Crim Center hosts event to commemorate 50th anniversary of Freedom Rides

In 1961, hundreds of black and white Americans traveled together on buses and trains from Washington, D.C. to several major southern cities, testing the end of Jim Crow laws in public transportation and demonstrating that they were willing to fight the injustices of segregation.

Fifty years later, the message this mass transit movement made still resonates and will be commemorated this month at “The Power of Students: Freedom Riders,” an event hosted by the College of Education’s Alonzo A. Crim Center for Urban Educational Excellence.

At this event, scheduled for 5 p.m. March 17 in the Georgia State University Speakers Auditorium, attendees will be able to see an advanced screening of the Public Broadcasting Service’s film entitled, “Freedom Riders,” which highlights the history of the Freedom Rides through the eyes of those who participated and the government officials and journalists who witnessed it firsthand.

“This student-planned event was developed out of a deep desire to showcase the collective power of students, unity through diversity, and success in the face of adversity,” said Bryan Murray, business affairs coordinator for the Crim Center. “In the 1960s, young college students took the initiative to become catalysts for national change. It is not only an awe-inspiring feat, but serves as an inspiration for students of all ages that they are capable of achieving and affecting change at any level.”

Following the film, Atlanta Journal-Constitution assignments editor Angela Tuck will moderate a discussion about the rides and the film with two Freedom Riders: Bernard Lafayette and William Harbour. Lafayette, who hails from Tampa, Fla., was part of the Nashville Student Movement Ride on May 17, 1961 and was arrested in Birmingham for his participation. Following the Freedom Rides, he worked on voting rights and serves as a Distinguished Senior Scholar-in-Residence at Emory University. Harbour, a native of Piedmont, Ala., was one of 14 Freedom Riders expelled from Tennessee State University. He later became a teacher and then worked as a civilian federal employee specializing in U.S. Army base closings, according to the film’s website.

This event, which was planned by GSU students Danyelle Thomas and Tierra Benton, is designed to show that students can make a difference even when facing seemingly insurmountable odds.

“College students, just like me, risked their education and lives to evoke change,” Thomas said. “To have an opportunity to listen to key activists like Bernard Lafayette and William Harbour tell these stories in their voice and perspective really brings things to life. It is my hope that this event awakens a spirit of activism in each of us and helps us recognize that it only takes one choice and one action to bring about incredible change.”

This event is free and open to the public.

By Claire Miller

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Great discounts to upcoming Atlanta Symphony Hall concerts!

Joan Rivers
Enjoy 10% Off!
March 25, 2011 8pm

“Can we talk?” Don't dare miss the iconic Joan Rivers in an audacious one-woman show. America's original comic queen of mean is hotter than ever with the hit documentary, “A Piece of Work,” and sold-out shows across the country.

Patti LuPone
Enjoy $5 Off!
May 27/28, 2011 8pm

A major coup! A rare Atlanta date by superstar Patti LuPone (Gypsy, Sweeney Todd, Evita), hailed as “a musical cult goddess” (Ben Brantley, NY Times). The Grammy, Emmy and Tony award-winner will perform her showstopping revue, Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda.

Call or email ASO Group Sales at (404) 733-4958 or asogroups@woodruffcenter.org for prices and purchase information. Offer not valid at Box Office or online. Office hours M-F, 9-5.

Pottery and Pickles at Mudfire: Shadow May, Megan Daloz, Dilly Beans

Shadow May 2011

Opening Saturday, March 12, 5:00-9:00 PM
Show Continues Through May 14, 2011

Shadow May has been working in clay for almost 20 years. He began studying and making functional pottery in high school in Alaska and earned a Bachelors in English and Art History at University of Alaska. Shadow went on to apprentice with a series of production potters before furthering his studies at the Penland School of Craft and Haywood Community College as Ceramics major. In 2000, he established his own studio practice. Solidly grounded in the functional, he has trended towards increasingly larger and more sculptural clay works.

His work balances soft earthy finishes with rugged monumental forms. The show is alive with gesture and motion, and gives the feeling of freshly hewn rock. Shadow continues to extend his personal vocabulary with characteristic cuts, ridges, gouges, glass runs, and the use of fired shells. The exhibit includes new sculptural vessels with serious heft and big-time presence.

Click the little blue words to see more images and enjoy a bit longer description.

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Megan Daloz Solo Show
"Field Studies"

Opening Saturday, February 19, 5:00-9:00 PM
Show Continues Through April 16, 2011

Megan Daloz studied glassmaking and ceramics at Alfred University, and is currently a studio potter and a full-time commercial illustrator. She lives in Atlanta and is a resident artist and instructor at MudFire Clayworks.

