Americana, Reimagined

Artist: Rondell Crier

Crier’s life revolves around creativity – not only through practicing visual art, but also by using creative energy to support and inspire communities. Creativity is something he engages in daily, whether it’s grinding metal, painting, designing graphics, or mentoring children who need help on a project.

Crier doesn’t claim a single art form as his primary practice. Instead, he believes working across multiple mediums expands his creativity in ways that align with his spirit. He believes the more knowledge and skills he gains, the more deeply he can imagine, design, and fabricate.

Instagram: @rondellcrier

Artist: Alecia Buckles

Alecia Buckles has always dabbled in various mediums for as long as she can remember, constantly collecting, testing, and experimenting with materials alongside other creative practices. Her process is driven by curiosity, following wherever her interests lead, which has brought Buckles to a current focus on a constantly evolving mix of projects. These include murals, installations, sculptures, functional home décor, and her first love: tchotchkes.

Much of Buckles’ work explores the space between need and want and she has shifted her practice toward creating highly functional objects that can exist in multiple contexts—pieces that move easily from wall to fridge to holiday ornament, or serve unexpected purposes, holding plants, magazines, or more.

As a constant maker, she is drawn to discarded materials and items often seen as waste. Through this approach, she aims to give overlooked materials a meaningful second life and inspire others to rethink how and what they consume.

Instagram: @aleciavera

Artist: Briah Gober

Briah Gober is a Chattanooga-based artist, muralist, and photographer known for creating vibrant, community-centered artwork that transforms everyday spaces into memorable experiences. As the founder of Lovely Intoxication and Lovely Aura Photos, she works across a range of mediums including murals, painting, photography, installation, and printmaking. Gober’s work is rooted in a desire to spark curiosity, connection, and joy, inviting viewers to see familiar places in new and meaningful ways.

For Rock City’s Barns to Birdhouses installation at the Chattanooga Airport, Gober created a mural that brings together the visual legacy of Rock City, the excitement of travel, and her signature flowing style. Organic shapes echo the curves of the Tennessee River and surrounding mountains, while aviation-inspired elements reflect the wonder of exploration and flight. The result is a vibrant, immersive piece that celebrates Chattanooga’s history, identity, and enduring sense of adventure.

Instagram: @lovelyintoxication_

Artist: Cooper Carl

Chattanooga native Cooper Carl discovered his passion for painting early in life. His work spans portraiture, still life, and reinterpretations of classic pieces, while blending influences from street art and abstract expressionism. His unique style bridges the gap between recognizable subjects and expressive abstraction. As Cooper puts it, “Touching on realism through abstract means is probably one of my favorite forms of art out there.” His paintings invite viewers to see the familiar through a fresh, imaginative perspective

Instagram: @cooperdome

Artist: Justin Butts

J.W. Butts (a.k.a. “mute0n”) is a Southern pop folk artist creating bold, expressive work shaped by rhythm, movement, lived experience, and a distinctly millennial perspective.

Instagram: @mute0n

Artist: Jonathan Bidwell

Jonathan lives and works in western North Carolina and holds a BFA in Drawing & Painting from East Carolina University. He has been drawing for as long as he can remember, building a practice that now spans fine art, murals, commercial illustration, performance art, and graphic design.

A consistent thread throughout Jonathan’s work is a focus on his immediate surroundings and the present moment. He is drawn to the overlooked details of contemporary life, interpreting them with a distinct sense of style and insight. What many might consider mundane—or even unattractive—becomes, in his hands, something worth pausing for. As he puts it, “When a person can look at my painting of a dilapidated building and say, ‘How beautiful,’ I know I’ve done my job.”

Instagram: @jonathan_bidwell

Artist: Matt Dutton

Matthew Dutton is a multidisciplinary artist whose work involves overlapping themes of darkness and satire. Dutton considers all dimensions, techniques, and material assets viable when creative problem solving. Working in large scale installation, sculpture, and painting, he enjoys experimenting endlessly and culminating life’s experiences into visual representation. He has earned a BFA from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. His studio work currently exhibits across the United States and internationally at art fairs and galleries and has been published in a handful of notable outlets such as the New York Times, Hi-Fructose, Hyperallergic, and Beautiful Bizarre magazines.

