Tag Archives: UA Little Rock

Sculpture Vulture: Michael Warrick’s VISIONARY

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Today’s Sculpture Vulture features Michael Warrick’s Visionary. This bronze cast sculpture depicts a head with eyes closed. The sculpture is a permanent installation in the Bernice Garden on South Main Street.

The sculpture was created by Michael Warrick. It is a replica of a much larger piece he created for a sculpture garden in Changchun, China. That city is one of Little Rock’s Sister Cities.

Warrick is a professor in the UALR Art Department. His sculptures are in display throughout the US and in foreign countries.

This Thursday, September 20, the Bernice Garden will host an event which will feature the unveiling of the 2012 sculptures. (The garden features both permanent and temporary installations.). Six new sculptures will be unveiled. The chosen artists are : Mia Hall, Bryan Winfred Massey Sr., David O’brien, Tod “Switch” Swiecichowski, Steph Shinabetzy, and Jon M Van Horn.

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Little Rock author Frank Thurmond book signing

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Frank ThurmondLittle Rock author Frank Thurmond will have a book signing today. For those not in Little Rock for the Razorback game, they should journey to That Bookstore In Blytheville for his 1pm book signing.

Thurmond will be signing copies of his new book entitled BEFORE I SLEEP: A MEMOIR OF TRAVEL AND RECONCILIATION, published by Et Alia Press. The book is available locally at the Clinton Museum Store, Wordsworth Books, and the UALR bookstore. It can be ordered online through Amazon.com.

After growing up in Little Rock, Thurmond has now returned and is an instructor at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.  In addition to being an author, he is a classical guitarist.

Sculpture Vulture: Kerrick Hartman’s PLACES OF THE HEART

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While the Sculpture Vulture usually features permanent public art installations, this week’s feature is one of the temporary installations at the Bernice Garden. One of the winners in the 2011 Sculpture Competition. Kerrick Hartman’s sculpture Places of the Heart is located at the west entrance to the Bernice Garden. The sculpture stands approximately four feet tall and is made of marble, steel and wood.

Here is his artist’s statement:

“I like to draw inspiration from the natural beauty of Arkansas with a focus on the small places tucked away that are sought out for a moment of quiet contemplation and introspection. It seems that with our stressed out and busy lives such places are harder to find and appreciate. These places of solitude are where we can let the interplay of ideas, emotions, and spirituality; shape our lives, our landscape, and our future.

20120812-152715.jpgThese are the places of the heart and the outwardly spiraling form suggests hope from spiritual and intellectual growth, and transitions into an undulating shape on the reverse side signifying and inward path of introspection and self-reflection. Where one seeks solitude is often as individualistic and unique as the people of Arkansas; and in a sense reflects the very nature of the Bernice Garden.

Hartman currently lives in Stuttgart and attends UALR working on a B.A. in Studio Art. Hh has previously worked as a scientist focusing in plant pathology with a PhD From North Carolina State University in 1996. It is his current desire and passion to create art on a full time basis and to share his creative skill through gallery exhibitions, workshops and community art experiences.

Sculpture Vulture: Maribeth Anders’ SHADOW HOUSE

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This month, the Sculpture Vulture highlights some sculptures from another Little Rock sculpture garden–the Bernice Garden on South Main Street.

Today’s sculpture is Maribeth Anders’ Shadow House. This fifteen foot tall sculpture is made primarily of painted wood. This is a permanent sculpture in the garden and was selected for inclusion in 2009.

Anders has lived in Little Rock for nearly three decades. She is currently a Visual Arts Instructor at Pulaski Technical College. Over the years, she has taught at the Arkansas Arts Center, the Little Rock School District and the UALR Community School of the Arts.

More of her work can be seen at her website at www.maribethandersart.com.

Legacies and Lunch tomorrow

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The Butler Center’s monthly “Legacies and Lunch” series continues tomorrow.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012, noon to 1 p.m.
Darragh Center, Main Library
100 Rock St.
The Civil War in Arkansas

In conjunction with the Butler Center exhibition Invasion or Liberation? The Civil War in Arkansas, Dr. Carl Moneyhon will discuss opposition to the Civil War in Arkansas. Moneyhon, a faculty member in the University of Arkansas at Little Rock history department, is a specialist in the history of the American Civil War and the South and is widely published in the field.

Invasion or Liberation? will be on view on Concordia Hall (401 President Clinton Ave.) through October 27, 2012. Legacies & Lunch is sponsored in part by the Arkansas Humanities Council. Bring a sack lunch; drinks and dessert are provided.

Dr. Moneyhon joined the faculty in 1973 and holds a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He is faculty liaison with the University History Institute, an organization that develops closer ties between the department and the community. He also serves on the editorial boards of the Arkansas Historical Quarterly and the Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. He was won the UALR Faculty Excellent Award for Research and the UALR Faculty Excellence Award for Teaching.

Dr. Moneyhon is a specialist in the history of the American Civil War and the South and is widely published in the field. His work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities, and he recently received one of the first College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Summer Fellowships for Research. He is a Fellow of the Texas Historical Association. He is working on a book on the connection of war-time experience and developed identity among Confederate soldiers.

July 2nd Friday Art Night

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Once again, Friday the 13th will be lucky for patrons who venture out to explore 2nd Friday Art Night in downtown Little Rock.   It takes place from 5pm to 8pm and is free.  Several downtown galleries are open with special events and exhibits.  A free trolley runs between the various sites.

Here is a sampling of what can be found.

Historic Arkansas Museum (200 East Third Street) hosts the opening reception for BARBIE: The 11 1/2-inch American Icon, the newest exhibit in the Eclectic Collector series. There will be live music by Steve Bates and an ice cream tasting with Loblolly Creamery. Loblolly makes small batch ice cream, fizzy sodas and other treats from local organic ingredients.

Butler Center Galleries (401 President Clinton Avenue) will feature The Civil War in Arkansas as a part of the 150th commemoration of this pivotal event in American History.  Also still on display are Arkansas Arts Educators State Youth Art Show 2012 and Small Town: Portraits of a Disappearing America

Christ Episcopal Church (509 Scott Street) showcases artists from the Arkansas Pastel Society.  In addition artwork from students who are participating in a Christ Church summer youth arts program will also be on display.

studioMAIN (1423 South Main) opens its latest exhibition, Quality + Quantity: a Conversation on Modern Furniture. It exhibits furniture designed by local UALR Applied Design students and pairs it with several timeless furniture pieces that are being provided by Workplace Resource and Herman Miller.

Quapaw Quarter Association at Curran Hall (515 East Capitol Avenue) is showcasing LVB Designs…cuff bracelets by Linda Bradley, local designer and artist.  Each piece is custom made.  See and try on these unique cuffs in their many styles and designs.

Sculpture Vulture: Michael Warrick’s CORAL

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Today’s Sculpture Vulture feature is Michael Warrick’s Coral which was installed in the Vogel Schwartz Sculpture Garden in 2010. Using bronze, Warrick highlights the many facets of that material in an abstract piece. It features roughness, smoothness, broad surfaces and delicate tendrils.

Warrick is a longtime faculty member at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and has sculptures placed as far away as China in addition to appearing in many public and private collections in Arkansas and throughout the United States.