1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

“enigmatic remembrances” explores the works of artists Petra Carroll and Rae Goodwin; opens Friday, Feb. 17 in Transylvania’s Morlan Gallery

the body of, of the body (2012) LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University’s Morlan Gallery presents “enigmatic remembrances: new work by petra carroll and rae goodwin.” The exhibit, which opens Friday, Feb. 17 during Gallery Hop with a reception from 5-8 p.m, runs through Friday, March 23. “The premise of the exhibition is investigation of the power our memories have to commandeer our perceptions,” says gallery director Andrea Fisher. “The resulting work takes on a variety of media including two and three-dimensional mixed media that are often site-specific and transform the gallery space.” Working collaboratively, Carroll and Goodwin describe the ideas that motivated their latest work. “Exploration of memory is the exploration of the unknown. Each time we walk down ‘memory lane’ our recollections diverge and vary because we view the memory of the past from a different point in time. Our perception of the past shifts and changes as we shift and change.” Goodwin, director of foundations at the University of Kentucky, lives in Lexington and has taught at Pikeville College and Winthrop University. She ran an arts enrichment business for nine years in North Carolina. Her performance and sculptural works have been shown regionally, nationally and internationally in New Zealand, the McColl Center for Visual Art in North Carolina, Central Park in Manhattan and the Atlanta Contemporary Arts Center. She earned her M.F.A. in sculpture from Winthrop University and her B.A. degree in art from Framingham State College. Carroll, assistant professor

Novelist C.E. Morgan and mandolin player Ryan Blevins offer evening of reading and music at Transylvania Feb. 21 at 7 p.m.; free and open to the public

C. E. Morgan LEXINGTON, Ky.—Fiction writer C.E. Morgan and mandolin player Ryan Blevins, of the Virginia bluegrass group No Speed Limit, will offer an evening of reading and music at Transylvania University on Tuesday, February 21, at 7 p.m., in the Mitchell Fine Arts Center’s Carrick Theater. The event is part of this year’s Delcamp visiting artist series. The event is free and open to the public. Morgan’s first novel, “All the Living,” (2009) was a finalist for the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award for a distinguished book of fiction. Published by Farrar Straus & Giroux, “All the Living” received outstanding reviews and the New York Times Book Review named it an Editor’s Choice. Morgan also received recognition as one of the National Book Foundation’s “5 Best Writers under 35” and, in 2010, The New Yorker published her story “Twins” in a fiction edition titled “20 under 40,” devoted to the work of twenty important and emerging writers under the age of forty. Morgan studied English and voice at Berea College and holds a master’s in theological studies from Harvard Divinity School. She lives in Kentucky. The lecture is sponsored by the Delcamp Visiting Writer series. For more information, contact the public relations office at (859) 233-8120.

"What Would Darwin Say to Today’s Creationists?": Creative Intelligence Lecture at Transylvania on February 15.

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Eugenie Scott, executive director of the National Center for Science Education (NCSE), will speak at Transylvania University on Wednesday, February 15, at 4:30 p.m. in the Mitchell Fine Arts Center’s Carrick Theater. “What Would Darwin Say to Today’s Creationists?” is free and open to the public and is scheduled near Darwin Day, which is internationally celebrated on or around February 12, the birthday anniversary of the evolutionary biologist Charles Darwin. Scott, a former university professor, has been a researcher and activist in the creationism/evolution controversy for over 25 years. As a speaker, she addresses many components of this controversy, including educational, legal, scientific, religious and social issues. She has received national recognition for her NCSE activities, including awards from scientific societies, educational societies, skeptics groups and humanist groups. She holds a Ph.D. in physical anthropology from the University of Missouri and eight honorary degrees. She is the author of “Evolution vs Creationism” and co-editor, with Glenn Branch, of “Not in Our Classrooms: Why Intelligent Design Is Wrong for Our Schools.” “Many elements of the modern American creationist movement would be familiar to Darwin, especially the argument from design, which of course was very well known and well-regarded by educated people of his time,” said Scott. “Young-Earth creationism, on the other hand, would be puzzling to him. Darwin might have heard of the ‘scriptural geologists’ who promoted a young-Earth view during the 19th century, but like other scientists of his

Transylvania Theater’s “Spinning into Butter” explores dangers of both racism and political correctness; Feb. 16-19 and 23-25

LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University Theater’s first production of 2012, “Spinning into Butter,” explores the dangers of both racism and political correctness in America today. The play runs Feb. 16-18 and 23-25, at 7:30 p.m., and Feb. 19, at 2 p.m. in the Lucille C. Little Theater. Transylvania senior Annie Barbera directs the regional premiere of this play, written by American playwright Rebecca Gilman. When an African American student at fictional Belmont College begins receiving hate mail, the campus erupts, first with shock, then with mutual recrimination as faculty and students alike try to prove their own tolerance by condemning one another. At the center of his maelstrom is Dean of Students Sarah Daniels. As the administration sponsors public “race forums” and students start their own activist groups, Sarah is forced to explore her own feels of racism, leading to some surprising discoveries. Tickets are $10 and may be reserved by calling the box office at (859) 281-3621. For more information, contact Transylvania’s fine arts office at (859) 233-8141. Poster design by Hunter Kissel ’13.

Concert postponed; will be rescheduled. Acclaimed fiddler and pianist to perform at Transylvania University; tickets are $10

UPDATE: The concert has been postponed due to inclement weather. We will reschedule for a later date. LEXINGTON, Ky.—Grammy-nominated fiddler Liz Carroll will give a concert Friday, March 2, at 7:30 p.m. in Transylvania University’s Carrick Theater. Accompanying Carroll will be Cork-born composer and pianist Cormac McCarthy. Tickets for the World Voices Series Concert are $10. (One free ticket with a Transylvania ID). Carroll began composing music as a child and has performed with artists ranging from violinist Yehudi Menuhin to rocker Don Henley. “Liz Carroll has amazed audiences around the world and we are thrilled to have her perform at Transylvania,” said Larry Barnes, professor of music and director of the World Voices Series. “She is a recognized master of the Celtic fiddle and all who come to hear her are in for a real treat.” In April 2011, Carroll was awarded the Cumadóir TG4, becoming the first American-born composer to be honored with Ireland’s most significant traditional music prize. Irish Echo, the largest circulation Irish American weekly newspaper, calls Carroll’s playing “nothing less than breathtaking,” and a concert review from The New York Times declares Carroll “Brilliant…She does more than run through her finger twisting reels and sustained slow airs. She—and her listeners—continually rediscover each melody.” McCarthy, originally from Cork, Ireland, lives in Chicago. A composer and pianist, he began studying piano at age four and continued his studies at the Cork School of Music as a teenager.