MEMBERS

COOP Gallery is entirely volunteer-run. Our Members are comprised of artists, curators, and makers who want to see our Vision and Mission come alive in Nashville. Click here to inquire about how to join us!

  • Beth Reitmeyer

    PRESIDENT

    Beth Reitmeyer is a visual artist who likes to make people happy with her colorful installations. Her work investigates landscapes and the joy of unexpected yet beautiful spaces and places discovered as one explores the land: clouds, rivers, caves, geodes, and stars. These environments allow viewers to explore the land and get to know one another in a profound way, providing space for renewal and persevering. Reitmeyer’s work has recently been exhibited at the Frist Art Museum; ChaShaMa, NY; OZ Arts; Zg Gallery, Chicago. Beth has been an artist-in-residence at The Studios at MASS MoCA, ChaNorth, the Golden Foundation, and ChaNorth.

  • Louis Holstein

    VICE PRESIDENT

    Louis Holstein is a creator and community builder who believes in the power of art and the strength of community. A collaborator at heart, Louis enjoys working with artists and creatives who long to build a world where everyone has a place to belong, space to grow, and the ability to thrive. His art reflects the importance of being bolstered by community and deep conviction that art is the bridge from intolerance to empathy. Playing in various mediums, Louis’ artistic voice is communicated through abstract expressionist paintings,  writing, and co-hosting the Casa de Arte Podcast with his wife, Ashley. 

    Born and raised in Central Florida, Louis currently resides in Nashville, TN with his wife and two daughters. 

    Find him at louisholstein.com,  or on Instagram @louisholstein

  • Theresa Buffo

    SECRETARY

    A tapestry that can visually endure, reflecting nostalgia, potential, security and beauty - painted materials, pieced fabrics, ribbons, fragments, are assembled and stitched with embellishment techniques, layering paint on pattern. Wild, untamed green spaces inspire through a similar unraveling and rebuilding process. Theresa Buffo received a BA from The Colorado College with honors in Painting. A longtime Chicagoan, she recently relocated to Nashville with her husband and two sons. As a COOP member she enjoys curating, grant writing and community building at the gallery. When not in the studio (@studiobuffo11), you will likely find her planning or working in a garden (@sparrowandvines)

  • Sai Clayton

    CURATORIAL TEAM LEAD

    Sai Clayton is a visual artist and curator in Nashville, TN. Her work exploits the self-portrait as a vessel for racial representation and as a personification for female sexuality and Asian biraciality. She is currently an American for the Arts Diversity in Arts Leadership intern at OZ Arts in Nashville, TN., and was the 2021-22 Curatorial Fellow at the Frist Art Museum. She holds a B.A. in Visual Arts and minors in Dance and Japanese from Middle Tennessee State University.

    Find her at: saiclayton.com

  • Evelyn Thoen

    MICRO-CINEMA TEAM LEAD

    Evelyn Thoen is a multimedia artist and art teacher based in Nashville, TN. Her work explores time, memory, and place through printmaking, collage, drawing, and film photography.

    Her recent work investigates the ways humans overlap and interact with the earth. The Lake Topographies series combines film photography, free-motion sewing, collage, and watercolor to reflect on how we engage with the physical landscape via walking trails. Her Winter Body series uses double-exposure film photographs to explore the self through the lens of the natural and built environment.

    Find her at evelynthoen.com and on Instagram @evelyn_thoen_art

  • Shayna Hobbs

    POP-UP EXHIBITION TEAM LEAD

    Shayna Hobbs is a mixed indigenous woman from the Stockbridge- Munsee Mohican nation who expresses her heart and her childlike wonder through diverse art forms, weaving together stories of hope, healing, reclamation, and transformation, by harmonizing the past and future, technology and nature, the physical and spiritual realms, the dark and the light, and life and death.

  • Anna Wise

    MEMBER

    Anna specializes in mixed media and oil. Her beautifully chaotic paintings explore creative identity and celebrate idiosyncrasies that make that make us one of a kind. A peculiar mix of surrealism and magical realism, her paintings have been described as ethereal, vibrant, and empowering. She describes her work as "pretty paintings with gritty undertones."

