What's Up - Your guide to what's happening in Fayetteville, AR this week!
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/957282
MARCH 25-31, 2018 WHAT'S UP! 9 FAQ 2018 Distinguished Speaker Series WHEN — All events begin at 7 p.m. April 6 — Artist/activist Patrisse Khan Cullors May 11 — Sculptor Deborah Butterfield July 27 — Chef/author Toni Tipton-Martin Sept. 12 — Broadway producer Jeffrey Seller ("Hamilton," "RENT," Avenue Q," and "In the Heights") Nov. 8 — Painter Julie Mehretu Dec. 7 — Equal Justice Initiative founder Bryan Stevenson WHERE — Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville COST — $15; $12/members; $5/students INFO — 418-5700 or crystalbridges.org FYI — Book signings with the speakers will follow several of the events. "I think the Speaker Series gives everybody an opportunity, if they're willing to, to become vulnerable and leave their preconceived notions behind, and hear a message directly from a public persona," Sumlin offers. "It gives you the opportunity to hear the truth of that individual, have a meaningful dialogue, ask questions if you want, find commonality where you can, and then agree to disagree if you can't." Perhaps the strongest example of an opportunity to create dialogue comes with the first speaker event of the new series on April 6: Patrisse Khan Cullors is a performance artist, activist and one of the co-founders of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. "We know everyone has grown up in different areas and we've all been taught different things," Segerlin offers. "And some people have said, 'Well, what about all lives matter? Or Hispanic lives matter?' And we agree; that is the case. However, we want to understand what the #BlackLivesMatter movement is. And the museum can really provide a space for the community as an open platform to learn about these different cultural building movements that are happening across the country." Segerlin says Cullors' presentation comes from a place of hope and love, where everyone has equity and equality — exactly the focus of this year's series. "The speakers will often provoke us to focus more on what we have in common than what we don't," Sumlin adds. "At Crystal Bridges, we honor the responsibility we have to be a cultural community platform through the vehicle of art," Segerlin concludes. "And I think you can see a huge change in our approach: When we first opened the museum, we needed to spend time just sharing about art and getting to know the community. But in year seven, I think we are ready to be bold and take risks and to be an open platform for current issues. We're about building allies and welcoming all, so, more to come." COVER STORY "Julie Mehretu is an amazing muralist — she does large scale, epic paintings," Segerlin says of the artist whose piece "Retopistics: A Renegade Excavation" is one of the largest canvas works in Crystal Bridges' collection. "She has a really interesting history with her Ethiopian roots and the way she views land and space. So right now, she's very hot in the art world. She's getting retrospectives throughout museums internationally, [and] Julie's unique because she regularly reinvents her painting work." Award-winning chef and author Toni Tipton-Martin is well know for her study of African- American cuisine and for her book "The Jemima Code: Two Centuries of African American Cookbooks." Tipton-Martin "finds that you can learn more about your people and your culture through food and the experience of food," Segerlin shares. "She [looks at the] history from people who have not been recorded through cooking. And I think that's something we have to realize as we look at art history, or American art history, is that there's many histories that are not told." "The impact he has had of getting over 200 people removed from death row and kind of being a modern- day hero, it is motivating to see the power of one individual — especially when they're not as focused on themselves, but they're focused on others and the impact that man can have for the betterment of society as a whole. It just speaks to the ability of one person to lead change to make the world a better place," Anthony Sumlin says of his excitement to see Bryan Stevenson, Equal Justice Initiative founder, as part of the series. Courtesy Photos Deborah Butterfield's sculpture "Red Stick," located in the south lobby at Crystal Bridges, has confounded and delighted guests for years as they discover the horse outline that appears to be made of wood is actually bronze. "Most sculptors were not doing the kind of work that she was; she's also a metal sculptor who's a woman, and that is unique to her field," Segerlin says of the 2018 Distinguished Speaker Series' second innovative speaker. "So she had to create her own pathway to her creative vision and her own technique and style. [She is] someone who changed the way sculptors think about metal in their field." "For Jeffrey Sellers, he completely reinvigorated Broadway to be accessible to the mainstream. He looks at the role of live theater and how it interacts with the digital age," Segerlin explains of the producer of smash hits "Hamilton," "RENT," Avenue Q" and "In the Heights." "He's definitely a game- changer in the field of Broadway, not only through artistic production, but also just introspectively and how he views Broadway's role within the community or within New York City."