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Stan Mabry
As one of the top art dealers and owners of the oldest and one of the most respected art galleries in Nashville for over 33 years, Stan Mabry is also a blackbelt and seven-time World Champion in Brazilian Jiu jitsu. The two fields seem miles apart, but for Mabry, the philosophies behind them are the same.
“In order to succeed in any field in life, you have to focus on the task at hand, make a commitment, be consistent in your purpose, and persist despite all the obstacles that may come your way,” he says. “This is where my passion for providing quality art meets martial arts. You have to keep on fighting the fight.”
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Mabry grew up in North Carolina, where he attended the University of North Carolina and majored in anthropology. During the summer months, he worked for the Nashville-based Southwestern Company, selling Bibles and dictionaries door to door on a commission basis to earn money for college. After graduating, he moved to New York. On the recommendation of his mentor Spencer Hays, who was the president of Southwestern Company and also an important art collector, he found a job with Sotheby’s and worked in the Impressionist department.
Mabry found himself in a new world, visiting the studios of many renowned artists such as Andy Warhol, Willem de Kooning, and Peter Beard. After leaving Sotheby’s, Hays encouraged Mabry to come to Nashville and helped him continue his career in the art business. Hays credited Mabry as an “advisor and consultant, and a fantastic art historian in his own right”. Over the years, he assisted with the formation of the Hays family’s jaw-dropping art collection, which was donated to the Musée d’Orsay after Spencer's death.
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Stanford Fine Art in Nashville.
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Stanford Fine Art in Nashville.
Mabry has brought that same passion for curating the art collections of his other clients since 1987 when he opened Stanford Fine Art in Nashville. The gallery, which focuses on late 19th and early 20th Century European and American paintings, works on paper, and sculpture.
“Every time I see a painting, it opens a new page, it starts a new conversation,” he says. “Over the years, there are many chapters that have been written and I have been fortunate enough to share some of the artworks with others that come in and pass it on to make it a part of their own journey.”
Mabry began a new journey by opening Stanford Contemporary, which comprises a whole new wing to the existing gallery, taking its visitors from early 20th Century art into modern and contemporary art through paintings, sculpture, works on paper, photography, mixed media installations and furniture.
Through it all he has continued his Jiu jitsu training. It’s a passion and a craft that he likens to his day job.
“I study my opponent like I study a work of art. I assess its strengths and weaknesses and try to find the right strategy to handle the match,” he says. “The artists that I represent have spent many decades and often their entire lives in mastering their own craft to create timeless works of art. Eventually, the learning experience all depends on how much time is spent dedicating yourself to seeing things in the right perspective.”
Stanford Fine Art, 6608 TN-100, 615-352-50505; stanfordfineart.net