Frist Art Museum opens 'An Indigenous Present' and adds July programming around the exhibition

Frist Art Museum in Nashville says its newest exhibition, 'An Indigenous Present', is now open and on view through September 27. The museum describes the thematic presentation as exploring “the endless variability of abstraction and its capacity to hold multiple forms and histories,” positioning the show as a survey of contemporary Indigenous art rather than a single-artist or monographic exhibition.

The announcement comes through the museum’s July newsletter, which pairs the opening with a slate of related public programs. In the same message, Frist also highlights 'Frist Arts Fest' on Sunday, July 12, along with a series of month-long events that include 'Drop-In Drawing' on Thursday, July 9, and 'Woven Nashville: An Evening of Music, Art, and Conversation' on Thursday, July 16. The exhibition is the central news item, while the additional programming is presented as supporting activity around it.

Frist Art Museum, a Nashville institution with a broad exhibition program, uses the opening to emphasize abstraction as a living and varied language in contemporary Indigenous art. The newsletter’s wording suggests the show is intended to foreground multiple forms and histories, and to invite visitors to consider how abstraction can operate across different artistic approaches. The museum does not list individual artists in the announcement text provided.

The July 12 'Frist Arts Fest' is framed as a day of art making, live music, performances, and museum-wide exploration. The museum says visitors can shop the Indigenous Artisan Market, make a surrealist monster puppet and a personality print, go on a scavenger hunt, and watch the Upasana dance performance. Frist also says the festival offers an opportunity to “meet local artists,” though the newsletter does not specify which artists will participate.

Later in the month, the museum’s 'Drop-In Drawing' session on July 9 invites visitors to practice drawing skills with inspiration from the art on view and the architecture of the building. According to the announcement, drawing materials may be borrowed from a station in the galleries or visitors may bring their own, and only pencils and digital drawing surfaces are allowed in the galleries.

The final listed event, 'Woven Nashville: An Evening of Music, Art, and Conversation', is scheduled for July 16 and is presented “in conjunction with 'An Indigenous Present'.” Frist says the program will feature Jason Eskridge of Sunday Night Soul and Chuck Beard of East Side Storytellin'. The museum notes that the event is free for members, while gallery admission is required for non-members.

With the exhibition now open and the public programming spread through mid-July, Frist is presenting 'An Indigenous Present' as both a standalone exhibition and a focal point for related performances, conversation, and hands-on museum activity through September 27.