1780 – The Official Blog of Transylvania University

1780 | The Official Blog of Transylvania University

John Owings, internationally acclaimed pianist, to give solo recital at Transy

John Owings LEXINGTON, Ky.—John Owings, internationally acclaimed pianist and artist in residence at Texas Christian University, will perform a solo piano recital in Carrick Theater on Monday, April 27, at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free. Owings made his orchestral debut with the San Antonio Symphony at age 15. He is a prizewinner of several prestigious competitions, including the gold medal at the first Robert Casadesus International Piano Competition in Cleveland. His CD recordings on the Koch International Classics and Opus Millésime labels have received outstanding reviews, and his recent CD features the complete keyboard works of Julius Reubke. He has appeared as soloist with the symphony orchestras of Cleveland, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Fort Worth, Houston, the Boston Pops, the English Chamber Orchestra and the National Symphony Orchestras of Colombia and Peru. He has performed recitals in major cities in the United States, Latin America, Europe and the Far East and has been a guest artist at numerous music festivals. His compact disc recording on the Koch label — “The American Piano” — containing the piano sonatas of Barber, Copland and Carter, has received favorable critical acclaim. Also on the Koch label are his two recordings with violinist Fritz Gearhart, “The Unpublished Manuscripts of Quincy Porter” and “The Complete Works for Violin of Robert Casadesus.” For more information, contact the public relations office at (859) 233-8120.

Delta Delta Delta hosts Women of the Bluegrass: Women in Environmental Jobs event for Transy community

Ann Stone, Elmwood Stock Farm LEXINGTON, Ky.—“By supporting local farmers today, you can help ensure that there will be farms in your community tomorrow, and that future generations will have access to nourishing food.” This was the message delivered by Ann Stone of Elmwood Stock Farm in Scott County, Ky., to the Transy community during Delta Delta Delta’s semi-annual Women of the Bluegrass event in April. In keeping with Transylvania’s commitment to creating a sustainable campus, the event focused on women with careers relating to the environment and sustainability. Stone spoke about her family’s diversified operation: the certified organic farm provides quality foods to local restaurants and the Lexington Farmer’s Market, and offers a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, which allows members to participate in their own food supply by committing to share in the harvest of the farm. CSA members purchase shares in early spring and then enjoy the bounty of the harvesting season with a weekly basket of fresh vegetables. Stone, an advocate of the slow food movement, also spoke of the nutritional differences between organic and non-organic foods and the importance of supporting local agriculture. Jennifer E. Drust, an environmental lawyer with Stites and Harbison, PLLC, and Karen Thompson, a geologist with Smith Management Group, also spoke at the event. The three women answered questions from the audience, addressing topics such as climate change legislation, “clean” coal and the cost of organic produce.

Lost and Found: Transylvania’s Morlan Gallery closes season with senior exhibition, May 12-19

Clay: Play Time’s Over, 2007, Toy sculpture and shadow LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania’s Morlan Gallery ends the 2008-09 year with Lost and Found, an exhibition of work by three senior art majors. The work of Kaci Clay, David Kenton Kring and Corey Washburn opens May 12 and runs through May 19. A reception honoring the artists will be Thursday, May 14, from 6-8 p.m., with special musical guests “The Tillers.” The exhibit and reception are free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Monday-Friday, noon to 5 p.m. Clay presents a variety of her most critical work, including ceramics, paintings, drawings and sculptures. Clay’s work gives a nod to the humorous, while addressing issues of contemporary importance. Kring: Angel Band, 2008, Ceramic with feathers Kring’s incarcerated ceramic figures soar through Morlan Gallery, buoyantly carrying the hope and the heaviness of Southern culture. Strongly influenced by Southern music, Kring says his hand-built and painted figures are created with surfaces that are extremely worked; often built up in layers, then stripped away and built back up again. Washburn’s room-sized installation is a mystery waiting to be solved. Cluttered with ephemera, furniture and the melancholy, compulsion leads to discovery in a room with a story. For more information go to: www.transy.edu/morlan/exh.asp?e=senior2009 or contact Morlan Gallery director Andrea Fisher at (859) 233-8142.

Juried student exhibition opens April 29 in Transylvania’s Morlan Gallery

LEXINGTON, Ky.—A juried student exhibition opens Wednesday, April 29, in Transylvania’s Morlan Gallery.  All students who made art during the 2008-09 academic year were invited to show their work in the Juried Student Exhibition, which runs through 2 p.m., May 6.   A public reception honoring the artists will be Friday, May 1, from 5-6 p.m., Jurors’ awards will be presented at 5:30 p.m. William Pollard, dean of the college, will select one piece to receive the Dean’s Purchase Award. The award-winning piece will become part of Transylvania’s permanent collection. Morlan Gallery is open weekdays, noon to 5 p.m., and the exhibit and reception are free and open to the public. For more information contact Morlan Gallery Director Andrea Fisher at (859) 233-8142.

Transylvania professor collaborates to bring Spanish writers to Kentucky Foreign Language Conference April 16-18

LEXINGTON, Ky.—The Spanish Ministry of Culture and the Spanish Embassy in Washington, D.C., have collaborated with Transylvania University and Davidson College to bring three Spanish writers to Lexington to participate in the 62nd annual Kentucky Foreign Language Conference this week. Two conference sessions are dedicated to literature from the region of León, Spain. Authors from this area have received many prestigious national and international literary prizes. Essayist and journalist Pedro García Trapiello (Diario de León), journalist Susana Martín García (El Mundo) and poet/artist Juan Carlos Mestre will speak about contemporary Spanish literature and journalism at Transylvania’s Jazzman’s Café in the Glenn Building on Friday, April 17, at 11 a.m.  Transylvania received a generous gift from alumna Katie C. Bolin to help sponsor the event. At 7:30 p.m. the writers will conduct a roundtable discussion on literature and journalism by Leonese writers in the University of Kentucky’s Gaines Center, Bingham Davis House, 218 E. Maxwell Street. Both events are free and open to the public.Spanish professors Veronica Dean-Thacker (Transylvania University), Shelby Thacker (Asbury College) and Mary S. Vásquez (Davidson College) have organized these sessions to highlight the quality and variety of the literary production from Leonese writers, such as Andrés Trapiello (who, in 2004, published his sequel to Cervantes’ Spanish masterpiece, Don Quijote), Julio Llamazares, Josefina Aldecoa, José Maríá Merino, Margarita Merino, Luis Mateo Díéz, Antonio Gamoneda, Juan Carlos Mestre and Juan Pedro Aparicio. The Kentucky Foreign Language Conference is the