Arts and Culture in Gainesville&Alachua County


Jesse Aaron: A Gainesville Folk Legend The City of Gainesville Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs is pleased to announce the Jesse Aaron: A Gainesville Folk Legend art exhibition on display in the Thomas Center Main Gallery from February 9 – March 30, 2008. A free public reception will be held on Thursday, February 21, 2008 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. The exhibition features 30 works loaned from several collections, including: Rie Burton, Stephen Danko, Josh Feldstein, Maelee Thomson Foster, Donald Cavanaugh, Troy Maddox, Hope and Tony White , and the University of Florida Institute of Black Culture. Jesse Aaron (1887-1979), part Seminole and part African-American, began carving wood in his eighties after selling his nursery to pay for his wife’s cataract surgery. He became a noted folk artist whose cypress and cedar carvings of faces and animals are widely published and sought after by collectors and museums. The location of this exhibition is historically significant due to the fact that Aaron worked as a cook in the kitchen (now the Main Gallery) of Hotel Thomas in Gainesville, Florida from 1933 to 1937, where his artwork is currently on display. The Thomas Center Galleries are located at 302 NE 6th Ave. Gainesville, FL 32601. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 - 4:00 PM. The galleries are closed for observed holidays. For additional information, please contact Erin Friedberg, Visual Arts Coordinator at (352) 393-8532.

Jesse Aaron: A Gainesville Folk Legend

The City of Gainesville Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs is pleased to announce the Jesse Aaron: A Gainesville Folk Legend art exhibition on display in the Thomas Center Main Gallery from February 9 – March 30, 2008. A free public reception will be held on Thursday, February 21, 2008 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m.

The exhibition features 30 works loaned from several collections, including: Rie Burton, Stephen Danko, Josh Feldstein, Maelee Thomson Foster, Donald Cavanaugh, Troy Maddox, Hope and Tony White , and the University of Florida Institute of Black Culture.

Jesse Aaron (1887-1979), part Seminole and part African-American, began carving wood in his eighties after selling his nursery to pay for his wife’s cataract surgery. He became a noted folk artist whose cypress and cedar carvings of faces and animals are widely published and sought after by collectors and museums. The location of this exhibition is historically significant due to the fact that Aaron worked as a cook in the kitchen (now the Main Gallery) of Hotel Thomas in Gainesville, Florida from 1933 to 1937, where his artwork is currently on display.

The Thomas Center Galleries are located at 302 NE 6th Ave. Gainesville, FL 32601. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 - 4:00 PM. The galleries are closed for observed holidays. For additional information, please contact Erin Friedberg, Visual Arts Coordinator at (352) 393-8532.