The Michigan Humanities Council has received notice of the following
exhibits
scheduled at cultural institutions in Michigan for the dates shown. We
encourage you to contact specific institutions to confirm these dates and
exhibit hours. (SITES exhibits are part of the Smithsonian Institution
Traveling Exhibition Service. NEH designation refers to exhibits supported
by
the National Endowment for the Humanities. ** denotes Council-funded
projects.)
Sept. 29:
"Finding Your Ancestor's Family When All You Know is the State!"
6 p.m., Plymouth Historical Museum, Plymouth
Sept. 30:
"Authors in the Fall: Children's Author Patricia
Pollaco," Alpena County Library, Alpena
October
Arts and Humanities Month
Oct. 1:
"Tiresias and the Parthelon Frieze," 8 p.m., Lecture
Hall, Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit
Touring Program: "Columbus - Admiral of the Ocean Sea,"
Patterson Elementary School, Tecumseh++
Oct. 1-3:
"A Deliberation on Ethics in Medicine: Michigan State Medical
Society Bioethics Conference," Grand Hotel, Mackinac
Island
Oct. 2:
"Inside and Out: Arts Across the Curriculum" Michigan Council for
Arts and Cultural Affairs Education Conference, Lansing Center,
Lansing
Touring Program: "Columbus - Admiral of the Ocean Sea,"
Wardcliff Elementary School, East Lansing++
Oct. 2-3:
Great Lakes History Conference, Grand Rapids
"Passages North Spotlight on Poetry Series,"
Northern Michigan University, Marquette
Oct. 5:
Touring Program: For A Good Time Theater Company, Laingsburg
Elementary School, Laingsburg++
Oct. 5-6:
"Faith and Feminism: Critical Issues Symposium," Hope
College, Holland
Oct. 6-10:
"Authors in the Fall: Newbery Winner Christopher Paul
Curtis," Alpena County Library, Alpena
Oct. 8:
Touring Program: Multi-Cultural Concert, Houghton Elementary
School, Saline++
Oct. 8-9
Michigan Humanities Council Meeting, Battle Creek
Oct. 9:
"The ABCs of (Museum) Collections Care" Workshop,
Constantine
Oct. 10:
Showcase of Live Touring Humanities & Arts Programs, Lansing
Center, Lansing
Historic Home Tour, Noon-5 p.m., Wyandotte
Oct. 14:
"Wyandotte" Author Talk, 7 p.m., Marquerite deAngeli Library,
Lapeer**
Oct. 15:
"A Century of Michigan Books" Lecture, 7 p.m., Marquerite
deAngeli Library, Lapeer**
Oct. 16-17:
Harriet Quimby Research Conference, Kalamazoo Aviation History
Museum/Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo
Oct. 17:
Michigan Archaeology Day, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., Michigan Historical
Museum, Lansing
Touring Program: Wild Swan Theater, 11 a.m., Macomb County
Library, Clinton Township++
Oct. 21:
Touring Program: For A Good Time Theater Company, Abbot
Elementary School, Ann Arbor++
Oct. 22-25:
"The Word is Liberty" Matilda Joslyn Gage Centennial Conference,
Kalamazoo College, Kalamazoo**
Oct. 25:
"Collections Sunday Series: Identifying Family
Treasures," Kalamazoo Valley Museum, Kalamazoo
Oct. 26:
Michigan Council for History Education Conference, 8:30 a.m.-3
p.m., Wayne
Oct. 30:
Touring Program: Women's History Alive! Pittsford Elementary
School, Pittsford++
Touring Program: Chautauqua Express, Lessenger Elementary School,
Madison Heights++
Nov. 3:
"Life and Death Outside the Walls of Poseidonia-Paestum"
Lecture, 8 p.m., Lecture Hall, Detroit Institute of Arts,
Detroit
Nov. 4:
Touring Program: Women's History Alive! Emerson Elementary
School, Fraser++
Nov. 4-6:
International German-American Book Fair and Conference, Eagle
Crest Conference Center, Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti
Nov. 5:
"Authors in the Fall: Edward Albee," Alpena County
Library, Alpena
Nov. 6:
Lighthouse Preservation Workshop, Michigan Historical Center,
Lansing
Nov. 7:
Culture Kit Teacher Training Workshop, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Marquette
Mission Park and Museum of Ojibwa Culture, St. Ignace**
Nov. 9:
"Mulling Over Michigan" Education Conference, Macomb Community
College, Warren
Nov. 10:
Touring Program: Chautauqua Express, Parnall Elementary School,
Jackson++
Nov. 14:
Culture Kit Teacher Training Workshop, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Museum of
Art and History, Port Huron**
Nov. 15:
"Collections Sunday Series: Civil War Collectibles,"
2-3:30 p.m., Kalamazoo Valley Museum, Kalamazoo
Nov. 17:
Touring Program: Chautauqua Express, Hadley-Murphy School,
Metamora++
Nov. 19:
"The Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald" Lecture, 7 p.m.
