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Artist's Forum: Samuel Dunson

Presented by Frist Center for the Visual Arts at Frist Center for the Visual Arts

June 16, 2011

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Artist’s Forum is a program in which Nashville-based and regional emerging and recognized artists discuss the thoughts and processes behind their work. Participants are encouraged to come and be part of the dialogue about the artistic process.

This month’s Artist’s Forum has invited Samuel Dunson, assistant professor of art at Tennessee State University, to speak about his artistic processes and concepts, as well as his experience working with the Frist Center’s community outreach team and a group from the Nashville International Center for Empowerment on the exhibition Connecting Cultures: Children’s Stories from Across the World.

The Arts have played a major role in Dunson’s life since his youth. He was fortunate enough to be born into a household where exposure to the arts was as important as academic study. Although not raised in the arts themselves, his parents saw fit to give their children the experience of theater, dance, music, and the visual arts by making annual trips to major metropolitan cities to view the arts and visiting galleries and museums in the Dayton, Ohio, area. Dunson was also a member of the Muse Machine which allowed its members to take field trips away from school in order to take part in artistic events.

Dunson continued his formal education by enrolling in Tennessee State University. He first majored in Architectural Engineering, but soon changed his major to Studio Art. Early on in his academic and artistic pursuits, he chose to work three dimensionally but in the end painting and drawing peaked his interest. He began to exhibit his works soon after college. He went on to earn his MFA in painting from the Savannah College of Art and Design, where he was supported by a presidential fellowship.

Dunson now exhibits his paintings in group and solo shows on a regular basis. His works have been reported and critiqued in art journals and newspapers alike. Dunson teaches painting, drawing and 2D design, as well as Art Appreciation at Tennessee State University. He has been employed by the University since 2000.