The Durango Art Center’s free winter art lecture series will begin Tuesday with a new format, time and approach. After last winter’s “Art in Context” series, Judith Reynolds and Katherine Burgess will team up again in short, 10-minute presentations under the banner “Art and Ideas.”
“It’s an experiment,” Reynolds said. “Last year, we presented sessions that combined half an hour on the history and philosophy of an era then 30 minutes on the art. This year, we’ve chosen three pairs of ideas and artworks in a mini-TED Talk format. We’re also experimenting with a 10 a.m. Tuesday morning time slot, but we’ll still be in the DAC Theatre.”
Reynolds, an arts journalist who writes for The Durango Herald, is also an art historian. In 2014, she began the DAC series with five lectures under the umbrella of “Art as a Matter of Life and Death.” Reynolds has taught art history as an adjunct at Fort Lewis College, the State University of New York and the University of Michigan.
Burgess joined Reynolds last winter in a conversational format for “Art in Context.” They explored five historical eras in Western art from ancient Greece to the modern era. Burgess holds a doctorate in the humanities and has taught history, literature and philosophy at the college level. She also spent 15 years abroad with the U.S. Foreign Service and currently owns a travel company, CTCVoyages.
“From the beginning, our goal has been to stimulate thought and discussion and to enrich everyone’s experience of the visual arts,” Burgess said.
This year, each one-hour session will be divided into 10-minute segments.
Burgess will trace the history of an idea and Reynolds will look at one work of art to illustrate the idea. Then they’ll present its opposite.
The schedule includes: “Order and Disorder” on Tuesday; “The Sacred and Profane” on Feb. 20; and “Permanence and Impermanence” on March 6.
“At the end of each session, I’ll suggest some takeaways, local art or architecture that reflects the topic, something to look at and think about when you leave,” Reynolds said.
The team invites people to come with images and ideas of their own for discussion to follow each presentation and an extended session in the DAC Gallery.
Burgess and Reynolds donate their time to the DAC. The series is also made possible by a donation from Bud and Jeani Poe, who have supported the series over the last several winters.
For more information, visit www.durangoarts.org or call 259-2606.
If you go
What:
“Art and Ideas,” a free, three-part lecture series presented by Judith Reynolds and Katherine Burgess
When:
10 a.m. Tuesdays, beginning Feb. 6 with“Order and Disorder”; Feb.20, “Sacred and Profane”; March 6, “Permanence and Impermanence.” Discussion and gallery visit to follow.
Where:
Durango Arts Center, 802 East Second Ave.
More information:
Call 259-2606 or visit
.