Marguerite deAngeli Library, Lapeer**
Nov. 20:
"Maintaining Community Identity on the Metropolitan Fringe: Small
Town and Rural Community Preservation Strategies for S.E.
Michigan," Fairgrounds, Fowlerville
Nov. 21:
Latin Culture Day, 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Grosse Pointe High
South, Grosse Pointe
Dec. 5:
Culture Kit Teacher Training Workshop, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Nokomis
Learning Center, Okemos**
Dec. 12:
Culture Kit Teacher Training Workshop, 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Public
Museum of Grand Rapids, Grand Rapids**
Dec. 17:
Touring Program: For a Good Time Theater Company, Brooklands
Elementary School, Rochester Hills++
"A Musical Family Christmas" with Kitty Donohoe, 7 p.m.,
Marquerite deAngeli Library, Lapeer**
Jan. 15, 1999
Mini Grant Deadline
"A Victorian Parlor Evening" Lecture, 7 p.m., Marquerite de
Angeli Library, Lapeer**
Jan 18:
Touring Program: American Folktales, St. Thomas Lutheran School,
Eastpointe++
Jan. 20:
Touring Program: Chautauqua Express, Bentheim and Sandyview
Elementary Schools, Hamilton++
Feb. 3-24:
"Civil Rights and Wrongs - The African-American
Experience," Olivet College, Olivet**
Feb. 18:
"Michigan's Marquerite deAngeli" Author Talk, 7 p.m., Marguerite
deAngeli Library, Lapeer**
Feb. 23:
"Jericho Revisited: Current Research on the Neolithic of Jordan"
Lecture, 8 p.m., Lecture Hall, Detroit Institute of Arts,
Detroit
"Marguerite deAngeli Library: 75 Years of Service" Presentation,
7 p.m., Marguerite deAngeli Library, Lapeer**
An on-line listing of arts and humanities events and programs is
available on the Humanities and Arts Calendar, a cooperative service of
the Michigan Humanities Council and the Michigan Council for Arts and
Cultural Affairs in cooperation with Michigan State University's H-Net, an
international on-line network of scholars. The calendar is found at
http://mihumanities.h-net.msu.edu/mhawww.html and includes a
template permitting users to directly enter their events into the database
by following the "submit" instructions on the calendar's opening
page.
