Art Couture

In honor of the fabulous couture exhibit at the Frist, we here at Nashville Arts decided to have our own fashion show. So we contacted three of Nashville’s brightest young artists, Emily Leonard, Donny Smutz, and John Jackson, and took them shopping. We visited Levy’s, The Cotton Mill, Billy Reid, Posh, and H. Audrey and let our artists choose their own outfits that best fit their creative personalities.

Behind the lens was celebrated fashion photographer Cameron Neilson who worked closely with our own Katie Sulkowski to create these memorable images. On hand for hair and makeup was Nashville stylist Mizzie Logan.

Emily Leonard chose The Cotton Mill and H. Audrey for her outfits and looked particularly glamorous in everything she tried on, though we suspect she would look fabulous in just about anything. Interestingly, two of the dresses she chose were also top fashion picks in Vogue’s “Ten Best Dressed” and Us Weekly’s “Who Wore It Best.”

Donny Smutz, known for his avant-garde surrealist paintings, found his “look” at Posh, in the Hill Center, and at Billy Reid.

.

.

John Jackson headed straight for Levy’s where Adrienne Scarbrough, store manager and stylist, helped him create the self-image he had in mind with the latest fashions from Hugo Boss, Ermenegildo Zegna, and Nudie Jeans Co.

For our location, we chose East Nashville and are grateful for the hospitality we received there. Thank you so much Bongo Java for putting up with us and our makeshift dressing room.

A special thank you to: Mizzie Logan and Adrienne Scarbrough for their contributions to this fashion shoot, and to our friends at Billy Reid, H. Audrey, The Cotton Mill, Levy’s, and Posh for providing such wonderful clothes.

photography by Cameron Neilson