Here, we blend the bold and the in-between — milestones, insights, and sparks of what’s next. It’s the creative space where ideas unfold in real-time.

Special Recognition for MTSU Department of Art and Design and TODDartgallery

April 6, 2025

At the 2025 Tennessee Association of Museums Annual Conference in Knoxville, MTSU’s Todd Art Gallery (TAG) was honored with a Certificate of Commendation during the March Awards Dinner. This special recognition celebrates Perceptions of Reality, the Department of Art and Design’s most recent annual collaborative exhibition, curated by Dr. Barbara and Mr. Leroy Hodges. The exhibition uplifts the voices and visions of artists of color through powerful visual narratives and lived experiences across cultures and disciplines. Todd Art Gallery is grateful to the Tennessee Association of Museums for acknowledging the importance of this work and its role in fostering dialogue, representation, and community through the arts.

2025 Tennessee Association of Museums Certificate of Commendation for Perceptions of Relity

Decoding a Civilization: Exploring Ancient Egyptian Life Through Art
Ancient Egyptian imagery for Sarah Abdah lecture Decoding a Civilization, Exploring Ancient Egyptian Life through Art

MTSU Art and Design | April 12, 2025

A Lecture Presentation by Sara Abdoh, Spring 2025 Visiting Professor

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MTSU Art and Design Student Scholarships

MTSU Art and Design | August 16, 2025

A Quick Reference Guide to the Department’s Student Scholarships

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Graphic Design Senior Show

MTSU Art and Design | April 10, 2025

The Town of Lexicon Lane Welcomes You @mtsuseniorshow | April 10, 2025 MTSU Graphic Design Capstone, the town of Lexicon Lane, welcomes you! April 19–26 | MTSU Todd Art Gallery, Todd Hall, Room 224A Opening April 19, 2025, 1–4 p.m. See the artwork of Quinn Allen • Bri Anderson • Joy Blohm • Luke Byrum…

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Life Mapping Workshop with Kara Kemp

Saturdays At Todd

The MTSU Department of Art and Design is pleased to announce a Saturdays At Todd (S@T) Workshop led by local favorite Kara Kemp this April 17, 2021. Organized by Rutherford Arts Alliance (RAA), Kara’s Workshop is scheduled in Todd Hall, Room 236.

Everyone possesses the ability to design a meaningful life, but not everyone knows how. In this interactive Life Mapping Workshop, Kara Kemp will guide you through the life mapping process to gain the insight needed to live an authentic life and tackle your most ambitious goals. Utilizing Qnity’s revolutionary methodology and proven principles of success, the interactive and inspiring approaches to mind mapping will help you make dynamic and enduring connections between your head and your heart, allowing you to reach your full potential, achieve your goals and live a more intentional life. Participants will be encouraged to share reflections with the group.

    • Combine text and visuals to create a mindmap
    • Set specific goals, objectives, and actions steps
    • Uncover core beliefs of who you are
    • Align your values with your goals (Goals and Achievable Chunks)
    • MATERIALS NEEDED:
    • Paper or sketch pad and writing implements
    • Planner or calendar for the year ahead

Biography

Speaker and storytelling coach for visionary leaders who wish to leverage the power of their personal narrative. For over two decades, she facilitated off-the-shelf approaches for strengthening work cultures and creative leaders. Kara has crafted systems for companies and individuals in non-profit and for-profit sectors. She works with organizations and leadership teams on how to harness the power of storytelling to maintain momentum in their field. Kara is a firm believer that communication and collaboration are the keystones to effective work cultures and to encourage bold choices that expedite success.

Prior Workshops:

    • Rutherford County Habitat for Humanity Storytelling for FUNdraising
    • Rutherford Chamber Youth Leadership Workshop
    • The Story Spark: Superheroes and Dreamers
    • Rutherford Arts Alliance June Storytelling Performance and Talk
    • The Power of Your Story Workshop
    • United Way Bold Goals 2030 Workshop

All are welcome to participate. Attendance is free for RAA members. A $25.00 fee, paid the day of the event, is required of non-members and provides membership for 2021 to attend other free to members RAA events. Payments by cash, check, or PayPal is accepted.

Per MTSU requirements Social Distancing and the wearing of Facemasks are required.

Your signup is your commitment to attend. If you are registering for yourself and others, list each name individually in an open slot. Thank you!

