NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Frist Art Museum presents Here with You: Awake and Dreaming, an installation of work by Nashville-based artist Dylan Camp that explores family, individuality, fashion, and dreams. Here with You: Awake and Dreaming represents the fourth iteration of the Frist’s Art in the Elevator program and opens on May 7, 2026.
Under the direction of Student Curator Sydney Nelson from Fisk University and Design Intern Autumn Cruse, a recent graduate of Tennessee State University, Here with You: Awake and Dreaming was created through an ongoing partnership with Fisk University and Tennessee State University that offers students or recent graduates opportunities to curate, design, market, and develop programs for installations at the Frist.
Installed in the Frist’s Grand Lobby Elevator, Here with You: Awake and Dreaming offers an immersive experience in a common, accessible space. The installation layout was designed by Cruse and features vinyl reproductions of eight of Camp’s acrylic paintings that were inspired by living in the South, the artist’s heritage, and her optimism for the future. Adorned in colorful clothes, the characters Camp depicts are unique individuals, but stand together. “They live in a liminal space between waking and dreaming—an imaginative and optimistic place,” writes Nelson.
A large print of the painting Here With You serves as a guide to the elevator, and the two central figures of Water To Wine In Front Of My Homegirl installed on the elevator’s doors welcome guests inside. “The elevator itself, as a vessel, has been transformed into a space to welcome introspection about community,” says Nelson.
Seen together, the artworks explore the joy that can be found in dreams and the subconscious and suggest that dreaming can be a space of imagination and transformation—a fitting complement to this summer’s exhibition, International Surrealism from Tate: Fifty Years of Dreams.
The Art in the Elevator program (formerly titled Project Uplift) was conceived to distill the curatorial process into a short period of time so students can gain exposure to all aspects of exhibition planning. While typical museum exhibitions may take years to plan, the organization of each Art in the Elevator installation is condensed into three months.
In 2024, Frist staff began working directly with Fisk and TSU professors. This approach allows the integration of the project into both institutions’ curricula, providing more students with opportunities to gain an understanding of museum careers and participate in curatorial and design processes.
At Fisk University, Art Department Chair Lakesha Calvin and Frist Associate Curator Michael J. Ewing worked with students to develop proposals for the elevator installation. Students identified and researched potential artists, visiting their studios or meeting with them virtually. After developing curatorial themes and program ideas for their project, students received constructive feedback, and finalists were selected to present their ideas to Frist staff, including members from the Curatorial, Education, and Design departments.
Participant Bios
Dylan Camp is a Tennessee painter whose works display her experience growing up as a Black American in the South. Her work captures the beauty, spirituality, and strength found in lived experiences. She works with acrylic to paint dreamlike works. Her depictions of her characters display pride and self-confidence in their individuality.
Sydney Nelson is a junior art student at Fisk University. She has an interest in curation as well as the fine arts. Born in Nashville, she attended Hume-Fogg, down the street from the Frist Art Museum. She is passionate about art and its ability to connect people through a shared visual language. In her own art practice, she is exploring applied arts and the way Black women have historically used fiber arts to support and stitch together their communities.
Autumn Cruse is a recent graduate from Tennessee State University with a bachelor of science and liberal arts degree. She grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio. Growing up, Autumn was inspired by the lively branding and environmental design of the Bengals’ stadium in Ohio. Her passion for design also has extended to assisting brands with affordable branding to help their businesses grow. Autumn has a freelance graphic design agency called Glomani Graphics.
Program
Opening Conversation: Here with You
Thursday, May 7
6:30–7:30 p.m.
Rechter Room
Free; registration required
Join artist Dylan Camp and Design Intern Autumn Cruse for a conversation moderated by Student Curator Sydney Nelson about the creative and collaborative process behind the new Art in the Elevator installation Here with You: Awake and Dreaming.
Schedule of Events
- 5:45–6:20 p.m.: Reception in Upper-Level East Foyer
- 6:30–7:30 p.m.: Opening Conversation in Rechter Room
Exhibition Credit
Organized by the Frist Art Museum with Sydney Nelson, student curator, and Autumn Cruse, design intern
Supporter Acknowledgment
The Frist Art Museum is supported in part by The Frist Foundation, Metro Arts, and the Tennessee Arts Commission, which receives funding in part from the National Endowment for the Arts.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Buddy Kite: 615.744.3351, [email protected]
Connect with us @FristArtMuseum
About the Frist Art Museum
Accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, the Frist Art Museum is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit art exhibition center dedicated to presenting and originating high-quality exhibitions with related educational programs and community outreach activities. Located at 919 Broadway in downtown Nashville, Tenn., the Frist Art Museum offers the finest visual art from local, regional, national, and international sources in exhibitions that inspire people through art to look at their world in new ways. Information on accessibility can be found at FristArtMuseum.org/accessibility. Gallery admission is free for guests ages 18 and younger and for members, and $20 for adults. For current hours and additional information, visit FristArtMuseum.org or call 615.244.3340.
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