LEXINGTON, Ky.—Transylvania University’s Morlan Gallery will open its 2017 exhibition year on Friday, Jan. 13, with an exhibition of Affrilachian visual artists and poets.
Titled “Black Bone” after the Affrilachian Poets’ first literary anthology to be released this month, Morlan’s exhibition will showcase artists and poets from states in the Appalachian region—including Kentucky, South Carolina, North Carolina and Ohio. They will share how those connected to Affrilachia tell the story of the United States through visual and written culture.
The exhibition, which will be free and open to the public, will run through Feb. 14.
An opening reception for the artists will be Thursday, Jan. 19, from 7:30-9 p.m. The Affrilachian Poets will give a reading that evening at 6 in Carrick Theater adjacent to the gallery.
Coined by Frank X Walker, the term Affrilachia is “an ever-evolving cultural landscape poised to render the invisible visible. Affrilachia embraces a multicultural influence, a spectrum of people who consider Appalachia home and/or identify strongly with the trials and triumphs of being of this region,” according to the group’s website.
The “Black Bone” exhibition is part of Transylvania’s Creative Intelligence series, which also includes concerts and lectures. The theme of this year’s series is “Unlearn Fear + Hate,” which is a term from one of Walker’s poems.
Artists in Morlan’s “Black Bone” exhibition include: Brian Campbell, Angel Clark, Willis “Bing” Davis, Natasha Giles, Jared Owens, Kelly Phelps, Kyle Phelps, Bobby Scroggins, Bianca Spriggs, Kiptoo Tarus, Frank X Walker, Valeria Watson and Lavon Van Williams.
Poets participating in the reading are: Makalani Bandele, Gerald Coleman, Ricardo Nazario Colon, Mitchell L.H. Douglas, Kelly Norman Ellis, Asha French, Crystal Goodwoman, Dorian Hairston, Jeremy Paden, Danni Quintos, Bianca Spriggs, Frank X Walker and Keith Wilson.
If you go
•Public reading: Affrilachian Poets present selected reading from “Black Bone,” Thursday, Jan. 19, 6 p.m., Carrick Theater, Mitchell Fine Arts Center. A book release party to follow; cash and checks only.
•Opening Reception for the Artists: Thursday, Jan. 19, 7:30-9 p.m.
•Lexington Gallery Hop: Friday, Jan. 20, 5-8 p.m.
•Tuesday Art Talk with Kiptoo Tarus: Jan. 24, 12:30-1:15 p.m.
•Tuesday Art Talk with Natasha Giles: Jan. 31, 12:30-1:15 p.m.
•Tuesday Art Talk with Angel Clark: Feb. 7, 12:30-1:15 p.m.
All events will be free and open to the public and in Morlan Gallery unless otherwise noted. The gallery will be closed on Jan. 16 in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.