Continuing Exhibits:
"Furniture City," Public Museum of Grand Rapids, Grand
Rapids (NEH)
"Made in America: The History of the American Industrial System,"
Henry Ford Museum, Dearborn (NEH)
"Hitsville USA and The Motown Sound: The Music and the Story,"
Motown Historical Museum, Detroit (NEH)
"Michigan in the Twentieth Century," Michigan Historical Museum,
Lansing
"Anishinabek: People of This Place." Public Museum of Grand
Rapids, Grand Rapids (NEH)**
"Collecting A-Z: 'A' Is for Autos," Public Museum of Grand
Rapids, Grand Rapids (Through Nov. 30, 1999)
"A Survey of Jackson: 1829-1929," Ella Sharp Museum, Jackson
(Through June, 26, 1999)
"The Ancient Near East and Egypt," Kelsey Museum of Archaeology,
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Oct. 3-Jan. 3, 1999:
"Celebrating the Hand-Written Word," Kalamazoo Valley
Museum, Kalamazoo
Through Oct. 3:
"Arab Americans in Greater Detroit: A Community Between Two
Worlds," Detroit Historical Museum, Detroit**
Through Oct. 11:
"African American Exhibit," Plymouth Community Arts Council,
Plymouth
Through Oct. 14:
"Storytelling Through the Mail: Tall Tale Post Cards,"
Southwestern Michigan College Museum, Dowagiac
Through Oct. 18:
"To Honor and Comfort: Native Quilting Traditions," MSU
Museum, Michigan State University, East Lansing
"The Invisible Made Visible: Angels from the Vatican," Detroit
Institute of Arts, Detroit
"Millennial Visions and Worldly Endeavors: The Israelite House of
David, 1903-Present," Orchards Mall, Berrien Springs**
Oct. 24-Jan. 9, 1999:
"Apron Strings -- Ties to the Past," Ella Sharp Museum,
Jackson
Through Oct. 25:
"The Inventions of Leonardo da Vinci," Kresge Art Museum,
Michigan State University, East Lansing**
Through Oct. 30:
"Anishnaabek: Artists of Little Traverse Bay," Lake Superior
State University, Sault Ste. Marie
Oct. 31-May 30, 1999:
"A Community Between Two Worlds: The Arab American Community in
Greater Detroit," MSU Museum, Michigan State University, East
Lansing**
Through Nov. 14:
"Nda Maamawigaami: Together We Dance" Contemporary Great Lakes Pow
Wow Regalia, Nokomis Learning Center, Okemos
Through Nov. 29:
"Picturing Paris: 1850 to the Present" and "Art of Colonial Peru:
1525-1700," Dennos Museum Center, Traverse City
Through Dec. 4:
"Reconstructing Personal Style in Late Antique Egypt," Kelsey
Museum of Archaeology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Through Dec. 21:
"School Days: Through the Years," Grand Ledge Historical Society
Museum, Grand Ledge
Through Jan. 3, 1999:
"Magnificent Obsessions," Public Museum of Grand Rapids,
Grand Rapids
Jan. 26-May 1, 1999:
"Personal Artifacts in the World of the Samurai Warrior,"
Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit
Through Feb. 28, 1999:
"Reading the Farm," Leelanau Historical Museum, Leland
|
Come up with your own special way to observe the month or try:
- Suggesting a special school project, like a play or mural, which gives
students direct contact with the arts and humanities.
- Asking your mayor or city council for an official proclamation to mark
your cultural organization's role in the community as part of the
observance.
- Using the occasion to unveil a new cultural project, program or
service or schedule a special performance.
- Writing an opinion column on the value of arts and humanities in your
community for submission to your local newspaper during the month.
The National Arts and Humanities Month logo is available on-line at
www.artsusa.org -- use this link to
download for use on posters, newsletters and other print material.
New Director Arrives from Iowa
 Rick Knupfer, the Michigan
Humanities Council's new executive director,
began service in August, arriving from his previous position as executive
director of the Iowa Humanities Board and the Iowa Humanities Foundation
where he had served since 1991. He replaces the council's founding
director, Ronald D. Means of Bath, who retired in July after 25 years with
the council.
Knupfer directed the Iowa Humanities Board's "Iowa Time" Cultural History
Project from 1990 to 1992 prior to serving in its leadership role. That
project is among grassroots humanities programs he fostered during his
tenure there, including a "Community Outreach" initiative which created
regional and community cultural alliances.
Twice recognized with Governor's Volunteer Awards (1996 and 1998), he also
received a Volunteer of the Year Award in 1996 for the Iowa Sister States
organization with which he was active as president as well as
co-chair/delegate for two 1997 exchange missions to Venice and Verona,
Italy.
Born in Evanston, IL, and a University of Iowa graduate, Knupfer has Ph.D.
and Master's degrees in American Cultural Studies, an M.F.A. from the
university's Writers' Workshop and a B.A. degree in film and creative
writing. He taught at the university's Summer Writing Festival and
coordinated its international writing program.
A poet, fiction writer and essayist, he has written and lectured on the
community and cultural change in contemporary America. He relishes the
early morning hours, during which he was able to recently complete a
collection of essays and a novel; he is at work on a second novel.
He has been active in Federation of State Humanities Councils programs and
participated in the recent National Endowment for the Humanities
entrepreneurial initiative for humanities councils.
