This one-day symposium will consider representations of race in performance in connection to the work of visual artist Kara Walker, who’s exhibition “Back of Hand” will be on display at the Athenaeum. Taking Walker as a departure point, invited speakers will address themes related to rethinking Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, satire, stereotypes, gender, and identity. The Keynote Speaker is Kirsten Pai Buick, professor of art history, University of New Mexico. Speakers include: Cheryl Finley, Inaugural Director of the Atlanta University Center Art History + Curatorial Studies Collective and Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Department of Art & Visual Culture at Spelman College; Paul Pfeiffer, visual artist; and Isaiah Wooden, assistant professor of theater, Swarthmore.
Schedule of Symposium
9:00am: Coffee and muffins and viewing of Kara Walker show
9:20am: Opening remarks
9:30am: Isaiah Wooden
10:30am: Paul Pfeiffer
11:30am: Cheryl Finley
12:30 - 2:00: Break for Lunch
2:30pm: Kirsten Pai Buick
4:00pm: Round Table
5:00pm: Wine and cheese
This symposium is sponsored by AGAS, the Art Library, the Black Artist Alliance, The Georgia Review, the Hargrett Library, the Institute for African American Studies, the Institute for Women's Studies, the Interdisciplinary Modernisms Workshop, and the Willson Center for Humanities.