Hillsborough County Library Cooperative Art History “Lecture” Series

So, now that my time at the Rifkind Center is coming to an end, I have some breaking news announcements to post in sequence…

First, beginning this Saturday and through the summer months I will … well, be involved in a series of discussions about art history sponsored through a grant I received from the  Hillsborough Public Library Cooperative. It’s all kicking off at the SouthShore Regional Public Library in Ruskin.

The SouthShore Library has a great history of funding arts programs for the patrons in its off-the-track corner of the county and I am very grateful to receive this support and for being able to work around upcoming travel obligations. The library staff had in mind a formal sequence of talks, but the proposal I made is for something more experimental that I have had in mind for a while…

…which is why I hesitate to call these “lectures.” Each session is going to be very interactive and will unfold in a participant-driven way, and there will be a digital component posted for downloading during and after each event.

Based upon the literally 400 hours I have spent, in the spirit of re-enactment, at the Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung over the past few years, I have some good photographs and notes, but also some fun pop culture artefacts, even memes, and of course there is 2002’s Bubba Ho Tep. I have found that most people already know a little, and some a lot, about Pharaonic Egypt and have very strong opinions about whether the pyramids were made by aliens, what Cleopatra was really like, (for me it will always be like Lyndsey Marshal in Rome (2005))and so on, so hopefully the conversation will be lively.

Anyway the schedule is as follows. I admit the second one is going to be kind of a stretch but, things change, the show must go on, or something.

14 April: “Pharaohs and Pyramids: Egyptian Deities and the Book of the Dead” This discussion will examine some of the colorful and fascinating objects, large and small, from dynastic Egypt, including papyrus paintings, jewellery, the pyramids, and of course the fantastic contents of the tombs of the pharaohs.

19 May: “Gothic Art Meets the Avant-Garde” The early 20th Century saw an enormous upheaval in the art world in the form of Expressionism, Futurism, and Dada. We will look at these artists and explore the influence of Gothic art and architecture on their work.

23 June: “Byzantium and the Mediterranean” Art between the Roman and Ottoman Empires produced stunning mosaics and soaring domes, influenced by travel, trade, and religion.

21 July: “Diverse and Eclectic: The Art of Today.” Contemporary art is free of “isms” and full of contradictions. People have very strong opinions about this subject, and we’ll have a lively chat about why, as well as looking at some of the stars of today’s international art world.

21 July: “Diverse and Eclectic: The Art of Today.” Contemporary art is free of “isms” and full of contradictions. People have very strong opinions about this subject, and we’ll have a lively chat about why, as well as looking at some of the stars of today’s international art world.

The SouthShore Library is at 15816 Beth Shields Way, Ruskin, 33573.