My name is Jen Larson, and I’m a Nashville-based archivist, artist, and vocalist. Through recordkeeping, visual art, and music, I preserve and celebrate American vernacular and popular culture and entertainment, 19th century to the present.
Over the years, my interconnected passions have led me to work with some of the most significant cultural collections in the country -- from the New York Historical Society, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Grand Ole Opry. I view objects, documents, images, and music as precious carriers of historical and cultural information just waiting to be unpacked. I have deeply enjoyed developing my career in collecting and interpreting collective and individual histories and making them accessible to wider audiences.
My visual art practice and music also reflect my passion for engaging with history. Through mixed media collage and sculptures, and performing onstage, I share my own stories and invite viewers and listeners to make meaningful new connections with the past.
Professional Bio
Jen Larson is an archivist, cultural and decorative arts historian, and curator who holds advanced degrees in Decorative Arts, Design and Material Culture, and Library and Information Science, with a specialization in Archival Management. In 2003, she completed her M.A. thesis at Bard Graduate Center, “Hillbilly Couture: the Rhinestone Cowboy Aesthetic of Nudie Cohn”, which examines the cultural and aesthetic histories that gave rise to ornate stage wear style in postwar Country music. From 2016-2023 Jen was the Archives Manager for the Grand Ole Opry Archives. She currently works independently as a project-based archives and special collections consultant and researcher, and she serves on the Board of Trustees for the Bluegrass Hall of Fame and Museum.
With over 20 years of experience in special collections management and archives, Jen has worked for world-class museums, and academic and cultural history institutions, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Parsons The New School, Center for Book Arts, New York Transit Museum, and New York Historical Society.
In addition to her work as a collections manager and archivist, Jen is an accomplished bluegrass vocalist, and educator. Jen has performed everywhere from VFW Halls, regional concert series, festivals and educational programs through Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, and also the Wheeling Jamboree. She appeared several times as a musical guest on “Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion”, and in 2014 she joined Bob Perilla’s Big Hillbilly Bluegrass Band on a U.S. State Department goodwill music tour to Oman.
Jen is also a skilled visual artist. Her artwork focuses on the intersection of nostalgia, popular culture, and the abstract. For a more detailed look at Jen's approach, you can read her artist's statement here.
Please visit Jen on LinkedIn to see her full CV.
Podcasts and Virtual Masterclasses featuring Jen:
Bluegrass Stories, Series 6: https://soundcloud.com/bluegrassstories/jenlarson
History of Bluegrass, Michael Daves and Jen Larson: https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=522771628343132&ref=watch_permalink
ETSU, Bluegrass, Old Time, and Country Music Studies, guest artist speaker with teacher, Kalia Yeagle.
Augusta Heritage Center Bluegrass Week, Virtual Show and Tell, Grand Ole Opry Archives. On the subject of bluegrass music-related holdings at the Grand Ole Opry Archives: https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=594006864618612&ref=watch_permalink
“Your Roots Are Showing” Folk Music Conference, roundtable panelist, “The Importance of Archiving Your Work”, “Music Educators”, and roundtable leader, “DIY Management/Tour Management: What you need to know about preparing for the road / prepping for a tour / advancing a tour.” https://www.showingroots.com/
Birthplace of Country Music Museum, Spring 2023 Speaker Series, online presentation and Q&A, “Jen Larson, Opry Archives Program” https://birthplaceofcountrymusic.org/