Faculty work displayed at Frist Art Museum

Congratulations to Arts Department Co-Chair Trent Boysen and MS & HS Visual Arts Teacher Emily Holt on being selected for the Frist Art Museum’s upcoming exhibit, “Nashville Art Teachers: Beyond the Classroom.”
By Sierra Smith, Communications Specialist

Arts Department Co-Chair Trent Boysen and Middle and High School Visual Arts Teacher Emily Holt were selected for the Frist Art Museum’s upcoming exhibit, “Nashville Art Teachers: Beyond the Classroom,” which will be available for viewing Friday, March 4 through Sunday, August 28 in the Frist’s Conte Community Arts Gallery. 

Boysen and Holt are among 33 K-12 art teachers throughout Davidson County selected for the exhibit said to salute “the heroic efforts of teachers during the challenging circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic,” according to the Frist website. 

Boysen’s piece, entitled “Twin” combines new and old technology and is the result of his investigation into a way to bridge the digital world with a 19th century printing process. As a challenge to himself, Boysen opted against using a traditional camera and experimented with producing images using a digital scanner instead. 


“Through a tremendous amount of trial and error, I found the right material and ink combination that would resist enough UV light to print via many antiquated printing processes. I chose to make platinum prints because of their inherent ability to render deep rich tones which was a perfect match for the dark floral imagery, and they seem, at least to me, like they are floating in an infinite blackness,” Boysen explained of his process. “I experimented with traditional papers made for the printing process, but ultimately chose velum for its veil-like quality which is a nice contrast to that perceived infinite blackness. It's mounted open to give the viewer easy access to that feeling.”

Holt describes “Shell Game,” her featured painting, as a reflection of the feelings of chaos, uncertainty, and being overwhelmed during the coronavirus pandemic. 


“I think of my painting process as building and weaving with paint,” Holt shared. “I paint a series of layers that get scratched, sanded through, wiped out, and then repainted. As I deconstruct and rebuild the painting over and over again, I find animals, trees, houses, and other objects within the residual marks and render them until a world begins to take shape.” 

Learn more about the “Nashville Art Teachers: Beyond the Classroom” exhibit and plan your trip to see Boysen’s and Holt’s works in person by visiting the Frist website here. 
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