Williams College Museum of Art Presents
The Plonsker Family Lecture in Contemporary Art
Featuring Artist Kara Walker as Keynote Speaker

Saturday, October 25, 2003 at Brooks-Rogers Recital Hall,
Bernhard Music Center, Williams College
2:00 p.m

Williamstown, MA—Williams College Museum of Art (WCMA) will feature internationally acclaimed artist Kara Walker as the Plonsker Family Lecturer in Contemporary Art, followed by a panel discussion with Hamza Walker, Director of Education at the Renaissance Society, and Mark Reinhardt, Professor of Political Science at Williams College. The lecture and panel discussion are presented in conjunction with Kara Walker: Narratives of a Negress, and Representing Slavery, an exhibition featuring the work of six American artists, offering a wide range of interpretations on the subject of slavery in the United States. Both exhibitions are currently on view at the Williams College Museum of Art. The Lecture will take place 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 25 in Brooks-Rogers Recital Hall, Bernhard Music Center at Williams College.

Kara Walker, known for her black paper silhouettes, has quickly become one of the most important voices of her generation. Her images often depict Civil War-era scenes filled with visual stereotypes, sex, violence, and disquieting power relationships. In these works, Walker addresses racial identity in a confrontational way. The Plonsker Family Lecture in Contemporary Art will broach these issues and open them up for discussion. “New Art is frequently complex and misunderstood, not to mention controversial,” says WCMA Director, Linda Shearer, “This series provides our community with the opportunity to be exposed to the best minds in the arts by enabling us to bring distinguished artists and critics like Kara Walker and Hamza Walker, whose discussion will be moderated this year by Williams Professor, Mark Reinhardt. We are especially fortunate to have alumni families, like the Plonskers, whose support and generosity make programs like this possible.” The Plonsker Family Lecture Series in Contemporary Art was established in 1994 by Madeleine Plonsker, Harvey Plonsker (Class of ’61), and their son, Ted Plonsker (Class of ’86), to examine current issues in contemporary art.

Speakers

Featured artist, Kara Walker received her B.F.A. from the Atlanta College of Art in 1991, and her MFA from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1994. Since her debut at the Drawing Center in New York in 1994, her drawings and installations have been shown internationally in group and solo exhibitions at important museums and biennials. Among her numerous awards, she received a John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation fellowship in 1997 and was chosen to represent the United States at the 2002 São Pãulo Bienal in Brazil.

The lecture will be followed by a panel discussion with Hamza Walker, moderated by Professor Mark Reinhardt of Williams College. Hamza Walker is Director of Education for The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago - a non-collecting museum devoted to contemporary art. Prior to his position at The Society, he worked as Public Art Coordinator for the Department of Cultural Affairs. He has written reviews for such publications as Trans, New Art Examiner, Parkett, and Artforum, and was the recipient of the 1999 Norton Curatorial Grant.

Mark Reinhardt is Professor of Political Science and American Studies at Williams College. He is the author of The Art of Being Free: Taking Liberties with Tocqueville, Marx, and Arendt and the forthcoming The Strange Case of Margaret Garner. He has written for such publications as Critical Inquiry, The Nation, Theory & Event, and Political Theory.

Fall Family Weekend Reception to Follow

Following the lecture and panel discussion, the annual Fall Family Weekend Reception will take place in the galleries of WCMA. The reception celebrates all new and continuing fall exhibits at WCMA, including Kara Walker: Narratives of a Negress, which runs through December 7; Representing Slavery, through December 21; Working it Through: Art by Williams College Studio Faculty, through December 14; Nicole Cohen: My Vie en Rose, through December 7; El Lissitzky’s Kestner Portfolios: Proun and Victory over the Sun, through November 16; and Ha! Cartoons, Caricatures, and Satire from the Williams College Museum of Art, through December 21.

The exhibition, Kara Walker: Narratives of a Negress is supported in part by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. The exhibition and lecture will contain material that is adult in nature.

Related Exhibition and Programs

WCMA will also be hosting “Narratives,” a series of gallery talks about the Kara Walker: Narratives of a Negress exhibition. The schedule is as follows:

Gallery Talk, “Narratives” Series, by Darby English, Assistant Professor of Art History, University of Chicago
Wednesday, October 22, 2003, 12:10-12:50 p.m.

Gallery Talk, “Narratives” Series, by Lisa Dorin, Assistant Curator, WCMA
Wednesday, November 5, 2003, 12:10-12:50 p.m.

Dialogues, “Narratives” Series
The conclusion of talks and final presentation on Kara Walker: Narratives of a Negress.
Wednesday, November 12, 2003, 4 p.m.

The Williams College Museum of Art is open Tuesday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, from 1 to 5 p.m. Admission is free and the museum is wheelchair accessible.

Contact: Suzanne Augugliaro, Public Relations Coordinator
413.597.3178; WCMA@williams.edu