Host: Old Sevier Community Group (OSCG)
Date: Thursday, May 21, 2026, 6:30PM
Location: 420 Elizabeth Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37920
Entrance: Free, all invited.
Music performance by: Palm Sol, a jazz two-piece band
Hors d’oeuvres and beverages
Southern Beacon is a seven-foot marble sculpture commissioned by homeowner Barry Crowder in the Old Sevier neighborhood. The sculpture features a green marble disc mounted on a tapered white Turkish marble pedestal. It is the second such project led by SoKno Sculpt to create an open-air gallery in the neighborhood. Matching grants were provided to the homeowner by the Old Sevier Community Group (OSCG) with proceeds from Community Improvement (202) Funds.
The sculpture offers two distinct perspectives. One side features a hand-textured, radiant pattern, while the other is highly polished to showcase the stone’s natural elegance. Southern Beacon aims to serve as a visual guide. As others planned throughout SoKno, it invites visitors to explore and appreciate the beauty of life south of the river. SoKno Sculpt and OSCG plan similar installations this year, including a sculpture to be erected at Suttree Landing and a second project in the community. Any property owner in Old Sevier is eligible to apply for matching funds to create a sculpture on their property. Apply online at: https://soknosculpt.com/grants-sokno-sculpt/
Sculptor Bill Cook, Jr. grew up in the foothills of East Tennessee and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Tennessee in 1995. He is a member of SoKno Sculpt, a collective of Knoxville artists.
Barry Crowder, the homeowner who commissioned this piece, is a building contractor as well as a ceramics artist and musician. A Knoxville native and graduate of the University of Tennessee, he purchased the home in 1992.
Palm Sol, a jazz two-piece band, is comprised of Lucas Alfaras on guitar and Charlie Satterwhite on sax and flute.