Pryor Achievements
columbia state community college, culture, maury county, pryor art gallery,
Oh, the humanities – and the art.
Columbia State Community College is now home to the impressive Pryor Art Gallery, which is housed in the Waymon L. Hickman Building.
The gallery is directed by Lucy Scott Kuykendall, an adjunct instructor of humanities and art at Columbia State.
“I am certainly a devoted fan of art, and we have been lucky enough to schedule quite a few excellent exhibits here at Columbia State,” says Kuykendall, who has a master’s degree in art history from Vanderbilt University. “The Hickman Building opened six years ago, and the gallery is a beautiful space for visual art. It has a nice bank of windows to let in plenty of natural light, which makes it even more attractive.”
The gallery is named for Harold Pryor, who in the late 1960s became the first president of Columbia State. His wife, Larue, was an elementary school art teacher, and the Pryors donated money to build the gallery and fund the running of it.
Besides showcasing paintings, the gallery also welcomes displays of drawings, photography, sculpture, woodworking, stained glass, quilts and pottery.
“As soon as a visitor enters the main doors of the Hickman Building, the gallery is immediately to the left,” Kuykendall says. “We look to display the art of talent from Middle Tennessee, but we have also been branching out.”
Exhibits have included some recent displays from the Tennessee State Museum as well as from private collections.
“In 2008, we welcomed the work of Andy Currie, a travel photographer from Atlanta whose wife grew up in Columbia,” Kuykendall says. “At the same time, we had the work of David Andrews on display. David is a photographer from Chattanooga whose brother, Dr. Bill Andrews, is head of the history department here at Columbia State.”
Also in 2008, the college exhibited the work of Timothy Weber, a renowned Tennessee potter who once headed the Appalachia Crafts Center.
“We schedule eight to 10 rotating exhibits each year, and admission to the gallery is free,” Kuykendall says. “The gallery is open whenever the Hickman Building is open.”
Several of the works on display can be purchased, with the artists keeping all the money from every sale.
“We are just appreciative that these excellent artists choose the Pryor Gallery to showcase their work,” she says. “Some of these artists have actually contributed pieces of their work to Columbia State, so the college has started putting together a permanent art collection. Pieces are located on campus in places such as the president’s office and main conference rooms.”
Story by Kevin Litwin
Photo by TTU Photo / John Lucas