    Anna currently lives in Nashville, Tennessee, and is grateful for her success in selling to private art collectors as well as having regular art shows and participating in art fairs. When not in the studio, she enjoys playing music, traveling, and spending time with her husband and their furry posse of dogs, cats, and chickens.

    Find her at annathewiser.com

  • Amanda Lomax

    MEMBER

    Amanda Lomax is a lens-based visual artist living and working in Nashville, TN. Amanda’s work promotes sensitivity to color by exploring hard-edge color fields in digital photographic printmaking. Her 2023 exhibitions include Galerie Tangerine, James May Gallery, and Folkestone Art Gallery. Her work is held in the permanent art collection of Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Minted.com. She is represented by TurningArt.com and ArtBeat Nashville. She is a recipient of the 2020 Tennessee TriStar Arts Award, a graduate of the 2018 Periscope Arts Program, and currently serves on the Curatorial committee of COOP Gallery. She has been working with the photographic medium since 1998.

    Find her at amandalomaxart.com and on Instagram @amandalomaxart

  • Amy Hoskins

    MEMBER

    Amy Hoskins is a poet and visual artist creating with disabilities from her home studio in South Nashville, TN. Amy conducted a Spoken Word Immersion Program funded by Nashville Metro Arts, every other Monday at Harvest Hands Development Corporation during the 2017-18 school year. Amy also hosted an all-languages poetry open mic in 2017 with Conexion Americas, from April through June 2017. The all languages welcome open mic moved to Flatrock Coffee, Tea, and More. The Flatrock Poetry Open Mic was held monthly from June 2017 to June 2018. Since then, Amy has hosted a monthly Gestalt Poetry Open Mic, which has been virtual since COVID-19.

    Find her at amyhoskins.com

  • Ashleigh York

    MEMBER

    Ashleigh York is an abstract artist living and working in Nashville, TN. With a unique artistic voice and a playful and evocative exploration of planet Earth’s color palette, they strive to inspire through inventive and experimental work. Their practice explores the interplay of abstract textures and vibrant colors to create immersive artworks that evoke energy, joy, and exploration, inviting viewers to engage with their senses and embrace the expressive power of art as a source of inspiration and personal exploration. She incorporates recycled materials into her practice as much as possible and partners with local organizations to help promote sustainable practices and reuse.

    Find her at ashleighyorkart.com and on Instagram @ashleighyorkart

  • Ashley Brooks Mayfield

    MEMBER

    Ashley Mayfield is a figurative ceramic sculptor and educator, working in Nashville, TN. She received her bachelor of fine arts degree in painting, with an emphasis in both sculpture and fiber arts, from the Savannah College of Art and Design. She continued her graduate studies in ceramic sculpture, attending classes and workshops nationwide. She has worked as an art educator at the Frist Art Museum and with the Art Embrace program. Her work has been featured in publications including 500 figures in clay Volume 2 and Joomchi & Beyond. Ashley’s work can be seen locally at the Shimai Gallery of Contemporary Craft.

    Find her at http://ashleymayfield.etsy.com

  • Ashley Mowers

    MEMBER

    Ashley Mowers is a theatre practitioner currently based in Franklin, TN. She earned her B.A. in Worship Arts from Judson University, her M.A. from Northern Seminary, and an MLitt in Theology and the Arts from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. While there, she became the 2019 Artist in Residence for the Institute for Theology, Imagination, and the Arts. Most of her work has been traditional theatre in unconventional spaces––cafes, living rooms, and narthexes. Time and proximity are the bread and butter of performance. She loves work that brings the audience to a threshold, impresses upon them the immediacy of the drama, and allows them to join the character in the emotional reality of their decision-making. In addition to her art making, she co-hosts the Min/Max Podcast and The Sandman: Unlocked. In her free time, she enjoys backpacking, gardening, reading with her cats, and cooking with her husband, Allen.

