Vanderbilt Museum Opened Instead Of Exhibition
The show at Cohen Memorial Hall features a restored 28-foot tapestry by artist Sheila Hicks.
Updated on Sept. 21, 2026 in Fine Art
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The Vanderbilt University Museum of Art launched the exhibition Instead Of at Nashville's Cohen Memorial Hall. The showcase features five artists and highlights a major 28-foot tapestry by Sheila Hicks.
Why it matters
The exhibition aims to explore the intersection of artist identity and gender. It focuses specifically on the creative processes of the selected contributors.
The show highlights five artists and showcases a 28-foot-long tapestry by Sheila Hicks that underwent restoration in New York City.
The players
Sheila Hicks
She is an artist whose 28-foot-long tapestry is a central component of the new exhibition.
Vanderbilt University Museum of Art
The institution is hosting the exhibition at its Cohen Memorial Hall facility.
The details
The museum drew pieces from its own expansive collection to assemble the display. A centerpiece of the show is the Sheila Hicks tapestry, which was previously housed at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center for roughly two decades starting in the late 1970s.
Timeline
The exhibition opened on September 19, 2026.
The exhibition concludes on December 13, 2026.
Vanderbilt University and the medical center separated in 2016.
The tapestry was commissioned by the hospital in the late 1970s.
Industry Dynamics
The exhibition demonstrates how academic museums are increasingly leveraging their internal collections to explore complex themes of identity and gender. It follows the 2016 separation of Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, which allowed the museum to consolidate ownership of key artistic assets.
Residents and visitors can view the exhibition at Cohen Memorial Hall on the Peabody campus through December 13, 2026. This provides public access to the restored Sheila Hicks tapestry that was previously located within medical facilities.
The takeaway
The exhibition provides a unique look at how historical institutional art can be recontextualized for a modern audience. Viewers can visit the gallery on the Peabody campus to see the restoration work firsthand before the show concludes in December.
Further reading
Learn more about local cultural programming at the Nashville Fine Art section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by The Vanderbilt Hustler.
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