The Arts & Business Council, Blackbird Media, and F&M Bank have teamed up to present the Artist of the Week on The Nashville Sign. This week’s featured artist is Rod McGaha!
Rod McGaha is an accomplished, lifelong musician, and it is through that lens that he has begun to explore photography as a means of expression. He shoots film and digital images in the lighting style of old black and white films, and manipulates them in a way that communicates his message.
“Through my art, I would like to make a small contribution to the way we connect with one another. Leaning towards the common good, instead of individualism, much of my work will challenge the audience to walk on the side of acceptance and understanding, while other parts of my work will focus on the simple beauty of this journey, we call life.”
A native-born Chicagoan, Rod McGaha first appeared in Chicago’s jazz scene as a young prodigy, finding himself under the wing of legendary tenor saxophonist Von Freeman. The other primary influence in his young creative life was his father, specifically through his father’s hobby as a photographer. The images his father created always had a feeling of community that inspired in Rod’s heart a desire to use art to initiate dialogue that promotes the common good.
He has been on the road of music for many years, playing concerts in Egypt, Japan, Germany, South Africa, Poland and Mexico. He has also played in bands for Kenny Rogers, Bebe and CeCe Winans and was the music director for Shelby Lynne. He continues to write and perform music and travel the world, while also capturing this world around him in photographs and video.
Rod says music has a way of communicating the essence of how he sees the visual. By combining visuals with sound, he has found a more meaningful way of speaking with his own unique voice. He blends photography, video and music as a way of engaging the community, and encouraging them to step outside of their own tribes to interact with the tribes of others.
To learn more about Rod McGaha and his art, visit http://rodmcgaha.com.
Want to be featured on The Nashville Sign? Visual artists working in any medium, who are members* of the Arts & Business Council at the Basic Level ($30 annually) or above, are eligible to apply for Artist of the Week on The Nashville Sign.
*Those unable to become members due to financial barriers can be granted a waiver. Contact us at [email protected] to be confidentially considered for a waiver.