    Find her at ashleyemowers.com

  • Bethany Yankie

    MEMBER

    Bethany Yankie is a queer disabled artist and Nashville native. They are self-taught, with creating becoming the way they process and imagine new worlds. Bethany sees art, both making it and viewing it, as therapy, exploration, and a communal point of connection. Creating art has served in their life as a way to process and heal from traumatic experiences, empowering them through despair, chronic pain, and disability.

    Bethany creates with paper in both 2D and 3D and often combines drawings or paintings with collage and sculpture, sometimes incorporating poetry. Their art materials are strange little scraps they've collected over the years, supplemented by creative reuse exchanges. Bethany's art reflects a certain kind of loner surrealism and it is the one place they feel most truly theirself.

  • Caitlin Blomstrom

    MEMBER

    Caitlin Blomstrom (she/her) is an artist and arts professional with a BFA in Painting + Printmaking from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. She was an artist-in-residence at Penland School of Craft in 2023 and at Kunstraum in Brooklyn, NY in 2022. She was featured in New American Paintings in 2018. Caitlin is also a curator and loves to collaborate with artists and friends. She currently lives and works in Nashville, TN. Caitlin creates paintings and art objects as a way to interpret her surroundings and is interested in re-contextualizing everyday encounters.

    Find her at: caitlinblomstrom.com

  • Cesar Pita

    MEMBER

    Cesar Pita is a ceramicist raised in the South to Mexican immigrant parents. This experience influences Cesar’s work and is the motivation for him to advocate for his community in and out of the studio. His work revolves around addressing social issues, cultural exploration, and celebration. 

    Cesar has obtained his bachelor’s degree at Middle Tennessee State University. He is currently an art handler and a teacher at Buchanan Arts in North Nashville.

  • Elisabeth Moss

    MEMBER

    Elisabeth Moss is a singer-songwriter, poet, and events manager from Indianapolis, IN now based in Nashville, TN. As a long-time lover of the arts, Elisabeth is passionate about the intersection of music, visual art, and community outreach. Her goal is to facilitate events and conversations that generate lasting connections and give exposure to underrepresented artists. Elisabeth currently studies Songwriting and Creative Writing at Belmont University. Her poem “Ripple” was published in Working Title Magazine and the Belmont Literary Journal, and she won the 2022 Belmont University Sandra Hutchins Humanities Symposium Writing Competition for poetry. Elisabeth currently curates artwork at Cafe Makai where she organizes a community arts and music night titled Makai After Hours.

    Find her at liz-moss.com.

  • Kate Blake Giordan

    MEMBER

    Kate Blake Giordan was born in the Midwest to a long line of creatives and discovered her propensity for the arts in early childhood.  Primarily self-educated, she finds inspiration in both the human form and in nature. Through oil, pastel, and charcoal, she works to capture raw life experience, memory, and ephemera. Her dedication to enhancing the accessibility and relevance of fine art has led her to successfully complete terms as Co-President of the Northwest Area Arts Council (IL) and board member of Daybreak Arts (formerly Poverty and the Arts). Her current non-profit work consists of service on the Board of Directors of the Tennessee Art League and The Next Chapter Society Council. She dedicates much of her spare time to opening creative opportunities and expanding arts access to all individuals across Middle Tennessee. Kate is committed to being of service to her organizations, and its beneficiaries and inspiring others to give their time and resources to their community.

    Kate currently resides in Nashville, TN with her family and connects with her community through her work with children, art, and non-profit involvement.

  • Nija Woods

    MEMBER

    Nija Woods, as an abstract expressionist, channels her unique artistic style across various mediums, from fine art to journals and sculptures. In each piece, she masterfully combines colors with a deliberate choice that encourages reflection, acknowledgment, and transformation. This distinctive approach goes beyond aesthetics; it delves into the realm of color psychology, triggering profound emotions that pave the way for passive changes in overall health. Nija is also Certified in Color Therapy, Yoga Therapy, Meditation, and as a Therapeutic Art Life Coach Whether it's a canvas, a journal page, or a sculpted form, Nija's art invites individuals to engage in a transformative journey of self-discovery and well-being through the thoughtful interplay of colors.

