As we swing into spring, the university continues to offer a mix of both in-person and virtual arts events.
Starting March 19, the much anticipated annual DisOrient Asian American Film Festival of Oregon will host “Raising our Voices” via online screenings of more than 45 social justice-themed films and shorts.
If you’re seeking a hands-on activity, drop by the Erb Memorial Union’s outdoor Craft Center and pick up a clay kit. The Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art has added “Myriad Treasures,” a new 360-degree virtual tour. March is Women’s History Month. Join a virtual celebration of International Womxn’s Day on March 15.
Art
Bring your UO student ID, wear a mask and get crafty with your very own clay kit on Feb. 23 at the Erb Memorial Union’s outdoor Craft Center studio.
On Feb. 26, Kristen Seaman, history of art and architecture and 2020-21 Oregon Humanities Center faculty research fellow, will give a work-in-progress talk, “Art and Work in the Greek Sculpture Industry.”
Join Portland-based artist George Johanson for the 2021 David and Anne McCosh Memorial Visiting Lecturer Series “George Johanson: Why Make Art?” on Feb. 28. At 92, Johanson has been drawing and painting for more than 80 years. In this slide lecture and studio visit via Zoom webinar, he will discuss where art has taken him and why he feels compelled to keep making it. A Q&A session will follow the webinar.
On March 4 the Visiting Lecture Series will present a Critical Conversations talk with director of the Los Angeles nonprofit art space LAXART Hamza Walker, with Mahfux Sultan, architect, writer and founder of the LA research and design practice CLOCKS.
In the Barker Gallery at the art museum through May 2 is “Nkame: A Retrospective of Cuban Printmaker Belkis Ayón.” Learn about Cuban printmaker Belkis Ayón (1967-1999) in a solo exhibition featuring 48 prints and audiovisual items that comprise the artist’s graphic production from 1986 until her untimely passing in 1999. Ayón was highly regarded for her signature technique of collagraphy, a printing process in which a variety of materials are collaged onto a cardboard matrix and run through a press.
Cinema
On Feb. 23, the Department of Cinema Studies is screening “Cinematographer: A Short Documentary,” which will be followed by a Q&A with the director and director of photography of the film, Demi Waldron. The documentary follows six women cinematographers who share the challenges of working as a modern cinematographer.
Be sure to check out BE Heard with David F. Walker, a live, in-person event Feb. 23 in the EMU ballroom. Walker, who teaches at Portland State University, is a comic book writer and filmmaker who has worked for Marvel, DC and Image Comics. He is also the author of the graphic novel “The Life of Fredrick Douglas.” Attendees must RSVP this limited-space event. Additional livestream on Instagram and video will be uploaded to the EMU YouTube page following the event.
Join Chapman University professor Nam Lee on March 4 for a talk about Lee’s recently published book, “The Films of Bong Joon Ho,” and a discussion on the global success of the director’s 2019 film, “Parasite.”
Due to the pandemic, the Ducks After Dark screening of “Booksmart” March 4 has been canceled. Check out the group's virtual trivia night on @ducksafterdark, 7 p.m. March 4. Ducks After Dark hopes to provide more opportunities to engage campus in spring term.
Exhibitions
On view Mar. 1-3 in the LaVerne Krause Gallery in Lawrence Hall are two small exhibitions, “Shibboleth-Fever-Friends” and “Spaghettification.”
Enjoy the museum experience from the comfort of your own home. Along with exploring Hallie Ford Fellows in the Visual Arts, Nuestra Imagen Actual and the Prince Lucien Campbell Courtyard, virtual visitors can now experience “Myriad Treasures,” a new tour on the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art’s 360-degree virtual tours site. Stroll through the museum at your own pace using circle icons to navigate from location to location. Zoom in on individual artworks, read object labels and descriptive texts and access informational links and exhibition brochures or study guides. New galleries and tours will continue to be added to the museum website.
The natural world meets the digital world in “Encounters,” a virtual audio-visual exhibition through March 6 in the A. Dean and Lucile I. McKenzie Gallery of the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art. This pairing of the works of Oregon artists Laura Fritz and Rick Silva invites viewers to question how observation and speculation shape our understanding of reality.
Drop in at the EMU’s Adell McMillan Gallery through March 20 to view “Opening Act,” a photographic exhibition by Bay Area photographer Christopher Stricklen, whose works capture friends, cycling and street photography in San Francisco.
Theater/performance
Associate professor of theater arts Theresa May will provide a books-in-print talk March 5 on her book “Earth Matters on Stage: Ecology and Environment in American Theater,” which explores how American theater has shaped popular understandings of the environment through the 20th century.
The LGBTQA3 Alliance presents the annual drag show, “Click and Drag,” March 6 via Zoom. At this all-ages show, local performers showcase their artistic talent in drag, an historic form of gender-bending expression within the LGBTQIA+ community.
Music
Feb. 23–25, CM@B hosts the Calidore Quartet and Xavier Foley performing Mendelssohn’s String Quartet in F minor, Op. 80 and Dvorák’s Quintet in G major for Two Violins, Viola, Cello and Bass, Op. 77. March 7-11, various performers will present Bach: Brandenburg Concertos, No. 1-6, BWV 1046-1051.
Join guest artist Toby Oft, principal trombone with the Boston Symphony, for a virtual workshop Feb. 25.
Tune in to KWAX-FM March 5 for KWAX Presents the Oregon Bach Festival Vault featuring the German choral masterpiece Brahms Requiem. KWAX presents the Eugene Symphony on March 12.
Browse the UO School of Music and Dance YouTube site, which features a cornucopia of excellent music and dance performance.
Museum of Natural and Cultural History
Mark your calendar for Mar. 3 for the next Museum of Natural and Cultural History’s monthly “Ideas on Tap” pub talk, “Housing Instability and Eugene’s Vulnerable Populations.” UO sociologist Claire Herbert will discuss Eugene’s housing crisis and what it means for those in the community who are at risk of becoming houseless.
Streaming resources
Until venues for in-person events open back up, the internet is still a virtual treasure trove of exhibits, collections, audio, video and images for online entertainment.
Because activities were curtailed in 2020, the National Women’s History Alliance is extending the annual theme of “Valiant Women of the Vote: Refusing to Be Silenced” for Women’s History Month 2021. Celebrate International Womxn’s Day March 15 at this virtual event that showcases international cultures through educational presentations and cultural performances from women around the globe.
Be sure to check out the UO Channel featuring an assortment of livestreamed events, Department of Art Visiting Artist Lecture Series videos, guest speakers and more.
Explore the vast virtual collections of museums, stories, galleries and more at Google’s arts and culture site.
—By Sharleen Nelson, University Communications