His wife, Joyce Meier, teaches English and women's studies at the
University of Iowa. He has two sons, Franz, 18, a sophomore at Iowa, and
Christopher, 5.
"We welcome Rick Knupfer into Michigan's humanities community and look
forward enthusiastically to his leadership of the Council with strength
and vision as we advance our important work into the new millennium,"
Council Chair Sheila Cannatti said.
A Message from the Director
Dear Friends of the Humanities, Arts and Culture in Michigan:
I am delighted to greet you as I begin service as the new executive
director of the Michigan Humanities Council. There are many reasons I am
especially pleased to be in Michigan serving you, the Council board and
the Council's team of professionals. A few among them:
- Michigan is a state of immense cultural, intellectual and community
treasures complementing the beauty of its natural and human geography;
- The Michigan Humanities Council has a long and distinguished tradition
of connecting the public and the humanities, under the skilled stewardship
of its board and its founding director, Ron Means;
- Michigan has an enthusiastic, dedicated and wide-reaching network of
public and private partners providing and supporting the ongoing cultural
enrichment of this state.
Combined with these things, there is an equally powerful need for the
mission we all serve. The need for the human connectedness and individual
depth provided by the humanities is all the greater in times of rapid
change in work, leisure and home life. In all human history, perhaps,
there was never a time when people were exposed to so much in so little
time as they are now. That can be both a blessing and a bane. In the
middle of work and play, there can be less time for reflection on what it
all means -- where we've come from, where we're headed. In the midst of
riches, there can still be poverty of the mind and soul. So we all have
work to do. Wonderful work.
As I begin this work, this service with you, our board, our staff and our
network of program hosts and supporters, I look forward most of all to
learning from you. How can our programming and yours be the best it can
be, while meeting the needs of those who have yet to discover the riches
of what we might bring them as well as those who already know that
experience and want to experience it again? How can we build on your
successes and ours as we all seek to "spread the word"?
The Michigan Humanities Council will soon embark on strategic planning in
preparation for its self-assessment report to the National Endowment for
the Humanities, our largest program underwriter. Join us as we work
together with our program partners to assess their needs as well as
evaluate our content and program delivery to meet those needs.
I am pleased to have the opportunity to build on a substantial and
distinguished program, and I'm delighted to be in your service.
Yours for the humanities,
Rick Knupfer, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Showcase is Coming! Join the
Fun
Your opportunity to experience some of Michigan's most talented
storytellers, musicians, actors, actresses, lectures, dancers, visual
artists and other presenters is just around the corner -- the 1998 Arts
and Humanities Showcase, scheduled Saturday, Oct. 10, in Lansing.
If you plan community arts and humanities programming for your non-profit
organization, don't miss this day-long preview of 52 artists and
presenters performing "live" on stage and about 60 exhibitors. You'll even
be offered the opportunity to book programs for the coming year.
Featured programs at the Showcase are among those offered in the new
1998-2000 Arts and Humanities Touring Directory, which for the first time
combines the Council's former Chautauqua Program with the Touring Arts
Program of the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. The
directory, 1999 guidelines and grant applications will be available at the
Showcase, which will also include a half-hour grant workshop explaining
how to apply for Arts and Humanities Touring Program grants.
Registration and continental breakfast open at 7:30 a.m. at the Lansing
Center in downtown Lansing. Stage presentations begin at 8:30 a.m. and
continue until 4 p.m., with a noon break for lunch. Exhibits open at 9
a.m., with a performer/presenter booking period scheduled from 4 to 6 p.m.
Cost for the day's activities, including lunch and the workshop, is $25
per person. Registration information is available from the Michigan
Humanities Council office, 119 Pere Marquette Dr. Suite 3B, Lansing MI
48912-1270 or at 517/372-7770.
Teacher Workshops Set on 'Native Peoples'
Culture Kits
Four weekend workshops have been scheduled this fall to acquaint teachers,
school administrators, librarians and program coordinators at museums and
similar venues with the newest of the Council's popular Culture Kits,
"Native Peoples: Indians of the Great Lakes."
