Boro Art Crawl Continues to Celebrate Local Artists, April 13 Installment Features Hands of Abuse Survivors

The Boro Art Crawl, the collaborative community event featuring work from various Middle Tennessee artists and occurring once every other month, returns to businesses on and around the Murfreesboro Public Square on Friday evening, April 13.

Artists will display and sell their work in the shops of various local merchants, and Art Crawl organizers invite everyone to explore the downtown Murfreesboro area that evening to view the art and support the independent business community.

At the April Art Crawl, L&L Contractors will display a special art project by Murfreesboro photographer Scott Walker focusing on survivors of domestic violence.

Walker’s photographs in this series feature not his subjects’ faces, but their hands.

“Hands are so important. You see, they can teach us love and compassion or total fear,” one of his subjects said. “Please love yourself by no longer allowing abuse in your life or others’ lives,” she said to encourage others going through violence or abuse.

Others involved in that art project retold their horror stories of having endured punches, kicks, shoves, rape, threats and almost unimaginable verbal abuse, and of the escape and healing processes that followed.

“If you get hit once, get out,” another survivor advised.

While the images in that photo series convey a very somber tone, other artwork included in the Art Crawl spans a variety of different styles and media.

“Butterfly” by Joy McCrary

Other participating venues include Sugaree’s, Simply Pure Sweets, Mayday Brewery, Moxie, ReVintaged Lemon and more, with most spaces promoting art viewing from 6–9 p.m.

At the building at 105 N. Maple St., above The String Shop and Star Jewelers, MTSU graduate John Dixon will present his first art display and reception.

Dixon’s recent body of work includes detailed, realistic animals in black and white, intricate mandalas and psychedelic, swirling, colorful pieces.

“All That Glitters Isn’t Gold” by John Dixon

“I’d say the common theme of my art is growth, particularly in regards to consciousness. It’s about taking an honest look at ourselves (good, bad, ugly) and becoming more aware of who and what we are,” Dixon said. “It’s about understanding that it takes all of these things to create the whole, and that these patterns are the same patterns we see in everything. And because of that we are connected to, and part of, everything . . . infinitely and eternally. However, unless we open our eyes and become aware of, and surrender to, those patterns in ourselves, we’ll never recognize that connectedness.”