Category Archives: Lecture

Arts Center, studioMain present lecture on Bauhas tonight.

Posted on by
bauhaus

Photograph by Gordon Watkinson
Bauhaus Building – ‘Bauhaus Sign’

The Arkansas Arts Center, the state’s premiere center for visual and performing arts, together with studioMain, presents a special symposium, “From the Bauhaus to Our House,” discussing the history and influence of the Bauhaus movement to be held Friday, May 24, at 5 p.m., in the Arkansas Arts Center Lecture Hall. This symposium is in conjunction with the Arts Center’s current exhibition, Bauhaus twenty-21: An Ongoing Legacy – Photographs by Gordon Watkinson, on view May 24 – September 1, in the Winthrop Rockefeller Gallery.

“The Arts Center is pleased to be hosting such a notable panel of expert speakers,” said Arkansas Arts Center director of education Lou Palermo. “The Bauhaus movement was inspired by a world-changing vision to unite artists and craftsmen, and we will take a deeper look into that vision with the upcoming symposium. We are so excited to be partnering with studioMain to be able to offer this event to our friends and members of the Arkansas Arts Center.”

There will then be an hour break for viewing the exhibit and refreshments, followed by a 7 p.m. discussion with a panel of architectural experts in the design fields. Admission is free and no ticket required. The symposium will feature four of the top speakers in the state to discuss this important movement in architectural history. They are as follows: Dr. Floyd Martin (UALR, Art History), John Greer (WER Architects and Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas), Mia Hall (UALR, Applied Design) and Dr. Ethel Goodstein-Murphree (UA Fay Jones School of Architecture).

This exhibition conveys the lasting philosophies of the Bauhaus, a German expression meaning “house for building” and the name of an important German School principle of architecture and design. The Bauhaus school was founded by Walter Gropius in 1919 and introduced the sleek, functional architecture that is found in many of today’s modern buildings.

The exhibition is comprised of photographs, plans and elevations, and furniture that capture the essence of Bauhaus design and its influence on architecture. By pairing Bauhaus buildings with contemporary examples by leading architects, Gordon Watkinson explores the legacy of such modern ideas as passive solar, radiant heat and prefabricating housing.

“One Mind for Research” at Clinton School tonight

Posted on by

clinton-school-logoTonight at the Clinton School Speaker Series, General Peter Chiarelli will give a presentation entitled “One Mind for Research” at 6pm at Sturgis Hall.

The former vice chief of staff of the U.S. Army, retired General Peter Chiarelli has 40 years of experience designing and implementing American defense policy for the army and Department of Defense in peace and during combat operations. After retiring from the army in 2012, he was named CEO of One Mind for Research, a non-profit organization dedicated to curing the diseases of the brain and eliminating the stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness and brain injuries.

At the Clinton School, Chiarelli discusses his advocacy for eliminating the stigma associated with service members and Veterans seeking and receiving assistance for the treatment of Post-Traumatic Stress and Traumatic Brain Injury.

QQA Preservation Conversation: Tour of Woodruff House

Posted on by

woodruff houseThe latest Quapaw Quarter Association Preservation Conversation is this evening.  Instead of being at Curran Hall, this one is a tour of the William Woodruff House, located at 1017 East 8th Street. The program will begin at 5pm this evening.  This tour is one of the QQA’s activities for Arkansas Heritage Month.

The William E. Woodruff House was built in 1852-3 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989. In 2007, the Historic Preservation Alliance of Arkansas place the Woodruff House on its Most Endangered List.

Woodruff was the founder of the Arkansas Gazette. The two and one-half story house sits on three lots just two blocks east of I-30, near the MacArthur Park Historic District and the rapidly developing River Market District. Originally built in the Greek Revival Style, the house has many Colonial Revival elements, dating from an early 20th century remodeling. The footprints of outbuildings are still evident on the property, and the original cistern is located nearby.

The Quapaw Quarter Association’s mission is to promote the preservation of Little Rock’s architectural heritage through advocacy, marketing and education.

Incorporated in 1968, the QQA grew out of an effort to identify and protect significant historic structures in Little Rock during the urban renewal projects of the early 1960s. Throughout its existence, the QQA has been a driving force behind historic preservation in Greater Little Rock.

