Conversations with Alyssa Beach

Today we’d like to introduce you to Alyssa Beach.

Hi Alyssa, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
I have always been drawn to a career in the arts. I’d say my initial leaning was towards music – it’s always been a part of my upbringing, and for a while, I thought with certainty that I would end up a performer.

Throughout college, I turned my attention to theatre and shifted my primary focus from performance to direction. I fell in love with the process of cultivating a narrative from start to finish and configuring all the moving pieces of production into a living, breathing thing. At its best, art has a mind of its own; it isn’t centered only on one participant, and the best stories are those that show us ourselves. Directing theatre was my first love and a big step in learning to harness my process.

After finishing school, I returned to my hometown of Chicago and began assistant directing for a theatre company; I probably would have been content in that scene forever if I hadn’t gotten involved with curating. We used to put on art festivals to fundraise for our performance season, and those experiences became very formative for me. When I started visiting and fell in love with Nashville, I knew that moving – and a career in visual art – were my next goals.

My first real gallery opportunity, and some of my dearest friendships, found me in the heart of the Wedgwood Houston neighborhood about six months into living here. Ovvio Arte, a beautiful gallery owned by Veta Cicolello and Theo Antoniadis, became my favorite place on earth (still is, although that iteration is in the past), and led me to an incredible amount of people, opportunities, and experiences – not to mention, they threw the best parties this side of anywhere. Ovvio will always have my heart and I miss it every day.

Fast forward – after a year and a half at The Rymer Gallery downtown, a stint of wardrobe styling for country music artists, and a wealth of other jobs in all types of production, I found Fort Houston. My first exhibition there was an absolute gift – I got to curate a show of incredible photography, welcomed a huge crowd at our opening reception, and ended up with a recurring offer to curate monthly.

In 2018, Fort Houston formed a nonprofit arm that came to encompass the gallery, and I began facilitating both on and off-site shows and events to promote the nonprofit and encourage support. The nonprofit side of Fort Houston then took over all community resources – the maker space, classes, the gallery, and spaces for creative small businesses; all of those elements were reallocated and rebranded into what is now The Forge.

All of that activity began generating momentum and quickly developed into key relationships for the organization. For the gallery, the most notable of these is The Tennessee Titans, who in 2020 were willing to sponsor what seemed like a pipe dream at the time – the founding of a studio scholarship program.

Now in its third year, STATE Gallery + Studios is at the helm of arts programming at The Forge and is the only program of its kind in Nashville. STATE offers six artists free studio space for a year, mentorship throughout their tenure, and a solo exhibition in our gallery – in addition to all the resources The Forge has to offer.

I am incredibly proud and feel very fortunate that we have the opportunity to offer this program to the artists of Nashville – as Artistic Director of The Forge, it’s all I could ever ask for.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think the main struggle with a career in the arts is always going to be a lack of precedence – which path to take, what opportunities to pass on and which to jump at, who to talk to, and what advice is going to be helpful…. there’s no single right way, and I think a lot of people struggle with that.

Although that same issue becomes an opportunity in a lot of ways – if there’s no right answer, then you can try everything! Plus, it becomes imperative to collaborate.

I know that the only way I have ever – EVER – gotten anywhere or accomplished anything is with the help of other creatives, and directly asking for opportunities. Hard work is mandatory because nothing will fall into your lap, but asserting what you ultimately want is important.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I am a curator and creative producer; under my current title of Artistic Director at The Forge, I get to do a little of everything, and I feel incredibly lucky to do it.

You can visit STATE Gallery at The Forge to see our current exhibition anytime M-F 10-6; we’re located just a little south of Downtown Nashville at 217 Willow St (37210). You can also get in touch at hello@theforgenashville.org or visit our website at www.theforgenashville.org – or check out what we’re up to via Instagram, @theforgenashville – all are great ways to reach out!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.theforgenashville.org
• Instagram: http://instagram.com/theforgenashville/