the furthest location on the route, Longthunder Studio, the shop and home of Jim and Jane Diehr.
What a story we found there. Coming from childhood upbringings in Oklahoma and on a farm in Missouri, Jim has always had art in his DNA. With a supportive father, Jim’s first studio was in a repurposed grocery store freezer, when his high school class relocated to the store after a fire.
Although sculpture is probably Diehr’s favorite art form (he likes the three-dimensional aspect), and he has worked in wood, concrete, and steel, Diehr also enjoys (and is very good at) painting and ceramics.
Spending a good portion of the 60s in New York’s Greenwich Village, Jim eventually joined the Army at Fort Dix and finished his time in Germany. When he was offered the GI Bill to continue his education, he worked his way from a Bachelor of Fine Arts to a PhD in Psychology – with a focus on Support in the Arts.
After a few years of teaching in other states and spending a year in England, he was recruited to be the APSU Arts Department chair in 1982. He taught at APSU until his retirement in 2015, and recruited one of our other artisans to take his place, but he continues to create beautiful, thought-provoking art from local wood and other raw materials at his studio and periodically has shows in local galleries. Jim and Jane celebrated 53 years of marriage on Halloween.
The next stop on the Tour was at the home of Ken & Melody Shipley, owners of River City Clay, a pottery and ceramics studio on Franklin Street in Clarksville. With a combined 80 years of pottery and ceramics creation and teaching between them, the Shipleys opened the porch of their home (with Melody’s Mom, Eloise, demonstrating weaving) to the public, as well as the studio on the back of the property where Ken was busy throwing bowls on his potters wheel for the upcoming Loaves and Fishes dinner.
When the Shipleys outgrew the space for teaching at their home, they opened up their downtown studio, soon after the pandemic. Starting with a couple of classes at UT Knoxville at the age of 19, Ken attended and apprenticed at multiple schools and studios throughout East Tennessee and wound up with a Religious Studies degree. He was the one Diehr recruited to succeed him at APSU.
Melody was also a student of Diehr’s at Austin Peay State University, and that’s where she and Ken initially met. Holding classes for individuals, couples, and inter-generational groups at their Franklin Street studio, the Shipleys find their schedule very full.
They have their own apprentice (Shelby Crutcher) and are firm believers in keeping the cycle (new, midway, and almost finished) helping to keep the knowledge and experience of pottery going. They want to teach more about the intricacies of the finishing process (firing/glazing) and all the chemistry that is involved in colors and finishes. And possibly expand their class offerings.
The home of Leo and Margaret Adames provided another stop on the journey, where artist (and musician) Leo arranged his artwork in both acrylics and his recent foray in to silk screen art.
The tour ultimately wound up at the home of Mariah Cox, who brought out and displayed some of her chalk art and also hosted a second artisan (Jennifer Campbell) who showed her poured-art creations.
At each of the stops, a Central Civitan member was there to greet the participants, and even offer snacks. A beautifully cool and foggy morning turned in to a glorious Fall day, enjoying all the creativity that we are so fortunately surrounded by.
Be sure you mark your calendars for next Fall’s 3rd Annual Tour so that you can enjoy it too.”
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