The Saturday workshops will take place in communities throughout the state
to encourage participation and to draw on local resources in those areas
-- in St. Ignace on Nov. 7 at the Marquette Mission Park and Museum of
Ojibwa Culture, in Port Huron on Nov. 14 at the Museum of Art and History,
in Okemos on Dec. 5 at the Nokomis Learning Center and Dec. 12 at the
Public Museum of Grand Rapids. Presentations by Michigan Indian resource
people and scholars will be included.
All workshops will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and the day's activities
will include lunch and resource packets for the $25 registration fee.
Additionally, shorter workshops will be offered at four educational
conferences this fall and next spring -- those for the Michigan Council
for History Education, the Michigan Council for the Social Studies
(Detroit and Marquette) and at the Mulling Over Michigan Conference.
The "Native Peoples" kits are available for elementary and secondary
school levels and explore the history, family life and cultural expression
of Ojibwa, Odawa and Potawatomi peoples of the Great Lakes region. They
contain artifacts, books, videotapes, maps, posters and lesson plans on
such wide ranging topics as "Pow Wow Celebrations," "Great Lakes Indian
Folklore," "Treaties and the U.S. Constitution" and "Native Quilting
Traditions."
For more information or to register to attend, contact the Michigan
Humanities Council's Lansing office at 800/837-4532 or at
mihum@voyager.net (e-mail).
On-Line Project Debuts at Arts Education
Symposium
The Michigan Humanities Council and a network of partners and
collaborating cultural institutions will present an interdisciplinary
Internet education project as part of this fall's annual Michigan Council
for Arts and Cultural Affairs education symposium Oct. 2 in Lansing.
The "Inside & Out: Arts Across the Curriculum" symposium, a partnership
effort between MCACA and the Michigan Department of Education, will focus
attention on creatively integrating the arts and humanities into the core
curriculum of the state's K-12 classrooms. Sessions between 8 a.m. and
3:30 p.m. at the downtown Lansing Center will provide educators and their
partners in arts and cultural organizations with ideas and program models
for enhancing learning.
Joining the Michigan Humanities Council to present the on-line project,
"Developing Arts
and Humanities-Based Curricula Through Technology," will
be MCACA, the H-Net on-line scholar network at Michigan State University
and representatives of the Department of Education. The workshop session
will introduce teachers to a new web site which offers educational tools,
links and resources for developing multi-disciplinary lesson plans around
art objects.
Teachers logging on to the web site in the coming year will have
opportunities to create their own lesson plans using the on-line materials
and then submit those lesson plans electronically to share with others.
Submissions will be judged as part of a statewide competition, with prizes
awarded for top entries.
Cultural organizations such as the Michigan State University Museum and
the Detroit Institute of Arts will supply on-line images of objects from
their collections as the focus for lesson plan development by teachers.
For more information on the partnership curriculum project, contact
LuAnn
Kern, assistant director, in the Council's Lansing office at
517/372-7770.
For information about the arts education symposium, contact 800/203-9633.
Just Off the Press: 1998-2000 Touring
Directory
 Seventy-six pages of live arts and
humanities programs and visual arts
exhibits that represent the creativity and diversity of the state's
performing arts and cultural community await readers in the new Michigan
Arts and Humanities Touring Directory, now available from the Michigan
Humanities Council.
Program and exhibit listings give information about content, availability,
fees and how to contract to bring them to stages, classrooms, libraries,
museums and other public venues throughout Michigan.
The new directory's list of dance, lecture, music, storytelling, theatre
and visual arts offerings represents the recently combined and reviewed
touring programs previously found in the Humanities Council's Chautauqua
Catalogue and the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs' Touring
Arts Directory.
Effective Oct. 1, community nonprofit organizations contracting with the
performers and presenters in the directory may qualify for Arts and
Humanities Touring grants to support appearances in their communities. An
application and instructions for seeking grant funds is conveniently
located at the back of the directory.
Directory listings are also found on the Humanities Council-MCACA
partnership web site (http://miculturelink.h-net.msu.edu/touring/)
for
electronic access, and some of the programs listed will be featured at the
Oct. 10 Arts and Humanities Showcase in Lansing (see related item).
To request a copy of the new directory, contact the Michigan Humanities
Council offices in Lansing (517/372-7770) or Escanaba (906/789-9471).
