Exhibitions

DANA PETTIT: A DIVINE APPOINTMENT

Monthaven Arts & Cultural Center / 1017 Antebellum Cir., Hendersonville, TN April 18 - 27th (Reception: April 18 6:00pm - 8:00pm)

Dana Pettit

In celebration of the Easter Season, Monthaven Arts and Cultural Center is presenting an original exhibition titled A Divine Appointment. The exhibit features 11 portraits of Jesus rendered in different styles of Western art. A 12th portrait suggests the Holy Spirit as seen through the lens of contemporary performance art.

Tennessee artist Dana Pettit created the works in this series as part of her own personal quest to find God. Although she grew up in the Catholic Church, she realized early on that the iconography of that religion did not speak to her soul. She flirted briefly with Buddhism while studying art in France, but she mostly turned away from religion. But then, she says, she received a spark of inspiration from the Holy Spirit. He invited her to search for the Divine in the face of Jesus.

Pettit based the portraits in this exhibit on a likeness of Jesus she saw as a child. Realizing that the mystery of Christ was too profound to convey in a single artistic style, she opted to create a series of portraits ranging in styles from Baroque and Impressionism to Surrealism and Pop Art. Ten of the portraits are oil or acrylic paintings. Another portrait is a sculpture of found trash and glue in the style of Dadaism or Tramp Art. The final portrait is an empty room – a nod to performance art – representing the Holy Spirit.

For more information about A Divine Appointment, please call (615) 822-0789.