Friday, March 16, 2012

N.C. Museum of Art announces March events

Tours
Explore the Collection
Tuesdays through Fridays at 1:30 pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
A daily docent-led tour of Museum highlights. Meet at West Building Information Desk. For individuals and groups smaller than 10.

Meet Your Museum tours
Fridays at 6 and 7 p.m.; Saturdays at 11 a.m., noon and 2 and 3 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 and 3 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at East Building Information Desk. Guided tour introduces visitors to the Museum buildings, Plaza and related works of art.

Storytelling in the Galleries weekend family-friendly tours
Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30 a.m.
Free; sign up that day; first come, first served.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Half-hour tours for kids age 5 to 10 and their adult companions. Join a Museum guide for a lively discussion and activities in the galleries.

Special events
Lunch and lecture
Curator’s Highlights: El Anatsui: When I Last Wrote to You about Africa
Friday, March 23, at 11 a.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
$23 for members and $28 for nonmembers
Linda Dougherty, chief curator and curator of contemporary art, explores the five-decade long career of contemporary African artist El Anatsui and his ability to transform simple materials—bottle caps, milk tins, cassava graters, wood trays, clay pots—into stunning works of art that tell both personal and universal stories. The discussion continues over a lunch catered by Iris, the museum restaurant. To register, call (919) 664-6785. Registration and payment for the combined program is required by 4 p.m. on the Wednesday before the event.

Free tour: Friday Night Art Encounters
Friday, March 23, at 6 and 7 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Enjoy a lively introduction to the museum’s collection with 30-minute gallery conversations that take you through a variety of explorations.

Mad about Mad Men spring film series
Film: BUtterfield 8
Friday, March 23, at 8 p.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
$3.50 for museum members, students, Cinema Inc. and Galaxy Cinema members; $5 for all others
A party girl wakes up in a strange bed and “borrows” a mink coat for the taxi ride home, jump-starting this sizzling adaptation of John O’Hara’s novel. Liz won an Oscar for playing restless Gloria Wandrous. Tickets are available online at www.ncartmuseum.org, through the museum box office by phone at (919) 715-5923 and in person (East Building).

Kids at the ncma: family fun Saturday
Family Fun Saturday: Transforming Everyday Materials
Saturday, March 24, at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
East Building, Education Studio 2
$3 for members and $5 for nonmembers
Reuse, recycle, repurpose! Come learn how to transform the ordinary into extraordinary. At this gallery tour-plus-studio workshop for families with children ages 5 to 11, kids and adults delight in exploring the museum’s collection, creating projects together and discovering one another’s creativity. For more information or credit card reservations, call the museum box office at (919) 715-5923. Space is limited; advance purchase is strongly suggested.

Sketchbook Saturday
Saturday, March 24, from 10:30 a.m. to noon
$7 for members and $10 for nonmembers
Ages 11 to 14
Teens and tweens are invited for an in-depth exploration of tools and techniques used in keeping an artist sketchbook. We’ll be inspired by work in the galleries and Museum Park, and then head back into the studio to play with a variety of materials. Price includes one sketchbook per participant (not per session). Registration is required; space is limited. For more information or credit card reservations, call the museum box office at (919) 715-5923.

12th annual Abram and Frances Pascher Kanof lecture
Lecture: “John Singer Sargent’s Israel and the Law: The Key to a Missing Keynote”
Dr. Sally Promey, Professor of American Studies and Professor of Religion and Visual Culture, Yale University
Sunday, March 25, at 2 p.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
Free; ticket from Box Office required
Israel and the Law holds a crucial place in John Singer Sargent's mural cycle at the Boston Public Library. In multiple ways, this one painting exemplifies the artist's hopes for the shape of religion's triumph in secular modernity in a pluralist society. This lecture examines Israel and the Law in the context of its roles in Sargent's larger mural cycle, from this panel's 1916 installation through the controversy that ensued in 1919 and the recent conservation and restoration of the mural cycle.
A reception follows the lecture.

Senior sampler
Senior Sampler: “Taking Shape”
Tuesday, March 27, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Meet in West Building Lobby
$15 for members per session or $80 for all six sessions
$20 for nonmembers per session and $110 for all six sessions
How do artists use positive and negative shapes in a work of art? Explore shapes within a composition and make a collagraph using a printing plate made from collaged materials.

