What we’re about
Formal Art and Design Education for Northeast Tennessee
FADE.JC is the local chapter of the FADE Initiative—Free Art and Design Education—a grassroots movement dedicated to making high-quality art and design education accessible to all. Centered in Johnson City, Tennessee, and serving the surrounding Appalachian region, FADE.JC is a creative hub where students, teachers, mentors, mentees, creative job seekers, professional artists, and passionate hobbyists come together to learn, grow, and support one another.
We host regular art and design classes, skill-building workshops, portfolio development sessions, and community-led clubs covering a wide range of creative interests—from drawing and digital illustration to graphic design, painting, and beyond. Whether you're just starting your artistic journey or looking to refine your professional craft, FADE.JC offers a welcoming, inclusive space to explore your potential.
Who should join FADE.JC?
- Students seeking mentorship or supplemental art education
- Educators and mentors eager to give back to the creative community
- Professional artists and designers wanting to connect and collaborate
- Hobbyists looking to learn, create, and share their work
- Creative job seekers developing skills and portfolios for the workforce
At FADE.JC, we believe that art belongs to everyone. By building a strong local network of creatives and educators, we empower individuals and uplift our region through shared knowledge and opportunities.
We’re actively seeking new members who are ready to contribute, collaborate, and grow. Join us to be part of something bigger—where creativity meets community.
Membership is just $10 per month (or $100/annual), with all proceeds going directly to support the local chapter’s clubs, classes, and events—as well as the development of FADE’s larger online learning platform, which aims to bring free art and design education to underserved communities everywhere.
Networking professionals please beware: if you are not an artist, designer or creative business -- we will ask you to leave any networking event, especially MLMs, Real Estate Agents, Insurance Agents and the like. No offense, but you have plenty of other networking gigs you can attend.
Upcoming events (1)
See all- Featured Artist Series: Ren AllenPhilosopher’s House, Johnson City, TN
FADE Featured Artist Series highlights emerging and established artists from across our region and beyond. Each month we dedicate time to spotlight a different artist – celebrating their work, sharing their creative journey, and learning from their unique perspective. Whether you’re a practicing artist or just beginning your journey, these moments of connection and discovery are at the heart of what FADE is all about.
Meet the Artist: Ren Allen
Ren Allen is a multidisciplinary artist whose work spans the ephemeral beauty of body paint and the layered textures of watercolor and mixed media. With a creative focus rooted in visual and performance-based expression, her artistry flows from the natural to the avant garde—often venturing into the world of special effects. Whether working on canvas or skin, her work explores the human face, emotional connection, and the quiet power of botanical and landscape elements.
Ren draws inspiration from meaningful connections with people, and her art becomes a vessel through which others can feel seen, understood, and transformed. Her educational journey blends self-taught exploration with formal training, leading to a practice that is as intuitive as it is technically refined.
Once a dedicated educator, Ren views collaboration as an essential element of her creative process—particularly in bodypainting, where the art itself is a shared, lived experience between model, artist, and often, photographer.
At the heart of her work is a powerful reminder:
“The hard inescapable phenomenon to be faced, is that we are living and dying at oncFree
