Frist Art Museum Presents '2020 Young Tennessee Artists: Selections from Advanced Studio Art Program'

The Frist Art Museum presents 2020 Young Tennessee Artists: Selections from Advanced Studio Art Programs, the biennial exhibition that showcases some of the finest artworks from high school students enrolled in advanced studio art programs across the state. This year, the exhibition will be presented at FristArtMuseum.org from October 9, 2020 through February 7, 2021.

Students in Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) studio art programs during the 2019-20 academic year were invited to submit their work to the eighth edition of this exhibition. After reviewing more than 300 entries public and private schools, the jurors selected drawings, paintings, photographs, digital prints, and mixed-media works created by 36 students representing 10 different schools.

"This exhibition illuminates the students' skillful synthesis of form, technique, and content. The array and quality of work demonstrate the growing sophistication and diversity of experiences within the AP and IB studio art programs across Tennessee," says Frist Art Museum assistant director for community engagement and exhibition curator Shaun Giles.

Themes in the exhibition include family relationships, personal growth, gender identity and expression, and connections with nature. In her artist statement about her work You Need Your Protein, Hume-Fogg student Sarah Katherine Steen explains, "This piece explores my relationship with my mother and incorporates found objects of significance to that relationship, such as Band-Aids, old receipts, buttons, fabric, etc. It is an encaustic piece with oil paint, created by layering different scenes and snippets of phrases from my memories surrounding her."

"Upper-level studio art courses make it possible for highly motivated students to build and refine their portfolios through ongoing investigation, practice, and reflection," says Giles. "The dedicated teachers in AP and IB programs challenge their students' artistic perceptions and encourage them to develop aesthetic methods, both conceptually and in execution." At the end of the school year, each student's portfolio is reviewed by AP or IB examiners. Students may subsequently receive college course credit or other recognition of their accomplishments.

Advanced Placement is a registered trademark of the College Board. International Baccalaureate is a registered trademark of the IB Organization. The institutions were not involved in the production of and do not endorse this exhibition.