MTSU Associate Professor Kimberly Dummons is the recipient of an Individual Art Fellowship Grant from the Tennessee Arts Commission this year. A native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Dummons attended Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans for her undergraduate degree, where she initially planned to study science with an eye toward a career in medical research.

“I took an art class my second year in school,” she says. “I really enjoyed it, because it was more about visual problem solving than about making great art. The next semester, I took two art classes and really enjoyed them too.” By her junior year, Dummons had decided to major in the art department, and she graduated with a general art degree concentrating in sculpture.

After graduating, Dummons received a full fellowship for graduate school at the University of New Orleans, where she focused on sculpture with an emphasis on metal casting, and minored in printmaking. Dummons has been teaching at MTSU in the Department of Art and Design since 2004.

“I teach in the foundations area, the group of courses students have to take before they can take other classes in the department,” she says. Her courses include 2D Design and 3D Design. Dummons enjoys her role as a teacher. “That’s where all the good stuff is,” she says, “teaching them things and having them make them—and then having that light bulb come on in their faces when they get it.”

Spirit House Reliquary by Kimberly Dummons

In addition to her teaching, Dummons continues to work on her own art in the realms of both sculpture and printmaking. The Individual Art Fellowship Grant she received is for her personal work.

“I’ve got a course release this semester to work on my own research, which could have been making artwork or publishing,” she says. This was the first time she had applied for a grant from the Tennessee Arts Commission.

The money an artist is awarded through this grant can be used towards anything they choose. Dummons plans to put the money toward further learning and supplies. Some of it will be used to purchase a specific silkscreening ink manufactured in Sweden, which she has used before and really liked.

Colorhouse by Kimberly Dummons

“It’s slightly cost prohibitive, and I have to find my way around customs,” she says. Another portion of the money will be used to return to a foundry in Arizona where Dummons once made a commissioned sculpture. “They had a process I’ve never used before, and I’d like to go and study that,” she says.

For Dummons, sculpture and printmaking each offer their own challenges and rewards. “I like the freedom of sculpture,” she says. “You come up with a problem and then you find a visual solution.” She also enjoys metalworking and the process of lost wax casting. “Sculpture is very process intensive,” however, she says. “With printmaking, I like to go in the studio and just play—I put down color and texture, play with contrasts and visual space. I enjoy working with color—I don’t think I always understand it, but I like the idea that I can play with it and keep figuring things out.”

Whereas sculpture is very time consuming, and results can take a long time to achieve, Dummons can produce a lot of printmaking work in a short amount of time. “I can get really interesting things and then keep playing with those,” she says.

Dummons enjoys the work of making art as well as teaching, and plans to continue to do both. In the future, she’s looking forward to setting up some shows for her art.

“I’d like to have some exhibitions where people can see it and respond to it, to get some feedback,” she says. “Then, I’ll go and make some more of it.” She will also be working with the Tennessee Arts Commission on a commissioned piece for their gallery space next year.

For more on Kimberly Dummons and her portfolio, visit kimberlydummons.com.

Overall, the Tennessee Arts Commission awarded $106,860 to artists and art organizations in Rutherford County in 2019. The other recipients were Carpe Artista, The Center for the Arts, the Children’s Museum of Rutherford County (Discovery Center), Ethos Youth Ensembles / Murfreesboro Youth Orchestra, Generation for Creation, International Folkloric Society Planning Council, Kids for Creative Arts, Main Street Murfreesboro / Rutherford County, Middle Tennessee Choral Society, Middle Tennessee State University, Southeastern Young Adult Book Festival, Tennessee Association of Dance and the Tennessee Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra / Murfreesboro Symphony Orchestra.