For more information about RAA:

Rutherford Arts Alliance | 115 Front Street (Mailing Address Only) | Smyrna, TN 37167

rucoarts@gmail.com | www.rutherfordartsalliance.org

Social Media: @rucoartstn

Saturdays at Todd workshops are supported in part by the Tennessee Arts Commission (TAC) https://tnartscommission.org/. Your purchase of a Specialty License Plate, an Arts Plate supports the commission’s outreach to arts organizations, schools, and communities across Tennessee. https://tnspecialtyplates.org/.

For additional information, parking, and other questions contact eric.snyder@mtsu.edu.

Illustrating the Comic Book Page

ILLUSTRATING THE COMIC BOOK PAGE! with Douglas Dabbs, Associate Professor, MTSU Art and Design

More than 25 MTSU and Community persons signed up to join Douglas Dabbs for his recent Saturdays at Todd Workshop via Zoom. During the three-hour workshop each participant was taught how to use thumbnails, page design, word balloons, ink, and much more to tell their stories visually! Visit Douglas at https://www.mtsu.edu/art/DouglasDabbs.php

From Impulse to Impact Poetry Workshop: Writing What Matters to You in a Way That Speaks to Others

The MTSU Department of Art and Design is pleased to announce a poetry-writing Saturdays at Todd Workshop with recent Murfreesboro Poet Laureate and Author, Kory Wells!

From Impulse to Impact Poetry Workshop: Writing What matters to You in a Way That Speaks to Others

More Information and Signup at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4EABA62FA4FE3-from1

Whether you compose poems on your phone or scribble lines in a notebook, when you follow the urge to write, you’re heeding the call of something important. But how can you best follow that impulse and turn it into a written or spoken word piece that commands attention? In this workshop, we’ll explore some ways to get at our most meaningful material and consider numerous specific strategies for revising our work to maximize its impact on the reader or listener.

Audience: All levels welcome; while we’ll focus on poetry and spoken word, much of what we discuss will apply to the writing of all genres

Bring with you: Your favorite writing tools. We’ll take some time to generate new work, but feel free to bring a poem you’ve already started and would like to improve.

Class limit: Free and open to the public, registration required, 15 participants total. More Information and Signup at https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60B0A4EABA62FA4FE3-from1

Sponsored in part by the Tennessee Arts Commission: https://tnartscommission.org/ Support the Commission’s efforts across Tennessee through the purchase of a specialty license plate: https://tnspecialtyplates.org/

Studio Art Alum Lecture Series featuring ’08 B.F.A. Alum, Ellen Dempsey

Join MTSU’s Department of Art and Design in welcoming 2008 BFA Alumna Ellen Dempsey. This lecture series seeks to connect current students to artists, designers and art-professionals who have received degrees from our department. This talk is open to the public, but is most relevant for students seeking information about building a life and career in creative arts.

 

 

@ellendempsey_studio on Instagram
http://www.ellensdempsey.com on the web
ZOOM Info:
https://mtsu.zoom.us/j/98549244471?pwd=K0RYM2hhM1k5N1orU1ZWTVZXODE5QT09
Meeting ID: 985 4924 4471
Passcode: 414038
Meeting ID: 985 4924 4471

Design and Print a Letterpress Poster via Zoom

Saturdays at Todd – Design and Print a Letterpress Poster via Zoom

Watch as Associate Professor, Kathleen O’Connell, designs and prints a letterpress poster. This event will be live broadcast over Zoom, with opportunities to ask questions throughout the process.

10 a.m.–1 p.m.—Saturday, September 26, 2020

Open to the public. Participants limited to 20. For further information and questions contact eric.snyder@mtsu.edu or kathleen.o’connell@mtsu.edu.

To Signup: Design and Print a Letterpress Poster

Signup Opens at 12 PM (NOON), Tuesday, September 22, 2020. Registered Participants Receive Meeting Login Information via Email from eric.snyder@mtsu.edu or Mobile Text on Friday, September 25.

Support the Tennessee Arts Commission’s (TAC) efforts at Cultivating the Arts in Tennessee at https://tnartscommission.org/, and TN TAC Specialty License Plates available at https://tnspecialtyplates.org/TAC-License-Plates.jpg

Tennessee Arts Commission Specialty License Plates

Signup Link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/60b0a4eaba62fa4fe3-virtual

Saturdays at Todd (S@T) Watercolor Portraiture Workshop via Zoom

MTSU Art and Design welcomes the return of Saturdays at Todd via Zoom with Professor Sisavanh Houghton guides you through a virtual workshop about Watercolor Portraiture.