(Please Note: On page 14, the published photograph for Betsy Beckerman is
incorrect. It will be corrected on the partnership web site listing, and
those receiving the directory will be notified of the mistake. We regret
the error.)
'Barn Again!' Touring Exhibit Schedule
Announced
A Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibit, "Barn Again! Celebrating An
American Icon," will tour Michigan from June, 1999, through April, 2000,
stopping in seven communities throughout Michigan. Like a similar
exhibit, "Produce for Victory: Posters on the American Home Front,
1941-45" which visited Michigan in 1997-98, the "Barn Again!" tour will be
sponsored by the Council in cooperation with the Smithsonian's SITES
office.
The schedule of sites on the Michigan tour include:
- a shared stop between June 20 and Aug. 14, 1999, at the Wolcott
Mill Historic Center in Ray and the Kensington Metropark Farm Center in
Milford;
- an Upper Peninsula stop Aug. 23 through Oct. 2 at the Iron County
Museum in Caspian;
- Oct. 11-Nov. 19, 1999, at the North Berrien Historical Museum in
Coloma;
- Nov. 29, 1999, through Jan. 8, 2000, in Charlotte at Courthouse
Square;
- Jan. 17-Feb. 26, 2000, at the Missaukee District Library in Lake City,
and
- concluding March 6 through April 15, 2000, at the Rawson Memorial
Library in Cass City.
Each host site will be developing activities in their community to
complement the visiting exhibit's messages, relating to the roles of barns
as both working farm structures and cultural icons of an agricultural way
of life from the past.
Thousands of summer travelers and residents of Northern Lower Michigan and
the Upper Penninsula took part in Programs touring Michigan's Great
Outdoors Culture Tour, July 1 - August 15. Amoung presenters sharing the
culture of the state's northwoods in 85 programs on the tour were Native
American artist and storyteller Lois Beardslee at Pictured Rocks National
Lakeshore (above) and musician-storyteller Patty Clark, performing at Camp
7 in the Hiawatha National Forest (below).
Nine Projects Awarded Mini Grant Support
Seven humanities projects taking place this autumn -- two conferences, two
exhibits, a lecture series, a preschool music and literature program and a
celebration of 20 years of literary production -- are among nine projects
awarded Mini Grants totaling nearly $23,000 in direct funds and $4,000 in
matching funds.
The funds have been awarded under the Council's current program theme,
"Creating Vision for the New Century: The Humanities and the Strengthening
of MichiganÕs Communities," for the June, 1998 deadline. Projects
include:
-
"The Story of Michigan Weaving Guilds," an exhibit on the history of
the state's weaving guilds by the Michigan League of Handweavers of
Kalamazoo on display at the Lansing Art Gallery this fall. It is the
first part of a larger project to document, archive and disseminate the
history of Michigan weaving.
- Another exhibit, "Millennial Visions and Worldly Endeavors: The
Israelite House of David, 1903-Present," sponsored by the Berrien County
Historical Association of Berrien Springs and displayed at the Orchards
Mall in Benton Township Sept. 17-Oct. 18. The House of David community's
emphasis on "religious entrepreneurship" will also be explored in a
companion publication and a documentary film under production.
- A one-day writers conference, "Speaking of Words: Bringing Reading
and Writing Together," by the Mid-Michigan Writers Inc. of Standish at the
West Branch Public Library Sept. 19 covered different literary genres,
offered opportunity for writers to share their works-in-progress,
established arenas for literary training and assistance and featured a
keynote address by Michigan author Doug Allyn.
- An Oct. 22-25 conference at Kalamazoo College in Kalamazoo marking the
100th anniversary of the death of suffragist, freethinker and abolitionist
Matilda Joslyn Gage. "That Word is Liberty" Matilda Joslyn Gage Centennial
Conference will bring together scholars and professionals in the
humanities, womenÕs studies, social work and Native American communities
from throughout the state for the first time to explore, learn and build
on GageÕs writings and work.
- For the Passages North literary journal, an Oct. 2-3 series of
community poetry readings and panel discussions by poets from around the
state and
across the country in Marquette will help observe its 20th season of
literary publications. The host site for "The Passages North Spotlight on
Poetry Series" is Northern Michigan University.
