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The first major exhibition to examine the importance of the year 1958 as a critical tipping point in American art will open Sept. 21 at the Ackland Art Museum at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

The exhibition, “Circa 1958: Breaking Ground in American Art,” marks the Ackland’s 50th anniversary, looking at major changes in the art world at the time of the museum’s beginnings. Up through Jan. 4, the exhibition will be accompanied by programs featuring the music, literature, theater and ideas of the 1950s.

The museum will celebrate the anniversary and open the exhibition with a free public reception from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the museum, on South Columbia Street near Franklin Street. Afterward, at 3 p.m., the exhibition’s curator and a UNC professor will lead a panel discussion on the tensions and trends that changed American society and American art in the years surrounding 1958.

The discussion will be next door to the Ackland in the auditorium of the Hanes Art Center, accessible at the Hanes entrance behind Hill Hall, off Porthole Alley. Art in America correspondent Roni Feinstein, who guest-curated the exhibition for the Ackland, will discuss the era with David Sontag, the Wesley Wallace Professor of communication studies at UNC, Ackland Director Emily Kass and Joy Kasson, UNC professor and chair of American studies.

For more on the exhibition, visit http://www.ackland.org/visit/calendar.php. Accompanying programs will be at the museum and free to the public unless otherwise noted, as follows:

Sept. 21, 1 p.m – 3 p.m. “Circa 1958” reception and 50th anniversary celebration. The Ackland celebrates its 50th anniversary and the opening of “Circa 1958” with cupcakes, music and more.

Sept. 21, 3 p.m. “Circa 1958: Tensions in American Culture and Trends in American Art – A Debate Among Experts,” Hanes Art Center Auditorium. “Circa 1958” guest curator Roni Feinstein and moderator David Sontag, Wesley Wallace Professor of communication studies at UNC, lead a panel discussion on the tensions and trends that changed American society and American art in the years surrounding 1958. Ackland Director Emily Kass and Joy Kasson, UNC professor and chair of American studies, also will be on the panel.

Sept. 24, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. Lunch with One: One Work, One Expert, One Hour: “1958: Culture/Counterculture.” Professor of history emeritus Peter Filene, associate director of the UNC Institute for the Arts and Humanities, investigates Robert Frank’s photographs and Robert Rauschenberg’s paintings from the late 1950s. Online registration is recommended; visit www.ackland.org or call (919) 966-5736. Free for museum members, $5 for others.

Oct. 4, 4 p.m. Katherine Whalen and her Jazz Squad. Squirrel Nut Zippers front woman Katherine Whalen brings her Jazz Squad to the Ackland’s courtyard for a concert to celebrate “Circa 1958” with music from the 1950s.

Oct. 10, 6 p.m. – 7 p.m. “Circa 1958” Gallery Tour. “Circa 1958” guest curator Roni Feinstein will guide visitors through the exhibition, providing insights into the significance of selected works. Americana singer-songwriter Mary Johnson Rocker will perform before and after the tour. Registration is recommended; call (919) 966-5736. The tour is free to members and students; $15 for non-members.

Oct. 15, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. Lunch with One: One Work, One Expert, One Hour: “Jazz Takes a Leap: The Breakthrough Year of 1958.” Music professor Jim Ketch, director of Jazz studies at UNC, will discuss the development of jazz in 1959, focusing on Miles Davis’ “Kind of Blue,” John Coltrane’s “Giant Steps” and the emergence of Ornette Coleman. Registration is recommended; call (919) 966-5736. Free for members; $5 for non-members.

Oct. 19, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. Music in the Galleries. Brian and Mary Lewis, with Nancy Bierman, will perform country music from the 1950s.

Oct. 21, 7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. “Circa 1958” Gerrard Hall Series. Music professor Jim Ketch, director of jazz studies at UNC, and Stephen Anderson, assistant professor of jazz studies and composition, join students in exploring important jazz milestones from 1959 in a concert of music by Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman and Antonio Carlos Jobim. Registration is recommended; call  (919) 966-5736. Free for members and students; $15 for non-members.

Nov. 5, 7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. “Circa 1958” Gerrard Hall Series. Music professor Stefan Litwin will present one version of John Cage’s “Concert for Piano and Orchestra,” written in 1958, in a performance by music department faculty and students. Registration is recommended; call (919) 966-5736. Free for members and students; $15 for nonmembers.

Nov. 14, 4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. Art of Assemblage Workshop: An Ackland-Kidzu Collaboration. 4- to 8-year-olds make their art by exploring “Circa 1958” and the Kidzu Children’s Museum’s Kidzoom. In this event, “The Power of Creativity,” children will create their own artistic assemblages from found objects. Registration is required and limited; call (919) 966-5736. The price is $5.

