Painting and Michelle Reeves were introduced to each other later in her life.
The Nashville artist’s colorful abstract work “Woven” has been selected as the background for this year’s official logo of Artober Nashville, an annual month-long celebration of the arts and humanities in Nashville and Middle Tennessee.
A program of NowPlayingNashville at The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, Artober Nashville 2022 is set for Sept. 26-Oct. 31. The annual event highlights the depth and variety of the arts community and its many public offerings, while encouraging participation in the arts from residents and tourists alike.
Reeves is one of 14 artists featured in the exhibit “Collective Imagination: Art Right Now” that debuts Saturday, Aug. 6 at Chauvet Arts Nashville gallery, 215 Rep. John Lewis Way North, 5th Avenue of the Arts.
That’s just in time for the 2022 FirstBank First Saturday Art Crawl from 5-8 pm at galleries throughout downtown. The event is free and open to the public.
A former makeup artist and marketer for a proper management company in past careers, Reeves met her new love in school, as it turns out. She was 52 at the time.
“In late 2017, during a job interview the gentleman asked me what I was passionate about, and I couldn’t answer the question,” recalls Reeves, who moved to Nashville with her husband and young son in 2009. “This bothered me so much, and led me back to school to pursue an interior design degree.
“Through course work, I started to paint. And something clicked!” she continued. “I found my childlike joy and passion and painted daily … it was volcanic.
“I literally had paintings explode out of me. All this suppressed creativity started to bubble out and soon a style emerged. And at 52 years of age, I started to paint seriously.”
The results have been impressive indeed, with 27 international awards, juried works in 33 exhibitions, and two overseas artist residence, including one in France last September.
And becoming Artober Nashville’s latest logo isn’t the first accolade for her work “Woven.” It won a Silver Award at Camelback Gallery’s 2021 Artist Choice VI Group Exhibition and was picked up by hosts Drew and Jonathan Scott of HGTV for their curated “Living Spaces’ retailer for reproduction purposes.
Woven by Michelle Reeves
“This piece presents well visually and makes you want to explore it,” Reeves says. “It also happens to be one of my favorite pieces to date.”
Artober Nashville was originally established in 2011 by the Metro Nashville Arts Commission and was operated by the commission through 2016.
For more information and to add your event, visit ArtoberNashville.com.
About NowPlayingNashville.com
NowPlayingNashville.com, an initiative of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee, is Middle Tennessee’s comprehensive event guide for Where to Go and What to Do, with information about music, theater, arts, sports, dance, museums, family fun, dining and more. Since its launch in 2007, the website has collaborated with hundreds of community partners, providing detailed information to support arts and entertainment organizations and enrich the Middle Tennessee community. For more information, visit www.NowPlayingNashville.com.
