Brewer's Selling the Sky art exhibit on display in Clayton Center for the Arts

March 29, 2010
Contact: Karen B. Eldridge, Director of Communications
865.981.8207; karen.eldridge@maryvillecollege.edu

Selling the Sky, an art exhibit by Maryville College senior Brett Brewer '10 is on display in the Denso Community Gallery of the Clayton Center for the Arts through April 11.

The gallery is located in the main building of the Center.

The exhibit is composed of a collection of approximately 30 watercolor and colored pencil illustrations that she created for a children's book entitled Selling the Sky. Brewer, an art and writing/communication double-major, also wrote the text for the book.

"It's about a girl who loves to be outside, loves to play," the MC senior said. "And she encounters people who are distracted by 21st-Century materialism – iPods, television, video games." Developing the book was part of her Senior Study project, which is a graduation requirement of all Maryville College students.

One of the distinctive features of a Maryville education, the Senior Study requirement calls for students to complete a two-semester research and writing project that is guided by a faculty supervisor. According to the College's catalog, the Senior Study program "facilitates the scholarship of discovery within the major field and integrates those methods with the educational goals fostered through the Maryville Curriculum."

Prior to working on the book, Brewer researched the concept of childhood and how literature has affected people's perceptions of and attitudes toward the formative years. Lynn King Coning '89, assistant professor of English, was her advisor for the written portions of the project.

Advisors praise project

Coning, who teaches the College's ENG 212: Children's Literature course, described Brewer's work as "remarkable."

"Her project is unique in that it combines significant research on history of children's literature and cultural trends with an incredible amount of creative work. Her finished product is, without question, a far better book than many you can find on shelves in bookstores today," she said. "Maybe the most interesting thing about the project is that it truly reflects Brett's personality and interests, coherently bringing together her literary and artistic interests and personal passions exactly as a Senior Study, when it works for students, should do."

Dr. Carl Gombert, professor of art, mentored Brewer through the art creation, and agreed that the resulting children's book is exceptional.

"The world is full of good storytellers, and there are lots of folks who know how to make good images. It's a lot rarer when those two types live in the same person," he said. "Brett has produced a good book – one where the words and images complement one another handsomely."

Brewer has submitted Selling the Sky to a children's book publisher and is waiting on a reply. It is written on a third-grade reading level, but the author and illustrator said she hopes that parents enjoy reading it, too, because they can explain some of the book's more serious messages.

First student to exhibit in Clayton Center

Brewer is the first MC student to exhibit her art in the new Clayton Center for the Arts, the $47-million fine and performing arts facility located on the Maryville College campus.

She had finished her first year at Maryville when the Fine Arts Center and Wilson Chapel were razed. While she admitted that she liked characteristics of the old facilities, she greatly appreciates the new Clayton Center.

"Art students feel more important. There's all this attention on us now, and an excitement," she said. "I had taken all of my required art courses before the Clayton Center was finished, but I'm taking printmaking now because I just wanted to have a class in this new facility."

Maryville College is ideally situated in Maryville, Tenn., between the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Knoxville, the state‘s third largest city. Founded in 1819, it is the 12th oldest institution of higher learning in the South and maintains an affiliation with the Presbyterian Church (USA). Known for its academic rigor and its focus on the liberal arts, Maryville is where students come to stretch their minds, stretch themselves and learn how to make a difference in the world. Total enrollment for the fall 2011 semester was 1,078.