Nov. 14, 6:45 p.m. – 7:15 p.m. Art After Dark. Visitors will hear a gallery talk on the history of the Ackland.

Nov. 16, 2 p.m. – 4 p.m. Music in the Galleries. Minomenal will perform bluegrass from around 1958.

Nov. 19, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. Lunch with One: One Work, One Expert, One Hour: “Folk Scare: The Resurrection of Tom Dooley.” Robert Cantwell, Ph.D., a professor of American studies at UNC, will explore the social influences surrounding The Kingston Trio’s “Tom Dooley” (1958). Registration is recommended; call (919) 966-5736. Free for members; $5 for non-members.

Nov. 28, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Community Day. Storytelling, dressing up like people in Ackland works and making one’s own art are just some of the ways that visitors including families can celebrate the museum’s 50th anniversary.

Dec. 1, 7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. “Circa 1958” Gerrard Hall Series. The PlayMakers Repertory Company of UNC will present an evening that puts the literature and theater of the late 1950s in stark contrast to its predecessors, offering readings from children’s literature, poetry and theater that tell the story of the brave and revolutionary artistic voices of this period. Registration is recommended; call  (919) 966-5736. Free to members and students; $15 for non-members.

Dec. 10, 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. Lunch with One: One Work, One Expert, One Hour: “The Legacy: Circa 1958 and Beyond.” Assistant professor of art Cary Levine will examine the legacy of the period around 1958 in the visual arts. Registration is recommended; call  (919) 966-5736. Free for members; $5 for non-members.

Art & Literature in the Galleries, 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on the following Wednesdays: Sept. 17, Oct. 29 and Nov. 19. Also, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. on these Thursdays: Sept. 18, Oct. 30 and Nov. 20. Explore connections between groundbreaking literature from circa 1958 and works of art on view in “Circa 1958.” Jack Kerouac’s “On the Road,” Lawrence Ferlinghetti's “A Coney Island of the Mind” and Vladimir Nabokov’s “Lolita” will be discussed. Wednesday sessions will be co-facilitated by a UNC faculty member. The Bull’s Head Bookshop in the UNC Student Stores offers a 20 percent discount on all selected books. Registration required; call  (919) 966-5736. Free for members and high school students; $5 for non-members.

The Ackland is on South Columbia Street near East Franklin Street. Hours are Wednesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sundays 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. For information, call (919) 966-5736. To request a group tour, call (919) 962-3342. The recorded-information line is (919) 843-1611; The TTY line is (919) 962-0837. The museum is handicapped-accessible.

Hourly pay parking lots are on Rosemary Street within walking distance of the Ackland. The museum is served by stops on East Franklin and Columbia streets for Chapel Hill Transit and Triangle Transit Authority buses.

Video: For video of Ackland director Emily Kass discussing “Circa 1958,” visit http://giving.unc.edu/multimedia/kass.html

Images: Owners have given permission for media to publish the following images of artworks in the exhibition on paper, but they prohibit publication on the Web. Please email laura_toler@unc.edu or nicbrown@unc.edu if you would like images for your printed newspaper.

Kenneth Noland, American, born 1924: “That,” 1958-59. Oil on canvas, 62 inches by 56 inches by 19 inches. Collection of David Mirvish, Toronto. Art © Kenneth Noland/Licensed by VAGA, New York, N.Y.

John Chamberlain, American, born 1927: “Nutcracker,” 1958. Painted steel, 47 inches by 39 inches by 30 inches. Allan Stone Gallery, New York ,N.Y.?. © John Chamberlain / Artist Rights Society (ARS), New York, N.Y.

Robert Rauschenberg, American, 1925-2008: “Painting with Grey Wing,” 1959. Oil, printed reproductions, unpainted paint-by-number board, typed print on paper, photographs, fabric, stuffed bird wing and dime on canvas, 31.75 inches by 21.5 inches by 2.5 inches. The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. The Panza Collection. Art © Rauschenberg Estate/Licensed by VAGA, New York, N.Y.
 
Jasper Johns, American, born 1930. “Flashlight II,” 1958. Papier-mâché and glass, three inches by eight and three-fourths inches by four inches. Courtesy of Robert Rauschenberg. Art © Jasper Johns/Licensed by VAGA, New York, N.Y.

For a news release on the Ackland’s history, visit http://uncnews.unc.edu/news/arts/acklands-history-celebrated-in-50th-anniversary.html.

Ackland contacts:
Nic Brown, (919) 843-3675, nicbrown@email.unc.edu; Amanda Hughes, (919) 843-3592, hughesa@email.unc.edu
News  Services contact: LJ Toler, (919) 962-8589

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