Past Archives - Cheekwood
x icon Close
Today's Hours | Sat: 9:00 am - 3:30 pm

Event Category: Past

test

Lost For Words

Lost for Words is a pop-infused graphic arts exhibition featuring prints from Cheekwood’s permanent collection that transform language into playful visual expressions. With bold typography, Pop Art energy, and nods to everyday American culture, these works explore how we communicate through both text and image. Mixing cultural references, bold graphics, and a wink of humor, Lost for Words turns language into an adventure in visual communication. Come get delightfully, creatively lost.

Photo Credit: Ed Ruscha (American, b.1937), News (from News, Mews, Pews, Brews, Stews & Dues), 1970, Organic ink, background printed with blackcurrant pie filling over red salmon roe on paper. Gift of Mr. Victor Dorman. 1981.1.10.1.1.
test

Common Ground: The Hainsworth Collection in Conversation with Cheekwood’s Permanent Collection

Common Ground brings together, for the first time, paintings from the Hainsworth family collection and Cheekwood’s permanent collection to create a rich visual survey of American painting from the mid-19th to early 20th century. The two Nashville-based collections displayed alongside one another create a dialogue, revealing shared cultural aspirations and contrasting artistic visions. The exhibition examines major American art movements from the Hudson River School to American Impressionism and the Ashcan School. Together, the two collections enhance one another, offering a vibrant perspective on American art.

F. Luis Mora (American,1874-1940), Shadows in the Orchard, 1910, Oil on canvas. From the collection of John and Susan Hainsworth
F. Luis Mora (American,1874-1940), Shadows in the Orchard, 1910, Oil on canvas. From the collection of John and Susan Hainsworth.

The two Nashville-based collections displayed alongside one another create a dialogue, revealing shared cultural aspirations and contrasting artistic visions. The exhibition examines major American art movements from the Hudson River School to American Impressionism and the Ashcan School. Together, the two collections enhance one another, offering a vibrant perspective on American art.

Cheekwood-Common_Ground_Exhibition (3)
F. Luis Mora (American,1874-1940), Shadows in the Orchard, 1910, Oil on canvas. From the collection of John and Susan Hainsworth.
Cheekwood-Common_Ground_Exhibition (4)
Adam Emory Albright (American 1862-1957), The Raft, 1895, Oil on canvas. From the collection of John and Susan Hainsworth.
Cheekwood-Common_Ground_Exhibition (2)
Julian Alden Weir (American, 1852−1919), At the Piano, c.1890, oil on canvas. From the collection of John and Susan Hainsworth.
test

Devoted: The Life and Work of Louise Dahl-Wolfe and Meyer Wolfe

Louise Dahl-Wolfe and Meyer Wolfe shared a devotion—to their craft and each other. This Graphic Arts exhibition curated from Cheekwood’s permanent collection illuminates the intertwined lives and legacies of two artists who once called Nashville home. Louise gained recognition as a pioneering photographer known for her modern, iconic work for Harper’s Bazaar. Meyer, a sculptor and draftsman, explored the human figure and spirit. Devoted honors not only their singular brilliance, but what they built together.

Photo Credit: Photograph © Margaretta Mitchell, 1977
test

Robert Indiana: LOVE

In partnership with Pace Gallery and The Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative, Cheekwood is proud to present Robert Indiana’s iconic The American LOVE (White Blue Red) sculpture throughout Cheekwood in Bloom, summer festivals, and Cheekwood Harvest. The sculpture is the second work of Cheekwood’s Masterpiece Art Series, continuing a long-standing tradition of bringing high-quality, world-renowned masterworks to Nashville.

Robert Indiana’s LOVE, with its signature slanted “O” within a square format, first appeared in 1964, in the form of a holiday card the artist designed for friends. The Museum of Modern Art in New York selected the LOVE artwork to be featured on their official holiday card in 1965.  Since then, the stacked four letters have become a cultural icon.

