NORA ECCLES HARRISON MUSEUM OF ART PRESENTS PUBLIC TALK

Logan—The Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art and the School of the Arts in the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences are pleased to announce a public presentation by Gerald Nordland on Wednesday, October 8 at 6 PM in the Museum’s Marie Eccles Caine Gallery. This presentation, open to the public and free of charge, is in conjunction with the exhibition “In the Spirit of the Times,” about West Coast Abstract Expressionism, curated by Nordland and made possible through a generous grant from the Marie Eccles Caine Foundation, with additional support from the Utah Arts Council.

Gerald Nordland is a specialist in 20th century art and former director of a number of American art museums including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the Milwaukee Museum of Art, a Guggenheim Fellow, in addition to activities as a curator, educator, lecturer, and widely published author.

During his presentation, Nordland will play a rare copy of a recording by the Studio 13 Jass Band. Some members this band are artists represented in the exhibition: Richard Diebenkorn played the trombone and Emerson Woelffer played the drums. (Other artists involved with the Studio 13 Jass Band were Elmer Bischoff, Wally Hedrick, Ray Parker and John Schuler.) Following Nordland’s talk, a live jazz concert organized by Utah State University’s Music Department will take place in Kent Concert Hall at 7:30 PM.

The exhibition “In the Spirit of the Times,” on view through July 2004, demonstrates that the West Coast Abstract Expressionists were as active as their better-known New York counterparts during the 1940s through the 1960s. The exhibition comprises 60 artworks selected from the Museum’s collection with an illustrated catalogue featuring an explanatory essay by Nordland. Among the artists are Richard Diebenkorn, Emerson Woelffer, Robert McChesney, Manuel Neri, Deborah Remington and George Stillman.

Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art, 650 North 1100 East, Logan, UT, 84322, (435) 797-0163, Fax (435) 797-3423, www.artmuseum.usu.edu. Hours: Tues., Thurs. & Fri.: 10:30 am - 4:30 pm; Wed.: 10:30 am - 8:00 pm; Sat.: noon - 5 pm; Closed Sundays, Mondays and major holidays. Admission is free. For more information or to schedule a tour of the Museum, please call (435) 797-0165. The Museum is accessible to persons with disabilities.