Centennial Art Center is delighted to host its inaugural 2024 winter exhibit, 4XTN, featuring Four Artist TN (Instagram: @fourartisttn), a self-assembled artist collaborative exploring similar subject matter and natural elements through the unique exploration of media and style.
The concept for Four Artist TN began when the artists met organically at a group holiday exhibit in 2012. Realizing they each shared overlapping approaches and studied similar subject matter, they quickly established some common ground and began meeting together to explore their artistic visions more boldly. The group began meeting regularly and set assignments for each other and hosted group critiques to strengthen each other’s work. They hosted their first group exhibit for Four Artist TN in 2017. During the pandemic, their in-person meetings evolved to digital meet-ups which allowed for more frequent conversations and explorations. The group has now exhibited their broad collections together more than six times. Each artist creates their specific artwork using a unique media, making the commonalities in their work intriguing to the viewer. Together, Four Artist TN presents a cohesive but diverse body of work exploring art through juxtaposition and differing degrees of subject matter abstraction.
Four Artist TN is comprised of the following artists:
Emily McGrew — Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Emily earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) from Washington University in Saint Louis, Missouri, in 2007 and a Master of Fine Art (MFA) from The University of Houston (Texas) in 2012. Since 2012, she has resided in Nashville and maintains a studio practice that involves painting and drawing in a variety of mediums including colored pencil, graphite, gouache, oil and acrylic. Emily paints from direct observation or from photographs she has taken. These paintings explore landscapes, patterns, people, and animals in various forms and combinations. She seeks opportunities for additional engagement by intentionally distorting or altering the colors, textures, and proportions of her subjects.
Randy L Purcell — As a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tennessee (BFA in painting, 2009), and co-founder of The Nashville Collage Collective, Randy Purcell’s artwork explores a signature encaustic technique involving the transfer of magazine ink onto beeswax. Randy’s distinct niche of artistic style developed through his fascination with memories and how one perceives them. His artwork evokes a dreamlike sensibility. From a distance, his paintings look like faded photographs, but through closer observation, the viewer will notice the layers of magazine imagery built up like pieces of a collage. His work is simultaneously sophisticated and whimsical, often creating dynamic patterns of light and shadow. He teaches his refined technique through educator workshops, demonstrations, and online classes. Randy is represented by The Copper Fox Gallery in Leiper’s Fork, Tennessee and KORE Gallery in Louisville, Kentucky.
Mike Martino — After receiving his BFA from Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Mike Martino had the opportunity to attend Louisiana State University (LSU) on a full scholarship to earn his MFA degree. During his time at LSU, Mike fell in love with the South and knew he wanted to build his life in the South; he now resides in Nashville, Tennessee. Mike is a printmaker who has mastered both traditional and contemporary printmaking techniques. He shares this knowledge through teaching workshops as well as mentoring other artists. Mike has built a 1000 sq.ft. printmaking studio in his home in Brentwood, Tennessee; his printmaking studio is called Blue Fig Editions. His studio has a vast array of printmaking capabilities including lithography, intaglio, screen prints, and relief prints. Mike also has exhibited his work in his gallery (Blue Fig Gallery) located in downtown Nashville. He shows his artwork throughout the United States as well as internationally. His exhibits have included public galleries, universities, state museums as well as private collections.
Susan Goshgarian McGrew — Susan, a New England native and physician, began her professional journey as an artist in the late 1980s. What began by working with mentors and taking workshops evolved into exhibiting her art professionally in juried group shows. She had her first solo exhibition “Garden Colors” in 2001 at Cheekwood Museum and Botanical Gardens in Nashville, Tennessee, and has continued exhibiting locally and regionally ever since. Her exhibiting spaces have included the Nashville International Airport (BNA), Vanderbilt University, The Renaissance Center, and The Parthenon Museum. Subsequent series of her artwork have included mixed media pieces, oil pastel and cold wax medium (which she self-taught during the 2020 pandemic). McGrew is especially drawn to the texture and luminescence of her recent mixed media work. Her work may be found in private and corporate collections throughout the United States.