Appalachian Cultural Center to host gallery talk with artist Jody Bradley

Carson-Newman’s Appalachian Cultural Center presents an afternoon gallery talk with artist Jody Bradley on Wednesday, Sept. 14 at 4 p.m. The event, “And Still, We Dance: A Story of Cherokee Resiliency,” is free and open to the public.

The exhibit, on display now, is a series of paintings/mixed media. The work celebrates the Cherokee Syllabary (a phonetic alphabet), its trove of legends, traditional dress and traditional foods.

“Jody Bradley’s “And Still, We Dance: A Story of Cherokee Resiliency” tells a story of resistance and perseverance through a celebration of history and culture of the Eastern Band of Cherokee,” said Dr. Wesley McMasters, director of the Appalachian Cultural Center. “Bradley’s paintings are sincere and dazzling – the arrangement of her work tells a powerful narrative crucial to the history of our region.”

Bradley, a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, began painting after her 2015 retirement from a life of service to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. During her career, she collected ideas and formed vision boards as business tools. Bradley paints in acrylics and in a style different from other Native American painters. She never paints faces. The artist claims that people see who they want to see when they look at her paintings. She recreates pieces of history that speak to the observer and brings back memories to the Cherokee people and their history. Bradley hopes people look at her paintings with open eyes and an open mind and wants them to learn about the Cherokee people: their strength, their resiliency, and the beauty of the Cherokee culture.

The Appalachian Cultural Center is located on Russell Ave. in Jefferson City.

Gallery hours:

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 12 – 1:30 p.m.

Wednesday 10 – 2 p.m.

Other Appalachian Cultural Center events this fall include:

• October 3
  Susan O’Dell Underwood
  Genesis Road
  7 p.m. / Thomas Recital Hall

• October 19
  Andy Peck
  The Pecks of Mossy Creek
  4 p.m. / Thomas Recital Hall
  
  
• November 4
  Marianne Worthington
  Girl Singer
  Henrietta Jenkins Memorial Homecoming Poetry Reading
  4 p.m. / Thomas Recital Hall
  
  
• November 16
  A Sense of Place in Appalachia: Reading by C-N’s International Community
  4 p.m. / Thomas Recital Hall