September 6, 1996
Charles Russell, Offering to the Sun Gods, 1904, shown at
right.
Charles Russell Works Featured in New Great Plains Exhibit
Favorite Forms by Charles M. Russell: Interplay Between Selected
Sculpture,
Drawings and Paintings will open Sept. 16 at the Great Plains Art
Collection,
215 Love Library. The special exhibit features sculptures by Russell from
the Christlieb Collection, along with drawings and paintings borrowed
from
other museum collections.
Distinguished Russell expert Brian W. Dippie, from the University of
Victoria,
British Columbia, Canada, will present a lecture relating specifically to
the exhibit's theme at 7:30 p.m. Oct. 1 in the gallery. A reception will
follow.
Dippie has written and edited numerous publications on the artist, the
most
recent being Charles M. Russell, World Painter: Letters 1887-1926,
published in 1993. This unique opening program has been underwritten by
the Abel Foundation and is co-sponsored by the Friends of the Center for
Great Plains Studies.
The Great Plains Art Collection holds one of the largest collections of
bronze sculptures by Charles M. Russell. These are part of the Christlieb
Collection, the core of the museum's permanent collection. The exhibit
marks
the first time the museum has devoted a major show on this campus to
these
significant sculptures. Such well known bronzes as Smoking Up, The
Bucker and the Buckeroo and Sleeping Thunder will be on view.
A number of drawings and paintings by Russell on themes related to those
of the sculptures also will be on exhibit. These important pieces have
been
loaned by the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody, Wyo.; the Gilcrease
Museum, Tulsa, Okla.; the Montana Historical Society, Helena, Mont.; and
the Rockwell Museum, Corning, N.Y.
One of the most important and influential artists of the American West,
Charles M. Russell (1864-1926), along with Frederic S. Remington,
contributed
to the mythic, heroic representation of the American West that has long
exerted a strong hold on the popular imagination.
Born in St. Louis, Russell was drawn to the west even as a young boy. He
traveled to Montana for the first time in 1880, just as he turned
sixteen,
arriving during the waning days of the open range. Russell decided to
stay
in Montana and live the life of a cowboy for a number of years. This
self-taught
artist, however, also developed his artistic skills as he befriended and
learned the ways of the sheepherders, trappers, cowboys and American
Indians.
Perhaps best known for his paintings that depict dramatic action that is
commonly associated with these iconic western types, Russell also treated
a wider variety of subjects than is commonly recognized.
The number of sensitive, sometimes humorous portrayals of wildlife, for
example, is striking. He also often portrayed Native American subjects
with
extraordinary care and understanding. Russell's work gradually found a
larger
audience beyond Montana, not only because he diligently produced fine
work,
but also because his wife and astute business manager, Nancy Cooper
Russell,
promoted his work effectively. His sculptures, in particular, won
critical
praise from art reviewers seeing his work exhibited in New York and
cities
on the West Coast.
The exhibit indicates something of the range of western subjects that
engaged
the artist during his productive life. It will run through Oct. 25.
Accompanying the Charles M. Russell exhibit will be a separate show,
Images
by Friends, Followers and Contemporaries of Charles M. Russell, Sept.
16 to Oct. 25. This consists of paintings and works on paper by artists
such as Frederic S. Remington, Joe De Yong, Edwin W. Deming, Hans
Kleiber,
Lone Wolf (Hart Merriam Schultz), Olaf Seltzer, Ed Borein and Will James.
Drawn from the permanent collection of the Great Plains Art Collection,
the exhibit also includes pieces borrowed from the Sheldon Memorial Art
Gallery.
Frontier Culture Subject of Library Exhibit, Screening
UNL Libraries will host a traveling exhibition curated by Richard White
entitled "The Frontier in American Culture" from Sept. 5 to
Oct.
17.
The exhibition examines the narratives and images of the frontier which
pervade our culture and the ways in which they have shaped our conception
of American identity and values. The exhibition was organized by the
American
Library Association in cooperation with the Newberry Library in Chicago
and is funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.
A Ken Burns documentary, The West, will be available for viewing
at the exhibition site.
