Bellwethers is a regional juried exhibition of collegiate student art held annually by the University of Tennessee at Martin’s Department of Visual and Theatre Arts in collaboration with the West Tennessee Regional Art Center in Humboldt, Tennessee. Originally known as Artists of the 21st Century, this event was created by UT Martin Professor of Graphic Design Lane Last in 2000 as a way for college art students in the region to see how they measure up against students from other programs under the professional review of an outside juror. In 2018, Artists of the 21st Century was rebranded as Bellwethers. The word bellwether, derived from a Middle English word that referred to a lead sheep in a flock with a bell around its neck, is often used to designate a leader or indicator of trends within a geographic region. In 2024, the UT Martin faculty created the Lane Last Award for Best in Show to honor Professor Last’s many years of support of the department and this exhibition. In 2025, programming for the exhibition was assumed by the newly formed Center for Southern Art, an academic center located in the Department of Visual and Theatre Arts on the UT Martin campus that is devoted to the cultivation of excellence in the visual art of the Southern United States.
Juror
Lacy Mitcham is an artist whose practice is rooted in sculpture that uses experiences in the human body and nature to consider issues of power, vulnerability, and connection. Her bodies of work include sculpture, wearable sculptures (exhibited with Memphis Fashion Week), installation, and drawing. She also engages in curatorial projects that explore collaboration and institutional power. She graduated with her Master of Fine Arts from the University of Memphis and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Arts: Sculpture from the University of Louisiana at Monroe with a minor in World Languages. She has worked as an educator at the University of Memphis, Rhodes College, University Middle School, and Creative Aging, and now is the Public Programs Coordinator for the Dixon Gallery and Gardens where she cultivates experiences for adults of all ages and identities through accessible programs in art, horticulture, language and wellness. In 2025, she was awarded the Emerging Museum Professional Award by the Tennessee Association of Museums after being nominated by her team. She is an Arts Accelerator grant recipient through ArtsMemphis, participated in projects with Urban Art Commission, the Downtown Memphis Commission, River Arts, Medical District arts programs, Arrow Public Art, and a former co-editor of the regional arts publication Number magazine. She is also a distance runner, cyclist, gardener, and has two enthusiastic studio helpers: a yellow tabby named Buckley, and a basset hound named Ollie.
Calendar
September 13 - Entry Deadline
September 29 - Notification of Acceptance
October 14 - Deadline of Delivery for Accepted Works
October 20 - Exhibition Opens
November 14 - Closing Reception and Awards (5 PM to 7 PM; Awards at 6:30 PM). Pickup of work immediately following close of reception.
November 18-29 - Return of shipped work
Show Prizes
The Lane Last Award for Best in Show - $200
2-D
1st Place - $125
2nd Place - $75
3rd Place - $50
3-D
1st Place - $125
2nd Place - $75
3rd Place - $50
Eligibility
The Bellwethers 2025 exhibition is open to all undergraduate art students enrolled in a visual arts program at two-year or four-year institutions in the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. Students who have graduated from one of these programs within the past 6 months are also eligible to submit. Work entered must have been produced during the student’s undergraduate enrollment period, must have been created solely by the artist, and must have been finished within the last two years. Master copies are not eligible for submission. Media may include painting, drawing, sculpture, glass, ceramics, photography, printmaking, digital art, fibers, mixed media, and jewelry. Video art or works requiring electricity and/or technology may be submitted, but any computer or display/projection technology must be provided by the artist and left for the duration of the exhibit. Large sculptures or objects with complicated installations must be self-installed by the artist. Any works requiring additional hanging structures or equipment should not be submitted and cannot be exhibited. In accordance with the policies of the West Tennessee Regional Art Center, works portraying nudity or graphic violence of any kind will not be permitted to be displayed in the exhibition. All works must remain for the duration of the exhibition and closing reception.
Presentation
Two-dimensional works should be framed or prepared for professional exhibition. Frames must be wired to be installed on the gallery’s hanging system. No nails or screws may be driven into the gallery walls. The gallery has a few typically sized pedestals to be used for three-dimensional works, but any works requiring specifically sized pedestals should be provided by the artist. Works that arrive unprepared for hanging will not be installed. Any questions about framing for display can be sent to Clay Palmer, Director of the Center for Southern Art, at jpalme36@utm.edu.
Entries and Delivery of Accepted Work
Online entries can be completed at the following site: https://forms.gle/3kpjcjniAwXxVrPc8
Each student may submit up to 3 entries for $25. Online entry forms, fees, and digital files must be received in completion by 11:59 PM, September 13th, 2025, to be considered for jurying. All selected artists will be notified by September 29th, 2025, with specific exhibiting and shipping information. Works juried into the exhibition that are either shipped or hand-delivered to the West Tennessee Regional Art Center in Humboldt, TN, must arrive by 4 PM on October 14th, 2025. All work should be labeled on the back with the artist’s full name, title, dimensions, medium, college/program/state, and year created. Works that arrive damaged or in poor condition may not be eligible for display.
Return of Accepted Work
For those attending the closing reception, work may be picked up immediately following the end of the event. Shipped works must include a prepaid return shipping label. Works with return shipping labels will be repacked and shipped during the dates of November 18th through the 28th, 2025.
Liability
All reasonable care will be given to objects in the possession of the West Tennessee Regional Art Center (WTRAC) and the UT Martin Department of Visual and Theatre Arts. Works are not insured while on exhibition at the Center, and the Department of Visual and Theatre Arts, the Center for Southern Art, and WTRAC cannot assume responsibility for damage incurred before, after, or during the exhibition, or for possible loss in transit. Artists are strongly encouraged to insure artwork, especially during shipping.