Kids at the ncma: preschool playshop
What’s in the Box?: Seasons and Nature
Thursday, March 29, at 10:30, 11 and 11:30 a.m.
East Building, Education Studios 1 and 2
Free for members; $3 for nonmembers
Tickets required from Box Office; first come, first served.
It’s spring! Come to the museum to celebrate and explore the seasons. Preschoolers, ages 2 to 4, and their caregivers discover a new adventure in the box each time and experience fun and engaging ways of looking at art together in the museum and at home. Activities are designed to stretch the imagination while children explore materials and make personal connections with art and their world.

Auction preview
Friday, March 30, at 5:30 p.m.
Free
The Auction preview combines live music, tasty bites and beverages with an opportunity to preview the works of art to be auctioned at Art of the Auction benefit on April 14. Enjoy the eclectic stylings of local jazz quintet Peter Lamb and the Wolves and mingle with many of the artists, who will be in attendance to discuss their work. This is your chance to see all the exceptional works of art, many by North Carolina artists, that can be yours to take home from the auction! This event is part of Art of the Auction.

Free tour: Friday Night Art Encounters
Friday, March 30, at 6 and 7 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Enjoy a lively introduction to the museum’s collection with 30-minute gallery conversations that take you through a variety of explorations.

Mad about Mad Men spring film series
Film: Lover Come Back
Friday, March 30, at 8 p.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
$3.50 for museum members, students, Cinema Inc. and Galaxy Cinema members; $5 for all others
A prissy virgin gets ready to sacrifice her virtue to land the advertising account for a mysterious product called VIP. Day frantically woos the virile Jerry, played with great charm and not a little irony by Rock Hudson. Tickets are available online at www.ncartmuseum.org, through the museum box office by phone at (919) 715-5923 and in person (East Building).

Thursday, March 8, 2012

N.C. Museum of Art announces March events

Tours
Explore the Collection
Tuesdays through Fridays at 1:30 pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
A daily docent-led tour of Museum highlights. Meet at West Building Information Desk. For individuals and groups smaller than 10.

Meet Your Museum tours
Fridays at 6 and 7 p.m.; Saturdays at 11 a.m., noon and 2 and 3 p.m.; and Sundays at 2 and 3 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at East Building Information Desk. Guided tour introduces visitors to the Museum buildings, Plaza and related works of art.

Storytelling in the Galleries weekend family-friendly tours
Saturdays and Sundays at 10:30 a.m.
Free; sign up that day; first come, first served.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Half-hour tours for kids age 5 to 10 and their adult companions. Join a Museum guide for a lively discussion and activities in the galleries.

Special events
Senior sampler
Senior Sampler: “Drawing the Line”
Tuesday, March 13, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m.
Meet in West Building Lobby
$15 for members per session or $80 for all six sessions
$20 for nonmembers per session or $110 for all six sessions
What does an artist need to consider when arranging a composition? Gain a deeper understanding of the underlying structure of a work of art while sketching selected pieces in the galleries. Each session offers an informal gallery discussion paired with a studio experience exploring subjects in paintings and sculpture. Supplies provided. To register, call the museum box office at (919) 715-5923.

Free tour: Friday Night Art Encounters
Friday Night Art Encounters
Friday, March 16, at 6 and 7 p.m.
Free; no reservations necessary.
Meet at West Building Information Desk. Enjoy a lively introduction to the museum’s collection with 30-minute gallery conversations that take you through a variety of explorations.

Mad about Mad Men spring film series
Film: The Match King
Friday, March 16, at 8 p.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
$3.50 for museum members, students, Cinema Inc. and Galaxy Cinema members; $5 for all others
Wolfish William plays an industrialist who corners safety match production with epic financial shenanigans. Warner Bros. proclaimed that plots for their films were “torn from today’s headlines”—this one could easily be torn from ours, as well. Tickets are available online at www.ncartmuseum.org, through the museum box office by phone at (919) 715-5923 and in person (East Building).

Lunch and lecture
Lecture: “Edward Durell Stone: American Modernist”
Saturday, March 17, at 11 a.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
$23 for members; $28 for nonmembers
Edward Durell Stone, designer of the NCMA’s East Building, was one of the first American architects to experiment with European modernism in the early 1930s with a series of prominent homes in the Northeast and in his design for the Museum of Modern Art. In this slide lecture, Stone’s youngest son and biographer, Hicks Stone—himself a practicing architect—documents the breadth of his father's life and career. The discussion continues over a lunch catered by Iris, the Museum Restaurant. To register, call (919) 664-6785. Registration and payment for the combined program is required by 4 p.m. on the Wednesday before the event.

