Amy Sherald at High Museum, Kevn Kinney & Jessi Kirtley | The ATL Arts Collective

✦ Summer Evans ✦ Let’s Go Dancing ✦ Commonplaces ✦ American Sublime ✦ Jessi Kirtley ✦ Best Bets ✦

 

Welcome to The ATL Arts Collective, powered by ArtsATL. This is your home for stories from Atlanta’s arts scene, with reporting from ArtsATL writers, conversations with artists, and voices from across the creative community.

Each week, Kim Drobes will be joined by a rotating co-host: someone you may already know, or someone you’re about to be very glad you met.

And today…Summer Evans! 

 

Courtesy of Summer Evans

✦  Summer Evans is a freelance journalist and multimedia storyteller based in Atlanta. She has a background in public radio and has built her career covering the city’s arts, culture, and community stories. Currently, she works as a freelance social media content producer for Rough Draft Atlanta, creating daily newsletter recap reels to reach audiences. As a photographer, she has over 10 years of experience in visual storytelling, including weddings, couples, brands, families, and photojournalism. When not working on stories, she enjoys outdoor activities with her husband, two kids, and dogs.

 

Kevn Kinney and Anna Jensen talk with Kim at The Sun ATL (Photo by Kim Drobes)

✦ Kevn Kinney Live at The Sun ATL: Let’s Go Dancing Art Exhibition

Let’s Go Dancing, the new exhibition at The Sun ATL by Atlanta artist Anna Jensen, is a profound visual response to the songs of Georgia Music Hall of Fame inductee, and Drivin N Cryin’s frontman, Kevn Kinney, who also happens to be Jensen’s husband. 

What began as a 60th birthday surprise video during the COVID-19 lockdown has grown into a monumental project: 100 songs reimagined by 100 artists, each with a corresponding painting for the track. Jensen produced the whole affair and started Tasty Goody Records in order to put the music out into the wild. 

It’s truly a love letter for the ages. To celebrate, Kevn Kinney is performing amongst Jensen’s paintings at the Sun ATL tonight, with special surprise guests, and a few tickets are still available. Kim recently visited the exhibition and spoke with Jensen and Kinney about the massive undertaking.

 

Author and Distinguished University Professor of Georgia State, Josh Russell. (Photo by Adam Forrester)

✦Author Josh Russell’s New Essay Collection: Commonplaces

What started as ten-cent photocopies in a college library has transformed into a lifetime of capturing the world’s strange and wondrous connections. Georgia State professor and author Josh Russell’s new essay collection,Commonplaces, explores the intersections of life’s challenges with everyday beauty. Literary critic Rachel Wright brings us this story.

 

Amy Sherald Portrait (photo by Kelvin Bulluck)

✦ Amy Sherald’s "American Sublime" Exhibition at the High Museum of Art

Painter Amy Sherald’s American Sublime exhibition is currently on view at the High Museum. While the world may know the artist for her iconic portrait of Michelle Obama, Atlanta knows her as one of our own. Born in Columbus and trained right here at Clark Atlanta University, Sherald’s return to the High feels like a full-circle moment, especially since this is the final stop of the exhibition’s national tour. Co-host Summer Evans recently visited the High to see the exhibition and discuss the work with the museum’s assistant curator of modern and contemporary art, Angelica Arbelaez.

 

Kirtley (far right) and her "Operation Mincemeat" castmates (Photo by Emilio Madrid)

✦ Roswell Native Jessi Kirtley Makes Her Broadway Debut

Jessi Kirtley never missed performing in a school musical from elementary to high school, and now, the Roswell native is living her dream and performing on Broadway. Theatre correspondent Sally Fuller brings us her story.

 

Trey-Wright (photo by Keith Taylor)

✦ ArtsATL Weekly Best Bets with Shane Harrison

ArtsATL’s executive editor Shane Harrison brings us his picks for this week’s Best Bets. Today, his mix includes your chance to indulge in European films, some free jazz performances, and a bunch of neighborhood festivals. 

 

 Special thanks to today’s sponsors:

The Atlanta Opera 

 

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Let's lift the artists shaping Atlanta together. Show up, spread the word, and be part of the community. And if you’re able, consider donating to the ATL Arts Collective. Your support helps cover production costs and keeps this show going strong for years to come. 

 

Our theme music is K Michelle Dubois' Hit the Deck from her album Astral Heart, courtesy of Wicked Superb Records. 

The ATL Arts Collective is part of the Wordplay Collective podcast family. Check out our sister show, In Pieces with R Land, for conversations with artist R. Land. 

Thank you for listening!

 

00:00  Special Sponsor Message & Show Support

00:22  Episode Introduction & Weekly Welcome

01:43  Meet This Week's Co-Host: Journalist Summer Evans

02:12  Inside the Kevn Kinney & Anna Jensen Art Exhibition

13:37  Gallery Event Details & Exclusive Bonus Episode Announcement

14:28  Local Media Catch-up: Summer Evans on Life & Storytelling

20:02  Author Josh Russell Talks "Commonplaces" Essay Collection

25:49  Interview: Amy Sherald’s "American Sublime" at the High Museum

38:07  Theatre Spotlight: Jessi Kirtley's Journey from Roswell to Broadway

46:34  Weekend Event Picks: ArtsATL Best Bets with Shane Harrison

51:18  Studio Credits, Show Donations & Next Week Preview