The Arts & Business Council of Greater Nashville, Blackbird Media, and F&M Bank have teamed up to present the Artist of the Week on The Nashville Sign. This week, 2018 Periscope alum and Pitch Perfect winner Aaron Grayum is featured!
Aaron Grayum received his BFA from Middle Tennessee State University in 1999. Inspired by drawings he made as a kid, his work features memorable imagery such as birds, umbrellas, and jellybean trees – mixed with handwriting, mark-making, and abstract backgrounds – to create a dialogue familiar to both children and adults. His work has been published in The New England Review, Bartleby Snopes, Artists & Art Galleries of the South, and The Saturday Evening Post, as well as featured on the hit television show Nashville. Aaron was a 2018 participant in Nashville Arts and Business Council’s Periscope Artist Entrepreneur Training cohort, and won first place in the Periscope Pitch competition at Oz Nashville. He lives and works with his wife and son in Fairview, Tennessee.
“I make art as a way to connect to people who feel unseen, in a way that shows them that they matter and are not alone. Using acrylic on canvas, I create images inspired by drawings I made when I was a kid – like birds, umbrellas, and jelly bean trees – speaking a language familiar to both children and adults. Words and poetry are integral to much of my work, allowing me to explore the tension between the playful innocence of childhood and the vulnerable truths of a grown-up world that doesn’t always understand.”
Instagram: @aarongrayum
Facebook: @aarongrayumart