Daloz's clay work is painstakingly decorated with images of bees, weeds, mopeds, minotaurs and other creatures one frequently encounters in an urban setting. Recorded and rendered with the practiced eye of a naturalist, the images together produce a curious and splendidly illustrated collage of modern life. Individually, her pieces capture the un-affected essence of free-range dinosaurs, cage-free weasels, and a profusion of botanicals. To say nothing of the mycological fascinations!
Witness these wonders and read more at MudFire's little corner of the web.

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Pickle of the Month
DILLY BEANS

MudFire Gallery is now the world's first and only Pottery and Pickles Gallery. Well, as far as we know. The important thing is we've got 12 different varieties of gourmet Southern pickles and will feature a new pickle in this newsletter each month. Holy excitement Batman!

February's Pickle of the Month is Dilly Beans by Hillside Orchard of North Georgia. These crunchy full length green beans are tart and zesty with dill, garlic, and jalepeno peppers providing a rich layered flavor. The beans themselves are simply awesome - but we have to admit we're particularly fond of the big crunchy garlic cloves at the bottom of the jar.

Pottery and Pickles!

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MudFire Clayworks Location and Hours
175 Laredo Drive, Decatur, GA 30030
Regular Gallery Hours
Open Noon to 8:00 pm
Thursday-Friday-Saturday-Sunday-Monday
maps and directions
404-377-8033.
Loads of information and images available at www.mudfire.com

High Names Scholar Valerie Cassel Oliver as 2011 Recipient of the David C. Driskell Prize

Honoring Excellence in African American Art and Scholarship,The Driskell Prize will be Awarded on April 16, 2011, in Atlanta

The High Museum of Art has named scholar Valerie Cassel Oliver as the 2011 recipient of The David C. Driskell Prize. Named for the renowned African American artist and art scholar, the Driskell Prize is an annual award that recognizes a scholar or artist in the beginning or middle of his or her career whose work makes an original and important contribution to the field of African American art or art history. As the seventh Driskell Prize recipient, Cassel Oliver will be honored at the Driskell Prize Dinner in Atlanta on Saturday, April 16, 2011.

“Valerie Cassel Oliver represents the new generation of innovation and influence in the field of African Diaspora and African American art,” said Michael E. Shapiro, Nancy and Holcombe T. Green, Jr. Director of the High. “Her work as a curator, writer and lecturer qualifies her as an important voice in this group and makes her an exemplary recipient of the 2011 Driskell Prize. Now in its seventh year, this award continues to reflect the High’s commitment to supporting scholarship and creativity in this field.”

In her role as senior curator at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (CAMH), Cassel Oliver has organized numerous group and solo exhibitions. Her debut exhibition “Splat Boom Pow! The Influence of Cartoons in Contemporary Art” (2003) toured both nationally and internationally, “Double Consciousness: Black Conceptual Art Since the 1970s” (2005) was received with critical acclaim and “Black Light/White Noise” (2007), which featured light and sound works created by two generations of African American artists was groundbreaking. Her 2008 exhibition “Cinema Remixed and Reloaded: Black Women Artists and the Moving Image Since 1970” was nominated by the United States section of the International Art Critics Association (AICA/USA) in the “digital media, video or film” category. Co-organized by Dr. Andrea Barnwell-Brownlee, director of the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art, the exhibition highlighted the contributions of African American female artists to the cinematic and visual arts arenas, and was presented in Atlanta in two parts (2007/2008) and at CAMH (2009). Cassel Oliver’s most recent exhibitions include “Hand+Made: The Performative Impulse in Art and Craft” (2010), “Benjamin Patterson: Born in the State of FLUX/us” (2010) and “Perspectives 173: Clifford Owens,” which is currently on view at CAMH through April 3. Forthcoming exhibitions by Cassel Oliver include “Donald Moffett: The Extravagant Vein” (2011), a 20-year survey of work by painter Donald Moffett, and “Perspectives 177: MacArthur Binion” (2012).

In 2009 Cassel Oliver was one of ten curators in the U.S. chosen to participate in the fellowship program of the Center for Curatorial Leadership (CCL), a distinguished organization that trains curators for leadership positions. She was also the recipient of the prestigious Curatorial Fellowship Award from the Getty Foundation, which funded the initial research for “Benjamin Patterson: Born in the State of FLUX/us.”

Prior to her tenure at CAMH, Cassel Oliver was director of the Visiting Artists Program at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (1995–2000) and program specialist at the National Endowment for the Arts (1988–1995). In 2000 she was selected as one of a team of curators to organize the Whitney Biennial at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York.

Cassel Oliver received her certificate of executive management from Columbia University in 2009. She also holds a master’s degree in art history from Howard University and a bachelor’s degree in communications from The University of Texas at Austin.