- Six public presentations in September and October as part of the
Saginaw Valley State University Humanities Series will explore local,
state and national topics related to history and culture, such as the
social and ethical consequences of prohibition in 1920s Michigan and the
influences of the Saginaw Art Museum and the Saginaw County Historical
Society on the history and culture of the community. The programs will
take place on the SVSU campus.
- A collaborative program between the Kalamazoo Symphony Orchestra and
the Kalamazoo Public Library, "M & Ms: Music & Make-Believe," featuring
music, stories and craft activities for pre-kindergarten audiences to
develop imagination and listening skills in young people and provide early
exposure to symphonic music. Programs are scheduled for fall and spring.
Another public humanities series, "Civil Rights and Wrongs - The
African-American Experience," at Olivet College Feb. 3-24, 1999, will
explore issues of justice, values, race and human differences and
commonalities through an exhibit of woodcuts and poems by artist Edith
Kaplan, gospel music performances, public lectures, classroom visits and
community dialogues with activist Dick Gregory, author Frances Kendall and
Grenada's Ambassador to the United Nations Robert Millette. Teacher and
student training programs for Calhoun and Eaton intermediate school
districts are also planned.
Finally, the Millersburg Historical Society received a planning grant for
scholar assistance to research historic structures, local artifacts and
memorabilia and oral histories for development of a community museum for
Millersburg.
The next deadline for Mini Grant applications is Jan. 15, 1999. Mini
Grant awards of up to $3,000 are awarded to community-based organizations
for humanities programs on miscellaneous topics. For information,
guidelines or applications, contact the Lansing office at 800/837-4532.
Summer Tour Attracts Thousands to Culture
With exceptional weather for summer traveling, Michigan's Great Outdoor
Culture Tour programs drew nearly 6,000 attendees to 85 hour-long
presentations hosted at local, state and national parks, national forest
campgrounds and historic sites around northern Lower Michigan and the
Upper Peninsula July 1-Aug. 15.
The tour, funded and sponsored by the Council in cooperation with the
Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, was supported in part by
the State Parks Division of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources,
the Eastern National Forest Interpretive Association, the Hiawatha
Interpretive Association, the Ottawa Interpretive Association, the
Huron-Manistee National Forests and the National Park Service. It was the
first project of its kind to package cultural resources offered through
the two Michigan councils for delivery under the auspices of natural
resource agencies and small rural community organizations.
Eighteen artists, historical roleplayers, musicians, and storytellers who
toured as part of the program created for Michigan's visitors and
residents lively pictures of the past, colorful legends and lore and the
flavor of lifestyles associated with the state's north woods and Great
Lakes. Attendees included visitors from throughout the Midwest and as far
away as Florida, California, Quebec and Japan. Special audiences reached
included young disabled campers, Head Start children, teen campers in a
Michigan United Conservation Clubs program and an Elderhostel group.
Well-received presenters in the tour were artist-storyteller Lois
Beardslee, storyteller Sheila Dailey Carroll, storyteller-musician Patty
Clark, the Collecting Consort musical group, singer-musician Wanda Degen,
historical roleplayer Michael Deren, the Dodworth Saxhorn Band,
singer-musician Kitty Donohoe, historical roleplayer Sandra Hansen,
musician-singers Tom and Chris Kastle, the Project Lakewell voyageur
group, the Mme. Cadillac Dancers troupe, historian Larry Massie,
singer-musician Lee Murdock, historical naturalists Sarah and Wil Reding,
storyteller Corinne Stavish, singer-musician Neil Woodward and poet Terry
Wooten.
The Council is evaluating response to and results of the 1998 tour for
potential to extend its reach in coming summers to similar audiences
around Michigan.
News from Projects
The Marguerite deAngeli Library of Lapeer launched its five-month
Chautauqua Diamond Jubilee Celebration Sept. 17 with an evening program,
"The Rehabilitation of Michigan Barns," by Touring Programs presenter
William Kimball. Other programs in the library's 75th anniversary series,
which received Council support, are listed in the Calendar.