In conjunction with this exhibition, the Friends of the UNL Libraries
will
sponsor a lecture/demonstration by Michael Farrell, producer of In
Search
of the Oregon Trail, at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 21 in the Center for Great
Plains Art Collection, 215 Love Library. John Wunder, director of the
Center
for Great Plains Studies, will introduce the program. A special screening
of the documentary will be at 7 p.m. in the Love Library auditorium on
Sept.
19. This screening is free and open to the public.
On Oct. 11, five panelists will discuss their concept of the frontier and
how it differs from White's view at 7:30 p.m. in the Center for Great
Plains
Art Collection, 215 Love Library.
Church Music Workshop Slated for Sept. 28
A workshop designed to assist persons working in church music will be
Sept.
28 in Grand Island at Trinity United Methodist Church.
The nondenominational workshop begins at 9 a.m. with an anthem reading
session.
All interested persons are invited to sing and need not register if they
are attending only this session. Sessions for adult choir directors,
organists
and children and youth choir directors will follow. In addition,
videotapes
about church music will be available for viewing throughout the day.
The UNL School of Music is sponsoring the workshop in cooperation with
the
Schmitt Music Centers. The workshop is supported in part by the Bostrom
Memorial Fund.
Workshop leaders are Quentin Faulkner, UNL; Margot Woolard, UNL; and Kim
Patterson, Westminster Presbyterian Church, Lincoln. Orvid Owens is the
coordinator.
Participants can look to the workshop for practical presentations of
techniques
and skills. Persons from small churches and churches with modest
resources
for music are especially invited to attend.
The workshop fee is $25 per person, and pre-registration is
encouraged.
For more information or to register by phone, call either Michele Deaton,
UNL School of Music, (402) 472-6861 or Orvid Owens, (402) 483-7237.
Sondheim's Tony Award-Winning 'Passion' Airs on ETV
Passion, a Tony Award-winning musical by composer/lyricist Stephen
Sondheim and writer/director James Lapine, will air at 9 p.m. Sept. 8 on
American Playhouse on the statewide Nebraska ETV Network.
The musical won Tonys for best score (by Sondheim) and best book (by
Lapine)
as well as the prestigious Drama Desk Award for best musical. Set in 19th
century Italy, Passion depicts the relationship between a
sensitive
young army captain, Giorgio, and two women. The beautiful and sensuous
Clara
is content to live only for the passionate moments she and Giorgio can
share.
However, the ailing and obsessive Fosca demands Giorgio's total and
unconditional
love.
Gallery Walk Cabaret Series Begins Sept. 6
The Wagon Train Project and ArtSpirit will present monthly Gallery Walk
Cabaret Series jazz performances beginning Sept. 6 from 8 to 11 p.m. at
the Wagon Train Project, 504 S. 7th St.
These shows will coincide with the visual art openings on the first
Friday
of every month at the Historic Haymarket Galleries. Each month will
feature
a different local jazz group, sometimes joined by visiting artists from
the Wagon Train Project's performance season.
The UNL Faculty Jazz Trio will begin the season on Sept. 6. Members of
the
trio are Peter Bouffard on guitar, Tom Larson on piano and Rusty White on
bass.
The shows will be presented cabaret style, in a smoke-free environment,
with a cash bar. The cost is $5.
Lentz Center Exhibits Collection Additions
The Lentz Center for Asian Culture at UNL has 31 recent additions to its
collection on display through Oct. 20 as part of To Have and to Hold:
1995-96 Gifts of Jade, Ceramic and Silver Vessels.
The title for the exhibition was chosen because almost all of the pieces
are holders. Some are ritual containers and others have more ordinary
purposes.
A public reception celebrating the exhibition is scheduled for 2:30-4:30
p.m. Sept. 17 at the center, 329 Morrill Hall, 14th and U streets on the
UNL city campus.
The Lentz Center's public hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday through
Saturday
and 1:30-4:30 p.m. Sundays.
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For questions regarding these Scarlet pages, contact:
dtaurins@unlinfo.unl.edu
(402) 472-8518, Fax: (402) 472-7825