Shainberg Art Gallery
Gallery Hours
Monday-Thursday 8am–8:15pm
Sunday 8am–5:45pm
Check out Jonathan's interview with Ronda Cloud for Art Scene!
Gallery Exhibits
Come Take My Hand by Amy Hutcheson
Artist Reception: Thursday, August 6
In the Gallery: August 4–27
My responsibility as an artist lies in creating a space—both for myself and the viewer—to have an experience, but also an opportunity to find reflection within that space. I dismantle, reconstruct and reimagine the world around me, forging dynamic relationships between weight, line and space. This process is not about simplification, but rather, a breaking away from the immediate reality of form and figure in order to communicate through color, line and space. Crafting new complexities that invite viewers to engage with each piece.
Every line is a meditation, a contemplation and a consideration. All in an act of immediate expression uniting thought, emotion and process into one. A language by itself with no need for words. A liberation from the need for verbal language. And each act, each mark and shape informs the next, unified in existence, dependent on each other to be complete. Color does not precede line, and line does not precede color; rather, they work together to compel the viewer deeper and further into each piece. Diving in, resurfacing, only to dive back in again and again. Color, line and space in a non-objective manner holds the perspective open and exposed to interpretation.
Joseph Campbell taught us that the path that is easily laid out probably is not yours to be had and stepping off of the perceived path allows you to create your own. By using a pictorial language of simple geometric forms placed into non-objective compositions, I allow myself to create my own path, stepping away from an attempt to emulate identifiable forms and figures to offer the viewer an opportunity to find their own path within the existence of the forms. The reality of flat, synthesized compositional elements gives space for the mind to explore all types of possibilities and conclusions.
I feel this great weight of responsibility when I prepare the surface. It is the beginning, the communion with the experience. Placing those elements on the various grounds I use—linen, canvas and wood—and allowing those grounds to stay close to their original state of color and texture is my offering of gratitude to the artists who came before me. The use of oil also feels to me like a harkening back to each first mark placed on a surface. Each time an artist thought “I must, I will, and I can bring my existence to light through creation.”
KAVOD: Memphis Holocaust Survivor Legacy Project
Artist Talk: Thursday, September 17 • 7:00–8:00pm
In the Gallery: September 1–24
During these times of increased anti-semitism, it's more important than ever to honor these Survivors and ensure their legacy so that future generations will see what can happen. We must be upstanders, not bystanders. The Survivors from Memphis are especially meaningful to me because we knew many of them personally and we created KAVOD in Memphis.
Past Events
Celebrating 100 Years: Hebrew Watchman
Journey Through the Decades: The Legacy of the Hebrew Watchman
Please join us as we celebrate 100 years of Memphis Jewish Journalism and honor the Goldberger family whose vision continues to thrive in the 21st Century
Bullying Exhibition
Original student work submitted as part of the Memphis Jewish Community Center’s National Bullying Prevention Month programming. This event was part of our National Bullying Prevention Month programming.
Art of the Game: Irvin Serenco and The Mid-South Cartoonist Association
Irvin Serenco’s workshop is quiet now, but for 50 years he built a legacy of unique wood creations that have adorned his and his family’s homes.
Irvin was born on September 1, 1935, and lived in Memphis from his teen years until his death December 12, 2023. He developed a love for working with his hands at a young age. What started as a simple hobby grew into a lifelong passion for transforming wood into beautiful works of art., including creative bird houses, a bridge, a backyard gazebo, and unique pieces of “furniture art” like the ones being showcased in this exhibit. His art was always a surprise to his wife, Deanna, and enhances their home still, inside and out.
His passion has also always been serving the Memphis Jewish community. Irvin served as president of the Memphis Jewish Community Center, as well as on many and various committees for 40 years. He and Deanna established a fund to assist participants in the MJCC Senior Lunch Program. They also funded the Infant Center at the MJCC, which bears their name in the school lobby, and funded improvements to the sound system in the renovated theater to make it more accessible to hearing impaired individuals. His children have continued the Serenco’s legacy of love for the MJCC with a donation in their name to fund renovations and improvements to the fence on the MJCC school playground.
Irvin Serenco’s life is now reflected in his woodwork and his and his family’s enduring generosity and devotion to the Memphis Jewish Community Center.
The Mid-South Cartoonists Association (MSCA) is a non-profit organization promoting Cartoons as Art since 1987, comprised of professional cartoonists, aspiring cartoonists, and cartooning enthusiasts.
This collaborative art of members of the Mid-South Cartoonists Association is presented in multimedia, whimsically themed to games and gaming to accentuate the sculptural art of Irvin Serenco.
"Recent Paintings" by George Bougher
A good painting is a poetic psychodrama. I have a reverence for life and for painting; however, I don’t paint life but try to put life in painting. Painting for me is a process, not an event. It is visual poetry that goes beyond what I know—into the world of feelings, instincts and drives. Painting is a gift—not a talent—and learning to nurture and protect this gift has been my cherished duty.
"Bloom" by Sophie Samuels
This collection of mixed media florals feels like a joyful garden party in full bloom. Thick, layered textures bring the flowers to life, creating paintings that feel lively, playful, and full of personality. Each piece invites you to slow down, smile, and wander through the celebration of color and texture.
Sophie is a mixed media artist who has been drawn to art for as long as she can remember. This exhibition feels full circle for Sophie—she grew up attending art camp at the JCC and still has pottery pieces she made years ago in the pottery room. Now teaching art in the JCC’s Early Childhood Center, she is excited to share her colorful, whimsical, texture-driven work with the community that helped shape her creative path. Sophie lives and works in Memphis, TN, where she creates from her home studio while balancing life as a mother of two with the support of her husband, Alex.
11th Annual TN Craft Southwest "Collaborations"
Tennessee Craft Southwest is the local chapter of a statewide organization of fine craft artists and arts supporters. The annual Collaborations exhibition encourages and celebrates variety and partnership among members, as artists of different media work together to create joint artworks that push the boundaries and creativity of each other’s art.
Interested in showing your work in the Shainberg Art Gallery?
Questions? Contact Jonathan McCarter, Program Director for Cultural Arts, at jmccarter@jccmemphis.org or (901) 259-9248.