For over twenty years, DPC has been home to an ever-changing group of artists-in-residence.
The upper floors of the church originally housed Sunday school rooms, mission offices and balconies for the chapel. In 1994, Tom Wills requested he and some fellow art graduates might be permitted to use these unused rooms as art studios. In the years that followed, DPC found itself playing a significant part in the city’s growing contemporary art scene. A cycle of emerging artists came and went every few years, many becoming established names in the process.
In 2014, following the opening of our gallery, The Browsing Room, the Nashville Scene honored the studios’ place in Nashville’s art scene.
The residency program continues to thrive and evolve. Each combination of artists shifts the program’s emphasis – reflecting their chosen media, their experience and themes of interest. The residency encourages the artists to work in collaboration with the congregation and seek out opportunities for shared projects.
The artists are best understood as being part of an ongoing and fluid conversation within the community. Each artist brings a unique set of skills and perspective. The congregation gets to witness the typically hidden processes of art making and creative thinking. Studio work can be an isolating experience for many artists. For those that seek it, the residency offers artists a collegiate group to work alongside – sharing encouragement and motivation. DPC offers further encouragement where it is helpful and has provided many of its residents a valued sense of place and context in which to work. For those artists who have a particular interest in the relationship between art and faith, DPC offers a site in which to collaborate and experiment.
Please note:
The art studios are not open to the public.
There is no time limit placed on residencies so we cannot predict when any one space will become available. Any artist wishing to have their name kept on file for consideration should email a letter of introduction to the church office at [email protected].