 

Military History Museum Hosts Author Today

Posted on by

1368546527-enduringlegacyOn Saturday, May 18, the MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History will host author and professor, Dr. Stuart Towns, as he tours to promote his new book Enduring Legacy: Rhetoric and Ritual of the Lost Cause (University of Alabama Press, 2012).  Dr. Towns will speak at 2pm at the museum in MacArthur Park.

Enduring Legacy explores the vital place of ceremonial oratory in the oral tradition in the South. It analyzes how rituals such as Confederate Memorial Day, Confederate veteran reunions, and dedication of Confederate monuments have contributed to creating and sustaining a Lost Cause paradigm for southern identity. Towns studies in detail post—Civil War southern speeches and how they laid the groundwork for future generations, from southern responses to the civil rights movement and beyond. The Lost Cause orators that came after the Civil War, Towns argues, helped to shape a lasting mythology of the brave Confederate martyrs and of the southern positions for why the Confederacy lost and who was to blame.

W. Stuart Towns is recently retired from Professor and Chairman of the Department of Communication Studies at Southeast Missouri State University. Before that he was Professor and Chair of Department of Communication at Appalachian State University and the University of West Florida. After spending over 30 years in the Active Army Reserves, Stuart retired as a Colonel. While in the Reserves, he served with the 361st Civil Affairs Brigade, and was a member of the Consulting Faculty Program at the U. S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.

The MacArthur Museum of Arkansas Military History relates the military heritage of Arkansas and its citizens to a diverse and widespread audience. Located in the historic Arsenal Building in MacArthur Park—one of Central Arkansas’s oldest surviving structures and the birthplace of one of this country’s foremost military heroes—the museum collects, preserves, and interprets our state’s rich military past from its territorial period to the present.

2013 LR Film Fest Panels Announced

Posted on by

lrff_mp_hdr_logoThe Little Rock Film Festival brings together award winning filmmakers, writers, film critics, producers and distributors for the 2013 LRFFTalks program. LRFFTalks aim to nurture conversations and create a platform for discussions, providing audiences the opportunity to gain an insight into both the creative and the business world of filmmaking.

AMPI Producers Forum

Friday, May 17 at 1pm at 610 Main Street

Arkansas Motion Picture Institute Director and film producer Courtney Pledger hosts a panel discussion with noted producers Brad Simpson (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Boys Don’t Cry, upcoming World War Z and Electric Slide) and Jocelyn Hayes (Lola Versus, The East) reveal lessons learned from nearly two decades of developing and producing films. From their start at New York-based Killer Films with indie producing legend Christine Vachon to working in the Hollywood Studio System, Simpson and Hayes, who also happen to be husband and wife, bring insider insights to the producing process that range from dealing with the change from movie business to media business, working as an independent vs.harnessing the power of a major studio, adapting best-selling books to the screen, staying in love with movies….to figuring out how to stay married when making a movie together.

 

Cinematic NonFiction: The New Documentary 

Saturday, May 18 at 12:45pm at Filmmaker Lounge inside the Arkansas Repertory Theatre

Moderated by award winning filmmaker and writer Robert Greene; panelists include Rick Rowley (Dirty Wars) Bill Ross (Tchoupitoulas) Lauren Wissot (Filmmaker Magazine) Philip Martin (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

In the past decade we have experienced a renaissance in nonfiction filmmaking. With access to cheap cameras and a collective education in cinematic storytelling, documentary filmmakers are pushing the boundaries and creating some of the most exciting films out there. Meanwhile, most established film critics seem to have completely missed the boat, writing about documentaries in terms of “subject” or “issue,” instead of basing their criticism around an advanced discussion of documentary form, including the collapsing walls between fiction and nonfiction. Jumping off from his essay in Hammer to Nail, filmmaker/writer Robert Greene will lead a discussion with a a panel of filmmakers and critics about the state of documentary storytelling today and the role critics are playing for better or worse.

