Glass Plates to Installation Art
September 20, 2009 – 9:54 am
Crystal Bridges Offers Gallery Talk, Special Preview Screening
BENTONVILLE, Ark., September 29, 2009 – Crystal Bridges will offer an evening of art and discussion this Friday, October 2 at the Massey, Crystal Bridges’ temporary gallery space located at 125 West Central Ave., as part of downtown Bentonville’s First Friday celebration. Ranging in subject matter from meticulously composed historic photographs to cutting edge animated films and installation art, both programs are free with no registration and are best for teens and adults.
First up is Artbuzz After Dark: Glass Plates to Gigabytes, which will take place from 5:30-7 p.m. Led by Niki Ciccotelli, head of school programs, this gallery talk will explore how photography has moved from the cumbersome box camera and glass plates used by Harry Miller, whose early 20th century images of Arkansas are currently on display at the Massey, to today’s point and shoot digital cameras.
Following the gallery talk Crystal Bridges will offer a special preview screening of the fifth season premiere of Art: 21, the award-winning PSB documentary series on contemporary art in the U.S. Art 21: Compassion will focus on the work of socially conscious artists William Kentridge, Carrie Mae Weems and Donna Salcedo. The panel discussion to follow, led by Ciccotelli and Lynn Berkowitz, director of learning experiences at Crystal Bridges, will include:
- Shelley Buonaiuto, sculptor and activist with the Omni Center for Peace, Social Justice and Ecology
- Bethany Springer, sculptor, Homeless Project artist, and assistant professor of art at the University of Arkansas
- Carol Cooper, watercolor artist, instructor and coordinator of the Art Department at the NorthWest Arkansas Community College
“We are so pleased to spark lively conversation about both historic and contemporary art with the First Friday crowd,” Lynn Berkowitz said.
About Art:21 Access ‘09
The preview screening is part of Art21 Access ‘09, a celebration of contemporary art and season five of Art:21-Art in the Twenty-First Century sponsored by Art21. Art21 Access 09 is held at over 300 museums, schools, libraries, art spaces, and community centers and is organized in collaboration with Americans for the Arts’ National Arts and Humanities Month. Visit art21.org for more information.
About ArtBuzz
ArtBuzz offers free, drop-in gallery talks for adults and teens that focus on a wide variety of topics related to current exhibitions. ArtBuzz is a popular series developed by Crystal Bridges to spark curiosity and a sense of discovery about American art, history, architecture and the natural environment. Most Learning Experiences programs offered to the general public are free with no advance registration required. For more information about Crystal Bridges at the Massey, including a full schedule of educational programs, go to www.massey.crystalbridges.org or call 479-418-5721.
