HENDERSONVILLE, Tenn. (Oct. 29, 2019) – The iconic fashion designs of the legendary “Rhinestone Rembrandt” are coming this fall to the Monthaven Arts and Cultural Center (MACC) in Hendersonville, Tenn. The exhibit, titled Go West, Young Man: Western Frontier Couture of Manuel, will run Nov. 16, 2019 to Jan. 3, 2020 and feature a selection of master designer Manuel’s celebrated “State Jackets.” Some of Manuel’s other “Cowboy Couture” will also be on display, along with one-of-a-kind Western movie posters from the Booth Western Art Museum.
Morelia Cuevas, daughter of Manuel and granddaughter of Nudie Cohn, will serve as curator of the exhibition. Manuel will be on hand for the show’s opening reception from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16. Go West, Young Man is sponsored by U.S. Pest Protection. Admission to the exhibit is free.
“The MACC is the perfect place to stage a Western art exhibit, since America’s westward expansion got its start right here in Tennessee,” says Cheryl Strichik, executive director of the Monthaven Arts and Cultural Center. “There’s no better way to showcase this Western theme than with the fashion of Manuel, whose designs have come to symbolize the look of the West.”
Manuel perfected this look over the course of his wildly successful, six-decades-plus-long career. Born in Mexico in 1933, Manuel discovered his gift for needle and thread while in his early teens. In 1951, he moved to Los Angeles, where he became known as the “Stylist to the Stars.” His client list reads like a who’s who of the arts and popular culture, with Salvador Dali, Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Dolly Parton, Marty Stuart and Dwight Yoakam (among many others) having all sported his designs.
Manuel has had a long and fruitful association with Hollywood. He contributed designs to such films as John Wayne’s Rio Lobo, Elizabeth Taylor and Rock Hudson’s Giant, and John Travolta’s Urban Cowboy. The original Hollywood posters from those films and others will be shown at the MACC, courtesy of the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia.
Manuel moved in the 1990s to Nashville, where he continues to run a busy design space. One of the designer’s most ambitious projects, his “50 State Jacket Collection,” was created in Music City. Manuel designed and created one jacket for every state in America. The entire collection debuted at Nashville’s Frist Art Museum in 2005. The MACC will showcase 13 of those jackets, representing the various states of the westward expansion.
The MACC’s Go West, Young Man will also include Western art from other important artists. Maria D’Souza has pioneered her own mixed-media genre called “Beaded Skull Art.” D’Souza uses the skulls of such animals as longhorn sheep and antelope as a canvas, decorating them with a kaleidoscopic array of beads. Her works are like colorful, three-dimensional versions of Georgia O’Keefe’s Western paintings.
Artist Bill Puryear lives on a Middle Tennessee farm north of Nashville, where he paints from his studio overlooking the Cumberland River. While he paints in all media and genre, his special interest is realizing the beauty of our environment, which he notes is vanishing every day and which we are often too busy to notice. His paintings of the Cumberland Gap will be on display in Go West, Young Man. Puryear will appear at the MACC on Sunday, Dec. 8 to discuss the historic role Tennessee played in our westward expansion. Manuel will also be on hand, along with Seth Hopkins, executive director of the Booth Western Art Museum, who will discuss the Booth’s collection of movie posters.
Monthaven Arts and Cultural Center is conveniently located off Gallatin Pike just three miles east of Rivergate Mall. The place serves as a haven for the arts, hosting major art exhibitions throughout the year. It also offers classes and summer camps on art and film for children and adults. Monthaven Mansion is available to rent for weddings, receptions, showers, corporate team-building classes and private parties. For more information, visit www.monthavenartsandculturalcenter.com or call (615) 822-0789.