Hacker and Kitty Caldwell
ArtsBuild recognizes the recipients of the 2022 Ruth Holmberg Arts Leadership Award – Hacker and Kitty Caldwell and Charlie and Iantha Newton.
The annual Ruth Holmberg Arts Leadership Award recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to the arts in Chattanooga and who are actively engaged in the cultural life of our community— “Arts Builders” who exemplify ArtsBuild’s mission to build a stronger community through the arts as demonstrated by their significant contributions to the arts and their leadership.
ArtsBuild President James McKissic said, “We are delighted to honor these two couples for their incredible dedication, passion, and support for the arts. Each in their own way, these inspiring ‘Arts Builders’ have positively impacted the lives of many people in Chattanooga through the arts and have elevated the arts in a way that builds pride in our city and makes our community stronger.”
Hacker and Kitty Caldwell
Hacker and Kitty Caldwell have been engaged in the civic and cultural life of Chattanooga for decades. After completing his MBA at the University of Virginia, Mr. Caldwell returned to his hometown of Chattanooga to work for the appliance manufacturing company his great-grandfather started in 1904, originally named Tennessee Stove Works and then Modern Maid in the 1960s. When the company was sold and production moved to South Carolina, Mr. Caldwell turned to a long career and successful business managing hedge funds.
Originally from Virginia, Mrs. Caldwell joined Mr. Caldwell in Chattanooga in the late seventies after they were married. Having studied American art history in college, she immediately began volunteering as a docent at the Hunter Museum of American Art. She has also served on the Hunter Museum’s Board of Trustees. One of her contributions has been to initiate the Chairman’s Circle program of the museum, whose members provide vital support to the museum.
In fact, both Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell have played a part in the transformation of the Hunter Museum becoming the institution it is today. During Mr. Caldwell’s tenure as Board chair, the museum embarked on the $22 million 21st century waterfront building project to add 28,000 square feet of new construction, 34,000 square feet of renovation, restoration of the 1905 mansion, the
creation of an outdoor sculpture plaza, and a complete reinstallation of the museum’s permanent collection. The Caldwells’ time and financial resources were instrumental in the completion of the project in 2005.
Yet perhaps the most valuable thing Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell have given to the museum and Chattanooga is their expertise as art collectors. As members of the museum’s first collectors’ group, they traveled to New York City many times to visit galleries and learn about and seek out items for the museum. As leaders in that role, they have helped the museum to acquire close to 30 artworks for the permanent collection.
Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell are proud that their love of the arts has rubbed off on each of their four children as well. Each one is actively involved in the arts and volunteers on the boards of arts organizations in their own community. Two of their daughters live in Chattanooga— Betsy Caldwell Cake who serves on the board of directors of the Creative Discovery Museum and Pop-up Project, and Charlotte Caldwell, founder and director of Stove Works, a contemporary exhibition space and artist residency program.
Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell have seen Chattanooga evolve and grow to become a city known for its vibrant arts and culture, and hope that more artists visit and decide to make Chattanooga their home. The Caldwells say this award is an incredible honor for them, because Ruth Holmberg was a dear friend and mentor. They consider themselves as just one in a long line of arts patrons who have shaped a legacy and paved the way for a better and stronger Chattanooga because of the arts, a path that continues for the next generation to carry forward.
Charlie and Iantha Newton
When Charlie and Iantha Newton started SPLASH Youth Arts Workshop, the program was a natural evolution of the ways they were already giving back to the community. Every Sunday for eight years, the Newtons and friends would prepare and serve meals in their downtown Chattanooga art studio for 75–150 homeless individuals and families. When they noticed that some of the kids who would come had problems with reading, they did art projects together with the kids and saw how transformational art was in terms of their learning abilities, social interactions, and just for having fun.
SPLASH now operates in the old James A. Henry Elementary School on Chattanooga’s west side in what was Mr. Newton’s own 5th grade classroom, so in a way he has come full circle. Mr. Newton grew up in the neighborhood and knew from age five that he wanted to be an artist. He took art classes through high school, got a degree in art at UTC, worked for a while as a freelance artist, and then went back to school to earn his MFA at Norfolk State and Old Dominion University.
Mrs. Newton grew up in a working-class family of seven in London, England. As a child, Mrs. Newton loved art too and would make fashion clothes for her dolls and then as a teenager she designed and made real clothes for fashion shows she organized on her own. While she never saw her path to art as a career, art has always been a natural ability and part of her everyday life. She met Mr. Newton in London while he was on a study abroad trip there in 1986. Five years later Iantha moved to Chattanooga, and they were married.
After his training, Mr. Newton made a conscious decision to come back to Chattanooga to make his living as an artist. Over the years he had noticed how most African American artists from Chattanooga left, but in Mr. Newton’s opinion, there is something about living and working in the place where you grew up that gives you a sense of freedom and informs your work like no other place does. He never thought of himself as a teacher or mentor, but now looking back, he realizes the ways he has served people in that role, especially by encouraging fellow African American art students.
In the SPLASH studio, Mr. and Mrs. Newton have an apprentice-style approach to teaching that gives each individual student what they need to develop the unique talent and abilities they already possess. Working together in the classroom, Mr. Newton’s more direct way with the kids complements Iantha’s more nurturing qualities.
As practicing professional artists, both Mr. and Mrs. Newton believe it is important to continue to make their own art so that what they offer to their students comes from a place of authenticity. In their words, “We are just giving what we have to offer—we are giving art. If you let the focus be entirely on the people you are serving, then the community will show you what the needs are.”
Ruth Holmberg Arts Leadership Award
The first Arts Leadership Award in 2014 recognized Ruth Holmberg for her extraordinary support of the arts and cultural community in Chattanooga over 70 years. Since 2014, the annual award has honored Mrs. Holmberg with her name. Past recipients include Mai Bell Hurley, Fletcher Bright, Sonia Young, Booker T. Scruggs II, Alice L. Smith, Warren Barnett, Candy Kruesi, Ann Law, and Mitch Patel.
“It is our hope that this annual award honors individuals who share the same spirit and passion for the arts as Ruth did,” said Marcus McKamey, Board chair of ArtsBuild. “Recipients of the Ruth Holmberg Arts Leadership Award have given selflessly of their time, energy, and resources to building a stronger community through the arts.”
Charlie and Iantha Newton