Menu

Subscribe to our Newsletter

* indicates required
Gender
Please subscribe me to the monthly newsletter.
Please email updates about the following events:
Please email alerts on the following subjects:
Loading Events
  • This event has passed.

Tours & Events

Photos

Design in Mind Lecture 3: Mary Celeste Beall and Jason Bell of Blackberry Farm

December 3, 2022 @ 10:00 am - 11:00 am

Buy Tickets

Join us in the nave of the historic Second Presbyterian Church for a Design in Mind talk with the dynamic duo Mary Celeste Beall, proprietor of Blackberry Farm, and Jason Bell, Director of Design. Learn about this acclaimed brand and the preservation ethos behind it. Space is limited and tickets are required. Second Presbyterian Church is handicap accessible.

More about Mary Celeste Beall…

Mary Celeste Beall is the proprietor of the acclaimed resort hotels Blackberry Farm and Blackberry Mountain in the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee. For more than a decade, Mary Celeste has lived and worked on the family-owned properties. She first joined her late husband Sam as he led the transformation of Blackberry Farm into a renowned food, wine and wellness destination. As Proprietor, Mary Celeste, alongside her father-in-law, Sandy, and the Blackberry team, drove the creation and opening of Blackberry Mountain as it evolved into a haven for preservation and personal exploration in relaxation, wellness and adventure. She led creative direction for launching the brand’s print magazine, Blackberry Magazine. Unique in the resort industry, Blackberry Magazine is a creative-driven editorial project that shares original stories, art, interviews and more inspired by life at Blackberry. She continues to share her vision for the expansion of the Blackberry brand, continuing a longstanding reputation for renowned hospitality and celebrated wine and food.

Over the years, the Blackberry brand has garnered industry praise, including Blackberry Farm’s three James Beard Awards for Best Chef—Southeast, Outstanding Wine Program and Outstanding Service. Blackberry Farm was also named Bon Appetit’s No. 1 Hotel for Food Lovers. Blackberry Mountain is adding to the brand’s awards with recognitions including ELLE Décor Travel A-List – Best New Hotel, Hideaway Report – Hideaway of the Year, and inclusion in Travel + Leisure’s It List for best new hotels in the world.

More about Jason Bell…

Jason Bell, Director of Design for Blackberry Farm Design, grew up around design, his father a general contractor and his mother a decorator. After beginning his college career on the path to a marketing degree, he returned to his ingrained loved of design in his fourth year of school and excelled, earning his Bachelors in Interior Design from the University of Alabama in just a year and a half. He got his introduction in the design world with a position at Irvine and Fleming in New York City, which became Irvine Fleming Bell when he became a partner in 2001.

Now, with more than 20 years of experience in national and international interior design, Jason is propelling the reputation of Southern design with his work as Director of Design at Blackberry Farm Design. He oversees the firm’s residential and commercial design projects, as well as the curation of the Blackberry Farm Design Collection. Jason and his team approach each design project with the attention to detail and foundations of hospitality that are the hallmark of the Blackberry brand, ensuring that their designs are an authentic and inspired reflection of each client. When he is not traveling between Walland, Tennessee, New York and his family’s home in Mobile, Alabama, Jason loves to entertain and spend his down time relaxing by the water.