Artists Announced for Second Annual Plein Air Paint Out, Art Show and Sale at Callaway Gardens®

Celebrate the arts this Spring at Callaway Gardens Plein Air Paint Out, Art Show and Sale. Of 49 artists who applied to participate in the 2011 Plein Air, 33 artists from around the United States have been selected for the juried event by William U. Eiland, entry jurist for this event and director of the Georgia Museum of Art. The selected artists include:

Austin, Perry Goodwater, AL

Brown, Anne Blair Nashville, TN
Brown, Roger Dale Franklin, TN

Caggiano, John S. Rockport, MA
Cheek, Durinda Ringgold, GA

Davis, Barbara B. Montgomery, AL
Debner, Claudia Sharpsburg, GA
deLeiris, Lucia Watertown, MA
Dillon, Mikki Root Lilburn, GA

Erickson, Mary Marshville, NC
Evans, Beverly Ford Franklin, TN

Gosch, Millie Roswell, GA
Griffin, Carol Macon, GA

Hahn, Elaine Holiday, FL
Hou, Hai-Ou Stevensville, MD

Johnson, L. Diane Cary, NC

Lammers, Renee Bucksport, ME
LaRock, Greg Newport, CA
Lasater IV, John Siloam Springs, AR
Lewis, Robert Pacific Grove, CA

Mani, Gloria Columbus, GA
Meek, Helena Buena Vista, GA

Nadelhoffer, Debra Dawsonville, GA

Philips, Jill Columbus, GA
Putnam, Lori Franklin, TN

Roberts, Robin Ashland, OH
Rothwell, Junko Ono Atlanta, GA

Simmons, Cheri Mooresville, NC
Smith, F. Daly Macon, GA
Southerland, James D. Black Mtn, NC
Stewart, Karen Columbus, GA
Stokley, Judy Navarre, FL

Treverton, Antonia Lakeland, FL

During the week of April 10, 2011, these the artists will spend time painting the beauty they see at Callaway Gardens as well as other public and private gardens in the region, including Columbus, LaGrange, Newnan, and Atlanta. Their works of art will be submitted on Friday and judged by Awards Judge Jean Stern, executive director of The Irvine Museum of Irvine California. That evening the pieces will be featured at a Collectors Preview Reception at the Virginia Hand Callaway Discovery Center. Cocktail attire is appropriate. Tickets and can be purchased by calling 706-663-5096. For each ticket purchased, a one-time credit of the face value can be applied to the purchase of one piece of artwork the evening of April 15th.

The public is invited to participate in a fun and exciting Quick Draw event in downtown Pine Mountain the morning of Saturday, April 16, 2011. During the Quick Draw event, participants pay a small registration fee. Artists have only two hours to create a painting in a specified setting. At the end of two hours, the pieces are submitted, judged for cash awards, and immediately go on sale to the public. Details are available at www.callawaygardens.com/pleinair.

The art will be on display in the Callaway Discovery Center for Gardens visitors to view and purchase Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. April is a beautiful time to visit Callaway Gardens and enjoy the color of Spring throughout the Gardens. Celebrate Spring! admission is $25 per adult and $12.50 per child age six to 12. Children five and younger are admitted to the Gardens for free.

For those who want to become a Plein Air artist or to simply improve their skills, renowned artist Greg LaRock will offer a three-day class, April 18-20, 2011, perfect for anyone who has a basic understanding of how to set up their easel, working with materials perspective and some drawing ability. LaRock’s classes will include location demonstrations; individual instruction at each student’s easel; plenty of painting time for students; group critiques at the end of each day; personal critiques of student’s work brought from home; and take away items. Registration is $425 per student. Lodging at Callaway Gardens is available. To registration for the workshop, contact the Callaway Gardens’ Education department at education@callawaygardens.com, 706-663-5153 or visit www.callawaygardens.com/workshops.

The second annual Plein Air Paint Out, Art Show and Sale, continues Callaway Gardens’ tradition of supporting the fine arts. For more detailed information or to view samples of the artists’ work, please visit www.callawaygardens.com/pleinair.

Callaway Gardens®, is in Pine Mountain, Ga., 60 minutes southwest of Atlanta and 30 minutes north of Columbus. For additional information, visit www.callawaygardens.com or call 1-800-CALLAWAY (225-5292).

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Community News You Can Use
Click to read MORE news:
www.GeorgiaFrontPage.com
Twitter: @gafrontpage & @TheGATable @HookedonHistory
www.ArtsAcrossGeorgia.com
Twitter: @artsacrossga, @softnblue, @RimbomboAAG @FayetteFP