Artists Talk with LVA: August 20, 2026

Hannah Drake came to the studio to discuss her installation, Childhood Interrupted. Tune in to Artists Talk with LVA each Thursday at 10 am on 97.1 FM or Artxfm.com.

Hannah Drake is a blogger, podcast host, activist, public speaker, poet, and author of 11 books. She serves as the co-executive director of IDEAS xLab and co-founder of the (Un)Known Project, which seeks to discover the hidden names and stories of Black people enslaved in Kentucky and beyond. She writes commentary on politics, feminism, and race, and her writing has been featured online at Cosmopolitan, The Washington Post, The Bitter Southerner, The Lily, and Harper’s Bazaar. In 2019, during Super Bowl Sunday, Hannah’s poem, "All You Had To Do Was Play The Game, Boy," which addresses the protest by Colin Kaepernick, was shared by film writer, producer, and director Ava DuVernay, and then shared by Kaepernick. The poem has been viewed more than two million times.

Her outdoor installation, Childhood Interrupted, has been presented at Riverside Farnsley Moremen Landing, Farmington, Locust Grove, and Oxmoor Farm.

Childhood Interrupted

Hannah Drake

Artists Talk with LVA: August 13, 2026

Emily Cooper discusses her film, Willie and His Pigs, which will screen at LVA on August 16th. Tune in to Artists Talk with LVA each Thursday at 10 am on 97.1 FM or Artxfm.com.

Emily Cooper is a producer and director shaped by the South — cicada summers, tornado sirens, a knack for talking to absolutely anyone, and one childhood year lived entirely in red cowgirl boots. An Emmy-nominated filmmaker, her projects have premiered at the Venice, Tribeca, and Red Sea International Film Festivals, and screened at the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival, Sidewalk Film Festival, and Flyover Film Festival.

Most recently, she produced the upcoming feature Ruby Road, starring Frances Fisher, Will Patton, and Lauren Holly, and was an associate producer on the music documentary Louder Than Guns, featuring Old Crow Medicine Show, which had a limited theatrical release and is currently streaming on PBS through Reel South. SXSW. She is currently in post-production on a feature she produced starring Oscar- and Grammy-nominated actors, and in pre-production on a feature adaptation of an acclaimed novel.

Willie and His Pigs film

Emily Cooper

Artists Talk with LVA: August 6, 2026

Brandon Ndife joins us in the studio this week. Ndife is a part of the Sam Gilliam Visiting Artist Program. Tune in to Artists Talk with LVA each Thursday at 10 am on 97.1 FM or Artxfm.com.

Brandon Ndife is in Louisville as part of the Speed Museum’s Sam Gilliam Visiting Artist Program, managed by curator Diallo Simon-Ponte. Ndife creates sculptures that merge domestic forms with elements of the natural world through meticulous hand-building, casting, and painting. His work considers how everyday objects index life under capitalism while imagining alternative futures in which human-made and natural worlds converge. Ndife has presented solo exhibitions at Greene Naftali, New York (2024); Matthew Brown Gallery, Los Angeles (2022); and Storm King Art Center, New Windsor (2022), and has been included in major group exhibitions such as the New Museum Triennial (2021). His work is held in the collections of the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal, and The Studio Museum in Harlem. He lives and works in New York.

Sam Gilliam Visting Artist at The Speed

Brandon Ndife

Artists Talk with LVA: July 30, 2026

Jessica and Bette in the WXOX studios.

Bette Levy & Jessica Beels join us to discuss their new exhibit at Pyro Gallery. Tune in to Artists Talk with LVA each Thursday at 10 am on 97.1 FM or Artxfm.com.

Tangents, a wandering off course, is an apt title for an exhibition by good friends Bette Levy and Jessica Beels. The title demonstrates how both artists diverge from traditional treatments of materials and processes in creating innovative artwork. But, despite using different techniques, both are fascinated with found objects, bought, given, or stumbled across. Additionally, while both artists often work on a large scale, Tangents presents smaller, more intimate work.  The opening reception is Friday, July 31st from 6 -9 pm.

Bette Levy is interested in adapting historic handwork techniques. By pairing vintage tools and other objects with crochet, she honors various modes of production. Her work contrasts men’s work with women’s, physical with sedentary, outdoor with indoor, gross motor with small repetitive gestures. Although hand- and tool-work skills have been largely replaced by technology, Levy wants to examine history and respect for family and gender. Her approach results from her interest in maintaining craft skills in an increasingly technological/virtual world.  

A dedicated collector of odd bits, Jessica Beels repurposes discarded materials to make small sculptures. The recycled bird series addresses paper and packaging waste with a whimsical eye.  Unusual juxtapositions draw observers in to take a closer look and reconsider their assumptions about how we value the utility, beauty, and worth of the things we encounter in our everyday lives. Beels hopes to spark a sense of wonder as well as encourage people to be more mindful about how their decisions impact the planet.

Tangents at Pyro Gallery

Bette Levy & Jessica Beels

Artists Talk with LVA: July 23, 2026

Kris, Britany, Luckett, & Tatiana

Girl Crush opens at KMAC soon, and this week, Kris Thompson, Brittany Baker, Tatiana Rathke, and Luckett Davidson join us in conversation about it. Tune into Artists Talk with LVA each Thursday at 10 am on 97.1 FM/Artxfm.com.

Kris Thompson is the Development & Special Projects Manager at  KMAC Contemporary Art Museum. Girl Crush opens on July 30th, with a ticketed reception from 5 - 8 pm.

Tatiana Rathke is an interdisciplinary visual artist and photographer based in Louisville, Kentucky. She is currently creating work around connection, collaboration, and nature. She graduated from Bellarmine University with a degree in Communication and a minor in Art, and has worked professionally as a Product Photographer, Design Assistant, and Project Coordinator in Film Production. 

Britany Baker attended Xavier University in Cincinnati on full scholarship and received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in drawing and painting. Since then she has trained in scenic arts and has worked for theater, film, and corporate clients. In the fine art realm, she has received multiple grants, maintains a studio practice, exhibits regularly, and spends time with art wherever she goes. She has been a designer and creative director in media and agencies and is currently the creative director for WingspanRPM.

Luckett Davidson works in a variety of media: embroidery, fiber collage and figure exploration; watercolor; colored pencil; ink; creek stone, and digital media. She studied fiber with Alma Lesch and Lida Gordon and received her MA in fiber from the University of Louisville in 1994. She is also a leadership development coach, illustrator, and writer. Her college guide series “Stand Strong” is available from Carmichael’s and Amazon.

Girl Crush exhibit at KMAC

Kris Thompson, Brittany Baker, Tatiana Rathke, and Luckett Davidson