Transcript Staff
Eight Native Oklahoman artists are gathering for a public panel discussion about survival strategies and identity issues during a special event at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art Friday, Sept. 11. At 10 a.m., the artists will begin a session titled "Art as Identity: The Operative Principles of Affirmation, Accommodation and Appropriation in the Native American Artistic Pursuit of Self."
Moderated by art critic Edwin L. Wade and art collector Rennard Strickland, the morning and afternoon sessions will use the museum's new exhibition, "Spirit Red: Visions of Native American Artists from the Rennard Strickland Collection," as a framework to discuss critical aesthetic issues confronting contemporary Native American artists.
The sessions are free and open to the public. A special lunch with the artists is $25 per person. Registration for lunch and/or the sessions is required by Sept. 4 by calling (405) 325-5990. Seating is limited.
Guest artists include Joseph Erb, Ruthe Blalock Jones, Shawna Morton Cain and Roger Cain in the morning. Afternoon session artists will feature Bill Glass, Bill Rabbit, Martha Berry and Lisa Rutherford.
The Spirit Red exhibition features more than 100 paintings, baskets, pottery, textiles and sculpture representing some of the most acclaimed artists of the 20th century. The exhibition remains on display through Sept. 13.
The museum is on the corner of Elm Avenue and Boyd Street, at 555 Elm Ave., on the OU Norman campus.
Admission to the museum is free to all OU students with a current student ID and all museum association members, $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for children 6 to 17 years of age, $2 for OU faculty/staff, and free for children 5 and under. The museum's Web site is www.ou.edu/fjjma. Information and accommodations on the basis of disability are available by calling 325-4938.
The museum is under construction but open and fully functional with exhibitions and programming throughout the entire construction process.
