The Soundwaves Gallery: Voices of Nashville is a one-of-a-kind exhibition curated by Nashville Soccer Club in partnership with the Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville celebrating the intersection of sport and art to showcase the dynamic city Nashville SC calls home. The inaugural exhibition includes 48 works by 29 Middle Tennessee artists. Ranging in age from their 20s to 60s, selected artists hail from a variety of communities in 21 different ZIP codes across Davidson and adjoining counties. Artists were selected from a public call for art centered around personal narratives about what it means to be a Nashvillian, accompanied by work representing those unique perspectives. The art is as diverse as its local creators in form, medium, and genre. Together, the group of artists compose a collective chorus exploring who we’ve been, who we are, and who we dream to be.
Soundwaves Gallery Artist Highlight: Michael Ray Nott
The Art
Honky Tonk Hero
48” x 81”
Digital photo print in LED lightbox
I am impassioned by the unexpected, haphazard multitude of things that can pop up in a picture – neon signs, buildings, random people – all colliding in a rush of activity. My photography developed naturally by recording the vibrancy of downtown Nashville. This work is from a series of photos documenting the people, the music, and the voices that make up Music City, USA.
The Artist
I began my art career in Austin, Texas as a graphic artist. My work appears in a number of poster retrospectives from that era, including the books, The Art of Rock (1987, Abbeville Press) and Homegrown (2015,Texas Monthly Press). During that same time I was privileged to study photography under the legendary Garry Winogrand who made a profound impression on me through his philosophy of photography. My early work in music and street art has come full circle and found its place in my current work in street photography, capturing the zeitgeist of this remarkable time and place in Nashville.
Click here to view Honky Tonk Hero and other Soundwaves Gallery pieces.