The first LOVE sculpture (12-inches high) was made from hand-cut aluminum and exhibited in New York at the Stable Gallery in 1966. In 1970, the artist began a sculpture program which translated his LOVE image into various scales using different color combinations. In 1970, a monumental scale 12-ft LOVE sculpture was fabricated. Robert Indiana’s 96-inch The American LOVE (White Blue Red) is on view at Cheekwood. As with his paintings, Indiana played with form and scale and his LOVE sculptures relate deeply to his own personal journey growing up in America. This celebrated single word evokes universal feelings of peace, unity, and joy for all.

Cheekwood’s 2025 Masterpiece Art Series is supported by the Marlene and Spencer Hays Foundation.
Feature Image: Robert Indiana, The American LOVE (White Blue Red), 1966–1999, Conceived: 1966; Fabricated: 1999, polychrome aluminum, 96×96×48 in., Edition of 5 + 2 APs. Courtesy of The Robert Indiana Legacy Initiative and Pace Gallery © 2025 Morgan Art Foundation LLC / Artists Rights Society (ARS), NY.
test

2025 Middle Tennessee Scholastic Art Exhibition

Students submit photographs of their works online to be judged at Cheekwood by expert panels of jurors. Jurors pour over hundreds of works of art, looking for the following: originality, technical skill, and emergence of a personal vision.

Gold and Silver Key awarded works are displayed in the Frist Learning Center Great Hall during the Scholastic Art Awards Exhibition February 1 – March 9, 2025.

test

Holidays at the White House with the First Ladies: Jacqueline Kennedy to Michelle Obama

The exhibition follows the First Ladies’ holiday themes from Jacqueline Kennedy who began the tradition in 1961 through the Obama administration when Laura Dowling served as White House Chief Floral Designer.  Featuring images from the White House Historical Society and Presidential libraries, this photographic journey brings to life the joyful times and intimate moments of the first families and their beloved pets during the holiday season.

More with Laura Dowling

Supported by

Janet and Jim Ayers

Stones River Group
TVV

test

INTERVENTIONS: Ann Carrington

British artist Ann Carrington is well-known for working with discarded and found objects to create ornate sculptures and works of art. Her eccentric and elegant pieces breathe new life into otherwise mundane items such as knives, spoons, buttons, cans, and coins by unraveling their associations and assigning new meaning as sculpture.

In Depth

Ann Carrington’s Extraordinary Imagination
In ‘Interventions,’ Ann Carrington’s Elaborate Metal Sculptures Plumb the Past

British artist Ann Carrington is well-known for working with discarded and found objects to create ornate sculptures and works of art. Her eccentric and elegant pieces breathe new life into otherwise mundane items such as knives, spoons, buttons, cans, and coins by unraveling their associations and assigning new meaning as sculpture. Inspired by the gardens at Cheekwood and the Cheek family, Carrington’s installation will include 33 works throughout the period rooms.  Her work has recently been exhibited at the Musée des Impressionnismes Giverny as part of the Flowers Forever exhibition, as well as at Kunsthalle Munich, one of Germany’s most prestigious exhibition houses.

Now in its third year, INTERVENTIONS is an arts initiative to activate the historic period rooms. The series invites renowned artists from around the globe to imagine and implement a connection between their contemporary work and the Cheekwood Mansion.

Featured Image: Ann Carrington (b. 1962), Cora, 2023, Silver, nickel, and steel plated spoons. Photography provided by Ann Carrington Studio.

INTERVENTIONS-Shomu-en

Ann Carrington (b. 1962), Shomu-en, 2023, Silver, nickel, and steel plated cutlery. Photography provided by Ann Carrington Studio.

INTERVENTIONS-Ipheion

Ann Carrington (b. 1962), Ipheion, 2023, Silver, nickel, and steel plated cutlery. Photography provided by Ann Carrington Studio.

INTERVENTIONS-Fish Wish

Ann Carrington (b. 1962), Fish Wish, 2023, Tins and wire. Photography provided by Ann Carrington Studio.

INTERVENTIONS-Spiderfolk

Ann Carrington (b. 1962), Spiderfolk, 2023, Steel, brass and bronze. Photography provided by Ann Carrington Studio.

INTERVENTIONS is made possible by

The Sandra Schatten Foundation

Privacy Policy Sitemap Web design by Speak
Back to top