* * * * *
The cooperative production of the University of Michigan and Vanguard
Films, "Porgy and Bess: An American Voice," which was shown on Public
Television earlier this year and was featured on the cover of our Winter
1998 newsletter, has received a number of awards: Best Educational Film
Award for 1997 from the Festival International Du Film Sur L'art in
Montreal, a Silver Screen Award from the U.S. International Film and Video
Festival in Chicago and was the only U.S. nominee for Best Arts
Documentary at the 1998 Banff Television Festival in Canada. The
videotape is available from the Council's Resource Center.
* * * * *
The Michigan State University Museum's scheduled exhibition, "America's
Fairs Educating Communities," has been rescheduled for November 2000
through June 2001. Touring versions of sections of the exhibit --
America's Fairs, Livestock Heritage and Horse/Harness Racing -- visited
county fairs around the state, the Upper Peninsula State Fair and the
Montgomery County (MD) Fair during July and August. The MSU Museum
exhibition will include historical components in turn-of-the-century
paintings and a replica of a 1900s Floral Hall as well as aspects of
contemporary fairs in a "Today's Fairs" section.
* * * * *
A travel resource highlighting historic maritime locales along Great Lakes
shorelines in northern Michigan has been produced by the Michigan Historic
Preservation Network. The full-color Sweetwater Trail map displays coastal
routes in the eastern Upper Peninsula and northeastern Lower Michigan, the
first in a series of seven maps that will ultimately trace more than 3,000
miles of the state's lakeshore.
Lighthouses, harbor towns and villages, underwater preserves, ethnic
heritage sites, harbors of refuge, bridges, lumber milltowns on historic
waterways, Great Lakes vessels and waterfront industries are among mapped
sites. Other area maps to be developed in the series include the central
and western Upper Peninsula, the Lake Michigan/Traverse region, the Lake
Michigan shore, the Lake Huron/Saginaw Bay area and Lake Erie/St. Clair.
Maps are available from the Network for $3 each. To request a copy, write
Sweetwater Trail Map, Michigan Historic Preservation Network, PO Box 720,
Clarkston MI 48347, or call 248/625-8181.
Notes of Interest
The Albion Public Library and the Rochester Hills Public Library have been
selected to participate in the "Lives Worth Knowing" reading and
discussion series, organized by the New York Council for the Humanities in
cooperation with the American Library Association's Public Program's
Office. They are among 35 libraries chosen to participated nationally.
The "Lives Worth Knowing" program, which is led by humanities scholars,
examines biography from four perspectives: "Distant Lives," "Intimate
Portraits," "The Unfamous" and "The Way I See It." Participating
libraries receive multiple copies of books for each theme, readers' guides
and support toward humanities scholar services.
* * * * *
Copies of a full-color booklet, "Michigan's State Capitol: Art, History
and Architecture," are available from the Council's Resource Center. The
booklet, which was published in 1986 prior to the Capitol's restoration,
features historical photographs of the building, its furnishings, art
within its public areas and its construction. It is available free (only
$2 to cover shipping costs) in limited quantities on a first-come,
first-served basis. The Resource Center also offers on a rental basis a
30-minute videotape, "Michigan's Capitol: A Symbol Renewed," which was
produced in 1989. Contact the Council's Lansing office at 800/837-4532 to
acquire a copy of the booklet or to rent the video.
* * * * *
German-American heritage, commerce and exchanges will be on the agenda for
the third International German-American Book Fair and Conference Nov. 5-7
at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti. "The Atlantic Bridge:
America and Germany, 1848-1998" is sponsored by the German-American
Heritage Foundation International. For information, contact foundation
president Eugene Strobel at 313/886-5065.
* * * * *
The deadline for Conservation Assessment Program (CAP) grants for 1999 is
Dec. 4, 1998. CAP grants are funded by the Institute of Museum and
Library Services (IMLS) and administered by Heritage Preservation of
Washington, DC. The grants provide matching support to small or medium
size museums for general conservation assessment or survey of collections,
environmental conditions and sites, assisted on-site by professional
conservators. For an application or information, contact Heritage
Preservation at 1730 K St. NW, Suite 566, Washington DC 20006-3836, or
call 202/634-1422. (E-mail inquiries to
eblackburn@heritagepreservation.org)
* * * * *
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