Clarksville, TN – Some 13 years after his untimely death, the artist and musician Tom Malone is still fondly remembered in the Clarksville community. People often speak reverently of the former Austin Peay State University art student’s prolific and inspired output of work, ranging from painting to drawing to sculpture to jewelry to designing musical instruments and handcrafted furniture.
“To me, he glowed with creativity and I could sense that he had a better existence than me because he was able to let go of what was expected of him, exist through a job as a job and live life as an artist,” local musician Syd Hedrick wrote in an essay on Malone in 1999.
For current APSU art students, Malone is remembered in a different way. He’s the person responsible for allowing them to earn a college degree. Shortly after Malone’s death of an aneurysm in 1998, his family established a memorial scholarship at APSU that is awarded annually to an art student.
The month, the Clarksville community will again get to appreciate the talents of this late local artist with a new exhibition, “Tom Malone Remembered: A memorial exhibit from the Malone family collection.” The show opens with a private reception at 2:00pm on April 10th in the lobby of the APSU Trahern Building. Selected pieces by Malone will remain on view in the lobby and in the Trahern mezzanine gallery through April 29th.
While a student at APSU, Malone studied sculpture with his mentor, emeritus professor Olen Bryant. Malone even assisted on Bryant’s sculpture, “The Green Man,” which sits in the center of campus next to the Morgan University Center.
The works in this new exhibit represent Malone’s versatile creativity and his willingness to experiment. For more information on the show, contact the APSU Department of Art at 931-221-7333.