Instagram: @mduttonart

Artist: Alex DeHart

After working a wide range of jobs, Alex DeHart found her calling as a full-time designer and artist. She is driven by the belief that thoughtful design can help people by bringing clarity to complex ideas and moving them forward through strong visual assets. At the heart of her work is a fascination with solving visual challenges bringing together observation, creativity and critical thinking to create work that is both effective and visually engaging.

Alongside her graphic design practice, DeHart specializes in illustration and hand-lettering. Her creative work also includes window painting, murals, and a holiday decorating business, reflecting a practice that spans multiple disciplines.

Instagram: @alex_de_hart

Artist: Alex DeHart

After working a wide range of jobs, Alex DeHart found her calling as a full-time designer and artist. She is driven by the belief that thoughtful design can help people by bringing clarity to complex ideas and moving them forward through strong visual assets. At the heart of her work is a fascination with solving visual challenges bringing together observation, creativity and critical thinking to create work that is both effective and visually engaging.

Alongside her graphic design practice, DeHart specializes in illustration and hand-lettering. Her creative work also includes window painting, murals, and a holiday decorating business, reflecting a practice that spans multiple disciplines.

Instagram: @alex_de_hart

Artist: Alex DeHart

After working a wide range of jobs, Alex DeHart found her calling as a full-time designer and artist. She is driven by the belief that thoughtful design can help people by bringing clarity to complex ideas and moving them forward through strong visual assets. At the heart of her work is a fascination with solving visual challenges bringing together observation, creativity and critical thinking to create work that is both effective and visually engaging.

Alongside her graphic design practice, DeHart specializes in illustration and hand-lettering. Her creative work also includes window painting, murals, and a holiday decorating business, reflecting a practice that spans multiple disciplines.

Instagram: @alex_de_hart

Artist: Alex DeHart

After working a wide range of jobs, Alex DeHart found her calling as a full-time designer and artist. She is driven by the belief that thoughtful design can help people by bringing clarity to complex ideas and moving them forward through strong visual assets. At the heart of her work is a fascination with solving visual challenges bringing together observation, creativity and critical thinking to create work that is both effective and visually engaging.

Alongside her graphic design practice, DeHart specializes in illustration and hand-lettering. Her creative work also includes window painting, murals, and a holiday decorating business, reflecting a practice that spans multiple disciplines.

Instagram: @alex_de_hart

Artists: Keith Snider & Michael Brandt

Keith Snider Bio
Keith Snider is an illustrator, sequential artist, custom motorcycle painter and fabricator, muralist, 3D theming creator, and art and installation project manager. His work is guided by a deep love of storytelling and a commitment to reflecting the shared experiences of everyday people. Born in the flatlands of south Alabama and shaped by the Mississippi hills and Delta, Keith later earned a B.A. in University Studies with a concentration in graphic design and drawing from Delta State University. In May 2026, he completed a Master of Arts in Illustration from the Academy of Art University.

Keith lives just south of Chattanooga on Lookout Mountain, Georgia, where the landscapes and layered histories of the Deep South continue to inform his work.

Artists: Keith Snider & Michael Brandt

Michael Brandt Bio
Michael Brandt is a Chattanooga-based metal artist and fabricator whose creative practice grew out of an interest in creative pop-up cards. Brandt has always been a creative of sorts and after beginning his work in paper craft, he shifted into metalwork and welding. First by fabricating custom chopper motorcycles as a hobby, and eventually moving into custom welding and fabrication jobs professionally. His work includes large-scale installations such as Invitation, a steel welded sculptural arbor at Rock City, as well as a beloved decorative fence featuring insects and animals. Brandt has collaborated with other artists and studios, including Ibis Glass Studio, and has installed work in partnership with organizations such as the City of Chattanooga, the Hunter Museum of American Art, and the Houston Museum of Decorative Arts.

Instagram: @garageboundllc