 

Distributor Spotlight: Oscilloscope Laboratories

Saturday, May 18 at 1:45pm at Filmmaker Lounge inside the Arkansas Repertory Theatre

Panelists include: Joshua Fu, Director of Marketing, Oscilloscope Laboratories; Lofty Nathan – dir 120’Clock Boys, These Birds Walk – Omar Mullick; After Tiller – Martha Shane and Lana Wilson

Founded by former Beastie Boy, the late Adam Yauch, Oscilloscope Laboratories is one of the most exciting and innovative players in independent film distributor. Joshua Fu, head of Marketing at Oscilloscope will discuss his company’s mission and direction and sit down with directors of some of Ocilloscope’s newest acquisitions including LRFF2013 Official Selections 12’0 Clock Boys, These Birds Walk, and After Tiller.

 

The Making of Beasts of the Southern Wild 

Saturday, May 18 at 4:15pm at Cornerstone Pub

Bill Ross a New Orleans filmmaker behind LRFF2012 Official Selection Tchoupitoulas –will present two behind-the-scenes films he made on the making of the Oscar nominated film and LRFF2012 Golden Rock Winner Beasts of the Southern Wild. The first short covers pre-production for the film shot entirely in the Louisiana Bayou with many first time actors. The second short focuses on the first day of production. This special screening and talk will be moderated by award winning filmmaker/writer Robert Greene.

Architecture of new LR library focus of talk tomorrow night

Posted on by
READThe Architecture and Design Network presents architect Reese Rowland and Dr. Bobby Roberts in a conversation tomorrow night. (Tuesday, May 14)
Entitled “CALS Children’s Library and Learning Center: a New Paradigm,” Rowland and Roberts will discuss the process to design and build this innovative facility. The program begins at 6pm following a 5:30pm reception.  It will take place at the new Children’s Library and Learning Center located at 4800 West 10th Street.
Five years in the making, Little Rock’s new children’s library and learning center offers a range of participatory experiences designed to encourage the growth, development and well-being of its young patrons.
Situated on a six acre, landscaped tract that borders a  residential neighborhood just south of Highway 630, the 30,000 square foot facility is like no other in the region. Designed by award-winning  architect Reese Rowland, the twelve million dollar glass, steel and stone structure houses a collection of more than 21,000 books, CDs and DVDs. Among its special features are a computer lab; a spacious meeting room; a teaching kitchen; a series of study rooms and a multi-use,165-seat  theater. A greenhouse and teaching garden, set apart from the main structure, are  part of the complex which also includes an outdoor amphitheater.
Roberts will talk about how the idea for building a combined   children’s library  and learning center came about. He will also tell  how its  location was selected.  He and Rowland will discuss their roles, as client and architect, in the project’s design. They will talk about the kinds of programming  envisioned for the  facility and discuss  ways in which it plans to  engage with other  institutions and organizations in the community to serve children and their  families.
The event, part of  ADN’s Art of Architecture lecture series,  is free and open to the public. Series’  supporters include the Central Arkansas Chapter of the AIA, the Arkansas Arts Center,  UA’s Fay Jones School of Architecture and CALS. For additional information contact ardenetwork@icloud.com

 

Tales from the South pays tribute to Randy Tardy

Posted on by
talesfromsouthTonight, “Tales from the South” pays tribute to a longtime Arkansas writer.
Randy Tardy is the retired transportation and business writer for the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in Little Rock. He covered railroads, airlines and river traffic from 1976 until 2001. Randy, who is now in hospice, would like to share his stories with the world, so they will be read by his close friends.Randy’s stories will be read by Walter Walker, Rex Nelson, and Harvey Joe Sanner. Live music will be provided by The Salty Dogs and blues guitarist Mark Simpson.

“Tales From the South” is a radio show created and produced by Paula Martin Morell, who is also the show’s host, in conjunction with Temenos Publishing Company. The show is taped live on Tuesday nights at Starving Artist Cafe’in the Argenta Arts District of North Little Rock, Arkansas.

The program offers dinner and a show, and shows are $7.50 admission and open to the public. The night is a cross between a house concert and a reading/show, with incredible food and great company. Tickets must be purchased before the show, as shows are usually standing-room only.

“Tales from the South” is a showcase of writers reading their own true stories. While the show itself is unrehearsed, the literary memoirs have been worked on for weeks leading up to the readings. Stories range from funny to touching, from everyday occurrences to life-altering tragedies.

Doors open at 5:00pm. Dinner is served from 5:00 to 6:30pm (dinner price not included in admission charge).  The program starts at 7:00pm.  Advance reservations are required.