  • Nina Covington

    MEMBER

    Nina Covington is a Nashville-based artist and activist She has always known that it was her job to tell stories. She started out as a model who told stories in front of the camera of others. A pivotal moment came when Nina realized she could only tell half of the story as a model; the other half was always told by the photographer. Nina began wanting more control, so she began taking self-portraits which eventually led her to photograph other people.

    In all of Nina’s work, she gets down to basics. Her images are stripped down, honest, and dark. From her fine art equestrian photography to her long exposures,  she plays in the shadows. Nina’s work is cohesive, as each detail in the execution of her photographs adds to the story she’s telling.  Most importantly, she uses her work to give voice to those who step in front of her camera and bring to light social issues and injustices.

  • Sarah Budeski

    MEMBER

    Sarah Budeski is a letterpress artist and designer based in Nashville, TN. She is a Designer / Printer at Hatch Show Print, a letterpress print shop located in downtown Nashville. In her fine arts practice, she explores identity through the printed word and book arts. Sarah grew up in Montana where she was raised on river and mountain time. The beautiful state encouraged her to stay for college where she received her B.F.A.’s in Printmaking and Graphic Design at Montana State University, as well as a minor in Art History with a focus on contemporary curatorial practices.

    Find her at: sjbudeski.com

  • Shawn Giles

    Shaun Giles is an artist and museum educator. As the Frist Art Museum’s community engagement director, he manages community partnerships, curates community exhibitions, and supervises educational outreach programs. He holds a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Tennessee State University and has been with the Frist Art Museum since 2005. Shaun was recognized by the Tennessee Art Education Association as the 2015 Museum Educator of the Year. He also serves on the Governing Board of Tennessee Craft and the Public Art Committee for Metro Arts: Nashville Office of Arts and Culture.

  • Tawna Webber

    MEMBER

    Tawna Webber is an artist at heart although she's had little formal artistic training. Originally growing up in the greater Boston area she moved to Vermont with her mother when she was eleven. In her youth, she gravitated towards dance, theater, and screen acting, and began painting at the age of 15 as a way of moving through and expressing complex emotions.  Until now she has only painted for herself, and as an occasional gift.

    Her artistic skill & style have evolved over the years and her paintings today encompass everything from expressing personal experiences of strife and struggle to the magical beauty she sees in nature and existence overall. She has also developed an interest in nature photography. 

     She currently resides outside of Nashville, providing the perfect balance of access to rural and city environments. 

FOUNDING MEMBERS AND SPONSORS

Rocky Horton - Mandy Rogers Horton - Johnathan Rattner - Sara Lederach - Kristi Hargrove - Virginia Griswold - Jennifer Pepper - Lisa Bachman Jones - Morgan Higby Flowers - Thomas Sturgill

PAST MEMBERS

Alejandro T. Acierto - Amirmasoud Agharebparast - Geoffery Aldridge - Alex Blau - Shannon Clark - Paul Collins - Blythe Colvin - Ellen Dempsey - Dawn Martin Dickins - Michael Dickins - McLean Fahnestock - Richard Feaster - Jessica Fife- Amelia Garretson-Persans - Mary Addison Hackett - Jana Harper -Nick Hay - Jodi Hays - Morgan Higby-Flowers - Lisa Bachman Jones - Wansoo Kim - Ron Lambert - Ariel Lavery - Chris Lavery - Angela D. Lee - Alex Lockwood - Bradley Marshall - Rob Matthews - Duncan McDaniel - Melissa Newman - Jennifer Pepper -  Evie Woltil Richner - Christine Rogers - Aaron Sanders - KJ Schumacher - Robert Scobey - Karen Seapker - Han Service-Rodriguez - Tammy Smithers - Thomas Sturgill - Alexandra Jo Sutton - Terry Thacker - Cliff Tierney - Vadis Turner - Patrick Vincent - Yanira Vissepo - John Warren - Quintin Watkins - Moses Williams - Tom Williams - Donna L. Woodley - Ruth Zelanski - Tree Lily Butcher - Maddie Ryan - Sarah Spillers - Rachel McKee - Tina Gionis - Holiday Noel Campanella