Watercolor Portraiture Workshop

Saturday, September 19, 2020, 12 p.m.-3 p.m. via Zoom

Maya-Angelou-Workshop-Image.JPG

Signups will open at 2 p.m., Thursday, September 17, 2020. To participate: Watercolor Portraiture Virtual Workshop

Join Professor Sisavanh Houghton for a Zoom Workshop focusing on the Art of Watercolor Portraiture. In the celebration and recognition for the 100 years of Women’s suffrage, Sisavanh has chosen Maya Angelou, an award Winning American Poet, memoirist, and civil rights activist, as her photo reference. This workshop is for intermediate and advanced watercolorists. Professor Houghton will demonstrate and guide you through the techniques of mixing skin tones, building layers of color washes, block in hair, jewelry, and fabric. 

Sponsored in part by the Tennessee Arts Commission: https://tnartscommission.org/ Support the Commission’s efforts across Tennessee through the purchase of a specialty license plate: https://tnspecialtyplates.org/

“My Wish for you is that you continue. Continue to be who and how you are, to astonish a mean world with acts of kindness.” Maya Angelou

Open to the public. Participants are limited to 20. For further information, questions, materials pickup, and an image of Maya Angelou contact eric.snyder@mtsu.edu.

 

Pop Up Mural Event

We are excited to announce the Pop Up Mural Event, an event for all students that has been planned with COVID precautions in mind!

The Pop Up Mural Event is September 22 & 23 from 10 am – 3 pm on the sidewalk between Todd Hall and Davis Science Building. You will be painting 10 portable 5×5 wooden murals that each depict a career competency that will be important as you acquire a job post-graduation or attend graduate school and then advance in your career. In Spring 2020, Art Practicum students worked to design and create the murals based on competencies chosen with guidance by the Deans of our sponsoring colleges and a panel of students, faculty and staff. The art students have transferred the designs onto wooden puzzle pieces that you now have the opportunity to paint, bringing the skills and competencies developed in the disciplines of the Liberal Arts and Basic and Applied Sciences to life! At the event, you will also receive information about how you can develop these competences at MTSU and be the missing piece that today’s employers are seeking!

To help us plan, we would like for you to let us know you are coming and provide an estimated time of when you will participate. You can sign up here or by pasting the link below into your browser window:

http://bit.ly/popupmuralevent

Masks will be provided for those who do not have one with them, and social distancing will be observed.

Don’t miss this chance to start working on your career skills and contribute to these pieces of art that will remain on campus for years to come!

For questions, email Lucy Langworthy at lucy.langworthy@mtsu.edu.

 

Seeing Your Creative Practice through an Entrepreneurial Lens

Seeing Your Creative Practice through an Entrepreneurial Lens

Presented by the College of Liberal Arts, and the Department of Art and Design

1–2 p.m.—Wednesday, September 23, 2020

https://mtsu.zoom.us/j/95628172683?pwd=ck5jL1A4LzcwZGRMU2ljdVZhYzJnUT09

Meeting ID: 956 2817 2683
Passcode: 465523

Artistry and entrepreneurship might not seem to go together, but historically, a large portion of artists are self-employed, a.k.a. Entrepreneurs. To help artists develop the business side of their creativity, the Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville created Periscope: Artist Entrepreneur Training. This year-long professional development opportunity for working artists is designed as a transformative experience to spark the moment when their career starts to take off.

In this webinar, you’ll hear from artists who’ve completed Periscope training and used the knowledge they gained to advance their creative careers. They’ll share their experiences going from students to professional artists, why they chose entrepreneurial training, and what they’ve learned since completing the curriculum. You’ll walk away with an understanding of how artists use real-world entrepreneurial skills to leverage the value they offer clients and collectors to create a living and a life doing what they love.

Participating artists: 

Erin Connally | Illustrator | www.erinconnally.com, Danny Broadway | Painter | www.dannybroadway.com/, Patty McAvoy | Graphic Designer | www.pattymcavoydesigns.com/, Keavy Murphree | Ceramics | www.keavymurphree.com/