Release date: March 8, 2005
Contact: Sally Corbett, Asst. Director for Marketing and Public Relations, Performing Arts,
at 404-727-6678 or sacorbe@emory.edu

Emory to Open New Visual Arts Building, Gallery and Inaugural Exhibit

The latest addition to arts facilities at Emory University has a copper and concrete face: a new Visual Arts Building and Gallery. Designed by Atlanta-based Menefee & Winer Architects, the new facility and renovation of the existing adjacent space gives the Visual Arts Program a substantial profile on campus.

The facility now provides a gallery for contemporary art exhibitions, offices and lounges, as well as improved classroom, storage, darkroom and computer spaces. In keeping with the university's role as a leading research institution, the curatorial vision for the new gallery is to introduce new ideas and work that may not be seen elsewhere in the region.

"Buildings are symbolic as well as functional. The new Visual Arts Building, along with the other new art buildings on campus, expresses an expansion of Emory's commitment to the idea that the creative act is a necessary component of the educational experience," says Bill Brown, visual arts program chairman.

Visual arts have been taught at Emory since the late 1960s, largely as an adjunct to art history offerings. The visual arts program has offered a minor for many years and in 2003 began to offer a joint major with art history. Varied course offerings include drawing/painting, sculpture, photography, ceramics and film/video.

The Visual Arts Program is small by some standards, but the impact made by the six full-time faculty members with diverse specialties has been considerable, according to Brown. Emory has had a remarkable record of placing its graduates in the best MFA and film programs in the country. Recent graduates have gone on to University of Southern California and New York University film schools, Harvard Architecture School, the Yale School of Art and Design and the Rhode Island School of Design, among others. The most acclaimed graduate is rising photographer and Whitney Biennial participant Chris Verene. Recent graduate J. Ivcevich was just awarded a Pollock-Krasner Grant, a major international award in the visual arts.

Inaugural Exhibit Features Pat Ward Williams Photography
“Isolated Incidents,” organized by Emory art history senior lecturer Eddie Chambers, is the first exhibition in the new gallery and features the work of nationally known, Tallahassee-based photographer Pat Ward Williams. The exhibition will be on view from March 21-April 15, 2005.

Williams “uses photographs as a means of animating and graphically illustrating potent debates and her own perceptions about culture, about history and identity, and how such concerns are irreversibly intertwined with the photographic medium,” says Chambers. The installation provides a firsthand look at the work of one of the most acclaimed artists in the country, especially known for her work in “photo (re) construction.” The exhibition offers a range of work spanning several decades of Williams' career.

The opening reception for the building and exhibition open are Thursday, March 24 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. with a gallery talk by the artist at 6:30 p.m. Gallery hours are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Saturdays, noon to 3 p.m. and closed on Sundays. For more information on gallery parking and directions, call 404-727-6315 or go to http://www.arts.emory.edu or www.visualarts.emory.edu. The Visual Arts Gallery is located at 700 Peavine Creek Drive, Atlanta, Georgia, 30322.

Growth of the Creative Arts at Emory
Emory has long been known for its pre-professional programs that prepare bright students to pursue law, medicine and business. But the university has made marked increases in its commitment to the creative arts during the last 10 years, including the construction of the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts (opened Feb. 2003) and the establishment of the Emory Coca-Cola Artists-in-Residence Program (Jan. 2004). Enhancements in the 1990s included renovations of the Performing Arts Studio, Rich Building and Burlington Road Building facilities for music, theater and dance.

Emory University is known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities. For more than a decade Emory has been named one of the country's top 25 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, a comprehensive metropolitan health care system.

Arts at Emory
Emory is home to a vibrant arts community and welcomes the public to more than 200 events annually featuring guest, faculty, alumni and student artists. More than 20 exhibitions and 80 concerts are presented each year. The work of internationally-known artists is featured in exhibitions at the Michael C. Carlos Museum, Schatten Gallery, and Visual Arts Building and Gallery; in performances of the Flora Glenn Candler Concert Series; in new play development through the Playwriting Center of Theater Emory and Brave New Works Series; in the creative writing program reading series; and through residencies in the Emory Coca-Cola Artists-in-Residence Series. Emory is home to 14 professional and student music ensembles, including Emory Dance Company and Theater Emory. The Schwartz Center for Performing Arts, one of six performance venues on campus, opened in February 2003 and houses the Dance Studio, Theater Laboratory, and the 825-seat, state-of-the-art Cherry Logan Emerson Concert Hall. For more information on the arts at Emory, call 404-727-5050.

Mission of the Arts at Emory: Emory University provides a dynamic, innovative environment for the study, creation and presentation of the arts.

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