Closing this Sunday, September 28, don't miss the final weekend to experience Susan Watkins and Women Artists of the Progressive Era. Organized by the Chrysler Museum of Art, this exhibition is centered on the extraordinary career of Susan Watkins (1875–1913) and examines how women at the turn of the twentieth century overcame barriers and achieved success within the professional art world.

Thank to you Action News 5, for sitting down with Ellen Daugherty, Assistant Curator to discuss this important show. View the transcript below.

News Five Studio, you are watching A Better Memphis Time is running out to check out the summer exhibits at the Dixon Gallery and Garden. And here with me today to talk more about them is Ellen Daugherty, assistant curator for the Dixon Gallery and Gardens.

Welcome. So good to have you with us.

Thank you for having me.

Our pleasure, truly. Now, the Dixon's main galleries feature an exhibition, an exhibit entitled Susan Watkins and Women Artists Of the Progressive Era.

What can people expect from that exhibit and why is it so important to include that? Do you think?

This is a beautiful exhibit primarily of a woman named Susan Watkins, who I can bet. Very few people I've ever heard of, which is actually part of the point of the exhibition. She lived from 1875 to 1913. She was only 38 when she died. Oh, wow. But she was one of a number of women artists who painted at that era and really were trying to become professional artists. The show is full of information about her and some other women around the same time.

How they learned to be artists, what they painted and how they made a living is really something that you see. But what you really see is incredibly beautiful painting, right? And so it's just eye candy as well as really wonderful information about an artist that I think a lot of people will come to love.

Even though they've never heard of her before.

Because, Progressive Era women, they were not given their due, they were shrinking violets. Yes. And they weren't given their due. And she is one of a group of women who want to be professionals to make their own money. Right. And to be good at what they do. And I think that's a really impressive legacy.

The show's beautiful. As I said, it comes to us from our friends and partners, the Chrysler Museum in Norfolk, Virginia. And they did a wonderful job. Oh, wonderful.

And you also have, the Horizontal Lines exhibit, which, uh, features landscape.

Horizon Lines Exhibition

Inspired landscape inspired art by three Memphis painters. They are Memphis local painters. Um, the show is horizon lines, but that's, oh, I'm sorry, close. That's good. Horizontal lines is what I said. Horizon Lines. Excuse me. They are three artists who were painting actually in the Arkansas Delta. And just across the river and there are three different, um, very different styles.

Okay. Anthony Lee is really an abstract artist. Matthew Lee is what's called a plein air. He goes outside, sets up his canvases, and paints right there, okay. On location. And Sowgand Sheikholeslami is a watercolor artist who paints very, very fast and has these sort of, kind of abstract, but kind of not.

Gorgeous colors. So many wonderful things to see in that show. And you only have this weekend to see it, right? It's gonna close on Sundays. Oh, oh. So I highly recommend coming to see horizon lines. Okay. And then, and then there's Create | Crea. Yes. Is I that right? Exactly. Is an interactive gallery that takes us behind the, the decisions to get people.

To tap into their creativity. Is that right? Absolutely. This is in our interactive gallery, which is part of the Farnsworth Education Building. It is a great show for all ages, but it's especially great if you have a wiggly 3-year-old, okay. If you something to do with them. It is about, which you often do, you do, if you come to a museum.

It's about tapping into your creativity and there's many things, things on the floor, things on the wall, things to do with your hands and your feet. It really gets you moving and is really colorful and. Fun and, and this, and these are ending, you said one is ending when the cre create and horizon lines will be closing this Sunday after the end of the day.

So you gotta get out there this weekend. Gotta get out there. Susan Watkins, you have a whole nother week to see her, but it's soon, so you should come see that as well. Don't wanna miss it. And, and then you're getting ready for your fall exhibition.

Upcoming Fall Exhibitions

So what, what do you have coming for the fall? So in the fall we're going to have an exhibition of French Prince called, L’Estampe originale: A Graphic Treasure.

Some of them will be recognizable to people. Okay. And some of them will be totally new. We'll have in our, gallery where Horizon Lines is.

Right now we're going to have a local artist named Mary K VanGieson. Okay. Chasing the ephemeral, she's a print maker. And, um, in the interactive gallery, we'll have a fiber arts show, which will show local fiber artists, but also teach people a little bit about what.

What Fiber arts is what you do. Wonderful. And I should say that the gardens are gorgeous right now, late summer, it is just blooming and the butterflies are just fantastic. Right. I love to go out and watch the butterflies. It is a little hot. So come to the gardens and then go inside and see the shows and cool down.

And we are free. We're, our admission is always free, so please come. Can't get better price than that. No, not at all. Alright, well thank you so much for coming in and sharing this with us. Thank you. And one more thing.

Visitor Experience and Accessibility

When, you know, sometimes people think of going to an art gallery and, and you think, you know, snooty. But it is kind of quiet, but it's, it's contemplative.

What would you want people to experience when they come to the Dixon Gallery Gardens?

I think an art museum like the Dixon, is small and approachable. For everyone. Um, it is not a gigantic place. You can see things and then if you feel like, okay, this really isn't for me, you can go around the corner and see something else and then you can go into the beautiful gardens. There's a little bit of everything there. Right.

Summer to Fall Gardens

I think the gardens are. Their own exhibition. So all of it works seamlessly together. It's really not snooty and it's free. That's really not snooty. Exactly. So please come and see what we have on offer, and if you don't like the artwork, there's beautiful nature right out the doors.

Absolutely. So much. Again, Ellen Daugherty with the Dixon Gallery Gardens. Thanks again for coming in. Thank you so much. Really appreciate it.