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May Issue 2008
An Appalachian Summer Festival Offers Numerous New Exhibitions in Boone, NC
An Appalachian Summer Festival and Appalachian State University's Turchin Center for the Visual Arts in Boone, NC, offer an exciting mix of visual arts, exhibitions and workshops for art enthusiasts of all ages and skill levels. The Turchin Center, which features year-round, dynamic visual arts programming, provides the visual arts components for An Appalachian Summer Festival.
An Appalachian Summer Festival announces its 24th season schedule, which includes a dynamic group of artists and educators, presenting music, dance, theatre, visual arts, films, educational lectures, workshops for children and adults and seminars. The season begins on June 28 and ends with a finale fireworks concert on July 26, 2008.
The 2008 season includes: performances by Midori, Judy Collins, Charlie Daniels, the Broyhill Chamber Ensemble and the Count Basie Orchestra; the 22nd Annual Rosen Outdoor Sculpture Competition and Exhibition; Patagonia's Wild & Scenic Film Series; Aspen Santa Fe Ballet; André Watts, Doug Varone and Dancers, the Eastern Philharmonic Orchestra, Phoebe Snow and many more. Tickets are on sale now, and subscription packages offer deep discounts and priority seating.
Presented annually by Appalachian State University's Office of Arts & Cultural Programs, An Appalachian Summer Festival is attended by more than 26,000 people, and has emerged as one of the nation's most innovative and highly regarded regional, multidisciplinary arts festivals. With a history of presenting world-class talent that exceeds two decades, the festival is committed to showcasing American talent, commissioning new works, and building new audiences for the fine arts. For many years, the festival has been named one of the "Top 20 events in the Southeast" by the Southeast Tourism Society. The festival's setting in Western North Carolina's lovely, Blue Ridge Mountains offers small-town friendliness with the biggest names in entertainment.
Turchin Center Director/Chief Curator Hank Foreman, who serves as An Appalachian Summer Festival's Artistic Director for the Visual Arts, has programmed an exciting array of visual arts opportunities for the festival's 2008 season.
Dancing with the Dragon: Contemporary Art from Beijing, on view in the Center's Main and Mezzanine Galleries, East Wing, from July 11 through Oct. 4, 2008. The exhibit features a fascinating selection of paintings, sculptures, prints, and photography curated by Turchin Center staff. During a recent trip to China, artist Zheng Xuewu assisted a delegation from the Turchin Center, hosting art district and studio tours in Beijing. Zheng Xuewu's work is the cornerstone of this exhibit, which invites festival patrons to experience a taste of contemporary Chinese culture and art.
Capturing a Transient World: A Contemporary Look at Louisiana, on view through Aug. 2, 2008, in the Center's Gallery A. This exhibit offers an interpretive, multi-media response to the complex issues surrounding coastal Louisiana's environment and culture.
IN Black & White: Louisiana's Retreating Coast and Communities, on view through Aug. 2, 2008, in the Center's Gallery B. The exhibition is a group of black and white photographs that investigates Louisiana's retreating coastline.
The Brian Ayers Memorial Art Exhibition, on view from July 11 through Oct. 4, 2008, in the Center's Catwalk Community Gallery, East Wing, now in its 14th year, celebrates the artistic abilities of children all across the globe, with learning disabilities and dyslexia. Open to artists ages 10-25, this exhibition was named after a gifted artist with learning disabilities who died at a young age. The exhibition is jurored by local art educator Rosa Dargan and curated by Saul Chase, a local educator for children with disabilities.
Humanimals: The Sculptures of Gayle Weitz, on view from July 11 through Oct. 4, 2008, in the Center's Bridge Gallery, between West and East wings. The exhibit opens a dialogue about the animal hierarchy. Dr. Gayle Weitz, The Turchin Center's Community Art School Coordinator and Art professor at Appalachian, has carved and painted a series of thirteen wooden cabinets that address the relationship between humans and animals. The exterior of each cabinet portrays an animalistic cliché that typically represents a human behavior (such as "foxy" or "sheepish" or "bully"), while the interior reveals actual human behavior toward the animal in the cliché (such as fur, wool, or beef industries).
Also on view during the Festival is the 22nd Rosen Outdoor Sculpture Competition & Exhibition, on view from May 31, 2008 to Mar. 1, 2009, at various location around campus. The exhibit is a national juried competition presented annually by the Turchin Center for the Visual Arts on the campus of Appalachian State University. Each year, ten sculptures are selected for exhibition, with a cash prize awarded to the artist whose work is chosen as that year's Rosen Award winner. Since its establishment in 1987, The Rosen has become an integral part of An Appalachian Summer Festival, with the announcement of the Rosen Award winner coming during the festival's annual Sculpture Walk with that year's juror.
The Turchin Center will also be offering a host of related events in conjunction with these exhibitions. Call the Center to find out about these events.
The Turchin Center for the Visual Arts is the largest facility of its kind in western North Carolina, eastern Tennessee, and southwestern Virginia, and is named for university benefactors Robert and Lillian Turchin. Featuring two wings of exhibition and support space and the Arnold P. Rosen Family Education Wing, the center is located in the heart of downtown Boone. The Turchin Center's exhibitions focus on a blend of new and historically important artwork and feature works of nationally and internationally renowned artists, as well as many of the finest artists of the region. With its multi-faceted programs and its Community Art School, the center is a dynamic, living, breathing presence in the Appalachian community, creating opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to experience the power and excitement of the visual arts.
For further information check our NC Institutional
Gallery listings, call 828-262-3017, visit (www.appsummer.org)
or for info on the Turchin Center, visit (www.tcva.org).
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