The Nashville Arts District continues to evolve into a central location for visual art, gallery exhibitions, murals, and cultural experiences that reflect the creative depth of the city. Positioned primarily around 5th Avenue of the Arts and nearby blocks, this section of downtown offers consistent access to curated galleries, independent exhibitions, and walkable streets filled with public works and accessible installations. The area brings together longtime institutions and newer venues in a way that supports both scheduled visits and casual exploration.
This guide explores the spaces, experiences, and local contributions that define the Nashville Arts District.
5th Avenue of the Arts
5th Avenue North is the core of the Nashville Arts District and includes a high concentration of contemporary galleries within a few walkable blocks. This stretch contains long-established spaces like The Rymer Gallery, Tinney Contemporary, and The Arts Company, which rotate exhibitions regularly and feature work from regional, national, and international artists.
Each space maintains its own curatorial style, ranging from mixed-media and large-scale sculpture to photography and digital installations. The street remains active throughout the year with events like the FirstBank First Saturday Art Crawl, where galleries open extended hours and offer free admission. The galleries typically include guest talks, receptions, or informal walkthroughs. Many visitors and locals use this district as a consistent starting point for exploring visual art in downtown Nashville.
The Rymer Gallery
The Rymer Gallery showcases contemporary work, emphasizing emerging artists, large-format installations, and new media. The gallery includes a front viewing room and a deeper main exhibition space. Artists featured here often work with layered textures, found materials, or large wall-mounted pieces. The programming rotates quarterly, and each opening reception draws a consistent audience of collectors, artists, and community supporters.
The gallery maintains an accessible tone, with staff available to answer questions about artist background, medium, and pricing. It offers a reliable place to experience newer voices in art while supporting deeper conversations around collection and preservation. The gallery also participates in community projects and collaborative shows, keeping it connected to the broader creative fabric of the Nashville Arts District.
Tinney Contemporary
Tinney Contemporary is known for its focus on modern and conceptual work with clean presentation and curated installations. The gallery features solo and group shows that often include artists working with light, structure, and abstract themes. The gallery layout includes movable walls and open floor space, allowing for large installations and intimate viewing rooms.
Exhibitions here often engage with social commentary, design principles, or experimental media. Artists are selected through a structured review process, and the space regularly collaborates with curators and art consultants. Tinney Contemporary is one of the Arts District’s more experimental and forward-leaning institutions.
The Arts Company
The Arts Company is a spacious multi-room gallery that exhibits fine art, photography, sculpture, and decorative art. It maintains a strong collection of works by Tennessee artists alongside national contributors, with an emphasis on representational and narrative art. Rotating exhibitions often highlight portraiture, local subjects, and archival photography.
The space is arranged with long-term installations in one section and rotating shows in another. This allows visitors to revisit favorites while also exploring new exhibitions. The Arts Company plays a bridging role in the district by providing entry-level access for those new to collecting and offerings for more established collectors.
Downtown Murals and Street Art
While much of the Nashville Arts District centers on formal gallery spaces, the surrounding streets include an increasing number of murals, paste-ups, and public works. These are often created by local artists collaborating with private businesses or city programs. Many can be found along the walls of alleyways, building facades, and transitional spaces between galleries.
Some pieces include text-based murals with local quotes or references, while others use full-color abstraction or portraiture to anchor corners of the district. Walking tours and self-guided maps are available for those interested in learning more about the artists and themes behind the murals.
Art Crawl and Event Programming
The First Saturday Art Crawl is one of the longest-running events in the Nashville Arts District and draws several hundred attendees each month. Starting at 6 p.m. each Saturday, the event includes gallery openings, receptions, live music, and sometimes artist talks. Participating galleries remain open into the evening, offering extended hours for viewing and conversation.
Many artists attend their openings, and the event includes an informal social component as attendees move between venues and nearby restaurants or bars. The crawl helps sustain awareness of downtown galleries by keeping them part of the city’s monthly event schedule.
Civic and Public Institutions
The Nashville Public Library and the Frist Art Museum are a short walk from the 5th Avenue Arts District core. While the Frist is not within the formal district boundaries, its exhibitions and programs often align with gallery schedules and support broader engagement with the arts downtown.
The library includes permanent art installations, rotating displays, and architectural features that reflect Nashville’s civic design standards. These institutions offer ways to extend a visit to the Nashville Arts District. Visitors can view large-scale traveling exhibitions at the Frist or explore artist-in-residence projects at the library.
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