301 25th Ave. N.
Nashville, TN 37201
Street Address (no parking lot access from 25th Av. N., must enter from within Centennial Park):

PHONE: (615) 862-8442 or (615) 862-8443
FAX: (615) 880-1716
Mailing Address: Parks and Recreation Department
Centennial Art Center
P.O. Box 196340
Nashville, TN 37219-6340
Map

*Brenda McSurley, Visual Arts Supervisor & Centennial Art Center Director
E-Mail: brenda.mcsurley@nashville.gov
**Lena Lucas, Centennial Art Center Gallery Manager
E-Mail: lena.lucas@nashville.gov

---

web site: www.nashville.gov/parks/arts/cac.asp

---

Exhibition Information

HOURS OF OPERATION
It is free and open to the public Monday - Thursday, from 9:30 AM - 4:30 PM
Available for rental during other hours

Mission Statement:
The mission of Metro Parks and Recreations' Visual Arts Program is to provide and expand quality art and cultural experiences within Metro Parks' facilities via classes, workshops, art exhibitions and gallery/museum field trips for the citizens and visitors of Metro Nashville, Davidson County.

About Centennial Art Center
Metro Parks’ Centennial Art Center is a Historic Building located in the 25th Avenue North and Park Plaza corner of Nashville, Tennessee's beautiful Centennial Park.  It serves as headquarters for the Visual Arts Departmentof the larger Cultural Arts Divisionof Nashville’s Metropolitan Board of Parks and Recreation.  Originally built as a swimming complex in 1932, it closed in 1959 and was renovated in 1971.  As the first Metro Nashville owned structure rehabilitated for “Adaptive Reuse,” it earned Museum Statusby reopening as Centennial Art Center– a gallery and visual arts teaching facility.

Tucked within an attractive brick walled courtyard in back of Centennial Art Center’s building, are appealing outdoor areas that include performance, exhibition and workspace.  The former pool is now a sculpture display garden and pond – where, on occasion, ducks from nearby Lake Watauga fly in to swim and nest – surrounded by an impressive herb garden donated, created and maintained by The Herb Society of Nashville.  Free and open to the public, Monday through Thursday, from 9:30 AM to 4:30 PM, the adjacent courtyard has a peaceful ambiance and is furnished with umbrella tables and chairs. Providing a wonderful setting for picnics, a gathering of friends, club meetings or just relaxing, Centennial Art Center’s courtyard is also available for rental during other hours. For information about renting the outdoor courtyard of Centennial Art Center and for information about Arts in the Parks’ Memberships, PH (615) 862-8442 or E-Mail: brenda.mcsurley@nashville.gov

Centennial Art Center has two studio/classrooms where popular, affordable art classes – including drawing, painting, pottery and sculpture – are taught by well-respected artists.  Many area artists got started through the Center’s classes, and both past and current students consistently win awards in juried exhibitions. 

The Art Center’s main building also contains a gallery that hosts exhibits and sales of a variety of media by professional visual artists.  Each exhibit opens with an Artist’s Reception, giving the public an opportunity to meet the artists and enjoy the camaraderie of fellow visual arts supporters.  During the months of November and December, the popular Holiday Season Exhibition and Saleis held, featuring works by Cultural Arts’ Staff and students.  That exhibit, (as well as some others), benefits Arts in the Parks, a nonprofit organization that supports Metro Parks’ cultural programs.

Mutually beneficial collaborations – involving Metro Parks Community Centers and The Frist Center for the Visual Arts Community Outreach Programs– are coordinated by Centennial Art Center’s Director.  One such program, called Art Trunks, consists of educational kits with different themes designed to enrich the appreciation and understanding of Frist Center exhibitions.  The kits – distributed to several Community Centers – include reproductions of artwork, art supplies and guided lesson plans for children and Senior Citizens.  The Frist Center provides training for Community Center employees, who then conduct the programs.  To round out the students’ educational and recreational experiences, after completing each Art Trunk assignment, Community Center employees accompany the students on special visits to the Frist Center to view, in person, the works they have studied.  Other Frist programs have teamed Metro Parks’ Community Center staff and children with Frist Center personnel and local artists to create murals, mobiles and other public art projects at Parks’ Community Centers.

Throughout the years, Metro Parks’ Cultural Arts Divisionhas been awarded numerous grants from public and private organizations, making special projects, events and collaborations between the Visual Arts Division and others within and outside of Metro Parks possible.  One such event that takes place at Centennial Art Center during the month of October, is Nashville’s Internationals – an exhibit of works by artists from around the world that now call Nashville home.   It plays an important role in Centennial Parks’ annual Celebration of Cultures (cosponsored by Scarritt Bennett Center and Metro Parks), with the artists’ reception – held the first Friday in October – featured as a special pre-festival event for the Celebration.

Thanks to Metro Parks’ Centennial Art Center, the cultural and recreational lives of many citizens of Metro Nashville and its visitors are enriched!