El Anatsui: When I Last Wrote to You about Africa Members Opening
Saturday, March 17, from 7 to 9:30 p.m.
East Building
$30 for members; $40 for all others
Drums! Dance! Costumes! Song! Story! Join other museum members and Durham’s own The Magic of African Rhythm at the first major retrospective of El Anatsui’s work. To celebrate the work of contemporary artist El Anatsui, the museum presents a colorful evening of music and dance spanning many cultures of the African continent. Performances include Balankora, a melodic duo of traditional griot instruments backed by African diasporic percussion instruments and singing, and Djembe Fire!, featuring djembe and dundun drumming, dance choreography, singing and audience participation. African-inspired hors d’oeuvres, South African wines, beer and nonalcoholic beverages included. The exhibition will be open for viewing. Performances take place at 7:30 and 8:15 p.m.

Artist discussion
“Artist to Artist”
Saturday, March 17, at 10 a.m.
East Building, Museum Auditorium
Free; ticket from Box Office required
For nearly a year, the NCMA has enjoyed an extended loan from Bennett College of a work by Harlem Renaissance artist Aaron Douglas. Artist Stacy Lynn Waddell leads a discussion about Douglas’s Harriet Tubman that considers Douglas in the context of art history and as an illustrator and master draftsman.

Kids at the ncma: family fun Saturday
Family Fun Saturday: Traveling through Time
Saturday, March 17, at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
East Building, Education Studio 2
$3 for members; $5 for nonmembers
Join us for a workshop that travels through space and time to learn about art from different cultures. At this gallery tour-plus-studio workshop for families with children ages 5-11, kids and adults delight in exploring the museum’s collection, creating projects together and discovering one another’s creativity. For more information or credit card reservations, call the museum box office, (919) 715-5923. Space is limited; advance purchase is strongly suggested.

Sketchbook Saturday
Saturday, March 17, from 10:30 a.m. to noon
$7 for members and $10 for nonmembers
Ages 11 to 14
Teens and tweens are invited for an in-depth exploration of tools and techniques used in keeping an artist sketchbook. We’ll be inspired by work in the galleries and Museum Park, and then head back into the studio to play with a variety of materials. Price includes one sketchbook per participant (not per session). Registration is required; space is limited. For more information or credit card reservations, call the museum box office, (919) 715-5923.

Lecture: “El Anatsui: A Curator’s Perspective”
Dr. Lisa Binder, Curator of Contemporary Art, Museum for African Art
Sunday, March 18, at 2:30 p.m.
East Building | Museum Auditorium
Free; ticket from Box Office required
Dr. Lisa Binder discusses the work of artist El Anatsui, highlighting some of the stunning sculpture, paintings, prints and drawings in the retrospective exhibition El Anatsui: When I Last Wrote to You about Africa. The lecture includes a history of the artist’s career and a discussion of his recent projects, including Lines That Link Humanity in the museum’s permanent collection.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

N.C. Museum of History presents Cotton Mill Colic

In the early 20th century, Piedmont mill towns were incubators for innovative string bands and musical performers in an emerging genre known as country music. Mill workers sang of their hard fate, protesting living conditions, poor wages and workplace struggles. As tension increased between management and labor, the songs became a rallying cry in labor halls, on strike lines and at protest rallies.
At the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh, musicians Gregg Kimball, Sheryl Warner and Jackie Frost will present Cotton Mill Colic: Songs of Labor from the North Carolina Piedmont, which will draw on commercial recordings by millworkers, such as Dave McCarn, the Dixon Brothers and Wilmer Watts as well as union strike songs—especially those sung by Ella Mae Wiggins, the voice of the 1929 Gastonia strike. This free performance takes place Sunday, March 4, at 2 p.m. in Daniels Auditorium. Parking is free on weekends.
With Kimball on guitar, banjo and fiddle, Warner and Frost will add their own distinctive vocal styles. Warner's rich, expressive voice has developed from more than 30 years of singing in the blues and folk traditions.
With two CDs to her credit, Frost’s music is grounded in early-American music traditions, ranging from early country to jazz to blues. She is especially adept at tight, soul-stirring harmonies.
Kimball is a historian and musician who has lectured and written extensively on the South’s musical traditions. He is Director of Public Services and Outreach at the Library of Virginia. He earned a Ph.D. in history from the University of Virginia.
Don’t miss this performance with an intriguing, historical twist on March 4 at the N.C. Museum of History.

About the N.C. Museum of History
The museum is located at 5 E. Edenton St. in Raleigh, across from the State Capitol. Parking is available in the lot across Wilmington Street. Hours are Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. The Museum of History, within the Division of State History Museums, is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources.